Govee, a smart tech company that produces everything from lights to rice cookers, tends to suffer from trying to be everything to everyone. Their apps are often overwhelming and hard to navigate, and I’ve found their hardware underwhelming in the past—including a number of sensors and plugs that failed quickly. But they’ve released a whole line of decent space heaters at good prices, with just enough connectivity to be called “smart.”
I recently tested two units—the GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Max (currently available for $119.99, down from $149.99) and the GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite (on sale for $34.99, down from $49.99). While I have a few reservations about the Max, it’s still a solid heater, while the Lite turned out to be worth recommending to anyone.
Powerful heat output
Let’s start with the positives. Both units will efficiently heat the space they’re designed for.
The Max is intended for rooms from 300-500 square feet, which is precisely where I used it—in my 320-square-foot living room, where it worked as well as any 1,500 watt heater ever has. It’s a tower heater, and given the wintery conditions outside and the fact that I’m relying on the heater as the primary heat source, it remained on constantly. Govee suggests it can heat up a room this size in two seconds, and either I’m misunderstanding them or this unit can’t live up to the lofty promise. However, within a few minutes, it had warmed the room by two degrees within ten feet, and did so steadily each time I turned it on over the next few hours, ably maintaining the target temperature of 70 degrees. The Max offers the basic features you’d expect: You can turn the heater to low, medium, or high, or set an auto temperature if you’d prefer. The tower can oscillate and can be used as a fan, rather than as a heater.
The Lite, which can heat 200 square feet of space, is a diminutive baby brother to the Max, clocking in at just over nine inches. It includes all the same features, save for oscillation, and also does an exceptional job of heating a smaller space (200 square feet is precisely the size of my kitchen, and probably your bathroom or desk area) much more quickly than the Max. .
How smart are they?
Credit: the Govee app
As I’ve mentioned, Govee really likes to pack their apps with too many options and customizations, but they’ve shown some restraint with the Lite. In addition to the expected scheduling tools, the Lite offers data about how long your heater has been running and how much money you’ve saved using it. (Either I never saved any, or this function doesn’t work very well; I’m not sure how they’d calculate it anyway.) THe app allows you to create schedules for when the heater goes on and off during the day, and to lock the settings, turn off the display, and, interestingly, pair the heater to a smart thermometer/hygrometer that can read the temperature and humidity. (I would not suggest Govee’s own thermo hygrometer for this, as when I tried it out it failed spectacularly a day into use.)
It is worth mentioning that Govee products don’t tend to pair easily for me, and while the Max synced up quickly, I struggled with the Lite for hours. Once set up, they connect via Bluetooth, so proximity is necessary to make adjustments to your settings, although the units can at least be can be turned on and off via wifi automations. Despite initial setup problems, they have both consistently connected through the last few weeks.
The Max app goes overboard
The app experience goes off the rails for the Max, which, unlike all of the other heaters in the line comes with a “realistic 3D fireplace.” You might imagine one of those wall mounted, gently glowing fake fireplaces, but the Max’s take on the feature is a small, enclosed glass sculpture at the bottom of the tower, approximately six inches by six inches. It doesn’t so much resemble a fireplace or fire. (A friend asked me, “that is a flaming pile of poop?”)
The app is also less than aesthetically pleasing, congested with all kinds of options for the fake fireplace. You can animate the flames with a variety of different ambiance modes, from “breathe” to “warm,” and choose the brightness. You can also turn off the ambiance mode altogether. The other models in this line all have a more restrained design with no fireplace and the same wattage, so I can’t help but wonder if I could’ve gotten the power of the Max in a slightly smaller, less animated display.
Integrations galore
Really, the app does little more than act as a remote control for the heaters, but that’s OK, because Govee has something many other smart brands don’t: integrations. Govee works with Google Home, HomeKit, Alexa, and IFTTT. You can create automations to trigger the heaters based on all sorts of logic, which is great, because both heaters go off automatically after 24 hours as a safety feature. Setting an automation can kick them back on, and is well advised.
The Smart Heater Lite is a great buy, but skip the Max
Smart heaters are relatively new to the market, and few companies inhabit the space. While the recently reviewed Dyson Hot + Cool purifier did a great job at spot heating and gently warming a room, it could not be used as a primary heater like the Govee Max. Despite my grouchy notes about some aspects of the app, I’ve been generally impressed with how well both heaters work, with the Lite emerging as the real winner. Its small stature, but huge output make it highly effective in spaces ywhere ou might not be able to fit a standup heater.
While I’d skip the Max for aesthetic reasons in lieu of another heater from the line, like the GoveeLife Smart Electric Space Heater, the Lite earns a big thumbs up. It’s a great, inexpensive gift for others or for yourself—if you’ve got the watts, it’ll bring the heat.
