CES 2025: Govee’s new Pixel Light will remind you of a Lite Brite

Today in Consumer Electronics Trade Show (CES), Govee introduces a range of new lighting products, and while previous projects such as lamps and Christmas lights have focused on function, today’s releases are all about fun. Govee has also stuck heavily to a retro theme, launching a range of digital tablets that display pixelated images or GIFs: they have a real Lite-Brite vibe.

The Pixel Light looks so much like a gaming console that I spent some time trying to figure out if I could unlock this feature. Instead, it’s a large pixel display, and you can change the display using the Govee app.

While it’s not the touchscreen I would have wanted for my 2025 Lite Brite fever dream, the app offers the same feel, allowing you to hand-draw what you see on the screen using the DIY feature would like to see. You can choose colors, shapes and drawing tools. When you’re done, tap Apply and the image will be sent to your screen.

Photo credit: Amanda Blum

There are also many presets, from nature to sports to food. This is perhaps the best use of the tablet, as these images are already well refined and there are plenty of animated GIFs you can use. You can view live streams of information from weather to sports scores to Bitcoin values. There are patterns that move to whatever music you play and some patterns play 8-bit music.

Now if you see a heavily pixelated image next to 8-bit music and no early Nintendo games come to mind, you’re playing in a different technology bubble, because that’s all I can think of. And while the console had static images of arcade games that you could view, it didn’t have animated GIFs, and I thought that was a real miss. If this tablet constantly showed Frogger, Super Mario Bros., or Donkey Kong, I would let it play until it burned out.

You can upload your own image and have it sent to the ad in a highly pixelated format. It wasn’t fantastic if you ask me, but it was an interesting experiment.

And this is how pointillism works.
Photo credit: Amanda Blum

There is an AI engine that you can ask to generate images for the tablet, and the experience may vary. For example, I asked several times about Rainbow Brite or Super Mario Bros. (I was determined), and in both cases the AI ​​engine had no idea what I was talking about. But if you ask for a rainbow, you get one.

Photo credit: Amanda Blum

The last thing is that you can actually create your own animated GIF. However, it’s unlikely you would do this from your phone, and this is where my problems with the Pixel Light lie. All DIY and drawing tools have a touchscreen, but they are absurdly small. Too small to be able to draw properly with your fingertip. It’s very awkward, perhaps intentionally so (so you’re more into the “fun” aspect), but I can’t imagine spending the time making an animated GIF because I’m frustrated with the size of the touchscreen.

The Pixel Light is available in two sizes: 5.75 x 7 inches and 5.75 x 10 inches. It comes with brackets for the wall or a shelf. It is expected to go on sale in early summer, with a target price of $100 to $200.