There are times when I spend just minutes with a new product and other times it captivates my attention for hours. The latter was the case with Monster Illuminessence color-changing LED mood lighting system.

The mood lighting kits are ready to use out of the box and will instantly get any room ready for a party, holiday dinner or anytime you want to feature a lighting atmosphere with different moods.

When I say I spent hours, this was not a case of the setup being difficult. In fact, it’s incredibly easy to get set up in minutes. Everything is controlled by a hand-held radio frequency remote. There’s no software, app or any download needed. What took me so long is deciding which setup I liked and worked best.

The system is sold in parts, with light strips, bulbs and longer power extension cables, enabling it to work in rooms of any size. The bigger the room, the more you get.

The two-light mood kit ($19.88) has a pair of multicolor/white LED dimmable bulbs. These screw into any standard light fixture and the setup is done. With the RF remote control you can instantly turn the lights on or off, change the color of the light, control dimming, set up programs or use one of the preset programs. The programs include beach, Christmas and Halloween themes. Whatever you choose, the response is instant and kind of fun. Or just set it to “White” for everyday white light.

The USB-powered LED strip mood light kit ($28.88) has an extra bright multicolor/white dimmable 150-LED 16.4-foot strip and the RF remote. This is great for lining a wall behind a sofa or even the rim under furniture.

If you really want to go all out, you can pair up to four Illuminessence remotes with up to 30 LED bulbs for the right light throughout your home. Small space ($14.88) LED mood light kits have an RF remote, a single bulb and a 6.5-foot 60-LED strip. A large space ($28.88) kit has the remote with two bulbs and two strips.

www.monsterstore.com