Ambilight is a system developed by Philips that attempts to create a more immersive experience by supplementing colors on TV with an ambient glow. While this technology hasn’t taken off in the mainstream, with the advent of cheap microcontrollers and single-board computers, hackers have devised ways to emulate this type of system to add a similar effect to TVs and even computer monitors.
One such method is Ambipi.tv. You can find code for the setup on GitHub, and the hardware that you’ll need is available here. You’ll need to provide your own Raspberry Pi, but the kit includes everything else that you’ll need to get started. Several options are available, so you can customize it to your needs.
Notably, the kit includes a remote and IR receiver for XBMC control. While gamepads and remote keyboards may work well to control Pis, sometimes it’s hard to beat the convenience of an invisible light beam.
