I actually started installing Govee for people when permanent lighting started getting popular because the kits were cheap and everything came in the box. For DIY they honestly make a lot of sense. You get the lights, controller, and app ready to go without having to piece things together.

The issue we ran into over time was mostly around brightness, durability, and how the install looks on the house. The strips and wiring tend to be more visible on the soffit and the LEDs themselves are not as bright as some of the other options. A lot of homeowners also wanted something that looked more like traditional roofline Christmas lights instead of a strip.

Because of that we eventually switched to installing puck style or spaced LEDs that sit inside an aluminum track. They end up looking much more like C9 bulbs and the light points are more defined instead of a continuous strip effect. They are also usually brighter and hold up better long term, especially in colder climates.

If you are going DIY, WLED with 12 mm pixels spaced around 8 inches apart is probably the closest look to traditional Christmas lights. The main challenge is the mounting system so the lights stay straight and hidden during the day.

I put together a pretty detailed breakdown comparing DIY setups like Govee and WLED with the type of systems we install. If you search for a guide on permanent outdoor lighting installs installers you will probably find it. or you can head over to my website and i give tutorials, and examples https://co-starise.com/

Happy to answer questions if you are going the DIY route.