The LED lights have an adhesive peel and stick back, and the two rolls provide a lot of lights. The instructions state that the light strips can be cut at certain intervals, but I'm not sure what would happen if I did cut them. Perhaps cutting excess off the end would be manageable but this is an electrical system, so cutting wires seems a bit risky. The remote control allows for a lot of creativity with multiple lighting options: three colors, seven colors, flashing, fading, bright, soft, or program your own. It really is such a sophisticated little system that a small booklet covering its operations seems imperative. The lights themselves are probably safe for outside use, but the A/C adapter, the receiver, and the remote are not. The tape probably needs a clean dry surface to adhere to so under a deck rail is probably not possible. Still, there may be a way to keep the electric source components dry while using the lights outside but I haven't figured it out yet. I'll keep trying. Ideally, these lights would be great in a bar, restaurant, club, or a business or loft apartment. They really are ultra-cool. But they need better instructions.
I'm torn on how to rate this product. On the one hand I find the xtf2015 LED Light System very sophisticated technologically; they perform amazingly well and the remote control with all its options is rather amazing. But the lack of any detailed instructions to guide one’s use of the product leaves the user with a lot of guesswork. I don't want to ruin them by applying them incorrectly; they're too nice for that. I'll figure out where to put them after more consideration. I give them three stars. The product probably deserves five, but with the lack of important information like installation guidelines and more detailed operating instructions (better packaging is the least of concerns) three stars is all I can muster. Sorry.
I received this product at a discount for evaluation. I am providing my honest and unbiased review, and the vendor in no way has influenced or edited my comments.