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Have you ever sat down ready to relax for the evening after a long day only to discover that you left the kitchen light on? Or the basement light on (ugh stairs)? It’s truly a nightmare since getting back up off the couch is the absolute last thing you want to do.
Enter the connected light bulb! With these smart lights in place, you can turn off the lights you, your partner, your children, and your guests leave on absentmindedly.
These lights can often be controlled by Alexa or another voice assistant, so you can turn lights on and off without lifting a finger, let alone walking all the way across the room – that’s just way too labour intensive for our tastes.
To help you choose the right connected light bulbs for your home, we spent 29 hours researching these smart light bulbs and analyzing 32 different products along with 1235 customer reviews to bring you honest and accurate reviews on the best connected light bulbs in Canada.
These light bulbs are easy to use, high-quality, and well-designed options that you really can’t go wrong choosing.
Following our last update, we recommend the TP-Link KL130 Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Light Bulb for its variety, ease of use, performance, and overall quality.
Our Top Pick Connected Light Bulb in 2023
Overall, the TP-Link KL130 Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Light Bulb is a choice that would set your home apart from all others with smart light bulbs. With an extraordinary selection of colors to choose from and the best connectivity on the market, you won’t be disappointed with this smart bulb.
Pros:
- Can be controlled from anywhere
- Can set schedules
- 16 million colors to choose from
- Connects to an app instead of a hub; all you need is wi-fi (hubs are optional for voice control)
Cons:
- Requires a strong and reliable wi-fi connection
Our selection of the best models available right now:
- TP-Link KL130 Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Light Bulb
- Philips Hue A19 Light Bulb
- Sengled Smart Light Bulb
- Nooie Smart Bulb
- Govee LED Bluetooth Light Bulb
- Peteme LED Smart Bulb
- LE LampUX Wi-Fi Smart Light Bulb
- Cree BA19-08027OMF-12CE26-1C100 Connected LED Light Bulb
Connected Light Bulb Comparative Table
| Image | Product | Features | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Top Pick
|
TP-Link KL130 Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Light Bulb
|
9,5
|
Check Price on Amazon |
|
Upgrade Pick
|
Philips Hue A19 Light Bulb
|
9,6
|
Check Price on Amazon |
|
Budget Pick
|
Sengled Smart Light Bulb
|
9
|
Check Price on AmazonCheck Price at Best Buy |
Our Pick for The Best Connected Light Bulb
Presentation of the TP-Link KL130 Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Light Bulb
The Best Overall
TP-Link
If you’re interested in a smart lightbulb that offers all the features you need and can offer a great range of display options, the TP-Link KL130 Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Light Bulb is the ideal choice for your home. It is reliable, highly connective, and easy to set up.
TP-Link KL130 Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Light Bulb Video Review
What We Think of the TP-Link KL130 Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Light Bulb
TP-Link’s smart light bulb is one of the best on the market for a variety of reasons. While it does require you to have a strong and reliable wi-fi connection at all times, that is essentially the only downside. This light bulb allows you to connect via wi-fi instead of the more common Bluetooth connection, and you don’t need a hub. While you can voice control the light bulb via Amazon, Google, and Microsoft assistants, you can also simply use the app.
The light bulb is dimmable, which is a feature perfect for creating different atmosphere’s in your home. You can adjust the brightness between 800 and 850 lumens, so this will act as a standard light brightness. This is a 10.5 Watt bulb, so it is also one of the more powerful smart lightbulbs on the market. With 16 million different colors to choose from, you will never feel like you are missing out on anything.
I should have upgraded to smart light bulbs a long time ago. I love that I can change the color anytime to fit my mood and whatever I’m doing. Voice control is the greatest thing ever, and since it’s dimmable, I can really get the ambiance I want in every room. Now that I know how great it works, I’ll be upgraded the rest of my home’s light bulbs as well.
Nora W.
Two of the great features of this light bulb are that you can control it from anywhere, and you can set schedules. With the help of the app, you can create a schedule that tells your light bulb when to turn on, what color to be, and how bright to be. As long as you have a wi-fi connection, you can control the light bulb from anywhere; you don’t need to be in the same room, or even inside the house.
TP-Link KL130 Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Light Bulb Specifications
- Brightness: 800/850 lumens
- Light Color: Multicolored
- Wattage: 10.5 Watts
- Dimmable: Yes
- Wi-Fi or Bluetooth: Wi-Fi
- Hub Compatibility: Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Microsoft Cortana
- Warranty: 2 years
TP-Link KL130 Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Light Bulb Pros and Cons
Pros
Pros
- Can be controlled from anywhere
- Can set schedules
- 16 million colors to choose from
- Connects to an app instead of a hub; all you need is wi-fi (hubs are optional for voice control)
Cons
- Requires a strong and reliable wi-fi connection
Our Final Opinion About the TP-Link KL130 Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Light Bulb
Quality 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Effectiveness 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Design 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Price 5.0 out of 5.0 stars
Overall, the TP-Link KL130 Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Light Bulb is a choice that would set your home apart from all others with smart light bulbs. With an extraordinary selection of colors to choose from and the best connectivity on the market, you won’t be disappointed with this smart bulb.
Our Upgrade Pick for a Connected Light Bulb
Presentation of the Philips Hue A19 Light Bulb
The Advanced Choice
Philips
If the standard smart light bulb feature list just doesn’t grab your attention, you should check out the Philips Hue A19 Light Bulb. It has advanced color selections and a long lifespan, so you won’t have to worry about lacking any smart features for quite some time.
Philips Hue A19 Light Bulb Video Review
What We Think of the Philips Hue A19 Light Bulb
This Philips Hue light bulb is a great choice for nearly any home. There are a couple of downsides though, so we’ll tell you about those first. The one most people comment on is its brightness. This light bulb is only rated at 650 lumens, so it is certainly not bright enough to light up an entire room on its own. You also need to purchase a bridge separately if you want to set up timers and routines, which is a bit inconvenient considering this is already a more expensive bulb than average.
The most redeeming feature this light bulb has to offer is its color selection. You can choose from 16 million colors when you want a different appearance in a room, but you also have 50,000 shades of white light to choose when you are interested in a more traditional light bulb color. This is the most dynamic color selection we see with smart light bulbs.
I am not the kind of person that likes a blaring lamp in my living room, I much prefer a darker atmosphere, so this dimmer bulb is perfect for me. Plus, it’s dimmable, so I can always add a bit more light than its darkest setting. I love how many color selections there are, and the Bluetooth connection has been quite reliable for me so far. I’m pretty impressed with this, honestly.
Aaron E.
You can voice control this light bulb via Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, but the Bluetooth only connection means you are limited in range. You can control up to 10 different bulbs in one rub without a hub, which is pretty unique. The 8.5 Watt power output is quite respectable, and standard for this kind of light bulb. Of course, the most advanced thing about this smart bulb is the color selection, so if you want a bulb for every occasion, this is definitely the best choice.
Philips Hue A19 Light Bulb Specifications
- Brightness: 650 lumens
- Light Color: White ambiance and multicolored
- Wattage: 8.5 Watts
- Dimmable: Yes
- Wi-Fi or Bluetooth: Bluetooth
- Hub Compatibility: Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant
Philips Hue A19 Light Bulb Pros and Cons
Pros
Pros
- 50,000 shades of white light and 16 million colors to choose from
- Can control up to 10 lights in one room without a hub
- Most dynamic color choices when compared to similar light bulbs
Cons
Cons
- Quite dim
- Cannot set timers or routines without purchasing a bridge separately
Our Final Opinion About the Philips Hue A19 Light Bulb
Quality 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Effectiveness 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Design 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Price 5.0 out of 5.0 stars
Overall, the Philips Hue A19 Light Bulb is a great choice for those individuals more concerned with features than brightness because this bulb is quite dim indeed. However, with 16 million colors and a full spectrum of white light to choose from, you won’t mind the downsides of this connected light bulb.
Our Budget Pick for a Connected Light Bulb
Presentation of the Sengled Smart Light Bulb
The Affordable Choice
Sengled
Adding a smart light bulb to your home doesn’t have to cost you a lot of money. The affordable Sengled Smart Light Bulb is a choice that can make any household happy about its price, and it has a long lifespan and high quality power and brightness to ensure the perfect lighting scenario at all times.
What We Think of the Sengled Smart Light Bulb
Sengled offers every household, no matter their income level, the chance to own a high quality smart light bulb. Although it’s missing some features like dimmability and non-white color selections, it has everything that is important to a smart light bulb. It allows you to set timers and routines via its Bluetooth connection, and it can be controlled from anywhere, even outside the home.
The Sengled hub allows for connection of an unlimited number of light bulbs within your home, so every light fixture could have a smart bulb in it if you chose to do that. You can even attach accessories like motion sensors to the hub and lights to make your home even smarter. The white light is produced at a steady 800 lumens, bright enough to light up any room without leaving shadows in the corners.
I’d never owned a smart light bulb before, so I wanted to buy a cheap one in case I realized I didn’t really need it. I’ve actually really enjoyed having one, and I think when this one needs to be replaced I’ll find one with more color options. It does everything I need it to though, and it was so simple to set up, even for a tech-challenged mom like me.
Hannah R.
This 25,000 hour lifespan smart light bulb has a wattage of 8.7 Watts, making it as powerful as all standard light bulbs. You can use both Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant to control the smart bulb with your voice, so you don’t even always need to use the app. The 3-year warranty that comes with this product gives us a lot of confidence in its quality, and is part of the reason this model is our top recommended budget pick.
Sengled Smart Light Bulb Specifications
- Brightness: 800 lumens
- Light Color: White
- Wattage: 8.7 Watts
- Dimmable: No
- Bulb Lifespan: 25,000 hours
- Wi-Fi or Bluetooth: Bluetooth
- Hub Compatibility: Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant
- Warranty: 3 years
Sengled Smart Light Bulb Pros and Cons
Pros
Pros
- Can connect an unlimited number of bulbs to the Sengled hub along with accessories like motion sensors
- Can be controlled from anywhere
- Can create timers and routines
Cons
- Not dimmable
Our Final Opinion About the Sengled Smart Light Bulb
Quality 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Effectiveness 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Design 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Price 5.0 out of 5.0 stars
Overall, the Sengled Smart Light Bulb is the best choice for budget shoppers. It isn’t dimmable and it doesn’t offer any colored light, but it has all of the features you could ask for from a smart light bulb. Plus, a long warranty period makes sure your small investment is protected.
Alternative Products to Consider
Presentation of the Nooie Smart Bulb
The Two-Pack Alternative
Nooie
If one smart lightbulb isn’t enough, you’ll want to have a look at this two pack alternative. The Nooie Smart Bulb has everything to offer that you could want: a long lifespan, reliable brightness, high power but energy efficient, and an app that has more customizability than you’d expect.
Nooie Smart Bulb Video Review
What We Think of the Nooie Smart Bulb
Nooie’s smart bulb is one that would make a great addition to any home. With a dual pack, you have the opportunity to use them in a couple different rooms in the house, or have one large room completely upgraded. With the help of the Wi-Fi connected app, you can choose themes, decide on a schedule, and even set timers. Coordinating your bulbs together can produce some pretty amazing changes to the atmosphere in your home.
This bulb has a max brightness of 800 lumens, and it is dimmable for when you want to relax in a softer environment. You can choose between cool white light, warm white light, and 16 million colors every day, allowing you to get exactly the vibe you’re looking for in your home for every mood and occasion. Its 10 Watts of power means you won’t have to be worry about inadequate performance.
I love my Nooie bulbs! The colors it produces are just absolutely extraordinary, and I never thought I would be able to do so much with it through the app. You can set schedules and timers, choose themes, its pretty amazing. I would never choose another brand after experiencing the quality of these smart light bulbs. I have one in my bedroom and one in my living room, I couldn’t be happier.
Eve O.
The lifespan of these smart bulbs is nearly 22 thousand hours. If you use it roughly 3 hours per day, that’s about 20 years before you would need to replace them! In case they don’t live up to your expectations, there is a one-year warranty in place to give you some options. You can use Amazon Alexa to voice control the smart bulbs, but that’s where the connectivity ends.
Nooie Smart Bulb Specifications
- Brightness: 800 lumens
- Light Color: Multicolored
- Wattage: 10 Watts
- Dimmable: Yes
- Bulb Lifespan: 21,900 hours
- Wi-Fi or Bluetooth: Wi-Fi
- Hub Compatibility: Amazon Alexa
- Warranty: 1 year
Nooie Smart Bulb Pros and Cons
Pros
Pros
- 16 million colors to choose from
- Comes in a 2-pack
- Has themes you can choose from
- App control, no hub required
Cons
- Limited voice control options
Our Final Opinion About the Nooie Smart Bulb
Quality 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Effectiveness 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Design 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Price 5.0 out of 5.0 stars
Overall, the Nooie Smart Bulb is a product perfect for an expanding home. With two bulb per purchase, you have the opportunity to really smarten up a room, or you can have a couple different rooms built for every occasion. Either way, the quality of this bulb will have you loving your home like it’s brand new.
Presentation of the Govee LED Bluetooth Light Bulb
The Immersive Alternative
Govee
If you’re interested in a smart light bulb that can elevate your home more than any other model on the market, the Govee LED Bluetooth Light Bulb is exactly right for you. It has incredibly unique and creative features that will blow your mind, but the price won’t overwhelm your bank account.
Govee LED Bluetooth Light Bulb Video Review
What We Think of the Govee LED Bluetooth Light Bulb
The Govee light bulb connects via Bluetooth, so you’ll be able to control it from your phone no matter where you are in the house – now you can turn lights on before you reach the room, so you’ll never again step on a piece of Lego and risk waking the entire house with your pitiful moans of pain, hurray. If you struggle with falling asleep or waking up at a proper hour in the morning, you can take full advantage of the sunset and sunrise functions with the Govee light bulb as well.
The light is dimmable if the default brightness setting is a bit too harsh for your tastes, but you may not need it very often since the light only emits about 550 lumens, which is fairly dim on its own. If you’re hosting guests and want to make things a little more exciting, the colour-changing feature of the Govee bulb will let you surprise your friends and family with a burst of colour.
I could not have imagined a better experience with a smart light bulb. It works flawlessly, and there are so many cool things I can do with it. I like that it doesn’t connect to any home assistants too, I don’t trust those things. The app is really easy to work with and I have a feeling I will be using this bulb for a long time. I may even need to get a few more to connect the rest of my house.
Anthony U.
This light bulb has an estimated working lifespan of 20,000 hours, which is fairly competitive but certainly not at the top of the scale either. If you love this light bulb and want to outfit your entire home, you should keep in mind that while the app does support group control, there is a limit of 6 bulbs that can be controlled at the same time. One of the most impressive features on this bulb is that you can set it to change colours in time to music with a soft or dynamic rhythm.
Govee LED Bluetooth Light Bulb Specifications
- Brightness: 550 lumen
- Light Color: White and multicolored
- Wattage: 7 Watts
- Dimmable: Yes
- Bulb Lifespan: 20,000 hours
- Wi-Fi or Bluetooth: Bluetooth
- Hub Compatibility: None
Govee LED Bluetooth Light Bulb Pros and Cons
Pros
Pros
- Can change to colors you choose from your environment
- Syncs to music
- 100 ft Bluetooth range
- 8 scene modes to choose from including sunrise and sunset modes, timers, and more in the app
Cons
- No voice control compatibility
- Not very bright
Our Final Opinion About the Govee LED Bluetooth Light Bulb
Quality 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Effectiveness 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Design 4.0 out of 5.0 stars Price 5.0 out of 5.0 stars
Overall, the Govee LED Bluetooth Light Bulb is the best choice for feeling completely immersed in your environment. With innovative features that extend this smart bulb’s functionality beyond the standards of the industry, you won’t ever regret this budget-friendly purchase.
Presentation of the Peteme LED Smart Bulb
The User-Friendly Alternative
Peteme
It truly doesn’t get any easier than setting up smart light bulbs through Peteme’s app Smart Life. In under ten minutes, you can have all four Peteme LED Smart Bulbs set up and working perfectly so you can spend less time fighting with technology and more time letting it do all the work for you – as nature intended.
Peteme LED Smart Bulb Video Review
What We Think of the Peteme LED Smart Bulb
The Peteme LED smart bulb is a great choice if you struggle with even the simplest technology. Even the worst handymen and women will be able to install these smart lights since they twist into place, can be named right on the app, and you’re good to go. At 600 lumens, these lights aren’t as bright as some people may prefer, but they do have white and multicolour options that make them a great option for mood lighting during movies or romantic evenings.
These light bulbs are 7-watt bulbs with a standard E26 base and A19 shape that make them fairly universal for every home. They connect via Smart Life app offered by Peteme, and you can name the bulbs in the app for super simple control. These smart bulbs also connect to voice assistants including Alexa, Google nest, and Siri for that futuristic voice activation experience we’ve all imagined at one point or another.
These lights are incredibly easy to set up, and I really appreciate that I can name the lights right in the app so I always know what light I am controlling. There are many settings to choose from like a sunset, timed on/off, and different colours. Total setup took less than 10 minutes and they’ve been working great for the last two months. No complaints!
George L.
These smart LED bulbs are very long lasting compared to the older bulb styles with an estimated lifespan of 27,000 working hours. They are also dimmable so you can achieve the perfect effect during a scary movie or as a night light for your child – whatever you decide! This pack of 4 is affordable and provides a great first kit to test out smart lights in your home and see the value and convenience they can add.
Peteme LED Smart Bulb Specifications
- Brightness: 600 lumens
- Light Color: White and multicoloured
- Wattage: 7 Watts
- Dimmable: Yes
- Bulb Lifespan: 27,000 hours
- Wi-Fi or Bluetooth: Wi-Fi
- Hub Compatibility: Not required
Peteme LED Smart Bulb Pros and Cons
Pros
Pros
- Multicoloured options for fun room lighting
- Connects easily with an app – no hub required
- Can be controlled from anywhere
- Is dimmable for mood lighting
Cons
Cons
- Longevity leaves something to be desired
Our Final Opinion About the Peteme LED Smart Bulb
Quality 4.0 out of 5.0 stars Effectiveness 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Design 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Price 5.0 out of 5.0 stars
Overall, we’re impressed by the Peteme smart light bulb. The pack of 4 adds great value to your home so you can outfit all the major-traffic areas at once. We are a bit disappointed with the longevity issue considering these are LED bulbs, but the bulbs themselves are high-quality, ease to use, and offer incredible variety to your normally-boring lighting.
Presentation of the LE LampUX Wi-Fi Smart Light Bulb
The Soft-Light Alternative
LE
Though many people usually opt for a brighter, harsher white for the main spaces in their home, this LE Lamp UX Wi-Fi smart light bulb uses a warm white instead so you can enjoy calmer, softer lighting for relaxation in any room in the house.
What We Think of the LE LampUX Wi-Fi Smart Light Bulb
The LampUX smart bulb works with Wi-Fi to connect to an app on your phone so that you can control the light from anywhere. The white light setting is a warm light only, so it isn’t great for dim rooms that require light from a synthetic source, but this light is a great pick for mood lighting or evening lighting since it is warmer and softer. There are also numerous colours to choose from with this bulb as well.
The durability of this light bulb is a bit lower than most others at roughly 15,000 hours of working life, though this is still worlds better than non-LED bulbs. When connecting this bulb to your Wi-Fi, you may experience some trouble, but there is a simple fix! All you need to do is turn off the 5GHz Wi-Fi so that the light can connect to the 2.4Ghz Wi-Fi since this is all it supports. If you don’t have the 2.4 option, this light will not work for you.
This is a good light overall. I had a bit of trouble connecting to my Wi-Fi but when I tried the alternative method suggested, it worked. I like the different colour options and settings, though the most important feature for me was the dimming. There is a small lag when changing the colour or brightness, but that’s not such a big deal.
Seth P.
The light output from this bulb is a bit better than many others on our list with 806 lumens, but the bulb is still the average 60W equivalent. It does work with voice assistants like google devices and Alexa, so you’ll be able to enjoy hands free controls. The bulb is dimmable to achieve the desired level of lighting during a variety of situations, and 8 pre-set scenes make it easy to achieve customized effects for every room in the home.
LE LampUX Wi-Fi Smart Light Bulb Specifications
- Brightness: 806 lumens
- Light Color: Warm white and multicoloured
- Wattage: 9 Watts
- Dimmable: Yes
- Bulb Lifespan: 15,000 hours
- Wi-Fi or Bluetooth: Wi-Fi
- Hub Compatibility: Not required
LE LampUX Wi-Fi Smart Light Bulb Pros and Cons
Pros
Pros
- Over 16 million colours
- 800+ lumens is stronger than the average
- Hands free control with voice assistant connectivity
- 8 pre-set scenes for every room of the house
Cons
Cons
- Very difficult to set up – may have to try numerous times
Our Final Opinion About the LE LampUX Wi-Fi Smart Light Bulb
Quality 4.0 out of 5.0 stars Effectiveness 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Design 4.0 out of 5.0 stars Price 5.0 out of 5.0 stars
Though the functionality of this smart light bulb is outstanding when it works, the set-up process can be so frustrating that you may want to give up before you get it working, so make sure you have the right Wi-Fi frequency before purchase. Other than that, you shouldn’t have any performance or quality issues with this smart connected bulb.
Presentation of the Cree BA19-08027OMF-12CE26-1C100 Connected LED Light Bulb
The High-Powered Alternative
Cree
Many connected lightbulbs don’t offer the same light strength or longevity that standard LED light bulbs do. If you want a truly high-powered, omni-directional light flor for your home that can be controlled with your voice or smartphone, the Cree BA19-08027OMF-12CE26-1C100 connected LED light bulb is the ideal choice.
Cree BA19-08027OMF-12CE26-1C100 Connected LED Light Bulb Video Review
What We Think of the Cree BA19-08027OMF-12CE26-1C100 Connected LED Light Bulb
This Cree connected light bulb is one of those products that will require some give-and-take. While it is superior to many products when looking at some features, other aspects of this bulb may be a disappointment to users. It is important to weigh your needs carefully and truly understand what you are looking for. The price is very reasonable, so your budget is one factor that shouldn’t need to be considered.
With a brightness of 815 lumens and a wattage of 11.5 (which is a 60 watt equivalent), this model has some more power than most other connected lightbulbs. Rather than light emission coming from only the top, the more unique omni-directional design ensures that the light truly travels in a full 360 degrees to light up the room. This is ideal for workspaces and kitchens where visibility matters.
I’m not really big on fancy, connected technology, but I wanted to feel that my house was safe when I was away. I like that I can set schedules with this light bulb, because it will always look like someone is there. The dimmable setting is nice when I switch over from reading to watching tv, I feel like it helps me get ready for bed. I would recommend this product to others.
beth w.
This bulb can only product soft white light, so you don’t have any color selection, but it is dimmable to adapt to different occasions, such as reading vs a movie night. While it isn’t compatible with all popular home assistants, it does have a fair amount of connectivity to different hub types. With a 25,000 hour battery life and simple design, it can fit into any home with lower expectations of a connected bulb.
Cree BA19-08027OMF-12CE26-1C100 Connected LED Light Bulb Specifications
- Brightness: 815 lumens
- Light Color: Soft white
- Wattage: 11.5 (60 watt equivalent)
- Dimmable: Yes
- Wi-Fi or Bluetooth: Wi-Fi
- Hub Compatibility: Amazon Alexa, Wink, WeMo, SmartThings, other certified Zigbee platforms
- Warranty: 3 years
Cree BA19-08027OMF-12CE26-1C100 Connected LED Light Bulb Pros and Cons
Pros
Pros
- Has the highest wattage for well-rounded omni-directional light distribution
- Looks and functions most closely to a standard lightbulb
- 22-year bulb life (25,000 hours)
Cons
Cons
- Limited connectivity for most common platforms
- Lacking in lighting versatility
Our Final Opinion About the Cree BA19-08027OMF-12CE26-1C100 Connected LED Light Bulb
Quality 5.0 out of 5.0 stars Effectiveness 4.0 out of 5.0 stars Design 3.0 out of 5.0 stars Price 5.0 out of 5.0 stars
Overall, the Cree BA19-08027OMF-12CE26-1C100 connected LED light bulb is the best choice for people with low expectations when it comes to lighting versatility. You won’t have the same colors or unique features that come with some other connected bulbs, but the price is right and it has a great lifespan.
Why Should You Trust Us?
All the recommendations we make on The Good Choice are the result of many hours of research, comparisons, analysis of consumer reviews and, if necessary, expert feedbacks. The products we recommend here are the ones that will best perform their daily tasks, passing all security, reliability and efficiency tests while having an appealing price-quality ratio for everyone.
What are our criteria for judging the products reviewed and selected by The Good Choice?
- Quality: Does the product have a solid construction? Will it be reliable over time? Does it have a good warranty?
- Efficiency: Is the product efficient in its task or do you need to give it some help? Is it for example powerful, fast, quiet?
- Usability: Is the product easy to handle, easy to use and maintain?
- Price: Is the price of the product and/or accessories and/or spare parts reasonable compared to the rest of the market?
In addition to these main criteria, we then establish a list of specific criteria for each product category, detailed a little further down in this article.
In the end, the products we recommend are the ones we would want to buy, and the ones we would also choose for our friends and family.
Things to Know Before Buying a Connected Light Bulb
Benefits of Using Connected Light Bulbs
There are numerous benefits to using a connected light bulb since they have advanced features and a higher quality compared to basic light bulbs. Here are some of the best benefits of using connected light bulbs:
- Smart light bulbs are LED or CFL, so they use significantly less energy than basic incandescent bulbs. This means lower energy costs and less waste.
- These bulbs have much longer life spans than normal bulbs, usually with more than 15,000 hours of quality performance – that’s 625 days of non-stop usage at the bare minimum compared to a maximum of 2000 hours with an incandescent bulb
- There are virtually unlimited customizations possible since these lights come with adjustable brightness settings, dimming features, multiple colours, and more
- Connected light bulbs enable voice activated controls so you can turn lights on and off without lifting a finger, making it simple to adjust the lighting house-wide from a single spot
- These bulbs can help you wake up in the morning with a setting to turn on at a certain time like a sunrise lamp
- These lights offer super fun settings and uses, like changing colours in time with music, altering the mood in a room, and helping you fall asleep
How to Properly Choose Your Connected Light Bulb
- Price.
Connected light bulbs are more expensive than your basic light bulbs, but there are some that are more affordable than others for budget-minded shoppers. Though the range is minimal between different brands, you’ll have to decide how many features you want since this is the strongest determiner of price.
- Brightness Settings.
One of the main reasons people choose smart light bulbs over basic bulbs is for a variety of brightness levels, so checking that the bulb has a number of brightness settings will ensure that you’ll be satisfied with the level of lighting in each room. Adjustable settings also make it much easier to meet the needs of individual rooms in your home according to their levels of natural light at varying times of the day. You’ll want to pay attention to the watts and lumens offered by the bulb since this impacts the difference between your brightness settings as well as the min and max brightness options available.
- Timer.
Similar to sunrise lamps, connected light bulbs can be set using a timer to turn on and off at specific times of the day. For example, you could choose to set the light bulb to turn on at sunset every day, or to shut off in the morning with sunrise if you choose to use a bulb in a kids’ room as a sort of colourful night light. No matter how you put it to use, a timer is an excellent feature to have.
- Type of Connectivity.
There are two options when it comes to connectivity with a connected light bulb: Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. Which type you prefer depends on how you’d like to control your light bulb; an app on your phone or voice activation through a home assistant like Google Home or Alexa. There is a difference between the two when to comes to initial set up, so this is something to consider as well.
- Dimmable.
One of the most popular features on connected light bulbs is the dimming feature. With this feature on a light bulb, you have precise control over the lighting in any given space, so you can set the perfect brightness for relaxing before bed, watching a scary movie, having a date night, and more with ease. You can use a dimming feature to reduce the energy used by your light if you don’t need a bright light all of the time.
- Multicolour.
Multicolour light options add incredible variety to a light bulb – and tons of fun. Whether you have kids to enjoy it or plan on throwing parties with your friends to show off your super cool lights, these multicoloured light bulbs are an excellent feature. The greens, blues, oranges, reds, purples, and more will bring unlimited customization to your home.
- Warranty.
Technology can be finicky, so it’s always best to pay attention to what warranty coverage you receive when making a purchase. Though you can’t expect more than one year of coverage for a light bulb, any coverage will help in case of connection or performance issues.
We do our best to provide you with a comparative guide of connected light bulbs allowing you to choose the best product possible. If we are missing information or new models, do not hesitate to leave a comment below or to send us a message.
