Review: OxyLED T100 Desk Lamp
Many Bothans died to bring you this review. Well, actually not really. But if they did, it would all be for a LED lamp review. A few months ago, I was approached by the distributor of OxyLED to review their T100 product. I agreed, and within a few days, I received the product. I like to live with my review items for a while before writing about them; it gives me a chance to both experience and form some long term impressions on the product.
The OxyLED T100 is a dimmable LED desk lamp with a touch-senstive control panel. It touts itself as offering pure light, free of glare, ghosting and flickering, and is stated to function for at least 10 years. I’ve had the device for almost two months. Does this $49.95 lamp live up to my expectations? That was the operative question…
Packaging counts, and the OxyLED is well packed, arriving in a durable glossy box with carrying handle.
Inside the T100 box is the lamp, a warranty card, a power supply and an instruction manual. The lamp is well packed. In addition to the plastic enclosing the unit, the base of the lamp and the head both come with an easily removable adhesive protector to keep the contents from getting scratched / nicked.
The neck of the OxyLED T100 is adjustable. The light direction can be controlled by arching the lamp’s neck forward or backward, or tilting side to side. The T100’s neck is firm and readily holds its adjusted position. The build quality of the unit is solid. The base of the lamp is properly weighted to keep the unit anchored in place.
The profile of the lamp is svelte. It has a modern look that’s easy on the eyes.
The back of the OxyLED T100 has a port for connecting AC power.
The power plug is a slightly bulky two prong affair with about 4 feet of chord.
The OxyLED’s controls are located on the base of the unit. Tapping the central power button toggles the unit on or off. The surrounding ring allows the user to adjust the amount of dimming. It retains the setting thanks to its memory function. In my experience, I had a slight issue with the power button responding to my touch. If I used the tip of my pointing finger to toggle the on/off touch sensor, the lamp would occasionally ignore my input.
But, if I positioned my base of my pointing finger over the button, the on/off touch sensor worked just fine. My guess is that the sensor responds better to a larger surface area than a smaller one. (Incidentally, the dimming rings adjusted just fine by using my finger tip.) The light dimming operates on Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) instead of using a high-frequency switch – there by eliminating the flicker so often present with other dimmable lights.
The OxyLED has a solid range of dimming options. The maximum setting is a bit too bright for my use case, but at a setting of “3”, it’s just right. The light itself is clear, cool, and uniform. It does not flicker. The color temperature, as indicated in the user manual, is about 5000K. At the mid-range setting, it is very easy on my eyes. Best of all, there is no glare (reflected light) when positioning papers or books underneath.
Here’s a shot of my desk with the OxyLED lamp on the left to give you an idea of its illumination.
The OxyLED T100 comes with a 3 year warranty. The lamp is rated for a service life of 10 years, for an average use of 7 hours per day for 365 days each year. According to the documentation, the lamp is a zero-radiation device. I haven’t tested the product nearly that long – but for the time that I have used the device, it works as advertised.
I received this product for free, so the real question is: would I buy one? At $49.95, it’s not the cheapest option available – but the T100 looks great and (more importantly) feels well built. If I were in the market for a new LED lamp, I would not hesitate to buy one. The OxyLED is easily adjustable and delivers a comfortable, flicker-free light that’s easy on my eyes. The power toggling issue is minor. The OXyLED T100 lives up to my expectations, and thankfully no Bothans were harmed when writing this review.
The OxyLED T100 earns 4.5 out of 5 Bob Weiners.
No comments yet. Be the first!