245 of 281 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars True Tips: Owned for four months (and updated), October 7, 2011
By
coolreviewer1 "coolkayaker1"
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Sphere Gadget Technologies SP9882 Lightphoria Sad Light Therapy, 10,000 Lux (Health and Beauty)
First, this light is super-zany bright. It's blink your eyes bright, but not all weepy like "be a kitten and pass me the Kleenex" bright. But, it throws no heat. It's odd. Even the chassis doesn't get hot. Not like my halogen lamp which almost set the sprinklers off when it charred my pastrami sandwich wrapper. This Lightphoria by Sphere Gadget Technologies is cool as a summer cucumber.If you click on the company, Sphere Gadget Technologies on the Amazon listing for this light, they make only this freaking light! Shouldn't it be Sphere Gadget Technology, then? This is, strangely enough, version 2.1-- I had diet Dr. Pepper come out of my nose when I noticed that. I'm sure there's been significant upgrades since version 2.0. Many of you are thinking now, "Maybe I should wait for version 3.0? Maybe it'll be thinner. Or have 10,500 lumens or something." I wish I could answer that for you, but those buggers at Sphere are one tight-lipped group.
Okay, but how's it work, you ask? I first used this light near my face at work for about two hours every morning for over a month straight as a test. It could be placebo effect, I have no idea, but I feel more alive all day at work. Not stand on my desk and beat my chest like Tarzan alive, but pretty close.
I'd think that, if it was only placebo, it would have worn off after a couple weeks. And I'm not that gullible for placebos and such. Sure, sometimes I'm down to my last nerve, and everyone in the office is plucking it. But, I'm no patsy.
The used car salesman who sold me the PT Cruiser with oatmeal in the transmission said it best when I pushed it back into his lot: "You, buddy, are just too cunning." God, that's rich. Trust me, he was as nervous as a hog at a luau when I bought my next car from him. I have that effect on people, I really do.
You're going to catch some major flack when you first place this 6 inch by 6 inch meteor on your desk, let me tell you. I thank the Lord that the unique novelty of the light has worn off and my co-workers no longer look at me like I've got a blood-sucking tarantula in the middle of my forehead. They've stopped saying, "Hey, Jersey Shore, you're tanning only one side of your face." Or, "Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close up." Or, "Mind if I reheat my coffee next to your 'gloomy lamp'?" Or, "Okay, okay. I confess. I'm the one that stole your mojo. Now turn it off, I beg you." Honestly, could I make this stuff up? A real witty bunch of intellectuals, they are.
Why the stars deduction? This is a cheaply built light. It's lightweight, but made of thin plastic. It feels like one drop on the floor and this thing will smash to pieces. The cord has a transformer on the wall end that takes too much space, and it attaches via a jack plug to the light that looks flimsy as heck. Hit the jack, break the light. This light feels like something you could win at the water-gun horsie race booth at the county fair, right next to the lead paint cupie dolls and the stuffed bear that smells like formaldehyde and has one eye dangling on a loose thread.
So, when you get the light, do an experiment: ask your friends and co-workers, how much do you think this light costs? The answer will be around $20. Sure, you could argue 10k lumens takes some LED bulbs and what not. But when I can get a full floor lamp with bright natural light for 1/2 this price, this little thing is pricey. Frankly, the only reason I didn't buy the cheaper floor lamp is that my co-workers would probably call the asylum if I sat at my desk for two hours each morning staring at a floor lamp only 8 inches from my kisser.
In addition, the different intensity settings on this Lightphoria are useless. Low, medium or high, the brightness changes little. I use it on the brightest setting, regardless of how bummed out I am on a particular day.
Will I use it? Let's just say that sometimes my attitude stinks stronger than a startled skunk hit by a dirt clod. I'll admit it.
So, yep, the light seems to make me feel better about myself. And when I feel better about myself, I treat those around me like human beings. So, yes, it helps. Will it break? Probably. Is it worth the price to feel like a six year old on a long summer day? If it keeps working, sure.
I feel light as a feather now, you know, getting all this heavy stuff off my mind. I might even take a morning off from using the old strobe in the face. On second thought, I'd better at least give myself a 30 minute "booster" to ignite that twinkle in my eye. And I know what you're thinking, and no, I'm not addicted to light box therapy. Sheesh. Get a grip, will you.
UPDATE!!!: Jan 21. Okay, I've had it now for several months. I have not budged it from the corner of my desk for fear that I will break it. I have not smashed it yet. I even tuck the cord under the corner of my desk with Scotch tape to prevent one of my unhappy colleagues from stumbling on the cord and yanking my $60 light off my desk and smashing it and then saying, "Hey, I'm sorry. I'll replace it -- here's twenty bucks. Keep the change and buy yourself a cup of coffee."
The big question, do I still use it? Answer is: yes. The lights are still bright, no burned out LED bulbs, and still strong beams in my face every morning at my desk for 90 minutes. If I've got a big meeting or something, I might stare at it for an additional 30 minutes, but by then my eyeballs feel like two Fig Newtons, so I stop.
I really appreciate the timer feature for 15, 30 or 45 minutes. Without it, I might get distracted and leave the thing on all night and the janitor would think some blind lunatic sits at my desk.
I don't know if it's the lamp or the one lb. bag of peanut M&M's in my desk drawer, but something gives me a smile. Something is preventing me from meandering down to the company boiler room, throwing my necktie over a waterpipe and kicking a desk chair out from under myself. So, I guess, all in all, I'm happy I bought this light.
A cute girl in the corner cubicle just got this same light. She never asked me about it--it just appeared on her desk one morning. She's cute as hell, with curly red hair and an ice cream scoop dimple in the middle of her chin.
But, her eyes look like two burnt holes in a blanket. No wonder someone gave her this "pep" light. And, just so you know, even with light box therapy, she still avoids me like fresh paint on a park bench.
I do not have clinical depression or SAD, so if someone has those conditions, ask your head shrink about using this light. I, honestly, have no idea if this light, plus a fistful of prescription pills, will be enough to ward off depression. I know that wolfbane inhibits werewolves, and that spinach makes Popeye strong as a kicking mule. Those are scientific facts.
But, I haven't the foggiest notion how this light will affect you. I'd help you if I could, though. I really would.
My review is for us folks who get the blues from dank office conditions while schlepping the old "ball and chain" for "the Man" to earn a measly paycheck that's barely enough to buy a hot pizza pie, a six pack of liquid "therapy", and this Lightphoria lamp. Then, we sit like brainless twits in the stinging glare of this light to burn on a "game face", and do it all again the following week.
Cheers to you all! Don't be all bummed out, like me. In the summer, stare at the sun until you're weeping like a newborn. In the winter, eyeball this flimsy light until you see rows of LEDs on the backs of your lids in your dreams. Your wallet will be lighter, but your day will be brighter.
Please have a bright day!!!!!!!
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