So I decided to automate my home and started with smart bulbs. I had many bulb slots empty, so I screwed in Globe Wi-Fi Smart LED bulb.
I am going to review what’s been my user experience with these lights, where to buy them at lower rates, what are the pros and cons, some of the popular queries, some user experiences of my friends and problems you might come to face while using them.
Stay tuned.
The lights are good. In fact included in Amazon’s Choice as well. I am really enjoying them as I can now turn on my lights before I reach home, amazing colors mark my entrance now.
Tunable colors provide me with the choice to lower and enhance the brightness accordingly, works best for the health.
Let’s jump straight to their Pros and cons.
Pros:
- Awesome colors
- Group Control with Alexa
- Alexa compatibility
- Dimmable lights
- Control from anywhere
Cons:
- Comparatively low Brightness
- Difficult to navigate app
- Weak Wi-Fi connectivity
- No 4G, 5G, 5 GHz network Compatibility
Let’s discuss its pros: Globe Smart Bulb
The colors of the lights are just super cool. The whole color set is perfect, there are more than 16M. On the top of that, I like awesome controls over brightness and temperature settings. I like that I can group different lights and control them as sets. I can make different sets and operate them separately using Alexa.
Setting them up was just like a breeze. Simple process. Linking them with Alexa routines was super easy and they are working smooth with my Alexa Voice Control option. My voice becomes Husky at times but these bulbs still respond well. Both Globe app and Alexa app work great in terms of normal controls
Another thing that I like about Globe bulbs is that they can dim from as low as 5% to max 100%, where 100% brightness seems pretty fair. I have so much flexibility to change the brightness that white color when kept at low brightness level, gives orange impressions
We can change the mood of our room depending on the activity. When our kids are doing homework we can put it at bright white, but I can change it to a soft white when me and Girlfriend are watching a movie.
Let’s discuss its Cons: Globe Smart Bulb
Well I have seen more than 800 Lumens in even $12 smart lights, but this even costly bulb provides 750 Lumens that certainly limit its brightness. Yes they are not that bright that I had expected. Even with 4 of them sparkling at 100% brightness, my room still needs more lights to look cool. I would really appreciate more than 1000 Lumens for such price.
Especially if I talk about the color mode, it clearly lacks enough brightness. Way lesser than the expected.
Though it’s easy to use the mobile app but it has some frustrating issues as well. For example, if you need to change the Temperature or Brightness settings, you do that only using Slider bars. It’s annoyingly tough to set a particular value here. As you lift the finger off the screen, the slider jumps and you have to reset it again.
Typing a number manually should be made available. It’s annoying.
Color wheel selector has similar issues. You can’t type color value, rather have to select from the given, could still have been Ok but there are navigating issues.
The Wi-Fi connectivity is poor and weak. As I will discuss in the later part, many of my colleagues have had problems with the longevity of the connection.
To me, this is the biggest downside of these bulbs, Wi-Fi connection drops and you have trouble reconnecting it.
Plus you have to connect to a 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi network to set up these bulbs. So the crux is you have to arrange some old Wi-Fi device to use these bulbs.
The lowest brightness setting still feels a bit too bright than usual
When on the lowest brightness mode which is 5%, it still shines as if brightness was still at least 50%. I think the lights need to be much lower bright for theatre effect. Only a firmware update can resolve this issue.
“Error Try ‘Switch Paring Mode'”
One of my colleagues had this problem. He had all the requirements done, in fact he went an extra mile. Stronger Wi-Fi signals, operating from iPhone app but still, every time he tried to follow the instructions, he had same error with the message “Error Try ‘Switch Paring Mode'”.
His bulb was constantly blinking and the same error was repeating. Many people reported loose Wi-Fi connectivity as well.
About weak network connectivity, a friend of mine said the following words:
“The light were nice when they worked. Kept losing connection, and had to program each bulb at a time every time. Returned them all”
Failing In The Heat May Be A Problem For Them
You may prevent Globe bulbs from overheating by shielding them from direct sunlight or heat with a shade or light fixture. For an extended length of time, their longevity is reduced by heat. It’s most probable that a flickering LED bulb results from a mismatched transformer and bulb combination.
I will go over my own experiences with these lights, the experiences of some of my friends and other people who have used them, and some of the common questions and issues that people have encountered. I’ll discuss where you can get them for a better deal and the benefits and drawbacks of each.
How To Use Globe Smart Bulb?
It is possible to utilize your bright light in a variety of ways. It is not only about being able to switch on and off your light bulbs from your Smartphone.
In addition to this, your Smartphone has a few functions that are more intelligent. The following is a list of some of the most notable features.
Switch Out Your Light Bulb’s Color
It is possible to adjust the color of bulb lights with the most intelligent bulbs. It is easy to change the color of your room to whichever hue you choose by using this method.
Using The Smart Life App, Tap Your Bulb
Your light bulb may be changed to a different color by selecting “Color” from the top of the screen.
The color of your light may be changed by using the slider on the screen.
Timer-Controlled On/Off Switch for Light Bulbs
Specify a period in which you want to keep the bulb on or off, and the bulb will switch on or off based on its current condition when that period is up.
You may set the timer for it like this:
- Using the Smart Life app, tap your bulb.
- At the bottom-left corner, click on the Left time option.
- Specify how long you want your light to stay on or off once you set the timer. Finally, click OK.
- Scheduling Your Bulb’s On/Off Timings
Using a schedule, you may program your light bulb to turn on off at certain times on specific days of the week. In other words, you will not have to worry about clicking buttons every time you want to use your light bulb anymore.
Your programmed routines will work as long as the intelligent bulb is online and plugged into a working outlet.
Here is a step-by-step guide to getting your smart bulb up and running:
- Tap Schedule at the bottom of the bulb’s app screen while you are there.
- To create a new schedule, click Add in the window that appears.
- Schedule your light bulbs to turn on or off at a particular time, frequency, etc. Then, press the Save button to save your calendar.
When It Comes to the Working Mechanism of a Light Bulb
An incandescent light bulb comprises a glass bulb filled with inert gas and a thin tungsten filament. Electrons start to flow across the filament when power is supplied. When these electrons collide with the tungsten substance, they face resistance and generate energy. Heat is generated because of this.
Photons (light particles) inside the visible spectrum begin to be emitted when the temperature reaches a specific level (about 4000 degrees Fahrenheit). That is how it works.
Typically, the heat necessary to make the metal shine would force the filaments to catch fire and melt. This would prevent electricity from passing through the device. To compensate for this, inert gas acts as a lubricant to keep tungsten from breaking and setting the fire. This combination of elements ensures that the light bulb’s filament does not burn out for an extended period.
Lighting a Bulb
Globe bulbs typically have two terminals: an exterior base of metal threads and a spherical “foot” contact just on the bottom. Light is produced by allowing an electric current to pass through each terminal.
Either Ac energy will power only the Globe bulbs throughout this course. Even other kinds of light bulbs are not in agreement with this notion.
Sockets
Electrical connections with the bulb’s base and foot are made simple with the socket, a mechanical connection. To rapidly connect the bulb to the power supply, the socket typically features either screw connections or wires.
Brightness
The Wattage of a light bulb is often used to characterize its brightness, yet Wattage is not an accurate measure of brightness. It is the quantity of electricity a light bulb consumes.
Because incandescent bulbs produce light, it makes sense that brighter lights need more electricity to operate.
This assumption has been carried through with fluorescent and Globe bulbs, which take substantially less electricity than incandescent bulbs but still define their brightness in terms of Watts.
Lumens, a unit of light output from a specified source over time, is the most precise way to gauge a light bulb’s brightness. In layman’s terms, it’s a metric for how bright a light source is.
A 60-watt incandescent bulb produces 800 lumens of light. Wattage and Lumens, however, are not directly correlated. Only 450 Lumens are produced by a 40-watt bulb, which uses only a third as much electricity but is almost half as light. Keep in mind these relationships while searching for Globe bulbs replacements.
There are a variety of alternatives available to you when it refers to lighting your house. CFLs, incandescent, halogens, and Globe bulbs that you may choose from. The number of lumens determines the optimum brightness.
How to setup Globe Smart Bulb?
Download the GLOBE SUITE™ app, unbox the lights, screw them in, register on Android or iOS App, Connect to 2.4 G Hz network and all the next procedure is on the manual.
Now you can integrate them in your Alexa or Google Home Assistant routines as well.
Some other complaints related to Globe Smart Bulb
Users have reported a constant blinking.
Some have reported conflicts in the Wi-Fi when these bulbs are connected.
Some users over the internet reported malfunctioning in the app but my personal experience with the app is not that bad and my friends like it.
Some of your questions addressed
What smart apps can be employed to use Globe Smart bulbs?
Answer:
You can use Amazon Alexa, Android, Google Home, iPad, iPad Mini, iPhone, iPod, iPod Touch, Mac, Tablet to use these bulbs.
Is this Globe Smart Bulb 220v compatible?
Answer:
No, Only 120v compatibility is supported.
Do these bulbs provide any Anti hacking guarantee or at least some protocols?
Answer:
There are no security protocols, it just connects to your 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi network. If your smart home is prone to hacking, you better have secure Wi-Fi connection and use only safe-to-risk products. Bulbs are amongst them.
Conclusion:
I love these smart bulbs. There are some downsides obviously, Low brightness, little app issues and weak network connectivity but there are some cool features as well.
These bulbs let you change the color of your room too so you can create the perfect mood for any situation. Perfectly hands -free, control your bulb with the sound of your voice using your Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, or GLOBE SUITE™ app
Overall 4 stars so far but I’m rounding up to 4.5 since the issues could easily be addressed in an update.