I had a bit of an embarrassing moment about 12 years ago when a man came to the door of my house at about 1am, thinking I was a prostitute.
His English wasn’t good, so there was some confusion while he tried to invite himself in and I wondered what on earth was going on.
‘For sex?’ he kept saying, much to my utter bemusement.
‘What?’ I replied, unhelpfully.
‘I come in for sex?’ he kept repeating.
It was all a bit awkward.
Finally he pointed up to Bee’s bedroom window, where I could see that she had left her light on. She was about nine years old and had bought this red light bulb from B&Q for some reason, and had gone to sleep with it on. We lived in a family terraced house in a nice part of a small Somerset town, off the main road, but apparently the logical conclusion to jump to was that I was running a brothel.
So that was a lesson learnt for everyone.
Technology has come a long way since my light bulb/sex worker incident, so I wasn’t deterred when TP-Link got in touch to see if I fancied trying some of their smart Wi-Fi LED bulbs.
Yeah yeah, I know what you’re thinking: light bulbs, that’s hardly the sexiest of topics is it? Well you’re wrong, because these bulbs are AWESOME.
The first one we tried was the smart Wi-Fi LED bulb with colour changing hue.
I’m not sure how it works exactly – I think it’s actual magic – but all you have to do is pop it into your light socket, as you would a normal bulb, follow the instructions to connect it to an app on your phone and TADA!
You then have a magical light bulb that you can control from your phone, changing the colour and brightness, setting schedules and tracking energy usage. The colour change feature is really fun and it means you can create all kinds of different moods within the same room, depending on what you’re doing. (E.g. hosting a cosy dinner party, trying to attract customers.)
The second one we tried was the tunable white light version.
I really like the idea of this one as I (clearly) know how tricky it is to get the light right in a room. I went through a bit of a phase recently of replacing our regular bulbs with LED bulbs and in our kitchen/living room area I had a bright white one. Initially I was dead chuffed with it – finally, I could see to make sandwiches in the morning! – but then it got to the evening and suddenly it felt like we were in an operating theatre.
Not nice.
With the TP-Link tunable white light bulb you can change the light according to your mood and the time of day, going from bright daytime type light when you need it through to cosy, warm light in the evenings, all controlled from an app on your phone.
Very cool.
Both bulbs have some very useful features:
- You can control your bulbs remotely, so can switch them off or on even when you aren’t at home
- Use up to 80% less energy, saving money on your bills
- Schedule bulbs to come on and go off at different times
- Use Circadian Mode to automatically adjust light to the time of day to help you wake up naturally
- Use with iOS, Android, Amazon Alexa and the Google Assistant
You see? I told you bulbs were sexy.
Win a set of TP-Link smart bulbs, worth over £75
TP-Link has given me a pair of bulbs – one tunable white and one colour changeable – to give away, so that you can have all of the light bulb fun in your own home. They’re worth around £75 for the pair, so it’s definitely worth entering.
To enter, leave a comment on this post telling me which room you’d put a TP-Link smart bulb in and why. Register the comment in the widget below to open up some bonus entries and do as many as you can to increase your chances of winning. The competition will close at 11.59pm on June 25th and is open to UK residents only.
Good luck!
We were sent these bulbs for the purposes of this post. All opinions my own.
I think we’d put the colour chaging one in our dining room! It’s our social room, where we eat, entertain our guests and dance! It’s also the room in which our little one was born in and where we plan to have our next, colour chaging mood lights for a pool birth? AWESOME!
Hang on, you make that sounds d like I’m already pregnant
In our kitchen x
Great post this. I really need one of these lightbulbs in my house!
I’d love in my dining room
Perfect for when we arent at home , I would put one in my room and maybe the colour changing one in the bedroom , colours can help you relax
in my bedroom
In the living room I would love to be able to control the light from my sofa1
in my hall
I would put it in my living room, would be ideal for the winter months I often leave the light on if we’re coming back when it’s dark, it’s fab I could control it when I’m Out!
I’d put it in the hallway downstairs. It’s pretty fun.
In my conservatory would look nice when I invite friends round for a glass of wine in the evening
Probably the main bedroom
In the bedroom x
I would put it in our living room! :)
the boys would love this in their room!!
I think my kitchen would be the best place
I have just done my Graddaughter’s bedroom, she would love this
I would put it in my living room.
In the bedroom
landing
in our lounge thankyou
The bathroom … be lovely for just relaxing x
In my bedroom
it would either be our bedroom or the living room
in the bedroom
Lounge
in the lounge as thats where we all spend the most time
Would be perfect in our lounge as this is the main room at the front of the house
In would leave it in the hall
Either in the bedroom or in the front room, really nice these are x
the living room
In My Bedroom
I’d put it in my craft room, it would be great in there :)
I’d give them to my mate to annoy him
i would put this in my bedroom..x
I’d gift them to the girlfriend
I love your red bulb story, that would be my type of luck I would put the colour bulb in my sons bedroom as he’s nearly 13 and really into his music at the moment so would love this and the normal bulb in my living room for when were on holidays xxx
in my bedroom
in the dining room
Our bedroom as i think they would be really calming
in the living room
In the living room.
In the porch
In the kitchen
In our living room, it sounds ace!
Would look great in my study room
In my teenagers room he’d love it
In my bedroom
The dining room would be best so the light could be changed depending on the mood.
I’d like to try the white light bulb out in our master bedroom, and keep the colour changing bulb for when we decide to host an all-night rave.
In our bedroom would be nice.
These are great, I am making a set of lamps that these would go great in.
My bedroom….. not to light it with red! But more to be able to switch on before i come upstairs knowing its bright for my arrival :)
I would put it in our living room.
I’d put it in my bedroom, would improve the look of the room I think :)
This would be ideal for my living room in the winter I like to leave some lights on whilst I’m out
Who wouldn’t like a colour change light bulb
in my bedroom
I would put it in my bedroom :)
I’d put it in my sons room as we already have LEDs in every other room! Plus my son could do with some good light whilst he draws but more calming when he’s winding down.
The red bulb story made me laugh, I would use this bulb in the living room
In my bedroom! :)
Living room so everyone could enjoy it
In the living room
In the sitting room
In my daughters bedroom
I would change our lounge light.
I would put these in my bedroom to chill my partner out as he gets so stressed running his own business
I would put it in my downstairs hallway.
That’s a really clever idea. We spent a fortune on LED spots for our bathroom but chose the wrong tone. It felt like an underground carpark! I couldn’t stand it and they had to go. I think this would be great in the standard lamp beside my arcmchair in the living room so I could adjust it according to what I was doing.
In my study
in the living room
In the landing or maybe bathroom!
i would put it in my bed room
I think that I would put it in my hallway
In my bedroom :)
In the upstairs hallway
In the playroom. The kids have been asking for one of these!
I would put the lightbulb in my hall. Then I could put it on if I hear a noise outside late at night. Or when my cats are fighting, that would stop them in their tracks. Plus my 6 year old would think it’s fab too
I would like to have one for the dining room, to add a bit of atmosphere
In the bathroom to make bath time more exciting!
id put it in my daughter bedroom!
I would put in the kitchen :D thanks
ideal for the kitchen
Being an ex DJ (I am getting on in years now) I have a fascination for lighting effects and as time inevitable marches on these effects get smaller and smaller with even more amazing effects. I think these would be amazing in our hall area after dusk just to keep our neighbours in suspense of “what on earth will he do next?”
We’re just about to move house and I’ve never had a hall before, I think this would be perfect for the hall.
I would put it in the bedroom
This would be great and calming for my grandsons bedroom as he has hyper sensory
In the bedroom get that mood lighting going on
Would be lovely lighting up the hall
In the Living room
In our bedroom, a lovely way to easily change the ambience❤️
In my kitchen.
I would put them in my living room and connect them with my Alexa x
My partner has been wanting one of these for our living room for ages.
In my kitchen, which is drab and needs cheering up.
In our hallway so I could alter the mood during the evening and through the night.
I would love this in my living room :)
If I had a ballroom I guess this would be a great place to put the bulb. Unfortunately I do not so I would put it in my sitting room where I am sure it would enhance the mood of the room :)
In my hallway
in my bedroom
i would put in living room
I think I would put it in the kitchen, it would look great
Living room
I’d put it in the dining/play room as we could all enjoy it in there!
I would put one in the hall :)
In the bedroom
In the living so we could change the mood with ease
I’d put this is our bedroom, think it would really come in handy! Thanks for the chance :)
ooh i would love these
In the living room so I could turn off the light without getting up
Bedroom. Anything that helps me to sleep after night shifts is most welcome.
In the study, so I could have a ‘lightbulb moment’ at any time of the day or night! :)
I’d put it in the living room – it would be so relaxing with some lovely classical music on.
Would like a colour change one in the lounge for everybody to enjoy
I would put the bulb in my conservatory.
These sound amazing
I bought a wi-fi lightbulb a year or so ago from another brand, and it didn’t last long before it really started playing up – flickering and now it won’t come on. I’d like to try another brand to see if they are as good as I thought!
Your email popped into my inbox and is so spooky. My 13 year old son was telling me about light bulbs that change colour and he wanted one thAt be could control from his iPhone. He wants to control his whole bloomin’ life from that thing. I looked at him thinking this is all a bit Star Wars, looked on Amazon and lo and behold there were plenty of them to choose from. To be honest I haven’t bought him one yet as I read about a few of them and my mind boggled so I’d love to win them so that the boy can have yet another piece of technology. Persons I still don’t get how they work, must be an age thing .
Would be great in my kitchen
love these!! i would put them in my living room!
My sons room. He loves different coloured lights.
I’d put it in the living room
In the nursery ready for my little one due august
In the hallway. Does no-one else think of ‘Roxanne…you don’t need to put on the red light…’? ;-)
In a lamp in the living room
I’d put it in my hallway
In the living room
I will use them in our living room.
I’d put it in the kitchen
I think I would put it in my bedroom, I’d like to be able to change the light depending on what I’m doing, like reading or on my phone.
I think the hallway would be the perfect spot as it would be seen when coming and going from all the rooms.
I’d use this in my living room to adjust the mood depending on what I was doing/watching
The bedroom for when I’m relaxing in there
I would put a bulb in the hallway- it would be fantastic for halloween!!
I would put the colour changing in the bedroom to help my ever changing mood and the tuneable in the living room so I don’t have to get up to put lamps on :)
In the kitchen
would be great in my childrens bedrooms
in the hallway
Would put it in my daughters room, she would love changing it to any colour she wanted.
I’d have it in my office because I’d be far more productive with colour changing lights I’m sure.
In our living room
In our kitchen would be lovely
The colour changing bulb sounds great for the dining room and the solid white would be ace for the hallway. x
would use it in my home studio for whebn im taking pictures and need to change the lighting.
I would use them in my office.
I would put this in my living room
In the kitchen :-)
I would put it in my home office
IN MY PHOTOGRAPHIC STUDIO!
Bedroom
in our kitchen.dining room
be in my bedroom so I can set moods for gaming and films
These look amazing.
I would use it in my bedroom, though the lounge would be tempting to show off…!!
In our lounge for cosy nights x
I’d put it in our living room. We all come together in the evenings so this would be lovely for everyone!
I think it would be great in the living room.
In the grandchildren’s bedroom, for when they sleep over. I think they would be really excited by the changing colours, and we could set it so their “reading in bed” time came to a gentle, natural end.
In the kitchen would be great!
In our living room. That’s where everyone tends to congregate!
I would put it in my teenage daughters bedroon
would love this for the kitchen
I’d put them in my sons toy cupboard/room . They are really fun :)
in our kitchen
I would put it in my living room
In our living room :)
in my hall
In the bedroom
Looks awesome
An upgrade from the dimmer switch which always seem a bit 1970’s
My bedroom for sure. Sounds awesome, what a time to be alive.
II’d put it in the hall
On the landing so that I could switch on and off when I’m on holiday so it looks like someone’s at home with the added bonus of LED lights being energy efficient
I would like it in the sitting room.
I’d put it in the bedroom. This also reminds me when I was 13, I thought having a red light bulb would be “so” cool. I had no idea of its connotations. That night, my mum was hosting a ‘prayer evening’ where dozens of elderly people gathered downstairs (mainly for the biscuits I reckon). One of them complained and a few others got very shirty with my mum. Ha! Rock n roll
In the living room
On my stairs – darkest place in the house.
In my living room
In my nieces room, they would love it
In my new bedroom, We are redesigning it to suit the fact I’ve become more ill, So sensory things are fab for in there!
in our living room!
I think I would probably put it in my living room
in the lounge
In the kitchen!
In the front room x
In the living room – it looks too good to hide!
I would put it in my kids bedroom
In our front room :)
I’d put up in my lounge
I would put it in my son’s bedroom so I cN control the brightness at different times of the day especially when it’s time for bed. I can also switch it off then without having to tiptoe into his room and nearly killing myself on lego :-)
on our hall landing between the bedrooms
Probably in my bedroom of my daughter’s bedroom!
I would put this bulb in my bedside light. Maybe the promise of colours will remind me to turn in on so I stop walking into the walls all the time :D
In the hallway
bedroom
I would use this in my craft room/reading room – great white light for crafting by and soft relaxing glow when reading – pure bliss!
In the hall I reckon
It would have to be the bathrooms – kids are always leaving them on!
I’d put this in my living room
I think i would put it in my hallway or even my bedroom
Lounge, bedroom, hallway, guest room. I may have to invest in more, even if I were to win!
I would put my bulb in the bathroom to help me relax and chill out
In our bedroom I think, although I’d probably experiment!
I would put them in my bedroom x
In the hallway so the light shines through the stained glass in the door
my bedroom
In the front room
Great post
lIVING ROOM as it would also shine on the patio and we could change colours.
This is great, i would love this for my lounge as its the heart of our home
In the living room
on my landing
We are having major building work at the moment, walls knocked out and everything (oh, the dust!) but it will hopefully end in a dining room/ snug are off the kitchen, and this bulb would be perfect for the new space!
Would have to go in the boys room!
In my bedroom :)
In my bedroom
In our Living room
in the living room – it would be fab for when we have visitors
This looks great! I think it would go on our living room as this is a very social area in our house
in my bedroom
In the entrance porch.
I would put them in the dining room
I would put this in the hallway
I think it would go in our lounge
I’d put it in the spare/computer room. Can you get fittings for a screw in bulb?
In my study.
Would be versatile in the living room
I would put the white one into the kitchen as it dosen’t get much light. the colour changing bulb would go into the living room.
The living room as that’s where we spend most of our time
In my bedroom.
my sons bedroom he loves gadets
My new sun room, I love coloured lights and have yet to invest in something for that room. These won’t go to waste that’s for sure.
My bedroom I think it would be lovely to try
We would put it in our hallway so that when we are out we can turn it on and it lights up the flat
In our hallway upstairs so kids can see where they are going at night.
I would put them in the bedroom,
In the hallway so it can turn on when I get home in the winter
I’d love this in my bedroom. Depending on time of day and what I am doing – putting on make-up, reading a book etc the flexibility of the light would come in really handy!
bedroom
in the bathroom
in our den room where we sit to read play on laptops listen to music , fun to change britness according to what we are doing, currently son back from uni is using it for mates to come round .
In the conservatory
In my bedroom
Definitely in the hall to save me having to get out of bed when I forget to turn it off
The hall sounds like a good idea.
perfect in my dining room
bedroom
In the kitchen!
In the kids bedroom! They would love a colour changing light!
I’d put it in the playroom for stimulation and to change themes in the room. Maybe a warm light for a jungle theme or cool colour for an ocean theme etc.
Great idea
I was looking at these a few days ago they look amazing!
I would have it in the front room :)
In the front room to jazz it up a bit!
in the hallway!
I would probably place it in every single room around the house changing it every week
The living room or bedroom, ambient lighting would suit both :)
would love these in the living room mood lighting really relaxes me
The kids bedroom
in the boys bedroom
In the hallway
This would be perfect for my little boys room
I want to put them everywhere!
I would put it in my living room to make sure the ambiance is justttttt right lol
Probably in the bedroom as it is used the most but any room in the house really as my electricity bills seem to be costing me the most at the moment
I would use them in my dining room
I would put it in my son’s bedroom
This would be great for the living room when sometimes during the day we just need a little bit of light and then later on need more.
I’d put in living room so film nights can have mood lighting
Really want to see how this works in action
Kitchen
lounge
lounge is my choice
in the kitchen i think x
I’d put it in my bedroom
my living room
In the living room I think
We have a portable light that we take camping. This would be perfect for it!
One of these would be good to have in the bedroom, to help us wake up more naturally :)
I think I’d put the colour changing one in the boys bedroom – they would love it, and the white tunable in the living room – my partner has a thing about offensive lighting, this would certainly help!
I’d put the colour changing one in the boys bedroom – they would love it, and the white tunable in the living room – my partner has a thing about offensive lighting, this would certainly help!
In my hallway x
in our lounge to set the scene for films