By now you've probably seen photos of the Cricut Bright 360 Ultimate LED lamps that were launched in January 2022.
Cricut sent me the Floor lamp version to test and today I'm sharing my honest review.
**This post contains affiliate links, and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.
If you have plenty of desk space the Table lamp would be the way to go. I seem to run out of space very quickly when I'm in making mode so the Floor lamp suited me better.
The table lamp doesn't require clamping to the desk which means it can easily be moved around.
Ease of Assembly
The lamp was quick to assemble. There are only three pieces to assemble and each piece snapped together easily. (The table lamp comes in two pieces.)
Something to note is that once assembled, it's permanent. It cannot be disassembled. (That's one less box to keep!!)
Sturdiness
The base of the Floor lamp is just over 5kg/11 lbs so this lamp isn't going to be easy to knock over!
The total weight once assembled is 6.7 kg (14.8 lbs).
The total weight of the table lamp is 3.9kg (8.7 lbs)
Adjustability
The light swivels very smoothly. Just take hold of the head and move it up, down or around.
It can be rotated parallel to walls (i.e. a range of motion of 270 degrees).
It should not be rotated to point upward to the ceiling. Doing so may cause the internal wiring to snap and the lamp to stop functioning.
Heat emission
The LED lamps give off very little heat. After having it on for over an hour the lamp was barely warm to the touch.
Brightness
The floor lamp is adjustable up to 3000 lux and the table lamp up to 1500 lux.
Lux describes how intense or bright the light is that falls on a particular surface area.
I found that I had to turn it down from its brightest setting after a while to avoid eye strain. I had the head of the lamp above eye level though. If I position it lower than my eye level I don't have that same problem. And of course you can easily lower the brightness level of the light too.
I wasn't able to find out the Lux details for my OttLite so I can't compare.
Shadows
I need really good lighting when I'm taking photos of my finished projects and filming assembly videos. Shadows are a big no-no. Below you'll see photos taken using just my ceiling lights, my existing OttLite and the Bright 360.
There were no shadows over my projects when using the Bright 360. The OttLite cast a faint shadow. That could be because the lamp was closer to my desk (its maximum height is only 14.75") than the Bright 360 Floor lamp which I had at its maximum height of 56". (The Bright 360 table lamp has a maximum height of 27".)
I also noticed that the glare off the glitter cardstock was noticeably less using the Bright 360 compared to the OttLite. Again, that's probably because the OttLite is much closer to my project.
Both models of the Bright 360 can light up to 4 sq ft of workspace.
Weeding
I created a project using Cricut Patterned Iron-on. The cut lines were almost impossible to see even with the OttLite. But with the Cricut 360 Bright I could at least see the lines enough to figure out where to weed.
I did a second weeding test, this time using Cricut glitter iron on. The OttLite and Cricut 360 Bright gave me similar results. But the
Cricut BrightPad (on the right) was the clear winner in this case.
General info:
Cricut Bright 360 Lamps have multiple LED bulbs in the lamp head. They have been tested to last over 40,000 hours. The LEDs are not replaceable, but by my calculation if I used the lamp for 24 hours per day, 7 days a week it would last for me for 4.5 years. So I don't think I'll need to be replacing it any time soon!
The lamps are currently only available in the US and Canada. They are dual voltage so can be used with a power adapter in other countries, but there would be no warranty on your purchase if something goes wrong.
Overall, I really like the quality of this lamp. I'll be using it for all my assembly videos from now on.
It's sturdy and really easy to move around. The sliders make it super easy to adjust the brightness level and to change between warm (2900K), daylight (4400K), cool (5200K), and everywhere in-between!
I think if you're a Cricut crafter, sewer, embroiderer, jewellery maker or knitter and your current lighting isn't working for you, you'll find it to be a great improvement!
If you purchase from Cricut and are a Cricut Access subscriber you will receive 10% off your purchase.
Please let me know if you have any questions!
Happy crafting! ♥
