Carex Day-Light Sky Bright Sunlight Therapy Lamp, 10000 LUX Therapy Lamp at 12 Inches, LED Bright White Light with Adjustable Height and Brightness Levels for Mood

I bought this type of light on the recommendation of my doctor to treat a sleep disorder. After reading a ton of reviews, I selected the Day-light Sky. I'm very happy with my choice! First, construction: It's solid. I keep it on my headboard and move it around quite a bit. It is assembled very well, does not feel rickety at all, and I do not have any worries that it will fall apart. The lamp angle adjusts easily and stays where you put it. I've moved it to other rooms a few times and other than taking reasonable care not to bump the lamp section, I really have no concerns about transporting it where I need it. Second, assembly: Simple to put together! Just follow the instructions. Tips: open the lamp and remove the two rubber bands holding the bulbs down and the two small black plastic tabs at the base of the bulbs. I did this after reading reviews that said there was a bad smell when operating the light, and I've had no smell at all. The black plastic tabs take a bit of work to pry out - be patient and careful. Third, operation: Simple toggle switch for low, high, or off -- couldn't be simpler. High is very bright, and what my doctor recommended. Sometimes I start on low and easy into it. ;-) Next up, effectiveness: Who knows for sure? This was part of my overall sleep therapy, so there are several things working in combination. I will say that after a few weeks of using it as my doctor recommended that it does seem easier to get up in the morning. I thought the horribly bright light would be hard to deal with, but surprisingly it is not. I was told I would get what I needed even with my eyes closed, which I sometimes do. Just stay within two feet of the lamps for effectiveness. I had some really early meetings one week, so I got up right before the meeting time and carried the lamp down to my desk in my home office. Snapped it on and dialed in -- light therapy at work! Other uses? If you sew or do needlepoint or cross-stitch, I would recommend this as a good lamp. The light is less harsh than LED lights, brighter than incandescent/CFL, and seems less hard on the eyes even with the additional brightness. The adjustable angle makes it convenient for working on projects of different sizes.

I am aware that I have been suffering from Seasonal Affective Disorder for many years. Some years seem to be worse than others. This last summer I spent more time outside in the early morning hours than normal and I really got a feel for how beneficial that early morning bright light can be to ones mood and overall health and well-being. As the summer wore on and the days began to shorten, I began to notice very quickly the effect of decreased light. It soon became fall and every morning when I awoke and went for my early morning run or walk it was dark and just barely becoming light by the time I came home. I started feeling really strongly like I would benefit from one of these lights, so I began researching them. I deliberated for two or three weeks, and by this time I was really starting to feel markedly more depressed than I had been all summer. My mood had really changed in that short period of time. So, I decided that I had better get one of these things quickly. I was almost sold on one of the Phillips blue light models, but then when I looked into the research that the blue light can damage the eyes and just decided that it was not worth the risk. So, I eliminated that...now how do I choose from all of these models? Well, I happened upon the Day-light Sky and was impressed my the specifications. I went to the company's website and did a little more checking around and ultimately decided to give it a try, even though it was more expensive than many of the other models. I figured that if I didn't like it, I could return it. Well, it is now about five months later and I can confidently give the Day-Light Sky a 5-star rating. It is effective! I could tell a difference the very first day of use. I started using it in early September. I set it up on my kitchen table every night before bed. It is too large for me to keep set up all of the time so I store it in a closet during the day. The cord is detachable from the unit, so I just keep that plugged in and hidden underneath the table, so it is super-easy to take out at night and plug in. I have to admit that initially I was suprised by how large it is. I did read many of the reviews and the dimensions, but I wasn't really visualizing correctly how large it would be. Ultimately, it didn't make any difference to me, but I had to devise a way to store it because I live in a small home. It is important to set the unit up at the propper distance and angle. When I first started using it, I measured the distance from my face to the light just to get a feel for how to set it up. Now it is easy since I have been doing it every day. The light itself is not harsh. It is very bright, but not headache inducing bright. I rented a light box several years back and it was so bright that I would get headaches from it. This unit has a nice cover that seems to diffuse the brightness a bit. I use the light on the high setting for about 15-30 minutes. Sometimes I forget and get caught up reading something and go over the recommended time. This does not really seem to make much of a difference since I am using it so early in the morning. Many times I will switch over to the low setting after I have had it on high for 15-20 minutes. It is a really nice task light and I can see how it would be really good for crafters (kind of like a verilux crafters light but much larger). So far the light works perfectly. I would imagine that I will have to replace the bulbs at some point. It is very stable and has a substantial base...it won't tip over. It has really made an amazing difference in my mood this winter and I would highly, highly recommend this particular model to anyone who is interested in invesing in a really good light. I can now face fall and winter confidently because of this light. It sounds silly, I know...but it is true :)

Excellent lamp. Easy to use. I gave 4 + because I don't know YET about the results. I am optimistic. Just a little assembly, easy. Too soon to assess the effect on mood. I am working on doing this consistently. It's hard to know if you are 12" away from the lamp. I use a ruler. It would be nice if they provided a tool of some kind. Otherwise, use the ruler and you would get used to that over time. I am not yet. A beautiful lamp for your desk,fairly large but a good size without taking up too much room. You need a good size desk though (or some other area), in my opinion. I was very hopeful to read the reviews. This sounds dumb, but I want to be sure the up-switch (filled in circle) is the light therapy. I think it is. Put in a call because I could not find on their website.. The task light is a great feature (it must be in the other direction, an open circle!) It is very bright also. May just be my eyes! I went through the whole "session" using the wrong switch!! I am sure most everyone would not have this problem

I noted that I was in the dumps after the sky turned grey for a couple of weeks - mostly because of the contrast to a prior spade of sunny days that left me very happy and content with life. I knew about SAD and the lamps, decided to try because my sister recommended, and settled on this one because of the additional task lamp function and general normality of looks. After a short and intense struggle with my insurance (BCBS Horizon NJ- they don't tell me whether I am covered because they can't find me an in-network supplier, which may not even be a legal loophole for them) got it on my own even though it is obviously incredibly expensive. It came today. Looks are fine. It looks like a thing your doc would have you stare at while you wait, but in a better (bluish) color. fits behind my laptop on my desk, but you have to figure an extra inch to the base because of the cable sticking out. The plug is three-prong, which also is a bit annoying. First I read the thing that came with it. The news are you can't use it with retinal dystrophy or macular degeneration which I didn't know yet.There's also a bunch of medications you shouldn't be on like St Johns Wort, so check before you buy. I then uncurled the lamp from shipping position, which I found you shouldn't do until you are ready to screw on the base. I plugged it in, and both bulbs lit up but one was loose, lying inside on the plastic screen. I disassembled the lamp (which by the way I really didn't like because I think that's enough money to ask for a working lamp). It was an easy fix that also allowed me take out the infamous rubber bands and bricks. I highly recommend having your forceps with you when you wrest out the rubber bricks. It says in the instructions where they are, and that you can take them out if you happen to have to go in there anyway. The bulbs are held in place by a pair of poorly designed metal clamps. Every time I adjust the head now, one bulb rattles disconcertingly against its clamp, which cannot be good for the bulb. But it works. Screwing the base on was a piece of cake for an Ikea-girl like me (the holes align! Yey!) and I went for my first session. It is a nice light - I am finicky about light - but hurt my eyes a tad, even though I wasn't looking into it but at my screen under it. I was wishing for my sunglasses. After the 30 min I used it on and off as my task light, and the kids did too. VERY bright still, had a to do a lot of dusting off the screen, and the kids who sit lower than me and got more light were a bit stunned. Did it work? I didn't expect it to yet- but yes, it totally did. Before I had my session I was desperately trying to just stay awake and to think of how to get a bit more comfortable- another coffee? ignore the kids and lie down on the couch? After, I was good in a normal way. Instead of dying of fatigue I shoveled snow and did the laundry, did homework with the kids, made lunch, cleaned the kitchen, got firewood, couple errand calls, cleaned the kids room. and the kids..cooked dinner...shoveled the drive way again, more firewood, clean up, finally got a Christmas present for the husband....the stuff I had to do and was glad to get done. So far so good. The whopper: I am STILL awake and it is almost 10 pm! I usually scuttle off to bed as soon as I can, glad to lie down at 7 pm if I can ( I get up around 5 am). Instead I was able to pack the kids off and baby my poor husband who came home exhausted and a bit sick, and write this review. The double whopper: I can bear the sound of the fireplace fan in our tiny living room, which usually drives me NUTS when I am tired. I have been running around the house with earplugs for the last few months and still had to leave the room because of the sound when I got too tired. So this is great for me. I know no excitement over a new toy and no placebo could carry me though that! I will update. Update: this thing works like a charm and the effect by far exceeds my expectations! Somewhere between happy and content at all times, too much energy to sit around for coffee. Will not make up for too little sleep but totally does take out insane carb cravings. Only little niggle: I think it does flicker somewhat. But you know: oh well.

The lamp came built sideways! I don't even understand how that is physically possible. They need to build the socket sideways for it to fit in that way. So absurd. It is not a assembly problem, it is a production problem. How can it pass their quality check tests?? I saw other reviews who mentioned this problem and thought it probably wouldn't happen and it did happen... 😭 The screen is also scratched. It didn't look like an opened box so not sure how it happened. I will try to contact them and return it. I need it so badly as my office has no windows and I spend majority of the day in my office. I was really excited that it came and am very, very sad and disappointed now that I can't use it 😞.

I received this product only four days ago so I can not tell you if light therapy is going to be an effective treatment for me. I have severe depression throughout the entire year. My doctor and I decided to give light therapy a try more because we are running out of options and light therapy used properly is a safe treatment with few potential problems. I plan to use the light once daily, early in the day for thirty minutes. My doctor gave me a list of criteria a lamp would need to have to be an effective treatment for light therapy. The Day-Light Sky met all of the criteria she had listed. The light has a switch on the front that allows you to use only one light for a general purpose task light, or both lights for therapy. So the light can function as both. At one time, my job was such that I had an office and desk. I believe the lamp would have fit easily without taking up too much space on my desk. It would have been great to have for extra light in addition to the over head florescent ceiling lights. I am very pleased with this purchase. The light arrived well packaged and in full working order. It appears to be very well made. I was surprised by the weight of the light. It is not that is is overly heavy, more that it feels sturdy. I can easily carry the light from one room in my house to another. It does not appear as if it would easily tip over. The base is wide enough that I would not expect my cat bumping it to knock it over. If you bump it, it slides a little, but does not wobble. I have only had the light for a few days, so I can't really say how durable it is going to be, but it appears to be of very good quality. I did read other reviews and knew I needed to remove the rubber packaging pieces located near the bulbs. So, before you assemble the light to it's base, remove the lamp cover lens to expose the two bulbs. Each bulb should have a thin rubber band to hold the bulbs in place for shipping. Discard both the rubber bands. Located at the base of the bulbs, where they insert into the electric base, is a small, black square of rubber. I used tweezers to pull the two rubber pieces out. They are in there snugly, but pull out easily with tweezers. I won't lie, I was afraid I would break a nail if I didn't use the tweezers. My husband could have probably removed them with just his fingers. The instructions do include both of these steps, but I must confess, I tend to breeze through instructions and had I not been aware of the black rubber pieces from reviews I had read, my light would probably be producing a strong, foul odor as the bulbs heat and warm the black rubber as many other people have experienced. The other tip is from my husband. The light does include a small phillips head screw driver type tool that you will need to remove the light lens. I took the lens off with this tool as there are four screws holding it in place. It was difficult, but I assumed it was due to my lack of experience with a screw driver. My husband asked me if I had a hard time removing the screws and I said "Yes". He then informed me that it really wasn't much of a tool, there more to be used if you didn't have a real screw driver. It is better than nothing and will work, it is just not as easy to use as a real screw driver. He got a real screw driver and put the lens back on for me. It went right on easily. I am still just amazed at how well this light seems to be made.

Date Purchased: 12/1/2015 Date Received: 12/4/2015 In-Use Date: 12/6/2015 Review Type: Standard Amazon Price The Need ------------- For years I've had pretty bad cases of what was sometimes called "winter blues" but is now recognized to be Seasonal Affect Disorder. It started (or was noticed) when I was a fairly young kid and continues to this day. I've tried many things over the years but recently I had a distant relative come to visit and it turns out she also has dealt with this. She told me that she had been using light therapy for the last 2 years and that it had made a tremendous impact in her mood and energy levels. I've looked in to light therapy many times before but whenever I went looking for a light it always seemed like it was every quack and con-man offering one and never anything that resembled respected medical and scientific information. This time, after talking with her and now feeling that at least in theory the therapy was valid, I was determined to understand more about these lights and what was really behind them. Perhaps this time was also different because I had been dealing with coral and plant grow lights for a couple of years so now had a decent grasp on LUX, color ranges, wavelengths, etc. Whatever the reason, with this knowledge in hand this time it was clearer that when a lamp manufacturer or company was promoting their product with anything under 10k LUX and without specific testing of output, color temp and UV blocking as "light therapy" they were basically preying upon a mostly uninformed marketplace. Products that cost $50-$100 are simply not equivalent to professionally researched, built and tested products no matter how they try to market themselves. The Research ------------------- After a good deal of research I decided upon the Carex Day-Light Sky unit. I preferred the non-clinical look of it compared to some of the other Carex models and other brands. As I intended to use this in my home office area, I liked being able to use it for a task-light when not being used for light therapy purposes. It was well reviewed by consumers and was noted in reliable research. It wasn't until I received the box that I became aware that the unit is built like a tank. As per some of the questions asked about the product, anyone thinking of suspending this light above their heads better have a good idea of what they are doing in mounting it due to the potential damage to your wall, light...and skull. I read through the manual and all online information I could find in order to get valid information about the use of the product. Contrary to a lot of the information suggested in the questions above and online in general the unit is intended be used 1) approximately 1 ft from your face 2) the light should be directly in front of you, not off to the side and 3) the light should be shining down from slightly above your eyes. The receptors that are most impacted by this light are along the lower portion of your eye socket so light that is entering your eye from or below horizontal will be less beneficial than if the light is used as the manufacturer suggests. This is why the unit is built as it is, with the light emitting from the panel sitting above your eye height and down at a slight angle towards you. The research behind light therapy shows that the intensity of the light is what has proven to be effective as light therapy, which is why the 10k LUX is so important. If you are receiving light that is less intense it simply does not have the same effect on your body. It should also be noted that light intensity follows the inverse square law. This means that when the the manufacturer suggests that you sit 1 ft from light, thinking that you can sit 2 ft away and still receive half the intensity is incorrect; at 2 ft away you are receiving 25% of the original light intensity. And that again takes you to a level of intensity that is unlikely to have much, if any, of the desired effect for S.A.D. The Effect -------------- I started with 20 minutes per day for about the first week just to make sure there were no ill side-effects, especially with the wide variety of medications I am prescribed. As I did not notice anything of issue, I went up to 30 minutes. By this point I believed I was feeling some of the effects but couldn't be sure due to the mood issues from S.A.D. and/or a placebo effect. However by the end of the second week there was absolutely no doubt that the therapy was working. I undertook this therapy in December, usually one of the worst times of year for my condition, and for the first time in a number of years I actually managed to keep some momentum through December and in to this year. It's been about a decade since the last time that happened. In order to make sure that this was not due to something other than the light or that this would be a short-term effect I have waited to write a review. As we entered spring and the time change, I tapered off of the light usage as I was able to get more natural light. Now, 8 months from when I started using it, I can firmly state that this therapy not only helped me through winter but that due to my other health issues there are times I am unable to spend significant time in sunlight and a couple of doses from this light are enough to make a difference. I expect to resume more regular use of the light again as we head in to late fall and the time changes, providing less natural light exposure each day. Lastly, I mentioned that the product is built like a tank. This is a very well built product. No skimping on "lightweight" parts either in the physical build or as far as I can tell in the electronics that control the lighting. I see zero flicker. The lights come on and turn off instantly. There is no sound and only a little heat produced by the light. The arm and adjustments that hold the light have virtually zero play in them. I wish more products were built like this one. I give this product a hearty 5 five stars! I hope it can help you as much as it has helped me. Since I purchase most items on on-line. I rely heavily on the feedback of other people when making my own choices. Therefore I view leaving straightforward and useful reviews as a RESPONSIBILITY and take it quite seriously. I am NOT paid to give reviews, nor do I have ANY relationship with any seller. These are my own opinions, based on my own experiences and my own or a member of my household's use of this product. I hope you find this review helpful. If you agree, please click the YES below so that I know I have helped you. If I left out any information you could use for your own purchase decision please leave a comment and I will respond as quickly as possible. Thank you.

The construction is mostly plastic with a metal weight in the base. It's easy to see it won't last 5 years in normal use. The plastic switch will break or the plastic buttons that push in to let the neck or the lamp head to swivel around will break. It does what it's supposed to do, the light is nice and bright. Even though the back of the lamp head is warn to the touch, no smell of plastic. The real shame of the lamp is that the neck will not go straight up to a vertical position, allowing the lamp head to fall straight down, which would be the most logical, efficient and attractive way to store the lamp when not in use. You can either put the lamp head straight up to vertical so the white face faces you, or leave it extending outwards into usable space. When the lamp face is set straight up facing out it looks a bit like a Star Trek original show communicator. I keep waiting for Admiral Blyxys from Regulus 9 to call in. Poor design choices, not atypical for plastic construction. Logo looks kind of cheesy too, have to look at it all the time now given how it sits when not in use.

Just received the above product here in Scotland. Looks okay except that electrical plug is for USA! This product was ordered through Amazon UK and should come with a UK compliant electrical plug shouldn’t it???

I've been looking for a way to combat the winter blues and general low energy, and this light therapy lamp has made a world of difference. The design is great—it's surprisingly sleek and easy to place on my desk without taking up too much space. The adjustable head is a fantastic feature, allowing me to angle the light perfectly while I'm working, reading, or having my morning coffee. The light itself is bright and clear, but it's not harsh or glaring at all. I have it on for about 30 minutes each morning, and I've noticed a significant improvement in my energy levels and mood throughout the day. I feel more alert and less sluggish, which is exactly what I was hoping for. If you're on the fence about light therapy, I can't recommend the Carex Day-Light Sky enough. It's an investment in your well-being that truly pays off.

This lamp has been instrumental in helping me with my sleep inertia. As soon as my alarm rings, I turn it on and within 10 minutes I am fully awake and alert versus before it would take me 30+ minutes and 2 cups of coffee. I believe it has also helped me with winter blues - I feel better overall but I have also made other life changes which would be contributing to the overall positive impact. All in all worth the money and totally recommend!

Effective light for seasonal depression, easy to use compact size ,very sturdy, Reputable company.

This lamp was good for about a month. I’ve had it since last September and it is done. Light won’t go one. Very disappointed!