Lumio - a Book That is Also a Light
Linus Tech Tips
·Linus Tech Tips
·2014-05-07
·
1,305 words · ~6 min read
0:00
now some people might say the lumio is a novelty item but to those people I would
0:05
say this look at the root of the word novelty it's novel which to me says
0:10
you're just being closed-minded because it's in the shape of a book that is to
0:14
say judging a book by its covered that was a joke but this video is actually
0:19
very serious this is an unusual product for us but I got a special request to do
0:23
a video about it and I was intrigued so I figured what the hey let's try
0:27
something a little different
0:35
the Jazz mini is a beautiful and compact aluminum stand for your smartphone that
0:40
even holds tablets up to 8 in Click now to learn more in our journey to
0:45
determine what exactly lumio is we'll
0:48
start with their website hello.com seems to suggest that in fact lumio is
0:53
something much more than just a lamp with words like Simplicity possibility
0:58
and Beauty well I don't know anything about that stuff but what I do know is
1:01
that lumio is an LED lamp in the shape of a book it features an environmentally
1:05
conscious construction that is recyclable although it doesn't allow the integrated battery rated at about 8
1:10
hours to be replaced and you can choose from three different finishes cherry
1:13
maple or walnut also the pages are made of waterresistant tyvec the way it works
1:18
is and I have to admit it's actually about as captivating as most of the
1:23
pictures in their Gallery suggest you simply open up what looks like a fairly
1:27
ordinary hard cover book and an internal switch which automatically turns the
1:31
lamp on and reveals a surprisingly powerful light source brightness control
1:35
is strictly analog that is to say you control it by opening up the book more
1:39
or less the spine is made of wood like the rest of the cover which gives it
1:43
strength and mounting flexibility so you can open it up on a flat surface prop it
1:48
up like a book open it up fully and pin it there with the neodimium magnets
1:52
embedded in the cover and the included magnetic widget or put the included
1:57
leather strap on the widget and hang it for a completely different effect there
2:02
are some other creative ideas that were included with the kickstarter launch
2:05
video such as sticking it to a metal surface such as a shelf when you're
2:09
trying to get something from inside a closet um but honestly unless I was
2:14
planning for a place to put my lumo like if I were to run out and specifically
2:19
buy a metal shelf or a small table to put next to my reading chair that has a
2:24
metal surface um I just didn't find many
2:27
places that I could stick it that would make a of sense I mean the fridge
2:32
perhaps if the light included with my fridge was already broken perhaps and
2:37
there in lies the problem a big part of the pitch for lumo is convenience pull
2:43
it out when you can't find something in the dark pull it out when you need to
2:46
read a book under a kitchen cabinet instead of 3T to the right where the
2:49
lighting appears to be perfectly adequate or and this one really made my
2:53
eyes just about roll out of my skull onto the floor pull it out an emergency
2:57
situation what defines a convenient solution in my eyes is something that's
3:01
easier and or faster than the other way to achieve an objective and given the
3:05
popularity of smartphones with integrated flashes uh you're more likely
3:09
to have one of those handy than a lumio in any of the above scenarios so in
3:14
short I think those things are lumio trying to be something it's not it's not
3:18
really any more convenient than a flashlight and if those were better than
3:22
other Solutions I'm sure we'd light our houses with them and carry them around
3:25
too but we don't and besides for $160 I
3:29
can get a pretty cool flashlight and a book to like point it at instead if I'm
3:34
looking at this from a purely pragmatic perspective so we need to detach from
3:38
practicality a little bit to correctly evaluate what lumio isn't and what it is
3:43
what it isn't is something I'm going to start carrying around with me all the
3:47
time it's just not useful often enough to justify the extra pound of weight and
3:52
the stress of you know worrying about accidentally damaging its pages with the
3:55
other junk in my bag so it falls into the same category as tablets for for me
4:00
needo when I'm at home and it's nearby but really too bulky to make part of my
4:05
everyday life what it also isn't is a light fixture its 500 Lumen rating puts
4:10
it in the neighborhood of a 40 W bulb which is an impressive feat for
4:14
something so slim and battery powered and honestly it works well and looks
4:18
awesome to the point where I'm sure folks would consider putting you know
4:22
metal plates on a wall to accommodate it
4:25
but the issue is that the design doesn't allow it to hook up to your house wiring
4:30
in any way that would be practical and
4:33
I'm not going to build permanent fixtures in my house around a light that
4:36
needs to be charged somewhere else every time before it can be relocated and then
4:41
used what lumio is to me though is a
4:44
really cool fashion statement that has the added benefit of actually coming in
4:48
handy from time to time I mean say what you will about how expensive it is
4:53
lighting Products are expensive in general so it's not totally out to lunch
4:57
there but if you pull one of these out and put it on the table for a romantic
5:01
dinner or bring it out to impress some friends when you sit down to drink some
5:06
wine and play a game of settlers of kitan or something it's a fantastic
5:11
conversation starter and I've seen people spend a lot more than $160 on
5:15
stuff that's legitimately useless and with lumo it was kind of cool to use my
5:20
latest gadget to play superhero when my wife was cross-stitching in bed and
5:24
needed a bit of extra light I stood up walked over to the bed and whipped it
5:28
out for her the lumo that is and she was like oh cool that's perfect and propped
5:32
it up on the headboard so she could see what she was doing not exactly Earth
5:36
shattering and not the kind of thing that I typically spend that kind of money on but certainly better than
5:40
useless thanks for watching guys the link for where to buy this product is in
5:44
the video description below the like dislike and share buttons which you
5:47
should use accordingly also in the video description is a support link that we'd
5:51
love for you to use if you appreciate what we do you can get a t-shirt give us
5:54
a monthly contribution or change your browser bookmarks to sites that give us
5:57
an affiliate Kickback when you buy stuff it helps us out a lot I'd also love to
6:01
hear your comments on where you would use the lumio or if you would use it at
6:06
all please feel free to post those and thanks again for watching and as always
6:09
guys don't forget to subscribe to lus techtips for more unboxings reviews and
6:12
other computer videos