TP-Link has given its Kasa Smart Wi-Fi gentle bulb line a major improve. The previous LB series has given strategy to the brand new KL sequence, which dramatically upgrades the design of the bulb (for higher or for worse) whereas leaving the core operational options intact.
The Kasa KL sequence is out there in three variations: a color-tunable bulb (KL130), a white-tunable bulb (KL120), and a white dimmable/non-tunable bulb (KL110). All three share the identical bodily design (with minor beauty exceptions), work by way of the identical Kasa Smart app (obtainable for Android and iOS), and supply the identical luminosity of 800 lumens (a 60-watt incandescent equal). The KL130 attracts 10.5 watts, whereas the 2 white bulbs every pull 10 watts.
The previous LB sequence bulbs aren’t probably the most lovely objects I’ve encountered, and the KL line aren’t probably the most engaging bulbs, both. The general form of the redesigned bulbs is extra trapezoidal than Edison-shaped, with a considerably flat high. That’s superb, however the electronics and warmth sink beneath the glass stay fairly massive, and this piece is now constructed into an odd, split-level design that sandwiches a black, grey, or white piece of plastic beneath its white exterior shell. (The colour of that plastic signifies which bulb variant it’s.) A cut-out enables you to see the plastic underlay, which is etched with a swirly design.
All in all, it’s awfully overdone contemplating we’re speaking a few gentle bulb, which isn’t a bit of I usually need to draw consideration to itself except it has nifty filaments to showcase, like GE’s Vintage offerings. Instead of coming throughout as fashionable and fashionable, the general look already feels dated, overcomplicated, and slightly foolish.
You arrange these bulbs in a style much like most Wi-Fi and equivalent to different Kasa merchandise, involving connecting to a brief wi-fi community created by the bulb, after which utilizing the app to hitch the bulb to your house community. I had no setup troubles throughout my evaluate of all three bulbs; all the things labored seamlessly.
An “auto-white” mode dynamically adjustments the bulb’s colour temperature over the course of the day.
Once related, TP-Link’s easy Kasa Smart app provides you entry to a modicum of straightforward configuration choices by way of its pretty bare-bones interface. All three bulbs embrace a fundamental scheduling system and let you save a number of presets of key colour and brightness combos that you just use regularly. As a bonus, the bulbs all additionally embrace a easy utilization meter, letting you monitor vitality consumption and working time over the present day, the final seven days, or the final 30 days. There’s no in-depth historical past metering right here, nevertheless it’s higher than nothing.
The app isn’t good, although. The dimmer slider, positioned under the colour picker, isn’t labeled and might be onerous to see, and there’s no on/off timer included. If you need the lights to exit after half an hour, you’ll have to make use of the time/date scheduler as a substitute. All bulbs do embrace help for Alexa, Google Assistant, and Microsoft Cortana, which provides flexibility, however HomeKit help remains to be in improvement.
Across the board, I had no difficulties with any of those options working as marketed, and I discovered the bulbs to be very aware of instructions from the app, at all times reacting inside a fraction of second. See under for my detailed ideas on the methods through which the bulbs differ.
Color-tunable Kasa Smart Wi-Fi bulb (KL130)
TP-LinkThe KL130 gives loads of methods to decide on a colour or white colour temperature, and even colour newbies shouldn’t have any bother with it. On the principle display a small number of colour choices (these that are closest to your at the moment chosen colour) seem. Tap “more colors” to get a grid of 88 choices that span the colour gamut. If you want much more refinement, an entire colour wheel provides you even tighter management over your number of hue.
If you favor white gentle, the identical thought persists. Choose from a spread of eight preset colour temperatures from 2500Okay to 9000Okay, or go extra analog with a slider that permits you to dial issues in much more narrowly. A dynamic auto-white mode lets the bulb shift white colour temperature over the course of the day. At 30 bucks a bulb, the KL130 is a reasonably whole lot in comparison with different name-brand choices that supply related options and brightness, although you’ll discover that lower-end generics considerably undercut that worth.
White-tunable Kasa Smart Wi-Fi bulb (KL120)
TP-LinkThe KL120 takes the identical options because the KL130 and strips out the colour choices. It additionally cuts the value tag one other 5 bucks. That is likely to be a good trade-off, besides that the KL120 additionally dumbs down one of many KL130’s most compelling options: Its very large colour temperature choices when in white gentle mode. While the KL130 stretches from 2500Okay to 9000Okay, the KL120 provides you a spread of simply 2700Okay to 5000Okay, divided into 4 preset temperatures.
As with the KL130, you can even select a secondary interface to extra meticulously choose the temperature you need inside that vary; sadly, 2700Okay to 5000Okay simply isn’t actually large sufficient, notably on the cool aspect of issues. With the KL130 a mere $5 further, it’s the significantly better purchase regardless of how you intend to make use of it.
White-dimmable Kasa Smart Wi-Fi bulb (KL110)
TP-LinkZero surprises right here: This is similar bulb because the KL120, however hard-tuned to a heat 2700Okay. It’s a nice, soothing hue, although at simply 800 lumens it is likely to be on the dim aspect for activity lighting, relying on the room, even at most brightness. The Kasa Smart app turns the colour selector into a big orange rectangle that shrinks and grows as you slide the dimmer slider beneath it. As with TP-Link’s different bulbs, the dimmer is aware of the purpose of working in close to actual time. While 20 bucks isn’t a nasty deal for this bulb, generics can be found for significantly much less.