LIFX – Wi-fi Enabled LED Light Bulb

San Francisco-based inventor Phil Bosua has reinvented the light bulb with LIFX – a wi-fi-enabled LED bulb that can be controlled through a smartphone. 

The smartphone app allows users to have complete control over the brightness and colour of their lighting systems. The bulbs are also an environmentally friendly option, using a tenth of the energy of standard bulbs, and lasting up to 25 years. 

LIFX bulbs are installed in the same way as standard light bulbs and connect to a user’s wi-fi through a downloadable app. Each bulb can be controlled individually or in groups through a smartphone, as well as still being linked to standard light switches.

Control options include a sunrise and sunset mode for gradually dimmed lights that wake you up or send you to sleep, and automatic switch on/off, which allows a security mode for holidays. As the lights are linked to a smartphone, they can also be used to visualise music or send notifications from other apps. 

LIFX was launched on crowd-funding platform Kickstarter last month and received $1.3m dollars within two weeks – 13 times the amount requested. The company is also creating a software development kit for the product to allow developers to create their own apps and uses for the bulb. 

LIFX