The new Color 1000 bulbs are better and brighter while simultaneously being smaller (A19 Color 1000 versus A21 Original) and consuming less power - nice.
Fantastic customer support - responded to a very late evening email in less than 3 hours and offered to replace a failed A21 Original after my FIRST email! The Originals are out of stock, so they replaced it with a new Color 1000 - bonus!
FYI (as of 02/16/2016):
- Color 1000 seem to require 802.11g or 802.11b to onboard them to - and keep them on - your network (my bet is 802.11g); the bulb does not connect when my 2.4 GHz band is n-only.
- Except for the issue above, the Android app may FALSELY report that it failed to onboard your bulb. I had it incorrectly notify me for three separate bulbs. Given the variations in timing and circumstances surrounding the same error, I became skeptical and ignored the error, switched to my wireless network, and sure enough found the bulbs had been successfully added.
Be aware, the colors on the A19 Color 1000 are slightly improved over the A21 Original. This of course necessarily means the colors are not identical. They're very close, but there is a very slight color difference between the two, so if you were going to add a Color 1000 right next to an Original, you may notice the difference. I attached pictures with an A19 Color 1000 centered and an A21 Original in the right corner. Granted, they are set against different colored surroundings, but you can still tell the colors of the light sources are slightly different. Both lights were set to 4000K white, and then 192° greenish blue respectively. I notice the difference, but most people probably wouldn't. The camera exaggerates the difference too, just proving that the difference is real. Non-issue I'm sure for most people, just letting you know.
- No promises, but I'll try to get motivated to do a legitimate side-by-side comparison.
Detail:
Android app is just fine, but could be improved (expansion below, if anyone's interested or if support happens across this).
I had eight A21 Originals; one of them failed recently. I contacted LIFX support, described the increasing problems and my several weeks of personal troubleshooting, along with the ultimate result of the "Red Flash of Death" (bulb flashes red for a while, then turns solid red, indicating that it's no longer working properly). Because I exhausted all possibilities myself before contacting support and provided clear detail on first contact about what I did and what I observed, LIFX support was willing to replace my failed Original free of charge per warranty after receiving my very first message! No need for back and forth discussions, suggestions of more things to try, etc. They even replaced it with a Color 1000 since the Originals are no longer produced. Outstanding.
Incidentally, these problems arose at the same time I added a new Color 1000 to my collection. It was switching from "online" to "offline" in the Android app almost every time I opened the app to control it. It would be controllable for a few seconds and then go offline. After 30 seconds to a few minutes, it would come back online. That's actually the same behavior my failed Original exhibited leading up to its total failure. However, the causes for these nearly identical symptoms were completely different. My suspicion was the hardware was perfectly fine (unlike my failed Original) and that the Color 1000's problem was probably software (app, service, firmware, or a combination). I mentioned all my observations, troubleshooting, and ideas to LIFX support in the same email regarding my failed Original. LIFX responded confirming that this issue had been reported by others and should be resolved in the next firmware update.
- The Color 1000 would not connect despite many attempts and a factory reset, when my ASUS RT-AC87R's 2.4 GHz band was configured in n-only mode. The bulb only connected after reconfiguring the 2.4 GHz band for 802.11 b,g,n (implying the bulb needs either b or g, my guess is g). The bulb dropped off when I switched back to n-only mode. I've since left my 2.4 GHz band to support all three standards and the bulbs connect just fine now. I think the firmware updated a few hours ago as I added my second Color 1000 (the warranty replaced for my failed Original!) and I haven't seen either Color 1000 temporarily drop yet tonight. I did not clarify whether future firmware would also address the issue with the Color 1000s not connecting to an n-only 2.4 GHz network, but perhaps that is or will be addressed as well.
An aside:
While fully understanding that not all customers will be quite as tech savvy, I (as a developer, myself) urge you to think through any problems you have with any product and start logically and systematically ruling things out before contacting support. When you do finally contact support, include as much relevant detail as possible and I expect you'll have much better experiences with support. "Help them help you." It's really hard to fix other people's problems when they don't tell you exactly what's happening and speak too loosely (failing to maintain important distinctions, and failing to mention important details). :-)
Android app issues (support, I'll try to formalize/condense these and communicate directly with you soon..):
- Not sure if this requires updates to software, firmware, or perhaps a combination of both, but the current execution pattern is that the bulbs always turn on first (to the last setting), prior to any further state changes. So, if I last had the bulb set to 4000K white, 100% brightness during the day, turned it off in the evening, went to sleep, and then woke up for a midnight snack.. if I wanted to change the bulb from off directly to 5% red, I can't. What happens is the moment I perform the first action (like pressing red, or adjusting the brightness), the bulb immediately turns on to the last setting, which was 100% bright white, THEN changes to red (or quickly fades to the brightness I'm trying to drag it to). So I've just had my nighttime eyes assaulted by a blinding flash of white before receiving the dim red I requested. The user should be able to set values for the bulb independently of its on/off status.. specifically, be able to configure the color and brightness that the bulb should be next time I turn it on, BEFORE I turn it on. e.g. it was last set to max brightness white, then turned off; I should now be able to change it to red 5%, and THEN turn it on, and have the bulb go directly from off to red 5% and avoid that whole lightning flash thing.
- The app also doesn't correctly report the current state of the bulbs via the groups. It looks like it might via the individual lights, but the groups (even if there's only a single light in the group) don't report right on first load - you have to switch to another "tab" and switch back, and that triggers an update that shows an accurate status of the bulb's color and brightness. When you first open a group that's currently switched on, set to 4000K white, and 50% brightness, the group will initially open to the white tab, but will show perhaps 1% brightness and 3500K, for example. Switching away then back results in the correct status shown, or just initiating an adjustment (like dragging the brightness indicator up) triggers an update as well (that 1% will suddenly switch to 50% as soon as you start dragging).
| Manufacturer | LIFX |
|---|---|
| Part Number | LBA19E26UC10 |
| Item Weight | 8.5 ounces |
| Product Dimensions | 2.48 x 2.48 x 4.53 inches |
| Item model number | LBA19E26UC10 |
| Is Discontinued By Manufacturer | No |
| Size | Adjustable |
| Color | Color |
| Style | A19-Single |
| Shape | A19 |
| Voltage | 240 Volts |
| Wattage | 11 |
| Item Package Quantity | 1 |
| Type of Bulb | LED |
| Luminous Flux | 1055 |
| Special Features | Smart Led Bulb, No Hub Required, Dimmable, Multi Colored |
| Usage | Indoor use only |
| Batteries Included? | No |
| Batteries Required? | No |
| Warranty Description | 2 year warranty. |
