strong daylight during the dreary winter days

We are currently back in the middle of winter time. The days get shorter until the end of December, when it is light, the sky is gray in many places or we don’t get a lot of sun due to our work. In addition, there is a global pandemic that mostly forces us into our own four walls, should you work from your home office, the screen tan has probably become your best friend. But in the long term, light deprivation is not healthy, we feel drained and in extreme cases we slide into depression.

This is where daylight lamps come into play. The little helpers should supplement the daily supply of light and have a luminosity that is usually much stronger than that of household lamps. This should also help against moods and similar complaints, various studies have come to the conclusion that light therapy has an effect on over half of the test subjects. Nevertheless, one thing is important in this context: If you suffer from psychological problems, please contact your doctor first, who can then best assess whether light therapy is right for you.

But regardless of this, a daylight lamp in the home office can also drive away tiredness and lighten the mood, the serotonin level rises and the formation of the sleep hormone melatonin decreases. That’s why I’ve looked at the Beurer TL 30 once in the past few weeks.

First of all: Beurer provided us with the test device free of charge, but this in no way influenced the opinion in this article.

Everything in a small box

If we look into the packaging of the TL30, we will find everything we need. The daylight lamp is probably the most mobile model from Beurer and comes with a charging cable, a plastic holder for setting up the lamp and a nice bag for stowing and transporting it.

If you want to use the TL30 for the first time, all you have to do is connect it to the power supply and press the on / off button. The plastic holder can simply be clipped onto the daylight lamp, which can then be aligned differently as desired. And you’re ready to go …

Minimalistic, but made of plastic

The design of the TL30 is kept quite minimalist. In addition to the slightly thicker plastic frame, there is only the LED light panel on the front, which takes up an area of ​​20 × 12 cm. The on / off switch is located on the upper frame, on the back there is the power connection and various options for attaching the plastic stand.

The design is kept very minimalist, thanks to its light weight and small thickness, the TL30 is easy to take with you

And that brings us to one of my biggest criticisms: the overuse of plastic. Although this makes the TL30 relatively light and, with dimensions of around 24 × 16 × 3 centimeters, it is extremely portable, the device still does not feel particularly valuable. So far nothing has happened in everyday life, but one often has the feeling that the plastic stand could break when it is attached to the lamp. A better solution could certainly be found here.

Always stay close

If we look at the actual luminosity, the lamp achieves excellent values. Up to 10,000 lux should be achieved at a distance of up to 10 cm. For comparison: on a sunny summer day, values ​​around 100,000 lux are achieved outside, so the daylight lamp rather simulates the amount of light that is roughly achieved in the shade. But that is significantly more than the illuminance we are confronted with in winter, here mostly only 3,000 lux are achieved.

You have probably already recognized the problem with the above information: the distance at which the 10,000 lux is reached is not particularly great. So in everyday life I actually never sit only 10 centimeters away from the lamp, here it is more like 20 to 50 centimeters, at 30 centimeters “only” 6,000 lux is achieved as a result. So in order to achieve the full effect, I would have to go very close to the lamp or look into the bright light for a long time.

The color temperature of the Beurer TL 30 is 6500 Kelvin. The daylight lamp thus achieves a good value, daylight lamps should achieve at least 5,300 Kelvin. I also notice this in the everyday test, after sitting in front of the lamp for about 30 minutes every morning, I felt significantly more alert and ready for the day.

In this category, the TL30 receives a point deduction, a distance of 10 centimeters is not really realistic in everyday life. Nevertheless, the values ​​achieved are acceptable for this price, but if you still want to enjoy the advantages of the lamp over a longer distance, you should switch to a slightly more expensive and therefore stronger model.

Another aspect that I would like to address in test reports from now on is the sustainability of the products. For this purpose, I sent Beurer a few questions about the material and its repairability. Unfortunately, there is little positive to report here, the plastic used does not contain any noteworthy recycling content.

There are also negatives for repairability. Upon request, I was informed that the daylight lamp itself cannot be repaired, only the power supply unit can be replaced. Although the model should still have the same luminosity after 1000 hours as at the beginning, the lamp is still only something for the bin if it is defective.

Finally, I would of course like to write down my own experience from the test of the past few weeks. Please note that this is a subjective feeling, should you buy the TL30 yourself, your experiences may differ (significantly). After all, everyone is different.

I used the TL30 as a supplement to my morning routine and exposed myself directly and indirectly to light for about 45 minutes each morning. Furthermore, there were short “blueprints” every now and then. I felt that the daylight lamp woke me up much faster and felt a little more energetic and livelier during the day. So if you go there, I can definitely recommend the lamp.

So what can you finally say about the TL30 from Beurer? The daylight lamp is an entry-level model and can therefore of course not compete with models in the price range around 100 euros. But that is by no means the claim of the TL30, the device already developed the effect I tested in the built-in configuration.

Nevertheless, the plastic strikes me negatively, anyone who counts on gadgets that feel good to the touch is more likely to be wrongly advised here, and friends of sustainability will also be disappointed. I would also like to emphasize that I did not use the TL30 for light therapy, so if you are looking for something to treat your symptoms, please consult your doctor beforehand and ask for advice.

The only thing left to do is to say that I would like to have a battery-operated version of the lamp. Because a socket is not always within reach, a built-in battery would be a relief, especially for mobile use.

The TL30 can be ordered from various dealers and is currently from 46 To have euros.