I’m not gonna lie, I’ve been a fan of smart bulbs for a few years. Originally, I definitely hesitated — I’ve always been someone who didn’t really see the point of going full “smart home” (because do you really need everything to be WiFi-enabled?) — but once I tried my first smart bulb, I was absolutely hooked.

Weirdly enough, my first foray into smart lighting sucked. My partner purchased a random brand from Amazon, and the bulbs were finicky, hard to set up, and barely produced any light. However, it was obvious that there was potential there. We loved the ability to change the lights to suit our mood, but we quickly realized that — when it comes to smart lighting — the brand you choose definitely matters. So is LIFX one of those brands? Here’s what you need to know.

What are LIFX smart bulbs?

LIFX (pronounced LIFE-ex) offers a selection of WiFi-enabled smart lighting that rivals larger, well-known brands like Philips Hue. The company offers a whole range of different bulb types: including traditional, color-changing E26 bulbs(Opens in a new window)(opens in a new tab) — the kind that fit in most “traditional” light fixtures — as well as LED lightstrips, candle-style bulbs, and even their newest offering, LIFX Clean(Opens in a new window)(opens in a new tab). Marketed as “a light so smart we taught it how to clean,” the LIFX Clean bulbs use high-energy visible light (also known as HEV) to clean and disinfect surfaces at the click of a button.