Our Casper Glow Light review is a must-read if you're looking to invest in the best wake up light and considering this newly released model.
Whether you suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder and want to see if these handy lights could offer a practical solution; or an early commute is making your mornings a misery, wake up lights have the power to seriously transform your morning experience.
Far from being yet another super millennial-sounding gimmick, wake up lights actually work. But did this latest addition from mattress specialists, Casper, stand up to the test? We reveal all.
What is the Casper Glow Light?
The Casper Glow Light is a small – and pretty stylish – bedside lamp designed to make the process of waking up (and falling asleep) a little less painful. Similarly to other wake up lights on the market, the Casper Glow Light gradually floods a space with light over a span of 30 minutes, tapping into our circadian rhythms to gently rouse us from our sleep.
Based on the notion that humans traditionally relied on sunlight to wake them from their sleep, the Casper Glow Light aims to make the process of waking up slightly less stressful on the mind and body. Plus, it does the reverse in the evening, gradually decreasing the presence of light to make it easier to fall asleep.
How easy is it to set up?
The Casper Glow Light couldn't be easier to set up. Simply take it out the box; take a look at the functions – more on that below; download the Casper Glow app and you're ready to go.
How good is the Casper Glow Light app?
The Casper Glow Light app is pretty basic, but it does exactly what you need it to do. Whether you want to group your Glow Lights together, set a wake-up alarm or alter the brightness, it's all simple to do via the app.
It's worth noting, at this stage, that the Casper Glow Light is not smart in the way we expect from many modern devices. Yes, you can control it from your smartphone. But only with your Bluetooth switched on and when your Glow Lights are within range. That said, when would you need to use it when you and your phone aren't there? (Sorry, no waking your other half remotely while you are away...)
How will you use the Casper Glow Light?
An upgrade from the standard bedside lamp, the Casper Glow Light offers a range of useful functions, including:
Helping you wake up
One of the major draws of the Casper Glow Light is its ability to make mornings a little bit easier, by gradually flooding a space with light and allowing you to wake up more gradually. I have found it extremely useful, in this context, and now couldn't imagine a dark winter morning without my Glow Light.
If the light doesn't wake you and you need a secondary alarm, you will still notice the benefit of the light. You really do notice the grogginess when you wake without the aid of a wake up lamp, once you have used one – it takes the edge off early mornings for sure.
And fall asleep
The Casper Glow Light is also designed to work in reverse, gradually dimming its light in a bid to help you fall asleep more gradually. If I'm honest, I've rarely used the Glow Light in this context – I don't have too much trouble falling asleep – though I imagine it could be useful if you're serious about establishing a calming bedtime routine. Again, the sunset effect works to ease us into a restful sleep, triggering natural reactions to light exposure that happen in our body.
For use in the evening
Casper also suggest that the Glow Light provides a great lighting solution for those who have a tendency to get up, briefly, in the night – perhaps to use the bathroom, to feed a baby or to check on a relative – since the subtle glow of the light is less stimulating for the brain than turning on a main light or phone torch (we've all been there).
I can see how this would be useful, but since I tend to sleep through the night, it's not a function that I've found myself drawn towards particularly often.
What did I like about the Casper Glow Light?
You really can't fault the aesthetic appeal of the Casper Glow Light – particularly when compared with other wake up lights on the market.
And as someone who deals with low mood during the winter months, I've also found it invaluable as an aid for dark, winter mornings and now can't imagine waking up without it.
It sits comfortably on my bedside table and I find that, for the most part, the light is bright enough to wake me before my scheduled alarm goes off, which is great since this is kind of the point of the product.
I rarely found myself relying on the Glow Light to fall asleep, though this may be of use to those working on building a more rigid bedtime routine.
What didn't I like about the Casper Glow Light?
The Casper Glow Light is expensive, particularly given that it doesn't come with a built-in alarm clock. While I do wake up from the glow of light, most of the time, there have been occasions where I've been in such a deep sleep that the Glow Light, alone, has failed to rouse me from my slumber.
This isn't too much of a problem if you're okay with using your phone – or a clock – as a back-up alarm, or you're not too tied to a wake-up schedule. But, it's not ideal if you're investing in a glow light as part of a mission to eradicate phones from the bedroom, entirely. It seems like a slightly strange thing for Casper to have missed out, given the Glow Light's price point.