I have really fond memories of power cuts when I was a kid, my dad would come out of the office, my teenage sister would creep out of her bedroom and mum would light lots of candles, make some hot chocolate on the stove and we would play cards, wonderful. Mum however remembers it rather differently, my dad tripping over his bag in the kitchen, my sister panicking because she hated the dark and wax melting all over the coffee table, not so wonderful. For other people the lack of light is more than just an inconvenience, for the elderly, disabled or someone in a mousetrap factory it could be downright dangerous so the idea of a lightbulb that will stay on even in the event of a power cut is very exciting. The SmartCharge LED Rechargeable Light Bulb aims to do exactly that, simply replace your existing bulb with the SmartCharge bulb and in the event of a power cut and the SmartCharge will use its battery back-up power to give you 3.5 hours of light.

The battery charges up during normal use and will hold its charge for up to 17 days but works best in a place where it will be used regularly, ideally every day. The bulb we tested was 8 watt (replaces a 40 Watt bulb), produced 630 lumens and a warm white 2700k, it is actually a little cooler than our usual bulb but not unpleasant. We tried it out in a few spots and found if the light hadn’t been switched on for a while, say a few hours, it would flicker when It comes on like the old school energy saving bulbs, not really a problem but a little annoying. It is only suitable for a single light fixture not multi light fixtures, it cannot be used in enclosed fixtures without ventilation and is larger than the average bulb, 3 x 7 x 10 inches so it sticks out over the top of my little table lamp lampshade, it is also heavier weighing in at 11.2 ounces instead of the average 1.8 ounces so this may also be something to consider. It does do what it says on the tin, we have a mini power cut test by tripping the fuse and it stayed on, the same level of brightness without even a flicker, you can then use it like a normal light by turning it on and off on the wall.

This is a new product that will get better with time, maybe I am greedy but I would like to see it last longer, give me 7 or even 12 hours then perhaps it makes the price a little more reasonable when it comes to replacing all the bulbs in the house but as it stands in the event of a blackout we can at least huddle in one room for 3.5 hours. RRP $24.95

3.8 out of 5

Buy now

Pros

Use like a normal bulb

Holds charge for 17 days

Stays on for 3.5 hours

Energy efficient

Innovative idea

Cons

Feels cheap

Heavy

Big

Flickers when we turned it on

Only works in single light fixtures and unenclosed ventilated fixtures