Looking for eReader lamp with dimmable warm-white mini-incandescent bulb

nicciglen · 05-09-2013, 03:55 PM

I'm looking for a eReader light with a dimmable mini-incandescent bulb, giving a warm-white yellowish coloured light, rather than the blue-tinged or cool-white light that modern LED and other energy saving bulbs emit. The lamp would be for my Sony PRS-T1 eReader, however it doesn't specifically need to be an eReader lamp - a dimmable portable book light giving a warm-white (yellowish) light from a mini incandescent bulb (i.e. having a filament) should work too.

I know that old fashioned filament-based incandescent bulbs suck up energy much faster than their energy saving LED counterparts, however I have a very good reason for not wanting to go with the LED version. I have a light sensitivity vision impairment (similar to Irlen Syndrome and Visual Stress) - although I can read very well. This means that I find it much easier to read with dim lighting, and get migraines and mentally tired when trying to read with white light sources. Energy saving light bulbs are a big problem for me, as most of them give off a very cool-white or bluish light which I find very uncomfortable - especially when reading.

Just as an example of the kind of light that helps, if I use a normal desktop reading lamp - fitted with a traditional incandescent bulb, and dim it right down so that the light rendering is very warm and yellowish, then I can read quite comfortably. I'm looking for the same effect from a mini-lamp for my eReader.

Folk who are already familiar with Visual Stress might suggest I just go for one of the usual LED-based eReader lamps and use a coloured overlay on the eReader. Well, I already use a coloured overlay with my eReader and I also use tinted Irlen glasses, however they still don't make reading my eReader with a cool-white bulb comfortable.

Does someone perhaps know if there is a portable mini book or eReader lamp that fits the characteristics described above?

Thanks in advance

Rich_D · 05-10-2013, 02:28 PM

I don't know of any incandescent lights with a dimmer feature. There are several on the market without the dimmer feature though. I see you mentioned the coloured overlay for the reader, but have you tried coloring the bulb? A permanent colour marker might give you the desired results.

theducks · 05-10-2013, 08:59 PM

There are Household LED's that have a 3800K color temp (about that of a incandescent. The put a Yellow-Orange lens on them (Look at Phillips).

I have retrofit 12V(AC) LED's with a 'Wedge' base for my Malibu walkway Lamps. They are dimmable.

Keep looking

nicciglen · 05-11-2013, 08:49 AM

Thanks for the suggestion about colouring the light bulb Rich_D.
I definitely have thought about that and might give it a try - though I don't think that colouring the bulb with a permanent colour marker will work that well.
I had a similar idea though - i.e. cut off a section of coloured overlay and try and tape that over the bulb. The problem with that, is that I will need to buy a eReader lamp to try out the idea, and if the idea doesn't work that well then I've wasted my money on the lamp.
In the meantime, I will keep on looking - there must be something on the market that comes quite close to my needs.

nicciglen · 05-11-2013, 09:23 AM

Thanks theducks. You have just given me an idea - I have a pair of old glasses with plano orange lenses / filters. If I find a dimmable LED eReader lamp (with a colour temp closer to 2700K - the low end of the colour rendering range for incandescent bulbs) then I could maybe mount one of the lenses on the front of the LEDs and see how that works out.

HarryT · 05-11-2013, 02:37 PM

Theatrical suppliers sell colour filters (called "lighting gels") for producing different colours of light for stage lighting. I'm sure they'd have small off-cuts they'd let you have for free or at very low cost. Might be worth investigating.

silverraven · 05-12-2013, 07:41 AM

Not dim-able, but incandescent. http://www.amazon.com/Zelco-itty-bit...tty+book+light I have used them for years, love them. I bought flashlight bulbs as replacement bulbs instead of their bulbs, worked just fine and way cheaper.
I don't see why it wouldn't slip between the ereader and cover, or maybe to the cover itself? Depending on your cover.
S

curtw · 05-12-2013, 12:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by silverraven

Not dim-able, but incandescent. http://www.amazon.com/Zelco-itty-bit...tty+book+light I have used them for years, love them. I bought flashlight bulbs as replacement bulbs instead of their bulbs, worked just fine and way cheaper.
I don't see why it wouldn't slip between the ereader and cover, or maybe to the cover itself? Depending on your cover.
S

The same company also made the "Fliplite," which is also incandescent. I haven't cracked open an "itty-bitty," but the Fliplite offers a couple of options for making it dimmable:

It takes 4 "AA" batteries, but this is in two parallel circuits of two batteries each, so you can fiddle around with dimming by trying two or four batteries, alkalines, NiMH and NiCad rechargeables, etc., and see if you can get to a brightness you like, or...
The power wire is easily accessible. If you or somebody you know is even a little bit handy with a soldering iron, you can put a small rheostat/potentiometer into the circuit, and add your own dimming knob.

"Available in Stores" at B&N.

If you can't find one, or you *aren't* handy enough, drop another note here--I might be able to help more.

nicciglen · 01-15-2014, 12:20 PM

Thanks to all the replies to my original query. I had looked at the "Itty Bitty" Book Light Volume 2 from Zelco, within the view of experimenting with it to see if a dimmer switch could be fitted - but it seemed too expensive a purchase to mess about with. I searched for the FlipLite quite a while ago (as recommended by 'curtw') but I couldn't find it available for sale anywhere. Zelco doesn't appear to produce it anymore.

So basically for now, I'm just making do with a desk light (which is quite limiting). When I can afford to maybe throw away some money to buy a Itty Bitty Vol. 2, keeping in mind that it may not be part of the solution - I will just keep looking in the meantime.

silverraven · 01-15-2014, 01:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nicciglen

Thanks to all the replies to my original query. I had looked at the "Itty Bitty" Book Light Volume 2 from Zelco, within the view of experimenting with it to see if a dimmer switch could be fitted - but it seemed too expensive a purchase to mess about with. I searched for the FlipLite quite a while ago (as recommended by 'curtw') but I couldn't find it available for sale anywhere. Zelco doesn't appear to produce it anymore.

So basically for now, I'm just making do with a desk light (which is quite limiting). When I can afford to maybe throw away some money to buy a Itty Bitty Vol. 2, keeping in mind that it may not be part of the solution - I will just keep looking in the meantime.

If you can find a regular bulb for a flashlight, screw in type, you could rig it up and see the amount of light the Itty Bitty puts out. I buy mine at Walmat in the camping section. They are the same bulbs Itty Bitty sells as replacements. I think the last ones I got were $1.50 for two bulbs, cheap to play with.
I also have very sensitive eyes. I never had a problem with the Itty Bitty being too strong. But I understand the cost to just play with it, they aren't cheap!
S

nicciglen · 01-15-2014, 01:40 PM

Thanks for your quick reply 'silverraven'.

Do you use the Itty Bitty 'Original' or the 'Vol 2'? The Vol 2 is apparently designed to be brighter than the original according to the description on Zelco's website.

Could you perhaps also tell me what voltage the torch bulbs are that you bought?

Thanks in advance

silverraven · 01-15-2014, 03:08 PM

I"ve got the white one, this one:
http://www.amazon.com/Zelco-itty-bit...tty+book+light

I'll go dig out a package of the lights and tell you everything on the package for ya! It will be a bit, I have to figure out where I put them so I wouldn't lose them.......

S

silverraven · 01-15-2014, 03:52 PM

Found them!! After I saw the package I could go to the Walmart site and find them:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Rayovac-4A...-Bulb/17163353
4.8v 0.5A 2.4 watt Rayovac k4sb

Now that I am thinking about it, before I found these at Walmart we went to Radio Shack and found some bulbs. I don't have any of them left, sorry, but I remember they were not as bright as the Walmart bulbs. I don't know if instead of a dimmer you could do a Radio Shack bulb or not....
Hope this helps!
S
P.S. I really really like incandescent bulbs too, but I have used http://www.amazon.com/M-Edge--Lumina...ds=medge+light and it does not hurt my eyes. It has 3 levels of light, the low one being pretty darn dim. I found them at Big Lots and Ollies for under $5.
Good Luck!

speakingtohe · 01-15-2014, 04:07 PM

The dollar stores in Canada carry a wide variety of booklights. Even an incandescent one IIRC.

The incandescent are bigger and heavier as they take more batteries. They aren't dimmable but at $1.25 each you wouldn't be to bothered by ruining them.

Helen

05-09-2013, 03:55 PM	#1
nicciglen Junior Member Posts: 9 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2012 Device: Sony Reader PRS-T1	Looking for eReader lamp with dimmable warm-white mini-incandescent bulb I'm looking for a eReader light with a dimmable mini-incandescent bulb, giving a warm-white yellowish coloured light, rather than the blue-tinged or cool-white light that modern LED and other energy saving bulbs emit. The lamp would be for my Sony PRS-T1 eReader, however it doesn't specifically need to be an eReader lamp - a dimmable portable book light giving a warm-white (yellowish) light from a mini incandescent bulb (i.e. having a filament) should work too. I know that old fashioned filament-based incandescent bulbs suck up energy much faster than their energy saving LED counterparts, however I have a very good reason for not wanting to go with the LED version. I have a light sensitivity vision impairment (similar to Irlen Syndrome and Visual Stress) - although I can read very well. This means that I find it much easier to read with dim lighting, and get migraines and mentally tired when trying to read with white light sources. Energy saving light bulbs are a big problem for me, as most of them give off a very cool-white or bluish light which I find very uncomfortable - especially when reading. Just as an example of the kind of light that helps, if I use a normal desktop reading lamp - fitted with a traditional incandescent bulb, and dim it right down so that the light rendering is very warm and yellowish, then I can read quite comfortably. I'm looking for the same effect from a mini-lamp for my eReader. Folk who are already familiar with Visual Stress might suggest I just go for one of the usual LED-based eReader lamps and use a coloured overlay on the eReader. Well, I already use a coloured overlay with my eReader and I also use tinted Irlen glasses, however they still don't make reading my eReader with a cool-white bulb comfortable. Does someone perhaps know if there is a portable mini book or eReader lamp that fits the characteristics described above? Thanks in advance

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
iPad iPad Mini as an ereader	Joy736	Apple Devices	53	09-16-2013 05:52 AM
The best lamp for kobo mini (e readers)?	gala	Kobo Reader	8	12-19-2012 11:49 PM
Touch What if a bulb burns out?	tiniree	Barnes & Noble NOOK	2	05-22-2012 09:51 PM
Warm Hello from a warm country down-under!	LovePlanetEarth	Introduce Yourself	7	01-26-2012 11:11 PM
Book Light (Incandescent vs LED)	Maike13	Which one should I buy?	4	10-23-2009 02:57 AM

05-10-2013, 02:28 PM	#2
Rich_D Fanatic Posts: 581 Karma: 1314896 Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Pittsburgh, PA USA Device: Android phone, Kobo Glo HD, nook ST with Glo (backup)	I don't know of any incandescent lights with a dimmer feature. There are several on the market without the dimmer feature though. I see you mentioned the coloured overlay for the reader, but have you tried coloring the bulb? A permanent colour marker might give you the desired results.

05-10-2013, 08:59 PM	#3
theducks Well trained by Cats Posts: 29,754 Karma: 54401244 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: The Central Coast of California Device: Kobo Libra2,Kobo Aura2v1, K4NT(Fixed: New Bat.), Galaxy Tab A	There are Household LED's that have a 3800K color temp (about that of a incandescent. The put a Yellow-Orange lens on them (Look at Phillips). I have retrofit 12V(AC) LED's with a 'Wedge' base for my Malibu walkway Lamps. They are dimmable. Keep looking

05-11-2013, 08:49 AM	#4
nicciglen Junior Member Posts: 9 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2012 Device: Sony Reader PRS-T1	Thanks for the suggestion about colouring the light bulb Rich_D. I definitely have thought about that and might give it a try - though I don't think that colouring the bulb with a permanent colour marker will work that well. I had a similar idea though - i.e. cut off a section of coloured overlay and try and tape that over the bulb. The problem with that, is that I will need to buy a eReader lamp to try out the idea, and if the idea doesn't work that well then I've wasted my money on the lamp. In the meantime, I will keep on looking - there must be something on the market that comes quite close to my needs.

05-11-2013, 09:23 AM	#5
nicciglen Junior Member Posts: 9 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2012 Device: Sony Reader PRS-T1	Thanks theducks. You have just given me an idea - I have a pair of old glasses with plano orange lenses / filters. If I find a dimmable LED eReader lamp (with a colour temp closer to 2700K - the low end of the colour rendering range for incandescent bulbs) then I could maybe mount one of the lenses on the front of the LEDs and see how that works out.

05-11-2013, 02:37 PM	#6
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	Theatrical suppliers sell colour filters (called "lighting gels") for producing different colours of light for stage lighting. I'm sure they'd have small off-cuts they'd let you have for free or at very low cost. Might be worth investigating.

05-12-2013, 07:41 AM	#7
silverraven Guru Posts: 967 Karma: 3438612 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: Kindle Voyage, Kindle 4NTB x 4	Not dim-able, but incandescent. http://www.amazon.com/Zelco-itty-bit...tty+book+light I have used them for years, love them. I bought flashlight bulbs as replacement bulbs instead of their bulbs, worked just fine and way cheaper. I don't see why it wouldn't slip between the ereader and cover, or maybe to the cover itself? Depending on your cover. S

01-15-2014, 12:20 PM	#9
nicciglen Junior Member Posts: 9 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2012 Device: Sony Reader PRS-T1	Thanks to all the replies to my original query. I had looked at the "Itty Bitty" Book Light Volume 2 from Zelco, within the view of experimenting with it to see if a dimmer switch could be fitted - but it seemed too expensive a purchase to mess about with. I searched for the FlipLite quite a while ago (as recommended by 'curtw') but I couldn't find it available for sale anywhere. Zelco doesn't appear to produce it anymore. So basically for now, I'm just making do with a desk light (which is quite limiting). When I can afford to maybe throw away some money to buy a Itty Bitty Vol. 2, keeping in mind that it may not be part of the solution - I will just keep looking in the meantime.

01-15-2014, 01:40 PM	#11
nicciglen Junior Member Posts: 9 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2012 Device: Sony Reader PRS-T1	Thanks for your quick reply 'silverraven'. Do you use the Itty Bitty 'Original' or the 'Vol 2'? The Vol 2 is apparently designed to be brighter than the original according to the description on Zelco's website. Could you perhaps also tell me what voltage the torch bulbs are that you bought? Thanks in advance

01-15-2014, 03:08 PM	#12
silverraven Guru Posts: 967 Karma: 3438612 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: Kindle Voyage, Kindle 4NTB x 4	I"ve got the white one, this one: http://www.amazon.com/Zelco-itty-bit...tty+book+light I'll go dig out a package of the lights and tell you everything on the package for ya! It will be a bit, I have to figure out where I put them so I wouldn't lose them....... S

01-15-2014, 03:52 PM	#13
silverraven Guru Posts: 967 Karma: 3438612 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: Kindle Voyage, Kindle 4NTB x 4	Found them!! After I saw the package I could go to the Walmart site and find them: http://www.walmart.com/ip/Rayovac-4A...-Bulb/17163353 4.8v 0.5A 2.4 watt Rayovac k4sb Now that I am thinking about it, before I found these at Walmart we went to Radio Shack and found some bulbs. I don't have any of them left, sorry, but I remember they were not as bright as the Walmart bulbs. I don't know if instead of a dimmer you could do a Radio Shack bulb or not.... Hope this helps! S P.S. I really really like incandescent bulbs too, but I have used http://www.amazon.com/M-Edge--Lumina...ds=medge+light and it does not hurt my eyes. It has 3 levels of light, the low one being pretty darn dim. I found them at Big Lots and Ollies for under $5. Good Luck!

Advert

Advert

01-15-2014, 04:07 PM	#14
speakingtohe Wizard Posts: 4,812 Karma: 26912940 Join Date: Apr 2010 Device: sony PRS-T1 and T3, Kobo Mini and Aura HD, Tablet	The dollar stores in Canada carry a wide variety of booklights. Even an incandescent one IIRC. The incandescent are bigger and heavier as they take more batteries. They aren't dimmable but at $1.25 each you wouldn't be to bothered by ruining them. Helen