Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300: Review in brief
The Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300 is an alarm clock with a built-in radio and lamp that simulates the natural light of a sunrise. Our lead tester used it for 3 weeks and noticed a marked improvement in her energy levels and mood in the morning, feeling more awake and ready for the day.
Type: Sunrise and sunset light alarm clock
Best for: People looking for an all-in-one alarm clock, lamp, radio
Dimensions: 8.3"W x 7.1"H
Warranty: 3 years
Price: $159 at Amazon
The Bodyclock Shine 300, which features in this year's best sunrise alarm clock guide, lets you customize your sunrise, so you can accompany the light with over 15 different sounds (including goats, kittens, and tree frogs, as well as your more traditional wake up noises like a favorite radio station.) You can also choose the brightness of the lamp and the duration of the sunrise, meaning no matter your schedule or your preferred way to wake up, you can ensure the clock works for you.
The one drawback we noticed was that navigating through the settings and changing the alarm times was a time-consuming and frustrating process. However, aside from this, the variation and performance of the features make this sunrise alarm clocks one of the best in our opinion, boasting a simple design. Our reviewer now uses the sunset and sunrise features everyday without fail, saying she couldn’t now imagine her daily routine without it.
Lumie recent updates
The Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300 is an upgraded version of the Bodyclock Glow 150. The Bodyclock Shine 300 offers 5 more sound options, an FM radio, choice of light intensity, and more duration increments for the sunrise and sunset settings. Lumie have also developed two further models after the Bodyclock Shine 300 which offer even more advanced settings, making Lumie one of the most well-known brands for wake-up lights and alarm clocks.
Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300: Price
You can usually pick up a basic sunrise alarm clock for around $50/£40 (sometimes less), but these will often have limited functions and customizable options, with most sunrise alarm clocks sitting at around $100. The Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300 is at the premium end of the market, regularly retailing at $160/£140.
However, the price is reflected in the myriad features, as well as the build quality, sound quality, and high-end design. It also doubles up as a radio, reading lamp, and sunset lamp, so it’s not your average alarm clock, which our tester felt justifies this higher price point.
Unlike some more premium options, like the Hatch 2 Restore, you won’t need to pay for an ongoing subscription fee for the Lumie to access its full features, and regular sales on third party retailers like Amazon mean you can often get this clock for around £120/$120.
Price score: 3.5/4
Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300: Features
What sets this clock apart is the sheer number, and variation, of features available. The most notable is obviously the customizable sunrise. You can choose the duration of your sunrise, from 15-90 minutes, the sound that accompanies your sunrise, from 15 different sounds or FM radio, and the light intensity.
These sounds include various animal noises, ambient sounds like a café or a tropical rainforest, and white noise. With these options, our lead reviewer was able to create the perfect sunrise for her and her partner, lasting 30 minutes (so the light gradually increases, beginning from 30 minutes before your wake up time) and accompanied by goat sounds (because, why not?).
Our tester also found the secondary feature this clock offers, a sunset simulation, to be surprisingly useful. By simply clicking the 'sunset' button, you can trigger the bedside lamp to gradually darken until it switches off completely. According to Bodyclock, this helps stimulate the production of melatonin, making it easier to fall into a deep sleep. And, just like the sunrise function, you can determine how long you want your sunset to last.
The Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300 also doubles up as an FM radio, with the handy ability to save up to 5 of your favorite stations using the preset button, allowing you to quickly navigate through them and select your choice. You can search through stations easily and set specific stations as your sunset or sunrise sound.
Like any good alarm clock, the Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300 has a snooze function. Simply tap the top of the lamp to dim the light and silence the sound and it will gradually start lightening again, with your chosen sound playing 10 minutes later.
Features score: 4/5
Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300: Ease of Use
While our reviewer found all of these features incredibly useful, she found navigating between them and changing any settings already saved to be a time consuming and frustrating process.
Instead of choosing a day and changing your alarm, the Bodyclock Shine 300 requires users to click through all the days and times using one singular button. If you click too many times and miss the time you want to change, you have to go back through the whole week again until you get to the day you want to change.
Aside from this, our tester found the clock fairly simple to navigate. Although the controls aren't, in our opinion, laid out in a particularly intuitive way, the instruction manual was very clear and helpful, making the set up and navigation easy to follow. However, our tester reported that she did have to consult the manual more than once after set up, to remind herself how to reach certain features.
However, unlike some other sunrise alarm clocks, you don’t have to fiddle about with WiFi connections, remote controls, or apps. So, once you get your head around the buttons on the clock, we found that it’s fairly easy to use.
Ease of use score: 3.5/5
Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300: Performance
Set up
Our lead tester reported that the Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300 excelled in performance across all of its features. The set up of this device did require some concentration and a thorough reading of the instruction manual, but it was easy enough to understand. And, when this process was complete, our tester didn’t have any complaints about the way the device worked.
Once plugged in, you can set the time and date and start setting your alarm for each day. There is a choice between setting a weekly alarm at the same time every day, or going through each day to select a unique wake-up time. Our reviewer also found navigating through the sounds and the light easy enough, and was able to customize the alarm exactly to her liking without much trouble.
Sunrise simulation
Since it's one of the key selling points of the clock, we were keen to see how the sunrise simulation performed, and our reviewer was pleased to find that it was very natural. Starting with a red glow and finishing with a warm, bright light that felt natural and stimulating, the brightening was gradual. However, we should note that our lead tester did not wake up from the sunrise light alone.
Some people are more light sensitive, and may find the sunrise stimulation is enough, but our tester needed the sound accompaniment. Without it, she slept through the sunrise every morning. Despite that, she did note that the sunrise made her early mornings feel easier, and she felt energized quicker than she had before using this clock.
Sunset simulation
The Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300's sunset simulation starts slowly and then darkens from a warm light to an amber and red glow before shutting off completely. Our lead tester reported that every time she used it, she fell asleep before the light completely dimmed.
It also prevented her from staying up too late scrolling on her phone or watching TV, because as the light dimmed it reminded her it was time to go to sleep. She used both the sunset and sunrise functions for a 30-minute duration, and found that felt most natural.
Light and sound
A great sunrise or sunset stimulation is going to be let down if the quality of the sounds available on a clock are lacking, but we're pleased to report that the Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300's are excellent. Being able to control the volume of the alarm sound meant our tester could opt for quiet birdsong on the weekend or a loud bleating of goats (yes, really!) to get going during the week. The radio feature also worked well for our reviewer, who found it easy to scan through the stations.
Since our lead tester is a self-confessed lamp fanatic who is obsessed with having the perfect lighting in every room of her apartment, the Bodyclock Shine 300 was definitely going to be scrutinised for its ability to provide good bedroom ambience. The good news is, she reported that it was great. She loved that she could easily dim or brighten the lamp throughout the day and evening, creating the perfect glow for any mood.
In terms of design, she felt that the lamp itself was weighty and clearly had a high build-quality, making it an aesthetically pleasing addition to her bedside table. Had the Bodyclock Shine 300 lacked the sunrise and sunset features, she said she'd still want this lamp in her flat.
Performance score: 5/5
Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300: Should you buy it?
Buy the Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300 if…
✅You wake up before the sun rises: Facing dark mornings is a lot easier with this glowing sunrise alarm clock, with a gradual increase in light leaving you feeling naturally energized for the day ahead.
✅You don’t like relying on your phone: Rather than picking up your phone first thing in the morning and inevitably scrolling, the Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300 means you can have a more natural, screen-free morning.
✅You want an all-in-one bedside lamp: This device is not just a sunrise alarm clock. With a dimmable light, FM radio, and alarm clock, you won’t need any other bedside equipment.
Don’t buy the Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300 if…
❌Your partner has a different sleep schedule: Our tester got a few too many complaints from her partner who was rudely awakened by the light when enjoying a lie in. If you have different sleep schedules, the sunrise alarm setting can be a disturbance to others.
❌You’re on a budget: The Lumie Bodyclock Shine 300 is definitely a premium option with a price tag to match. If you're on a budget, it's not going to be a great choice for you.
❌ You just want a sunrise alarm clock: Looking for a simple sunrise alarm clock? If so, faffing about with sounds, radio, and customizable brightness of this clock might not be worth it. Opt for a more simple model like the hOmeLabs Sunrise Alarm Clock.
