A portable smart lamp works for a certain type of person. Given it needs to be constantly recharged, you could opt to simply leave it plugged into a single area but then you aren’t using the lamp for its full purpose. You need to be someone who cares about the ambiance of your room and is willing to not only commit the money upfront for it but wants to change the lamp’s spot for just a few hours at a time.
Since testing out Nanoleaf, Philips, and Govee smart lights, I’ve become that type of person more and the Umbra Cono has fit into my life surprisingly well. However, this smart lamp is noticeably not the main event in a room and you pay an awful lot for a side act.
Nanoleaf Umbra Cono smart lamp review: Price and Availability
The Umbra Cono portable smart lamp can be purchased for $95 at Nanoleaf or Umbra websites. There is no fluctuation between the two prices and I haven’t seen a sale on both sites since I started monitoring them — though Umbra occasionally offers 10% off your first order. The latter also offers free shipping for shops over $75, whereas the former charges $9.99 for shipping.
Curiously, buying the Nanoleaf Umbra Cono in the UK will cost you £110, making it a significantly more expensive item there.
Nanoleaf Umbra Cono smart lamp review: What's good?
Shaped like a spotlight on top of an “x”, the Umbra Cono smart lamp is one of the strangest lamps I’ve seen. It’s super light and small at 5.5 inches long, 5.5 inches wide, and 5.35 inches high, meaning you can place it almost anywhere around a room. That unique look has functionality to it too as it can be held easily from the bottom or even hooked onto a frame to hang. The pressure and weight of the body both push the lamp down and the “x” shape at the bottom can essentially lock it in. The lamp doesn’t have a specific mechanism for doing so, which left me worried it may fall but it managed to stay upright with no hassle until the battery ran out.
Though the Nanoleaf website says the lamp gets “up to 4 hours when not plugged into a power supply” I found the lamp regularly getting more than that, with it occasionally going for up to 6 hours at a time. Keep in mind that you’ll need to regularly charge the lamp if you don’t want to keep it constantly plugged in. Yet the battery life is pretty decent for a lamp that will mostly stay in the same spot. I found myself keeping it plugged in on normal evenings, and changing its position when I was hosting friends, for a little more ambiance. This could make for a great dorm decoration, if you are having a few friends over.
Being Matter-compatible, the Umbra Cono can be controlled manually from your best iPhone or the best HomeKit hubs. This means you can set schedules, enable voice controls, and set a list of your favorite colors remotely. If you don’t have a hub or other HomeKit device, Nanoleaf has its own app that can give you customizable color palettes customize, dynamic scenes with custom colors and circadian lighting, which means your lamp can brighten up or become dim at certain times of the day.
Nanoleaf Umbra Cono smart lamp review: What's not so good?
Starting with getting the lamp working, I am not a fan of the button on the side that turns it on. It’s indented like a traditional button, which makes you think you can press it down but applying pressure does not follow with that satisfying click you might expect. Instead, it uses rather finicky touch controls to turn on and change lights. You can get past this by connecting it to your iPhone but it doesn’t feel quite as luxurious as the look and that price point.
On the subject of price, this smart lamp is very expensive for what’s mostly an additive light. The max brightness isn’t quite light enough to substitute more traditional lighting so I pair it with my Nanoleaf Lines and Shapes to make my living room cosier in the evenings. For this, that price is a rather steep one.
Nanoleaf Umbra Cono smart lamp review: Competition
For $5 cheaper, you can pick up the Philips Hue Go, which doesn’t look quite as luxurious and can’t be propped up and hung from things the same way, but comes with a much bigger battery life and lighter max brightness. If you don’t mind missing out on the Cono’s iconic look, this is a smarter choice.
However, if you just want a smart lamp for your room and only occasionally want to move it around, Govee has a whole host of smart lamps for a similar price to the Cono that are brighter and stand out more in a room. If you want something that’s the centerpiece of your lighting and not just an addition, these are a great choice.
Should you buy it?
You should buy the Nanoleaf Umbra Cono if…
- You aren’t on a budget
- You need a portable light
- You want a light that creates some extra ambiance
You shouldn’t buy the Nanoleaf Umbra Cono if…
- You don’t yet have any smart lights
- You want something to light up an entire room
Nanoleaf Umbra Cono smart lamp review: Verdict
The Nanoleaf Umbra Cono smart lamp is a very luxurious addition to a room. It looks great, adds a very warm glow to a space, and has a battery life long enough to last an evening with your friends. Although it is rather pricey and not quite as bright as I would have liked — but it’s luxurious nonetheless.
A luxurious light
Nanoleaf offers a great looking light here that is better as part of a smart home than a single lamp by itself. You do pay quite a lot for that luxury though.
