This is a much "techier" lamp than I am used to, and apparently, there is a whole tech-lamp-world out there that I've been missing out on. But after a crash course of research, some vigorous testing, Q&A sessions and visits to various brick and mortar stores, I am happy to say that the TaoTronics LED Desk Lamp with Wireless Charger (model TT-DL036 for short), is a great example of what a tech/smart lamp should be; an "office-modern" looking lamp with a USB port, wireless smart-phone charger, 5 light "colors" and an intensity dial. I know you all want me to make a "this lamp is lit," joke, but I refuse. Let's just move past it, ok?
The lamp itself is quite minimal for how many bells and whistles it has. Standing 16 inches high, the lamp is white and muted silver, and looks unassuming sitting on a desk. The arm with the bulb in it stretches 14 inches, and swivels in all kinds of directions, with the lamp's "head" tilting up to 135 degree and rotating up to 180 degrees, while the arm itself is able to tilt up to 150 degrees and swivel a full 90 degrees. I thought that level of adjustment was a bit much, but it is surprising how many times a day I lower, raise and swivel the arm of this thing. Even the ability to just angle and aim the light is extremely useful in my day to day usage in the office. With all that adjusting, it would be nice if the base was a bit more hefty, so you wouldn't have to brace the bottom, but it wasn't a major problem.
The look of the lamp is going to be hit or miss, depending on your office decor. Silver and white looks fine when it's sitting next to a white monitor or against a white wall, and at dusk or evening, all you really notice is the light. In the light of day, however, or against contrasting colors, it isn't the most attractive thing in our office. It isn't "ugly" by any means, but the silver streak looks a tad gaudy, and those with mostly black offices may balk at the white and silver look.
The USB port and phone charger on the lamp both seemed like things I wouldn't really use, until I had the option. Now, I use one or both of them at all times. Sure, I have other outlets for plug ins, but it is pretty convenient to have one right there, especially the wireless phone charger, which will charge your phone by just setting it on the base (provided you have a iPhone X / 8 / 8 Plus / Nexus / Xperia & Fast Charge for Galaxy S8 / S8+ / S7 / S7 Edge). The charging pad (10 watt output) charged our phones just as fast as the charging pads we had lying around the office, so if you are planning on buying a charging pad, you could justifiably consider just buying a this lamp instead! The USB port, while convenient, charges things very, very slow; so slowly that I had my googlemusic, wifi and bluetooth activated on my phone and the charge on my phone stayed the same the entire day. Still, it's nice to have the option, even though its output is only 5 watts.
The biggest pro for me with this lamp was the adjustable brightness and the 5 different colors of light you can choose. The colors come in: white, cool white, natural, yellow and warm yellow, and most all of them are useful and pleasant. The only one I really didn't like was the regular white, which reminded me a lot of the lighting in an underground parking lot, but the others were quite pleasant, and I find myself switching them up throughout the day, depending on the level of natural and artificial light in the office. The brightness adjuster also offers a lot more customization than I am used to, and the ease in which you can dial up the brightness and sweep it back down is as simple as dragging your finger across the adjuster. The lamp also "remembers" where you left it in terms of brightness and color, so when you tap the lamp back on, it will display your previous settings.
3.30.