
Our method
Everyone has certainly heard the saying "It's always nicest at home", but why do we actually feel so comfortable "at home"? The focus of furnishing is often on furniture and wallpaper, but the right lighting can also have a decisive influence on the ambience. The following article deals explicitly with the different types of lighting in the living room. Living room lamps come in various shapes, colours and sizes. Whether they are made of wood or metal, standing or hanging, round or square - they come in all designs. Functional lighting is also becoming increasingly important. For our product comparison, we have compared different models and give a rough overview of the types of lamps in the living room.
Contents
Summary
- Beautiful living room lighting does not have to be expensive! Qualitatively satisfactory lamps with a beautiful look are available for as little as 20 €.
- Individual purchase criteria are design, compatibility and power consumption. It is also important to adapt your requirements and needs to the furnishings and use in the living room.
- Technical innovations, such as dimmability or control via smartphone, are becoming increasingly important. However, more and more lamps already have various functions integrated.
The Best Living Room Lamp: Our Picks
Buying and evaluation criteria for living room lamps
So that everyone can adapt the living room lamp to their individual needs, we have picked out some buying and evaluation criteria. These can help to make the decision easier. In the following section, some of these criteria are listed and briefly described:
We will now describe these purchase and evaluation criteria in a little more detail:
Design
There are many different types of living room lamps. Whether hanging or standing, round or square, metal or wood - you can choose from a wide range. There are also no limits to the colours, which is why you should be aware of your preferences. A combination of different living room lamps can also be an option to significantly raise the atmosphere in the living room.
As a rule of thumb, remember that the design of the living room lamp should also match the rest of the furnishings. For example, if you have a modern interior with a lot of glass and metal, then the lamp should also be made of glass, plastic or metal. Otherwise, it would be a complete style break and might not appeal to everyone. The more eye-catching a living room lamp is, the more controversial opinions about it will be.
Dimmability
A dimmer can be a very useful function and is currently not integrated in every LED lamp. You only need one lamp to create different brightness levels. For work you set it bright, for reading or relaxing in the evening rather a little darker - a great advantage that you should not do without nowadays!
Compatibility
With a WLAN connection, you can connect various devices to the living room lamps to control them. Smart home systems are no longer a rarity and can bundle any lamps in the house onto one end device.
Voice control, such as with Amazon Alexa, can also be easily integrated with plugs for the socket or certain lamps. When buying, look for possible compatibilities if it is a necessary feature for you.
Power consumption
It is important to know that LED lamps have some advantages compared to incandescent bulbs. They are more sustainable, often last much longer and consume less electricity. For this, you can make sure that the LED lamp contains a dimmable bulb to further reduce power consumption if the situation allows.
As a guideline, you should select an LED lamp with at least 9 watts (incandescent bulb with at least 60 watts) for the living room to illuminate the entire room.
Guide: Frequently asked questions about living room lamps answered in detail
In the following, we want to answer the most important questions about living room lamps. In this way, we want to give you a deeper insight into the subject, because you should be provided with all the important answers.
How much light does a living room need?
location | amount of unit lux |
---|---|
TV studio lighting | approx. 10,000 |
Office lighting | approx. 500 |
Living room lighting | approx. 300-500 |
Corridor lighting | approx. 100 |
Street lighting | approx. 10 |
It is important to note that you should choose your lamp with natural light in mind.
The greater the amount of natural light in the living room, the lower the light intensity of the lamp needs to be.
What types of living room lamps are there?
If the living room is also partly used as a study, a table lamp is also indispensable. So-called backlighting is also currently in vogue, e.g. in the TV area. With living room lamps, it is above all the use that counts, because only those who know what and how exactly the lamp is to illuminate can make the right choice.
What does a living room lamp cost?
Price class | Description |
---|---|
Low-priced (20 - 40€) | relatively plain design, few to no additional functions |
Medium-priced (40 - 100€) | fashionable and up-to-date design, possibilities to integrate some additional functions |
High-priced (100 - 300€) | noble and special design, high-quality materials with high durability, all necessary additional functions reserved (dimmability, colour change) |
Extremely high-priced (from 300€) | High-quality chandeliers or designer pieces for larger rooms (e.g. in gastronomy or hotels), often made of a noble crystal design, all innovative functions available (possibility for integration in smart home systems, colour change, dimmer) |
You can choose your lamp according to your requirements and needs, and everyone will find a suitable living room lamp for themselves due to the large selection.
How many lumens / how many watts should a living room lamp have?
It should be noted, however, that the furnishings and the wall colour also play an important role in the effect of the brightness. The brighter your wall colours and the furniture, the further you could reduce the brightness. Another important point, as explained above, is the natural light that shines into a room.
To cover the entire range, it makes most sense to choose a relatively bright lamp with a dimmer. This gives you more flexibility and you can also save a lot of electricity. If, however, a relatively large amount of natural light enters the room, then you can also choose a lamp with a lower light intensity, as natural indirect light should always be prioritised.
What features should the living room lamp have?
If you notice during a film that it is too bright, you can use the function to reduce the light intensity without having to get up. Finally, the functions colour change or compatibility with smart home systems are not absolutely necessary, but everyone has to decide that for themselves. If the living room is often used as a party location, a colour change function can also be quite useful.
Conclusion
When buying a living room lamp, it is important to adapt the lamp to your needs and requirements. You should also pay attention to the use, as the lighting has to meet different requirements for different activities. Some other aspects when buying a living room lamp are, for example, the design, the materials used and the arrangement in the room. Finally, the brightness in the living room should also be considered.
In conclusion, it can be said with confidence that everyone will find a suitable living room lamp. In the meantime, there is a large selection of qualitatively satisfactory lamps that are already available for a price starting at 20 €. The more budget available, the more unusual the wishes and functions of the new lighting can be. So nothing stands in the way of transforming your living room into your very own oasis of well-being. You just have to take the time!
(Cover photo: Sidekix Media / Unsplash)