Verdict
The Ikea Varmblixt good donut lamp takes one among Ikea’s most recognisable designs and provides it a sensible dwelling improve, with out overcomplicating issues. It nonetheless seems to be like a glowing sculpture first and a gadget second, which is strictly the purpose. You’re not getting cutting-edge lighting results or Hue-level polish, and the brightness gained’t carry a complete room, nevertheless it’s extra about ambiance than illumination. And for the value, it pulls that off fairly properly, albeit with just a few connectivity points.
Impactful design
Beautiful delicate glow
Matter over Thread assist
Versatile management choices
Not very shiny
Fundamental lighting results
Occasional connectivity hiccups
Pairing quirks
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Key Options
Introduction
Three years on from its authentic viral second, the Varmblixt doughnut is again. Solely this time it’s gone good as a part of Ikea’s huge Matter over Thread push.
The unique model made a reputation for itself as a chunky, glowing orange ring that appeared extra like trendy artwork than a lamp. This new model dials issues again visually with a frosted, matte glass end, however quietly provides a full good lighting setup beneath.
It’s the identical sculptural design, however now with color management, dimming, and that all-important cross-platform compatibility due to that Matter connectivity.
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Learn on for my full Ikea Varmblixt good lamp assessment.
Design and placement choices
- Fairly massive
- Wall or desk mount
As talked about above, it nonetheless seems to be like an enormous glowing donut. That hasn’t modified. What has modified is the end.
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The unique daring orange is gone, changed with a frosted white glass tube that diffuses mild far more softly. You may nonetheless make it glow orange if you need, it simply doesn’t scream it when switched off.
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Bodily, it’s not a small factor. At 30cm throughout, it’s obtained actual presence. On a wall, that works in its favour. On a desk, it might really feel a bit such as you’ve parked a sculpture the place a lamp needs to be.
It’s designed to do each however the wall mounting does really feel just like the extra pure match. It seems to be intentional there. On a sideboard or espresso desk, it borders on cumbersome.
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Set up is refreshingly easy. There’s the conventional Ikea flatpack-style directions within the field however you actually gained’t want them.
A single screw holds the backplate in place, and the glass ring clips on excessive. That’s it. On a desk it’s clearly even simpler than that.
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The precise mild supply lives in that backplate; it’s basically a brief mild strip wrapped right into a circle, with the glass performing purely as a diffuser.
There’s a fabric-style nylon cable operating out the underside, which is a pleasant contact, and a bodily toggle swap tucked beneath for guide management. It does want fixed energy, so cable administration is a part of the deal.
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That fixed energy does imply that it doubles up as a Thread mesh extender too, however extra on that in a bit.
Options
- Matter suitable
- Comes with wi-fi distant
That is the place issues get extra fascinating, and barely extra difficult than you’d in all probability like.
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The lamp ships with a Ikea Bilersa distant, which is definitely its personal standalone Matter gadget. That’s each intelligent and, at instances, a bit complicated.
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Out of the field, the distant isn’t paired to the lamp. Pairing them is easy (weirdly, it can use Zigbee for this), however there’s a catch. For those who then add the lamp to a Matter ecosystem afterwards, it unpairs the distant. Which feels a bit backwards.
As soon as all the things is ready up within the default smart-but-not-smart mode, the distant can cycle by means of 12 preset colors, modify brightness, and deal with primary on and off management.
Nevertheless, if you happen to carry it right into a wider good dwelling setup by pairing it by way of Matter, you possibly can reassign it to manage just about something; not simply restricted to the Varmblixt lamp itself.
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You would, for instance, have some button presses assigned for lamp management, but in addition have some combos controlling different issues like blinds, heating or another good dwelling automation.
The lamp itself is a Matter over Thread gadget, so it performs properly with platforms like Apple House, Amazon Alexa, and Google House, assuming you’ve obtained a Matter Controller and a Thread Border Router in place.
These are constructed into a variety of current gadgets like Apple TVs, Echo good audio system, Google Nest gadgets, Eero routers and even issues like fridges, screens, TVs and soundbars from Samsung.
You can even go down the Ikea route with the Dirigera hub and its app, however in contrast to some ecosystems, you’re probably not unlocking something dramatically new by doing so. The function set is pretty primary throughout the board.
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There aren’t any fancy gradients or dynamic results right here. It’s extra old-school good lighting. Choose a color, modify the brightness, possibly tweak the white temperature, and that’s your lot.
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Ikea’s method may be very a lot a part of the corporate’s wider shift away from Zigbee and in the direction of Matter over Thread.
Pairing is easy if you happen to’ve executed Matter earlier than. Merely scan the code, decide your platform, and also you’re off.
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The lamp helps multi-admin as properly, so you possibly can share it throughout ecosystems with out a lot fuss. In testing, it fortunately lived inside my Apple House whereas additionally being accessible by way of Alexa and House Assistant.
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There’s one thing fairly good about how versatile it’s. You may go full good dwelling integration, or you possibly can ignore apps solely and simply use the included distant.
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Lots of people will in all probability do precisely that. Deal with it as a “smart-ish” lamp fairly than a deeply built-in one.
Efficiency
As soon as arrange, the lamp principally does what you’d count on.
Colors are properly judged. Not overly saturated, not washed out. The whites are notably good, with unfold from cooler tones by means of to hotter, extra ambient shades. It really works properly with adaptive lighting in Apple House, which helps it mix right into a wider setup.
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Brightness is proscribed although. At 180 lumens, that is by no means going to mild up a room. It’s there to create a temper, not substitute your ceiling lights.
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Response instances, when linked, are fast sufficient. Instructions land quick and transitions are clean, particularly when biking by means of colors.
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Connection stability was a bit hit or miss throughout testing. There have been occasional dropouts the place it could disappear for just a few seconds earlier than coming again on-line.
Squirrel Widget
Do you have to purchase it?
You desire a easy, good mild
Ideally suited for wall mounting, this good mild provides ambiance to any room.
If you need dynamic lighting, gradients or related, look elsewhere.
Last Ideas
The Varmblixt good donut doesn’t attempt to compete with feature-heavy rivals, and that’s in all probability the best name.
It leans into what made the unique standard within the first place. A particular design that doubles as a lightweight supply. The good options are there to assist that, not take over.
For those who’re after shiny, extremely customisable lighting with a great deal of results, you’ll nonetheless be taking a look at manufacturers like Philips Hue or Govee. This isn’t that.
However if you need one thing that appears good on the wall, provides a little bit of ambiance, and slots into a contemporary good dwelling with out an excessive amount of trouble, it’s a straightforward one to love.
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How We Take a look at
We check each good mild we assessment totally over an prolonged time period. We use business commonplace exams to check options correctly. We’ll at all times let you know what we discover. We by no means, ever, settle for cash to assessment a product.
Discover out extra about how we check in our ethics coverage.
- Used as our foremost good mild for the assessment interval
- Examined for at the least every week
- We measure the sunshine output from bulbs at completely different color temperatures and hues so we will examine mild output
- We check compatibility with the principle good programs (HomeKit, Alexa, Google Assistant, SmartThings, IFTTT and extra) to see how simple every mild is to automate
FAQs
The place can the Ikea Varmblixt Good Lamp be mounted?
You may place it on a desk (though the sunshine may be very large), or you possibly can wall mount.
Full Specs
Ikea Varmblixt Good Lamp Assessment
UK RRP
£55
Producer
–
Measurement (Dimensions)
55 x 44 x 25 MM
Weight
50 G
Launch Date
2025
First Reviewed Date
07/05/2026
Mannequin Quantity
Ikea Varmblixt Good Lamp
