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Most of us said goodbye to night lights when our parents decided we were old enough to fend off the Bogeyman ourselves. Though as I’ve grown older and definitely not wiser, I’ve been struggling with an intense internal debate - do I turn the light on when I get up at night, blinding and waking myself up, or do I fumble in the dark, standing on animals and kicking inanimate objects on my way?
Well, I’ve uncovered a simple, yet elegant solution to my predicament, the Xiaomi Motion Activated Night Light. Now when I wake up at night I have a soft glow that lights up as soon I enter the room, giving me enough light to see where I’m going, but not so much that I have no chance of drifting back off to a peaceful slumber. Life is good.
But after solving one of life’s great struggles, I realised I still had two of these night lights left. So I sat down and thought long and hard about what other problems a motion-sensing night light could solve. Spoiler Alert, there’s a few of them. Who’d have thunk that a wireless light, that can be mounted just about anywhere, that also doubles as a torch would have so many uses!
So I got to work, and solved so many more problems that are well worth the super affordable price these bad boys come in at. Plus installation for this device is so simple. All you’ve got to do is chuck a few AA batteries in (I’d recommend either rechargeable or long-life ones), decide on a location, peel the back off, slap it onto the wall or ceiling, and let there be light. Something to be aware of is making sure you have the sensor in the device facing the right direction. You’ll want the part with the logo facing toward whatever you want to trigger it.
So, let's start off with a few standard solutions you might expect.
The most obvious one is in the name, use this as a night light in your kid’s room so they can see where they’re going when they get up, or you can see where you’re going when you check on them. You can also pop it off its magnetic mount to make sure that there isn’t a monster laying in wait under the bed or in the cupboard.
Another classic solution would be on a staircase, it’ll give you enough light to see so you don’t end up falling up, or down the stairs, but not so much that you risk waking someone who sleeps with an open door. You could also extend this to the hallway, you never know when a stray shoe might find itself wayward.
Now if that wasn’t enough to convince you, I had a few brighter and more exciting low light solutions!
The first solution popped into my head as soon as I took my jacket off after so eagerly setting up my first night light in the bathroom. Man, my wardrobe is dark, or should I say was, because now I can see everything. I don’t even have to press a button. As soon as I open the door, my clothes are basked in a warm glow, that once again doesn’t blind me in the mornings. And if I have something well and truly buried, I can detach the night light from its magnetic base and dig in deep. Too easy. This solution had my parents so riled up when they saw it, I brought home another two the next day.
The second solution just hit me - as I was putting something in the attic and headbutted a beam in the dark. Everyone's attic/basement seems to be dimly lit, and you only ever go in there to carry something in or out, so no hands for a flashlight. Chuck one of these night lights in there and forget about it until you really need it. No more stubbing your toes on that old vacuum cleaner, how good?
This applies to all of the classic storage spaces that are always too dark, chuck it up in your basement, perfect for climbing down those rickety stairs and keeping the ghosts away. How about in the garage, the light will turn on as soon as your car pulls in. No more needing to manually turn the light on or forgetting to turn it off. You can even chuck it up in the shed, this was great for me because there is no power supply anywhere close to mine. The magnetic design of the Xiaomi Sensor Light also really stands out here. Where’s that weird cable you kind of remember being in behind a few boxes? Whip that bad boy off its mount and you’ll no longer be fumbling about in the dark.
If you’re looking for an awesomely affordable and super easy to install solution to an area’s lack of light, look no further. Regularly sitting at only $19 for one, or $57 for the three-pack, it’s such an easy recommendation. If you’re looking to enhance your home’s lighting, check out the full range of smart lighting, or make your house a smart home at PB Tech!
