Divoom’s best known for its fun and quirky retro-inspired products, which often feature a pixel screen. However, one of their latest devices — the Planet-9 mood lamp — poses as an entirely new type of product in their range. While Divoom has created a large variety of wearables, display screens, and wireless speakers, this is the first time that they’ve released a lamp. With that being said, much like all of Divoom’s products, there’s no denying that the Planet-9 presents itself as an intriguing statement piece.

What is Planet-9?

The Planet-9 is a fully-customizable smart lamp that features an interesting design and currently retails for $39.90. This product comes in a total of three colors — baby pink, mint green, and bright red, and it completely follows through on its adorable design, as it also comes in an adorable size. The Planet-9 stands at just 13.1 cm in height, 12.8 cm in width, and 8 cm in breadth. But it is not only petite in size, as it actually only weighs 370 grams. This makes it extremely portable, and you could place it on your desk throughout the day before relocating it to your bedside table at night.

It’s also difficult to ignore that while the Planet-9 is not related to — nor inspired by — the game ‘Among Us,’ the smart lamp does share a slight resemblance to the crewmate characters found within InnerSloth’s online game. However, it is most likely that Divoom, once again, took inspiration from the retro-era when it came to Planet-9’s overall design. I’m not sure if this was the brand’s initial intention, but I found that this smart mood lamp did remind me of a bent pipe or a jukebox — both of which were very present between the 40s and 60s.

Divoom

The aesthetic of Divoom’s brand and its products are simply unbeatable. If their product doesn’t take on a retro-style shape, then you can be sure that it’s going to at least feature a pixel screen. If not that, then the product will certainly display both! This can be seen with their Pixoo, Ditoo, and Timoo products. While all of the brand’s products are definitely functional, Divoom works hard to ensure that each of their items also doubles as a conversation starter or an eye-catching piece.

Features

Upon receiving the Planet-9, I was most excited about its morning light function. Much like the ever-popular Philips’ Wake-Up Light, and other similar light alarm clocks, the Planet-9 is able to mimic the gentle glow of the morning sun. It is capable of gradually filling up a dark bedroom with light. This function proves to be perfect for people who aren’t big fans of loud alarms. And if you’re worried that you might sleep through the light alarm, the Divoom app allows users to set a backup noise alarm. If you’re wondering where the ‘snooze’ button is located, that’s what the device’s shiny dial is for. While turning, it allows you to scroll through the different animated light patterns. Clicking it allows you to stop the alarm when it rings.

Much like Divoom’s past pixel products, this smart lamp also comes with a sleep aid function — thus, operating as a night light. Through the app, users will be able to set a timer for the Planet-9 to automatically switch off. There’s also an option to select their favorite color to display on the device. Since the brightness of the light is also fully customizable through a physical button on the back of the device, you can be sure that the Planet-9 will be able to provide you with the perfect ambient light for a good night’s rest. Divoom also claims that this function is great for people to use when they wish to navigate around a dark room without waking other household members.

When the Planet-9 isn’t serving as a great light alarm or soothing night light, it presents itself as an adorable music visualizer. Through a built-in microphone located on the side of the lamp, the Planet-9 is able to pick up the sounds of its surroundings. Its lights will then feature a total of 14 display patterns in accordance with the audio it receives. This feature is pleasant enough to enjoy alone or at small parties.

Apart from its in-built microphone, the Planet-9 also features 28 RGB lights (with a maximum brightness of 15 lumens and up to 3000K color temperature), a 2500 mAh battery, and — much like most of Divoom’s existing products — it also includes a type-c charging port. Each diode beneath the smart lamp’s frosty curved light panel is fully customizable within the app. There are a total of 1.6 million colors that users can choose from, and due to the nature of LEDs, the lamp distributes light very well.

Gain full control with the Divoom app

Much like other Divoom products, the Planet-9 connects to any given mobile device via Bluetooth 5.0. Combined with the official Divoom app, users can unlock the lamp’s full potential as it allows you to access a whole slew of features. It provides users with total creative control, as you can easily select each individual diode and assign any desired color to it. From there, you can even select the speed and manner in which the light changes.

A second feature would include the DJ Mixer function. This function isn’t new or exclusive to the Planet-9 since it can also be accessed through many of Divoom’s pre-existing products. However, it is still a fun feature, nonetheless. While I don’t find myself gravitating to it, many music-lovers will enjoy making their own beats through the app and watching a visual representation of their tunes appear on their Planet-9. Apart from that, other features that can be controlled via the app would include the activation of notification alerts (the lamp will light up when the device it’s connected to receives a notification), as well as a noise meter detector.

Final thoughts on the Planet-9

In my opinion, the smart lamp’s best features would include the fact that it is fully portable, has a remarkably long battery life, serves as an enjoyable alarm on early mornings, and functions as a great decorative piece within the house. Thanks to the rubber ridges beneath the base of the smart lamp, you can relocate the Planet-9 as you please without any worry of it scratching the surface you place it upon. With that being said, the Planet-9 can also be mounted on a wall, as there is a small keyhole slot located at the back.

I also haven’t had to reach for the type-c charging cable since the first time I charged the product upon its arrival. Divoom claims that the Planet-9 can run solidly for 20 to 30 hours, depending on the device’s brightness level.  While I have tried out all of its capable features, I have been mainly using it every morning as a light alarm. Therefore, I can safely say that if you only have it powered on for no more than an hour each day, you’d probably only need to charge it up once every month.

If I had to disclose a negative point about the Planet-9, it would certainly include the fact that this lamp automatically resets its previous brightness settings each time you switch it on. Unfortunately, I do end up receiving an all-too-bright burst of vibrant light every single time I power it up before frantically tapping the light button to decrease the brightness. If Divoom does end up releasing a second edition of the Planet-9, it would be excellent if they could fix that little quirk.

The Planet-9 may not contain as many features as Divoom’s other popular pixel products, but it’s not really supposed to. It’s marketed as a lamp, and it does just that — plus way more. Sure, it doesn’t play music or mini-games, but it already accomplishes way more than your average lamp.

Photo credit: The images used have been taken by the author for TechAcute.
Editorial notice: We received a sample unit from Divoom for testing purposes. The product was tested for multiple weeks before this review was composed.

ByShalinn Yeap