Home / Office / Lamps - Berkeley Lamp II

We've been a big fan of 2-in-1 products ever since those great Doublemint gum commercials of the 80s. (Double pleasure and double fun!? What's not to like?)

But 2-in-1 products can also make good Green choices. After all, you use less resources getting one lamp that performs two functions rather than getting two separate lamps.

That's part of the reasoning behind the Berkeley Lamp II, which uses two bulbs - an upper bulb for ambient lighting and a lower bulb for task lighting.

From an eco-friendly perspective, it's great that both bulbs are ENERGY STAR approved fluorescent bulbs that should last 10-times longer than incandescent bulbs according to the manufacturer, Full Spectrum Solutions.

The two bulbs can be turned on and off independently. They can also be dimmed independently, so you can have the ambient light on at full force while the task light is set at the lowest (20%) setting. (You also have a choice of different color temperatures for your bulbs - Daylight or Sunset.

The fact is that even at the lowest setting the lamp is plenty bright. (Maybe too bright - we wished that it could have dimmed even further...) At the brightest setting, you'll have incredible illumination. In fact, the ambient light made our overhead light fixture pretty much superfluous. Depending on the size of your room, one Berkeley Lamp II could eliminate the need for any other lamps.

By the way, the light isn't just bright - it's also clear. This may seem like an odd description, but it really does seem like it's easier to read or work by the light of the Berkeley Lamp II. Full Spectrum Solutions says it has added six phosphors to the bulb, enhancing the light in a way that reduces glare and stimulates visual acuity. Presumably they use this fact to justify their tagline - "The Only Lamp Designed By Science".

Other Green features we like:

- The lamp is made in the USA. For US-based customers, that means less pollution than if the lamp was transported from the other side of the world.

- All packaging materials are made from 100% post-consumer content. These packaging materials are themselves recyclable.

- Build quality. This is often overlooked as a Green feature, but we believe that build quality and the implied lifetime of the product should certainly be considered as important factors in the overall Greeness of a product. For example, we're currently wrestling with the problem of replacing a dehumidifier that seems completely pizzled after just 3 summers of intermittent use. We now either have to invest in replacing the dehumidifier or disposing of it (creating waste) and buying a new one (requiring more resources).

The Berkeley Lamp II looks like it should last for a long time. This is no lightweight lamp. The base is made of steel. The thing has heft. It reminds us of the days when products were built to last.

Finally, we really dig the fact that the Berkeley Lamp has a plug built into its base. Again, this is a question of efficiency. Because the lamp 'gives' you another plug, it may save you from having to go out and buy a power strip.

In terms of caveats, we'd just say that from a Green perspective, we were disappointed with the volume of packaging materials necessary to ship the lamp. But perhaps our expectations have been warped by flat-pack Ikea materials that you have to assemble yourself. The Berkeley Lamp II comes completely assembled (with the shade in a separate box) and it's hard to see how they could reduce the packaging while still protecting the lamp.

Also, you should be aware that this is not a petite lamp. It stands about 30-inches tall and the shade has a diameter of approximately 15-inches. Depending on the furnishings in your home, the style could seem a little industrial. It's the sort of lamp that would look at home in an office or a hotel. In fact, the third and fourth pictures on the Berkeley Lamp II website appear to show the lamp in just such a setting. This isn't a bad thing, just something you should be aware of. Personally, we feel that if the lamp is tough enough to withstand the type of abuse it would probably receive from hotel guests, it's likely to last in a home for a very long time.

Where to buy:
Purchase directly on the Berkeley Lamp II website for $289. Two bulbs are included in the price. A lamp shade is included too, but you can upgrade to different colors and materials for an additional $9-19. Shipping costs approximately $15-30 extra, depending on your location. Full Spectrum Solutions will ship the lamp worldwide.