Qivation TiO2 Smart LED Bulb Japan tech 24/7 Air Purification, E27 8W, RGB Full Color Dimmerable, WiFi +BLT, Works with Amazon Alexa and Google Home, No Required Hub

The media could not be loaded. This is my first smart bulb and first impressions were very positive. It's an E27 (large screw type) bulb with Alexa and app integration. As well as the various shades of white it also has RGB colour options which are highly customisable. Qivation also claim that it offers air purification, I have no way of verifying this however the box states its anti-bacterial via decomposition in the air.The bulb is packaged in an attractive white branded box which is full of useful information. Inside the box the bulb is secured neatly with various cardboard inserts, alongside some easy to read instructions. I downloaded the Wiz app as instructed then tried following the auto setup which didn't work with my BT Home Hub 6 (5 Ghz issues). I then tried the manual setup as per the instructions and it worked first time. Alexa connectivity was easy to do using the Alexa app on my smartphone, I linked the Wiz app on my smartphone to my Amazon account then on the Alexa app I added the bulb via the "other" options, it connected first time with no issue.The Wiz app is very easy to use, and offers various different presets. The colours offered look superb, and there are lots of different themes you can choose such as Fireplace, sunset, ocean etc. Christmas and Halloween themes are also included.First impressions were correct, this really feels like a premium product. Positives are the easy to use Wiz app and Alexa integration, the quality packaging and most importantly the light performance and functionality. This is a fantastic product and i'd highly recommend it.

I’ve only recently got an Echo, and it’s the fist time I’ve linked a bulb to it, which initially didn’t go to well, maybe I’m getting to old for these things! With persistence I did get it to link and can use the voice control element, which I have to say is handy. The bulb has a good range of colours and colour temperatures, so something for everyone, though I expect no one really uses it to its full capability. The bulb is robustly made and fits well into an E27 fitting as you’d expect and is a similar size to a standard bulb.The other feature of this bulb is ‘air purification’, which I don’t pretend to be au fait with, and of course it’s impossible to test the efficacy of that claim. You have to just take it in trust I guess. If the technology works then fab, but I do cynically feel that’s it’s jumping in the Covid bandwagon as a bit of a marketing ploy. I’m sure that’s not the case and there will be data somewhere to prove these bulbs do what they say, but it’s a bit of a leap of faith as it’s new technology, whilst also being rather less favourable to your pocket.At the time of writing this review the bulb is showing as unavailable wit no price listed, but if memory serves these were up for £39.99, which however you cut it is very expensive. I’m assuming it may be one of those products on Amazon that are introduced at a ridiculously high price when they first come on the market, and then plummet price wise to a more reasonable level. It’s fair to say that I won’t re-order this bulb at this price point, but may consider it if the price was more in the £10-£15 mark, or maybe more if the technology was proven irrefutably. As it is, it seems a bit of a very expensive gimmick to me right now and I can only give it two stars in that basis, as paying £40 for one light bulb is a little bit crazy to say the least.

At this point I've got quite a collection of smart bulbs from lots of makers (though the best are all Philips Hue) and although the brand names change the features don't vary that much and neither do the app's you need to control them, most just use the Smart Life system. This QIVATION TiO2 Air Purification Smart Bulb is different in a couple of ways, it uses the 'Wiz' app and it claims to add air purification features to the usual range of light colours it offers. The Wiz app is pretty good and has a reasonably easy to navigate interface and lots of features. You can switch the bulb through all the colour spectrum, set schedules so it switches on automatically, create scenes including a collection of Wiz bulbs and have the bulb follow a Circadian rhythm so it automatically switches to an appropriate colour of light depending on the time of day. You can also create your own custom Circadian Rhythm scenarios with your own choice of (up to 5) colours triggered at your choice of times.The bulb itself isn't as bright as some but offers a good range of colours and maintains brightness across most of them. It responds well to the Wiz app once paired but there seem to be some issues with using it with Amazon's Alexa and ours regularly ignores (or doesn't 'hear') commands sent by Alexa. It's intermittent and could be an issue with my specific system but it's annoying when it happens.As for the air cleaning properties I can honestly say that if it has any I'm totally unaware of them. It doesn't make any appreciable difference to the air in the kitchen where we use it, which doesn't mean it doesn't do anything, just that we're not really aware of what it's doing. There's virtually no explanation of how it achieves any of this purification magic in the accompanying instructions so it's hard to take them very seriously. I looked up the terms and acronyms mentioned on the packaging and they do relate to actual science but again, none of this is explained in relation to the bulb itself. Even if it's doing something useful I doubt the bulb is capable of processing much air unless you fit out a whole room with them. It's highly questionable if it's worth paying the significant premium for the feature, at least until they provide some real information about what it does and how effective it can be. So you're left with an overpriced, slightly flaky and rather average smart bulb that comes with a better-than-average app and a highly questionable claim about cleaning your air. You pays your money.