What's the Best Friendship Lamp for Me?
You may have known about Friendship Lamps for several years, or maybe you just heard about them today. The original Friendship Lamps were invented and produced by John Harrison, the owner of Filimin (that’s us!), in 2014. Not simply home decor, yet not exactly a communication device either, they’ve carved out a niche all their own and their popularity is steadily growing.
John just wanted a simple way to help his family stay connected across the US and originally had no plans to sell the lamps. However, after so much positive feedback from friends and family, John decided to go into business so he could share the gift of connection with people around the world. Six years, three warehouse moves, and 229,803 Friendship Lamps later, Filimin employees still love creating these products that make such an impact on people’s everyday lives. They have also developed three more Friendship Lamp styles to suit a variety of aesthetic tastes.
In recent years, a couple different companies have started selling their own versions of a friendship lamp. Along with Friendship Lamps by Filimin, you now have the options of Friendlamps (an Australian company) and The Friendship Lamp by Brookstone. We’re not just here to sell lamps--we’re all about connecting people. So if one of their lamps is a better choice for your needs, we’re not mad!
There are a few traits that all brands of friendship lamps have in common. Every friendship lamp needs to connect to Wi-Fi on a 2.4 GHz network and stay plugged into an electrical outlet. All three brands are touch activated to change the color of your lamp and the other lamps in your group, and both Brookstone and Filimin lamps allow you to designate a different light color for each person in your group so you know who’s checking in when your lamp glows.
If you don’t know which lamp is right for you, maybe this little breakdown below can help.
The “Shop Local” Supporter
Friendship Lamps by Filimin created these lamps not to fill pockets, but to fulfill a need for meaningful connection. Since he started this business to help people, John strives to use as many local suppliers as he can to help his community thrive. Each lamp is assembled entirely by hand in Wichita, KS, to ensure quality craftsmanship and to provide jobs for our community. Filimin also partners with local organizations St. Francis Migration Ministries, which helps refugees start a new life in the U.S., and the Women’s Initiative Network, which provides women survivors of abuse with educational and work opportunities to help them heal and become independent.
The Emotive Communicator
The Australian owned Friendlamps came out with their take on a friendship lamp a few years ago. One of their lamp's differentiating functions is that you can choose your color each time you send a touch. Hold your hand on it while it cycles through colors, lift your hand when it lands on the color you want, then tap again to send that color to the group. If you only have two people in your group--therefore you don’t need to use colors to distinguish between senders--purposely choosing a different color to send can be a cute way to let the other person know your mood.
The Tech Guru
Brookstone has been offering niche technology-based products for years, so it’s no surprise that their friendship lamp is designed with gadget lovers in mind. With an option for integration with Alexa and Google Home, and a dedicated app (FriendSynch) to control settings, this lamp is just one more step in the “smart house” direction. You can also manually adjust the brightness level of these lamps. If you love extra features and are less concerned about simplicity, this would be a good option. There is a limit of 10 lamps per group, and they only work in the U.S. and Canada, so if you’re hoping to connect extended family abroad or a large group of friends, Brookstone’s lamp might not be the one for you.
The Simplicity Seeker
Understanding that not everyone wants computers and other tech devices to fill their days, Friendships Lamps by Filimin has focused on how to best serve this group. Filimin is always taking suggestions from customers and implementing new features to make setup quicker and simpler. Their lamps also feel the least “techy”. After the initial setup, you simply touch the lamp and it glows. That’s it. No flashing alert, no picking a new color every time, nothing to interrupt the flow of your daily life. Simply the glow of your loved one’s heart.
If anything proves to be less than simple for you, Filimin has an amazing local Customer Service team. They are available via phone, text, email, chat, and Facebook Messenger, and will do everything in their power to get you connected as quickly and smoothly as possible.
No matter which Friendship Lamp you have in your home or plan to purchase in the future, we hope that you find meaningful connections behind every touch.