REVIEW – I have been meaning to get some solar lights for my yard, but just couldn’t decide which ones to get. So when Linkind asked me to review their new SL5C smart solar spotlights, the decision was made for me, and I was excited to try them out.
⬇︎ Jump to summary (pros/cons)
Price: $129.99
Where to buy: Amazon (on page 30% coupon)
What is it?
The Linkind SL5C Smart Solar Spotlights are color possible landscape lighting with upgraded MPPT solar panels. You can control them via an APP or they are voice controllable via Wifi with an optional Linkind mesh hub.
What’s included?
- 8 x SL5C Solar Spotlights
- 1 x User Manual
- 8 x Locking Bolts
- 8 x Mounting Rods
- 24 x Wall Anchors
Tech specs
- Model: LS6300164
- Battery: 3.7V/ 1800mAh
- Battery Run Time: 14 hours
- Solar Panel: 1.5W
- Waterproof: IP67
- Control: Bluetooth via app (Alexa and Google Home compatible with mesh hub)
- Color temperature: 2,700K-6,500K
- Brightness: 1-100%
- Country of Origin: China
Design and features
The Linkind SL5C Smart Solar Lights feature Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) that improves the 1.5W solar panel efficiency. Powered by an automotive grade 3.7V/1800mAh battery the lights can provide up to 14 hours of continuous lighting. You can combine up 32 lights into as many as 8 clusters and control them all with the AiDot app via Bluetooth. Full control is possible up to 98 feet. Voice control is also possible via Wifi using Amazon Alexa or Google Home by adding a Linkind Mesh Hub. You can set up scheduling or select automatic dusk to dawn lighting with white or multi color options. You can synchronize with music or put on a light show.
Performance
The Linkind SL5C Smart Solar Lights went together easily. The stakes are plastic as well as the wall mounts and light casings so time will tell how they hold up.
I left them outside for a couple days to charge per the instructions. I then downloaded the AiDot app. After that I held the power button on the bottom of each light to turn them on and added them quite easily to the app.
The app is pretty intuitive to navigate with lots of options and customization settings. You can use Luminance Detection that turns the lights on and off based on ambient light or put them on Light Mode and set your own schedule.
I also had to update each light’s firmware individually with my phone within 35 inches, so it’s best to gather them up and do this before putting them in their final spots. I did notice that in Luminance Detection mode, I would set the light to 100% and then later see that the lights reset themselves to 36%, or 20%, or sometimes 5%. I assume it is adjusting the brightness to conserve battery power. There’s an option for that called Energy Saving, and I disabled it, so I assumed if I selected a brightness, it would stay at that level until the battery drained, but that isn’t the case.
I decided to contact customer support using the chat feature in the app. They were very responsive and helpful. Deric stated that only in Light Mode will they stay at a selected percentage. However, in any mode they will lower brightness automatically to prevent the battery from draining completely which makes sense.
Another question I had was if you could see the percentage of battery for each light, and unfortunately, you cannot at this time. The little gray battery icon at the top gives you a general idea of each light’s charge. I wanted to see if the amount of sun each light got was sufficient to get to 100% every day, but that level of refinement isn’t available at the moment.
The music feature is interesting. You have to turn it on in each light and give the app microphone permissions to your phone, then your phone must be able to pick up the music that is playing, and this will cause the lights to pulse to the music. The plethora of presets was fun to try out, which you can see in the video below, but in the end, I just picked 6500 K at 100% and left them at that. It will be cool for Halloween or Christmas to run those presets, but not all the time, since I like my neighbors.
Overall the Linkind SL5C spotlights work well and provide plenty of light. From what I can tell the lights are fully charged each day so the MPPT solar panels seem to do well even in sun challenged Washington. The app is easy to use and quick when making changes. I hope a future update will give better battery tracking but it’s not a deal breaker. Since you can expand up to 32 lights I may get another eight to mount on my fence around the yard.
Final thoughts
At $11.37 a light after the 30% discount the the Linkind SL5C Smart Solar Light 8 Pack is a pretty good deal for MPPT color capable solar lights. I live in the Pacific Northwest and if these can get full charge every charge with the limited sun we get then the Linkind SL5C spotlights are winners in my book. There are options galore in the app and once set these are pretty hands off so I don’t see a need for the mesh hub. But it is an option if you want to control them anywhere via Wifi or add indoor lights to your house. Overall I’m impressed with their capabilities but time will tell if the all plastic construction holds up to PNW weather. If you are in the market for good but cheap solar lights give the Linkind SL5C spotlights a try.
What I like about the Linkind SL5C Spotlights
- Quick connection in the app even from inside my house with just Bluetooth
- Lots of customization settings
What needs to be improved?
- Battery percentage would be nice to see charging status
Price: $129.99
Where to buy: Amazon (on page 30% coupon)
Source: The sample of this product was provided for free by Linkind. They did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.
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Plastic… Therein lies the problem with the longevity of any outdoor lights (solar or otherwise). They eventually deteriorate, especially in the sun (for which it’s designed to collect energy for solar). I’d pay extra for metal.