Summary: 2007-03-16 22:40:33 If you are considering the purchase of this product, please first consider my nightmarish experience with the Verilux Rise & Shine lamp, model VR610, which features eight digitally recorded soothing sounds, AM/FM analog tuner, calendar (month/day/year), and a unique audio/visual alarm clock.
Sounds intriguing, right?
The problem is, it took three exchanges to obtain a Verilux Rise & Shine lamp that is "less defective" than the rest. About the only problem I did not experience in what I am about to relate is the issue wherein the light bulb buzzes when set to a low output level. Fortunately, before I encountered this issue, I read on one review in which it was mentioned that tightening the light bulb eliminates buzzing. If only the remainder of the problems I experienced were so easy to fix!
The first lamp I purchased contained a dead internal speaker (as a mono speaker there was no sound except when bypassing the internal speaker using the included pillow speaker). After visiting review sites, I found a similar report to which a comment, allegedly written by the Verilux company president in October 2006, conveyed that the speaker wires have been known to shake loose during shipping, and that the company is working to address the issue. Five months later, however, the problem persists.
In addition to the DOA speaker, there was a gouge in the plastic housing next to the LCD display. Finally, the upper and lower halves of the lamp did not sit flush. As a result, the edges felt a bit rough and uneven.
The second lamp I received in exchange seemingly came out of the mold wrong. The lamp shade wouldn't sit straight on the little shelf that juts out beneath the socket (on which the lampshade ring rests). Not only did the ledge appear somewhat off, but the shade itself appeared lopsided. As if that weren't enough, the white linen shade had a beige blemish on it. Making matters worse, the light bulb leaned at an angle because the socket was misaligned. As for the cosmetic appearance, the plastic edges that border the front of the lamp were noticeably rippled and pitted as if the factory ran one too many through the mold without cleaning out the debris. There was also a scratch about an inch below the socket, also straight out of the retail packaging. And since the lampshade provided with this lamp is not in the standard lampshade configuration, I had no choice but to either put up with the lopsided shade, call Verilux directly to inquire about a replacement shade, or make a third trip back to the store to exchange the lamp — again.
As per the Rise & Shine instruction manual, I called to report the defect to Verilux. Since Verilux offers an impressive three-year warranty covering defects in workmanship and materials, I expected a sympathetic response. No such luck. I might have been able to ignore the misaligned bulb and casting flaws if they had simply sent me a new shade, but Verilux instead advised me to make a third 40-mile trip to the retail store for an exchange. Apparently the company places a low priority on generating a positive "first impression" among new customers.
At this point, you may be wondering if I returned the second lamp for my money back. Not exactly. Instead it became a challenge of the "mission impossible" sort. Back to the store I went. The third lamp vastly improved from a cosmetic viewpoint. However, in contrast to the first two lamps, it took 20 minutes to get a nearby station to come in clearly because the FM wire antenna continually picked up static (and more so at night, oddly). Initially, walking in front of the lamp or pressing the lamp's buttons seemed to trigger a static reaction in the FM tuner as well. On a lark, I picked the Verilux Rise & Shine power adapter off the floor, and there I found at least one static culprit. The adapter is apparently leaking RF (and I DO use a high quality surge protector as recommended in the manual)! When I run the AM/FM tuner off of batteries alone, the problem seems to diminish. Whether this indicates a grounding fault in the lamp or a faulty adapter, I am not qualified to say, however.
The Verilux Rise & Shine lamp is an excellent, space-saving concept, but it needs IMPROVED QUALITY CONTROL to merit the current street price of $149.99. It would also benefit from a digital tuner and stereo speakers, which it presently lacks.
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