Elgato Key Light – Professional 2800 lumens Studio Light with desk clamp for Streaming, Recording and Video Conferencing, Temperature and…

Zu der Hardware muss man eigentlich gar nicht viel sagen.
Ist nahezu perfekt, super verarbeitet und stabil. Licht ist ebenfalls stabil und sauber. Platzsparend, verbraucht wenig Strom usw.

ABER (und deswegen nur einen mickrigen Stern)
Die Software (und diese benötigt man schließlich für alles) ist ein WITZ

1. Benötigt man tatsächlich ein iOS Device mit neuester Firmware oder einen Windows 10 64-bit PC oder Laptop mit Wlan um die Lampe einzurichten. Keine Android App, keine Möglichkeit die Lampe ohne Wlan oder PC mit Windows 10 64 bit und Wlan Karte einzurichten. Also merkt euch Entweder ein iOS Gerät mit iOS 12 oder besser oder einen Windows 10 PC 64 bit (ja es wird kein 32 bit unterstützt und auch kein Windows 8 oder 7) mit einer Wlan Karte.

2. Hat man es dann doch endlich mal geschafft (sofern man ein passenden Gerät hat was die Anforderungen erfüllt) Kann man zwar (wenn man Glück hat) die Lampe steuern aber die Software stürzt sehr oft ab, die Lampe reagiert nicht oder verliert die Verbindung (Router Neustart nötig)

Ich hoffe sehr dass hier sehr bald nachgearbeitet wird was die Stabilität der Software angeht. Denn die ist einfach mangelhaft. Noch einen USB Port einzubauen wäre vermutlich zu teuer gewesen. Das hätte zumindest das Eintichtungs-Problem gelöst. Sehr schade.

Ich werde die Lampe dennoch behalten und hoffe einfach mal dass die Software einfach noch unausgereift ist und in Zukunft Updates erfahren wird. Sofern das in absehbarer Zeit der Fall sein wird, werde ich meine Bewertung nochmal nach oben verbessern

I have used these lights for one stream so far and completely love them. The light the put off is nice and soft, can be adjusted in both intensity and temperature, all right from my Elgato Stream Deck.

I didn’t use the desk mount that came in the packaging, but they are metal and have a good feel and weight to them. I’m sure they would be top notch also. Instead however, I used two Joby Ball Head mounts toount them to a shelf above my monitor. Worked like a charm. Originally, I wanted the Key Light Air, but the mounting hole was on the back of that product where it is located on the bottom of this one. So I ended up with this one.

Lastly, they are replacing 2 Neewer Key Lights that I’ve had for many years. I decided to replace the Neewer lights because I was getting a bit “blinded” while gaming as their intensity was to much. These Elgato key lights are not to bright are much easier on your eyes! Thank you Elgato for helping save my eyes.

All in all, super happy with this product and would certainly recommend it to anyone in the market for a video light like this.

Okay. I know I am late to the party, this thing has been out a few years. But I finally got one, and paired it with a streamdeck, and let me tell you – it’s worth every penny.

First off – a bit about me so you get some context: I’m a professional VFX Supervisor on big streaming shows by trade. I do a lot of photography and do some youtube and twitch streaming for fun, as a hobby. But I spend my life dealing with lighting both on set and virtually in VFX. It’s my passion.

So it comes down to what you need. You can absolutely NOT get this light and make a great looking setup using china balls from ikea or whatever. So this is def somewhat of a luxury expense. But… it’s such a nice luxury and can do some trick things to make your stream look more sexy.

Pros:
-First off, I love all things about this being wi-fi. I know this could be a con if wi-fi goes down. But controlling a light from a phone app or deck or computer is great. If you are a one man band, imagine the time savings. I mean, sure, you can plop it on a computer desk, but you can also screw it on to any light stand and use it for a short film, etc. Get 3 of these and you can adjust a classic thee light setup while at your camera – huge.

-Size. I love that this thing is flat. It’s not THAT light, but light enough I can travel with 2-3 of these things in one case easy.

-Color and dimming and brightness. As seen in other reviews, it does a nice job changing from something pretty close to actual kelvin color degrees. And it’s plenty bright for its size. It is NOT as bright as my aperture light, but it’s also not an aperture light that costs 700 dollars. and it runs cool and doesn’t need a giant soft box to be useful.

-Diffusion. Speaking of softness. I was going to make a “OK” category, but I think I will keep it in Pros. It is cleverly soft for what it is. I don’t think this magic diffusion panel makes the light as soft as a true soft box. You really need some distance from the light source to make it catch and bounce the light rays. I compared it to a soonwell LED light I have with a softbox on it that is about 6 inches away, and the soonwell is indeed softer.

However, going back to size, space and conviencence – it is about as soft as I have seen for this flat a profile. If I were in a pinch I could easily bounce this off a wall or some white card to really get soft. I also think I can print a few simple 3D components to make my own simple soft box, if I need it. For streaming it’s plenty fine.

CONS –
-Wifi – I know it is also a pro for me, because it leads to such convenience. But you are reliant on having a wifi router for these things. for A V2 of this light, it would be nice to have some manual knobs on the back as a back up option.

-Streamdeck – I would almost say getting a stream deck or the stream deck phone app is essential for these. It’s such a surprisingly pleasant way to control your lighting. Like a mini lightboard in your hand. The streamdeck can also control my phillips hue strip lighting on my desk and room, so I can make cool gaming presets at push of a button.

-Cost – They do cost more than a lot of knock offs you can get online. For me it is worth the money. And if you start digging in to “professional” light costs, like apertures and such, these are a steal. But if you are on a budget, you can sacrifice wifi convenience and get a pair of two similar style lights for like, under 200 dollars, with soft boxes. I got something like that for my wife and she loves them.

-Ball head. The ballhead on the stand is cheap plastic. I will probably switch them out for manfrotto ballheads one day, if they break, but they’re def not meant for constant movement or adjustment.

Conclusion
For me, these make streaming life a ton better. So much space saved in my office and I can do some really nice lighting fast and cool. I’m giddy with all the possibilities. As filmmaker, I’m also really starting to see where teh future of lighting is going, especially for indie style work. On my big shows we often use titan tubes, which do similar things to this light but cost an astronomical amount. Now, with a portable router and a cheap streamdeck, I could make my own portable three light system for filming, or even constant light style photography. I could fit all of this in to one camera bag and maybe another bag for extension cables and modifiers and such. If I were going around shooting interviews and weddings, I could do some really cool tricks with these.

Anyway. I love em and that’s what I got! lol

I purchased an Elgato Keylight and a set of Neewer NL-288ARC. While the Elgato’s are twice as expensive, you get what you pay for.

The color reproduction is spot on with the Elgato. I matched the color temperature on the two lights and pointed them at my light blue wall. Just look at the picture. The Elgato shows a rich blue wall, where the Neewer shows a yellow blue wall. The color is just so much better on the Elgato Key Lights.

Just ask yourself if you want to be lit with a light that will show your best skin tone, or one that casts you in a sickly yellow tone. It was an easy decision for me. I purchased another Elgato Key Light and that was that.

I’m poor now, but I’m well lit.

Also vorab, wenn ihr das Key Light einschalten und mit dem WiFi verbinden wollt, tut euch einen gefallen, dreht das ding von euch weg beim einschalten, es ist wirklich hell!

Ansonsten einmal eingeschaltet und eingerichtet macht es das was es soll, leuchten und das von sehr angenehm gedimmt bis hin zu “Sonne” über meinem Monitor.

Aber ich will es mal eher in einer Liste auffangen:

Pro:
– SEHR Hell
– Dimmbar
– Farbwert direkt anzuwählen in der Software, werde da aber nochmal messen wie akkurat das ist 😉
– Keine einzelnen LEDs hinter dem Softglass erkennbar
– Vom PC aus zu bedienen
– Die Tischklemme ist wirklich gut verarbeitet, allerdings hab ich ein wenig Kritik!

Kontra:
– Teuer, für “nur” ein Soft Light ist es echt Teuer und ich überlege noch es zurück zu schicken
– Einrichtung nicht ohne WiFi Endgerät zu bewältigen, warum nicht per WPS gelöst?!? (Freunde das ding kostet 200 € da erwarte ich sowas)
– Keine Android-App, ich hoffe da kommt die Tage was
– Verliert ab und an die Verbindung zum Control-Center, findet diese allerdings zum glück wieder automatisch

Persönlich Meinung (Gerade für Leute mit einem Regal über dem Monitor ärgerlich):
– Die Tischklemme hat, für mich, einen zu langen ersten Arm (kleinste Stufe 53cm Tisch bis Gehäuseanfang), hätte mir da mehrere kleinere stufen gewünscht.
– Hätte mir eine Tischklemme mir “auslegerarm”, im Idealfall mit 2 Gelenken, gewünscht. -> Ähnlich wie Mikrofonstative. Ggf. sogar ein Gelenkarmstativ.

Nachtrag, hab es in einer anderen Rezension gelesen habe es in meiner schlicht und ergreifend vergessen:
Für Elgato Stream Deck nutzer, es ist nur mit Presets Nutzbar mit Slidern im Streamdeck wo allerdings NICHTS beschriftet ist, sei es Helligkeit in % oder gar Farbtemperatur in K, da heisst es testen! Zudem fehlen ein “+/- xx% helligkeit” sowie ein “+/- XX K Farbtemp”

 I bought these from Amazon six months ago and have been using them every day since.

One of these lights cost more than one of the other LED lights I own and aren’t any brighter, however there is still a lot I love about them.

Pros
——-

* Save a ton of space in a recording environment
* Can control everything from your Stream Deck, PC or mobile phone
* Great range of brightness and warmth

Cons
——-

* Expensive for this quality of LED lights
* They need Wi-Fi to work
* Build quality of tripod-ball head and 1/4 inch thread on the light isn’t great

Despite some shortcomings, I do like these lights and can definitely recommend them to others. Just be aware of their limitations.

Kevin