I purchased this lamp as I wanted a "SAD" lamp that was free standing and that would say on (ie. no timer.) I wanted something with a similar light quality and output to my NatureBright SunTouch Plus. The Northern Lights does seem to put out a light similar to my NatureBright, although it seems a little less blue/more yellow. Basically this light does what I wanted it to do. Flood me with relatively intense "full spectrum" light. It does indeed feel like sunlight. There is no timer so I can use it as, well... a lamp. You can rotate the head along it's long axis, thus you're able to aim it down while sitting or up for a flood effect. It's at a good height for using it while sitting, standing at something aroung 3.5 to 4 feet tall. Grey mornings are no match for this lamp. My wife says it's ugly, but I think it looks pretty cool. However $244 is a bit expensive for what you get. I realize this lamp is a specialty item and not many are produced which brings up the price. Unfortunately though it looks like yet another case of the manufacturer knowing it's dealing with a niche market and one desperate for a solution to seasonal affective disorder. The lamp is solidly and simply built but certainly not very expensive to manufacture. Granted it's no $400 light-box (which is criminally expensive in my opinion) but it's also not the very affordable (now sub $100) NatureBright SunTouch Plus either. Why am I keeping it? Well, like I said, it's good and bright and sitting under it feels good. All the other "full spectrum" floor lamps don't appear to have the output of this unit. So essentially there is no other game in town in the floor lamp department. I thought about trying to cobble together my own lamp but came to my senses. If my wife thinks the Northern Light lamp is ugly, there is no way anything I could build would pass muster. So essentially it's a hard pill to swallow but one that does the trick. **Update** I dropped a few starts. It was a toss up between two and three stars. I settled on 2 as I can no longer use the lamp. After being moved around a few times the stand worked it's way out of the base. Regrettably the threaded end of the stand that along with a nut holds the base and stand together has stripped. So essentially I have a lamp that can't be stood up. It's clear when examining how the lamp is put together that it's done pretty cheaply, thus the stripped rod. It's beyond it's warranty and not necessarily user serviceable. So until I can come up with a "fix" or cannibalize it for some improvised lamp project, it's just sitting in a heap on a shelf. **Update #2** It has been pointed out to me that the light has a 7 year unlimited warranty. I don't know if that was in effect when I purchased the light or not. I very much hope so. If that is the case I will most certainly be revising/updating my stars/review! **#Update #3** Adding one star, as while I DID get a repaired lamp, dealing with the company was a chore. First I sent it to the old address, which at first I blamed myself as I referenced the address in a fairly old email. However, after realizing it had been sent to the wrong address and that the lamp was being sent back, I checked Northern Light's website and it turns out they had not updated their address on their site either. I pointed this out and they said it wasn't their fault as their web dev guy didn't know they had moved. What?!? Fortunately, I was able to get UPS to try again and the lamp was successfully delivered. Unfortunately, however NLT said they would not warranty the lamp as I had removed the head from the stand, in order to ship the lamp. They said, I broke the press fitting. Well, the lamp head came off with no undo force whatsoever, so it seems it was 'broken' from the get-go. I said the heck with it and ask for the lamp to be returned to me and they said I would have to pay for shipping. GAH! Anyhow, after a bizarre back and forth via email and phone, they finally agreed to fix the lamp if I paid for the parts, which came out to approx $12. I took them up on their offer and now have my lamp back. So yeah, I added a star, but the amount of stress to get the lamp fixed and returned was almost not worth it. While those I dealt with were pleasant the experience was again, bizarre.
