If you're anything like me, you dread getting up at night to go to the bathroom. I despise it because once I turn on the bathroom light, it becomes nearly impossible to fall back asleep. I came across a few options to solve this issue, including two that seemed strikingly similar. This GlowBowl vs Illumibowl comparison guide will help you decide which product will rescue your sleep.
Comparison Table
Product | GlowBowl  | Illumibowl  |
Price | ||
Number of colors | 13 | 8 |
Integrated air freshener | Yes  | Yes  |
Light Source Type | LED | LED |
Motion and light detection sensor | Yes  | Yes  |
Sensor radius | 170 Degrees | 170 Degrees |
Powered by | 3 AAA Batteries | 3 AAA Batteries |
Fits any toilet | Yes  | Yes  |
Learn more | N/A |
What Is GlowBowl
Pros
- 13 colors
- Easy installation
- Air freshener
- More settings
- Bit better construction
Cons
- Might be hard to bend
- Light can fail over time
- Might be hard to find air freshener replacements
Glowbowl is basically a nightlight for your toilet. It sounds silly, but it can really help illuminate the important area so you don't end up missing the toilet or falling in if someone left the seat up again.
How Does GlowBowl Work
Glowbowl works with LEDs on a little arm that reaches into your toilet bowl and lights it up with your choice of light and brightness. It turns on with a motion sensor, so the battery isn't wasted by being on all night. It has 13 colors and even has a air freshener includes to keep your bathroom smelling nice.
If you're curious as to how GlowBowl works and what it can offer to you, you can read our in-depth review by clicking here.
How to Install GlowBowl
Glowbowl is easy to install. You just insert the air freshener,the hook it over you toilet bowl and select the color you want. Next time you need to use the toilet at night, it will sense your motion and turn on.
Where to Buy GlowBowl
You can buy the Glowbowl on their website or on Amazon. You can even get a deal to buy a few and receive some for free. If you want to gift it, that makes these a much cheaper way to have gifts for everyone on the list.
What is Illumibowl
Pros
- Multiple settings
- Bright colors
- Motion sensor
- Easy installation
Cons
- Poor construction
- Fewer settings
- Might be hard to bend
Illumibowl is another toilet nightlight. It was first featured on Shark Tank in 2016. Now they have multiple products to choose from to help eliminate fumbling in the dark when you need to go or help kids feel less afraid of late night bathroom trips. It offers multiple colors and brightness options.
How Does Illumibowl Work
Illumibowl uses an LED to make your toilet glow once the motion sensor is activated. You can set it to multiple colors and 3 brightness settings.
How to Install Illumibowl
You install Illumibowl with a bendable arm to attach it. Older models had suction cups. All you need to do it bend the arm to fit and it should stay put. You can pick a color by pushing the button when it is showing the color you want. You can also hold the button to set the brightness.
Where to Buy Illumibowl
The best place to buy Illumibowl is their own website. If you order elsewhere, you may get an older model. Their website artisti offers all their products including a light for sinks.
GlowBowl Vs Illumibowl - Differences and Similarities
Glowbowl and Illumibowl both offer a motion sensing night light that illuminates your toilet. On paper, both products are the same. Both devices will illuminate your toilet when you approach so long as you have the motion sensor facing the door. The biggest differences come down to the air freshener feature on the latest Glowbowl model and things like construction.
Purpose and Benefits
You may be wondering why you'd want a nightlight for the toilet, particularly if you already have a night light in the bathroom. Both the Illumibowl and the Glowbowl can be brighter than a typical night light. It also illuminates only the toilet, so you can see where you're going. This can be helpful for young boys who might need help aiming.
It might make potty training a bit easier with young children. You can let them pick a color so they might be more excited to use the toilet and do a bit better. It can also help with common nighttime fears in children. Having a light that will help keep away the boogeyman might help with bedwetting issues from children who ate too scared to go to the bathroom at night.
Product Features and Quality
Both products use the same method of attaching to the toilet. The Glowbowl claims to be water resistant so it can stand up to cleaning. The Illumibowl improved the water resistance after customer complaints, but older models are available from some retailers. You need to be sure you're offering the most recent model.
Illumibowl also offers more varieties of product including a projector, one meant to be antibacterial, and even a sink light. This might make it a better choice if you want to have multiple types of product in one order.
The biggest differences I've found are in construction. Illumibowl has had multiple complaints of the product not working after the batteries are replaced. Glowbowl seems a bit sturdier, but you may find one color stops working or it becomes too dim to be helpful even on the brightest setting.
Adjustment can be an issue for both products since you may find it hard to keep it pointed properly while also having it stay on. Marking where to bend the arm can help since you need to bend it to 90 degrees or more to get it to stay firmly on either product.
The amount of time varies between products. Illumibowl seems to stay lit longer, but both should turn back on if they sense movement. This means you shouldn't be left completely in the dark even if you take a bit longer.
The motion sensor is another point. It needs to be positioned towards the door to sense the motion. There have been notes on the Illumibowl that the sensor might not work properly. Both also only function in the dark, so if you have a nightlight or other lightsource in the bathroom or won't work at all.
Settings and User Experience
The Illumibowl does offer fewer brightness settings than the Glowbowl. Illumibowl offers only 3 settings versus 5 in the Glowbowl. The amount of colors is also lower if you select the Illumibowl. The Illumibowl seems to only offer 12 colors versus 13 in the Glowbowl. Mind you, it is much harder to find information on the Illumibowl since their own website is a bit scarce on details and many retailers are selling older models with different features and specifications. Make sure you check what the seller is offering and read their listing if you aren't buying from the manufacturer.
I would like to highlight that neither product allows you to set the length of time it stays on. While this can save battery, it might be a bit startling for a child. If you intend to use this to make a child feel safer going to the bathroom at night, I would look seriously at the time they run. Young children can be very fussy and be easily upset by the bathroom.
If you're buying for an adult, such as yourself or a parent, either should work as far as the length of time is concerned. The ability to pick color easily should appeal to any adults and kids. One thing to note is that if someone has a sensitivity to light, you may want to avoid the color changing setting. While fun, it could cause headaches or other problems for some with photosensitivity.
Maintenance and Stability
Cleaning is a big issue as well as how well it stays on. The Glowbowl at least claims it should be able to handle most cleaning products. The Illumibowl has been noted to have issues with cleaning liquids getting inside the casing and causing issues. While the manufacturer claims it should be fine once it dries out, I dislike this since anything near the toilet needs to stay clean.
Sanitizing wipes could be a solution to this. That still means more touching and a need to switch cleaning products for me. I don't like cleaning the toilet, and anything that makes that job harder isn't something that appeals to me and I assume many others. If this is also your least favorite chore, be sure you get something that can handle a good cleaning.
Staying where you put it is another concern. No one wants to fish something out of the toilet. The fact that only the flexible arm holds it on can be an issue. Both products have reports of them falling off. This could be user error, but it can be a factor.
The arm is also an issue. Anything that bends can break if stressed too much. You might also have issues with getting it to stay in place since it might want to bend back to the shape it was in when you got it. You might also notice that the connection for the LED becomes loose and stops working.
This can be caused by too much bending breaking the wires, or just be caused by poor construction and low quality parts like the circuit board. Some owners who have taken apart either device have noticed poor construction that can result in your item refusing to work even if it isn't that old. This has been noted more often in the Illumibowl rather than the Glowbowl.
Other issues include things like certain colors fading or the wires that power the LED on the inside coming loose. You might be able to fix this, but poor quality circuits might also be to blame. If this is the case, you'll just have to buy a new one. While they aren't horribly expensive, it can add up if you get unlucky. Illumibowl seems a bit less responsive to customer complaints, so you might not get a replacement.
Customer Satisfaction and Recommendations
While this does sound grim, most customers seemed happy with their purchases of either product. You should still keep all this in mind in case you start having problems in the future.
This means that you should really stick with the manufacturer's websites for purchases. Both products on Amazon have reports of people getting older models or even knockoffs that are also sold on Amazon for cheaper. This is despite them paying more for the actual name brand product. Be sure to buy from a reputable reseller if you prefer shopping on sites like Amazon or Ebay. You never know who exactly is selling on these and what they might send. Check reviews for the seller so you know what to expect.
When it comes to a comparison of the products, the main deciding factor is longevity. More owners state that the Glowbowl fresh has lasted longer and with less troubles. Older models might have the balance a bit different, but with these two I would suggest the Glowbowl. The air freshener makes this slightly more useful and it seems to be constructed a bit better.
However, either will likely work fine. If you can find a better deal on one, you should be happy with that. These products are very similar and have only developed more similarities over time. While older models had more differences, both use nearly identical systems to attach to the toilet and operate. The main differences are in extra features and the deals you can get.
Summary
In conclusion, if you're looking for something to light up your bathroom at night without waking you up, both the Illumibowl and the Glowbowl are good options. They can be helpful for any member of the family, and might make potty training a bit less stressful at night. While neither product is perfect, the Glowbowl slightly beats out the competition. However, you could choose either and be happy with your purchase.
With the continual development and increase in technology, gadgets, and gizmos, Amar never has a dull day researching new gadgets. Being an enthusiastic gamer, traveler, soccer lover, and avid car driver means that he always looks for the next cool thing to try out.