Better light for the time you love to spend
Is detail harder to see? It is usually the light.
A Serious Light gives you the full spectrum of daylight and up to 12x more light on your page than a 60W bulb, so small print, fine stitches and true colours are as easy to see at night as by day.
With full-spectrum daylight and up to 12x more light on your page than a 60W bulb, fine detail is clear after dark.
Alex Pratt OBE | Founder
Or call free on 0800 085 1088, Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 5.30pm
Fine detail is clearer the moment you switch on.
At 60 your eyes need about three times the light they did at 20, and most lamps give nothing like it, so small print and fine stitches get harder to see. These are three of the changes owners tell us about.
Small print is easy to see again.
You can read the label on your medicine bottle and the footnotes in your book, thread a needle first time and make out the fine detail on a stamp.
Set the brightness to suit your eyes.
Dim it to the level that suits your eyes, and it comes back at that level the next time you switch it on, so the light is right from the moment you sit down.
You can keep going as long as you like.
Hours in, small print and fine stitches are still sharp, and your eyes stay comfortable. The arm holds wherever you put it and is guaranteed for life.
The Serious Readers story
I built the first HD Light for my mum.
By 1988 the lights we made were already on production lines and in laboratories, and then my mum began losing her sight to macular degeneration. I built her the first High Definition home reading light so she could carry on reading, and stay independent.
Every light on this page descends from hers. You do not build a cheap lamp for your mum; you build the best one you can, and then you spend forty years making it better. That is still the rule for every light we make.
This is the difference on your page.
An ordinary bulb only looks white. It leaves gaps across the spectrum, and your eyes work to fill them in. We call that junk light. Daylight has no gaps, which is why reading by a window on a clear morning is so easy, and Daylight Wavelength Technology™ rebuilds it with 98% colour accuracy.
An ordinary bulb only looks white. It leaves gaps across the spectrum, and your eyes work to fill them in. Daylight has no gaps, and Daylight Wavelength Technology™ rebuilds it with 98% colour accuracy.
Customers living with AMD and cataracts tell us print looks sharper and higher in contrast under one. The home trial lets you check that against your own eyes.
Choose my lightBuilt to be the best we can make.
If you want the cheapest lamp, a Serious Light is not for you. It is a reliable tool for people who want the best light.
Serious Lights have been chosen for operating theatres and the British Museum, where fine detail and true colour matter. George James, Head of Philately at Stanley Gibbons, examines stamps under one: “I wouldn’t rely on any other light.” We stand behind every light we make, and in 2025/26 alone we repaired or upgraded 1,350 of them.
A five-year warranty on the light, with a replaceable light engine inside it.
A lifetime warranty on the arm. The flexible arm holds wherever you bend it, for good.
The HD Original and HD Essential are hand-built in Aylesbury, around fifty a day. When something goes wrong, we repair it or we replace it.
▶ See how the light works
Make your favourite spot the best-lit place in your home.
Whatever you love to do, from your book and your crossword to your sewing or your stamps, a Serious Light puts the clarity of daylight where you need it. Most people choose the HD Original, as a floor light or a table light.
A Serious Light puts the clarity of daylight where you need it. Most people choose the HD Original, as a floor or a table light.
HD Original
This is the light we recommend: everything we have learned in forty years, in one light, so small print is easy to read and colours look true. Shape the beam to fit a paperback, a broadsheet or your jigsaw spread across the table, dim it to the level that suits you, and both stay as you left them, so it comes on just right every time.
This is the light we recommend, with 98% of the full spectrum of daylight. Shape the beam, set your level, and both stay as you left them for next time.
Perfect for fine detail, wherever you settle.
From about 19p a night over the five-year warranty.
Start my 90-day home trialAbout 16p a night over the five-year warranty.
Start my 90-day home trialTry it at home for 90 days
5-year warranty with a lifetime on the arm
Free delivery, and it arrives fully built
Arrives fully built, ready to use
UK delivery by DHL, £12.95
Hand-built in Great Britain
Quote at checkout or on the phone
Learn more about this light
Floor light specifications
Heavyweight (most popular): 152cm, 6kg, 23cm base.
Lightweight: 144cm, 3kg, 20cm base.
3,600 to 7,200 lux at 50cm depending on beam width. 98% CRI, 4,000K, 630 lumens. Flicker-free.
Replaceable light engine, 5-year guarantee, lifetime guarantee on the arm. 7.2 watts, pennies a week to run.
Table light specifications
Heavyweight: 71cm, 4.5kg, 20cm base.
Lightweight: 68cm, 2.2kg, 18cm base.
3,600 to 7,200 lux at 50cm depending on beam width. 98% CRI, 4,000K, 630 lumens. Flicker-free.
Replaceable light engine, 5-year guarantee, lifetime guarantee on the arm. 7.2 watts, pennies a week to run.
See our other models from £99.99, or let us help you choose.
HD Pro
You can change the brightness from a remote, or read anywhere in the room on its rechargeable battery, and add either when you order or later. You shape the beam to fit what you are doing.
You can dim it from a remote or go cordless and read in any room, added when you order or later.
Perfect for readers who want the remote in one hand, or to read anywhere.
From about 22p a night over the five-year warranty.
Start my 90-day home trialFrom about 19p a night over the five-year warranty.
Start my 90-day home trial90-day home trial
5-year warranty with a lifetime on the arm
Free delivery
UK delivery by DHL, £12.95
Quote at checkout or on the phone
Click to view specifications
152cm, 4.8kg. Quick-change cordless battery in the base, arm slots out for servicing. Optional carpet feet.
Replaceable light engine, 5-year guarantee, lifetime guarantee on the arm. 7.2 watts, pennies a week to run.
HD Essential
Small print is easy again under full Serious daylight, with a fixed wide beam and a press-and-hold dimmer.
Small print is easy again, with a fixed wide beam and a press-and-hold dimmer. You switch it on, you sit down, and you read.
Perfect for everyday reading.
From about 16p a night over the five-year warranty.
Start my 30-day home trialFrom about 14p a night over the five-year warranty.
Start my 30-day home trial30-day home trial
5-year warranty with a lifetime on the arm
Free delivery
UK delivery by DHL, £12.95
Hand-built in Great Britain
Quote at checkout or on the phone
Click to view specifications
Heavyweight (most popular): 152cm, 6kg, 23cm base.
Lightweight: 144cm, 3kg, 20cm base.
Replaceable LED bulb rated for three years of life, under a 5-year warranty on the light and a lifetime warranty on the arm. 6 watts, pennies a week to run.
Click to view specifications
Heavyweight: 71cm, 4.5kg, 19cm base.
Lightweight: 68cm, 2.2kg, 18cm base.
Replaceable LED bulb rated for three years of life, under a 5-year warranty on the light and a lifetime warranty on the arm. 6 watts, pennies a week to run.
Or choose a cordless light to carry from room to room.
HD ROAM
The HD ROAM in White is sent out from mid‑November.
Not sure which one? Answer six quick questions.
What will you use your light for?
Choose all that apply
How do your eyes feel right now?
Choose one
What frustrates you about your current light?
Choose all that apply
Will it stay put, or move around the house?
Choose one
Once you are settled, do you mind reaching up to adjust it?
Choose one
Where will your light live?
Choose one
For the way you read, we recommend
Not what you expected? Call free on 0800 085 1088 and an adviser will help you choose.
All light is not created equal.
Brightness is only the beginning: the spectrum, true colour and how you shape the light all change what you see.
We have spent forty years on everything that changes what you see.
Under an ordinary bulb, print looks flat and colours look wrong.
Most lamps use an ordinary bulb, which gives out only part of the daylight spectrum, so your eyes work harder to fill the gaps. A stronger bulb only gives you more junk light.
Read how the light works
Every detail looks sharp under true daylight, indoors.
Daylight Wavelength Technology™ rebuilds the full spectrum of noon daylight with 98% colour accuracy, so black print turns crisp on white and colours look true. See the independent research.
One light fits nobody.
Reading, sewing and painting each need something different, so on the HD Original and HD Pro you shape the beam to fit what is in front of you.
Opticians say the right light matters as much as the right glasses.
More than 500 UK opticians recommend a Serious Light to their patients. These five say why.
Lighting has a huge impact on our ability to see. Serious Readers lights are well designed, simple to use, and provide accurate colour and detail representation.
Serious Reader Lights simulate strong natural daylight, relieving eye fatigue and improving reading. The range of styles, warranty and customer care means I recommend with confidence.
The clarity a Serious Readers lamp provides is second to none. Patients are amazed at the difference. Just like correct prescription glasses, the right lighting is so important.
Serious Lights are among the best I have come across. They provide natural, high quality light that improves comfort and clarity, easily adjusted to direct light exactly where needed.
The right light is as important as the right glasses. It reduces strain for close work, vital for anyone with cataracts or macular degeneration. Patients really appreciate the difference.
▶ Watch optometrist Tracey Taylor explain why.Watch an optometrist explain why.
Owners tell us what changed for them.
From more than 10,000 five-star reviews.
I cannot understand why I waited so long. It has changed my life.Lady Lloyd-Hughes
▶ Hear what owners have to say.
“Not cheap but well worth the quality of life you get from these lights. My eyesight is too precious to waste time with inferior lighting.”
Mrs Thoday, Market Rasen
“When I first looked at your lights I thought they were expensive but when you look at the quality, the old saying ‘you get what you pay for’ is true.”
Mr Robotham, Lincs
“Just a note to say how very pleased I am with my HD Essential Table Light. It has made such a difference.”
Mrs Lillie, Cruden Bay
Claim your free Better Light Guide.
Jonathan Kerr, an optometrist and Fellow of the College of Optometrists, gives you nine tips for looking after your eyes, from the light you read by to the food on your plate.
Why do you need more and better light in your 60s?
Can carrots really help you see in the dark?
What is the simple rule that rests your eyes at a screen?
Thank you. Please check your inbox.
We are sending the guide to your inbox now. You can also open it here.
Open your Better Light GuideHousehold names and professionals read and work by Serious Lights.
Household names read their scripts and manuscripts by them. Lifeboat crews, air traffic controllers and telescope engineers work under them.
The Serious Light that arrives at your door carries the same engineering.
Why Stanley Gibbons rely on Serious Lights.
Watch George James catch two fakes.Head of Philately, Stanley Gibbons
Get the answers you need before you order.
Here are the questions people ask us most.
Which are the best reading lights?
For most people the right reading lamp here is the HD Original, and it is the one most of our customers choose. It shapes the beam, dims without steps and keeps both settings for next time, which covers almost every kind of reading.
Pick the HD Pro instead if you want the remote or the cordless battery, and the HD Essential if you want the simplest of the three, with a fixed wide beam. All three are true daylight lamps carrying the same spectrum; what changes is how much control you get over it.
What makes these different from an ordinary lamp?
Two things separate good reading lights from ordinary lamps. The light itself: Daylight Wavelength Technology™ rebuilds natural daylight to 98% colour accuracy, which an ordinary bulb cannot manage at any brightness.
And the engineering that delivers it: a beam built to land on your page at reading distance, and dimmed to suit your eyes. Print stays sharp and colours stay true, however small the type. With the home trial, you can read by the light you use now and by a Serious Light in turn, and decide which you prefer.
Will it help with macular degeneration or cataracts?
Serious Lights are not medical devices. What they do is put far more usable light on your page.
Customers living with AMD, cataracts and poor eyesight tell us print looks sharper and higher in contrast under one. The home trial lets you find out with your own eyes.
How bright is it, in numbers?
Measured at 50cm, the HD Original gives you up to 12x more light on your page than a 60W bulb. Narrow the beam for the smallest print and the light concentrates to 7,200 lux; spread it wide across your newspaper and it holds 3,600. Colour accuracy is 98% CRI, which is why print stays black and colours stay true.
The light engine is flicker-free and it dims without steps, so you have a strong reading light for the smallest print and you turn it down for everything else.
The only real test is to try one at home while you do the things you love. You have up to 90 days, and if it is not for you, we collect it free from any UK mainland address and refund you.
Start my 90-day home trialMore questions
Should I choose the floor light or the table light?
It depends on where you sit. A floor light suits wherever you read with no table beside you, because it stands on its own.
Where there is a side table at the right height, a table light does the same job from a lower start. Both carry the same daylight, so choose by where you sit.
How do the lights compare?
The three main lights carry the same Daylight Wavelength Technology™ and the same 5-year warranty. What changes is the control you get over the beam: how you shape it, dim it and direct it.
Most popular
HD Original
The light most people choose
|
HD Pro
The most advanced of the three
|
HD Essential
Daylight made simple
|
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | All-round reading | Cordless and remote | Plain and simple |
| Finishes | Black or Heritage White | Black only | Black or Heritage White |
| Beam | Adjustable, shapeable | Adjustable, shapeable | Wide, even, fixed |
| Dimming | Stepless with memory | Stepless with memory | Press-and-hold, with memory |
| Remote & cordless | No. | Yes, optional | No. |
| Home trial | 90 days | 90 days | 30 days |
| Warranty | 5 years, lifetime arm | 5 years, lifetime arm | 5 years, lifetime arm |
| Table light price | From £299.99 | From £349.99 | From £249.99 |
| Floor light price | From £349.99 | From £399.99 | From £299.99 |
| Start my 90-day trial | Start my 90-day trial | Start my 30-day trial |
HD Original
The light most people choose
HD Pro
The most advanced of the three
HD Essential
Daylight made simple
What bulb does it take, and what does it cost to run?
Every light here runs on LED, which is why a lamp this bright costs pennies a week. The HD Original and HD Pro use a replaceable light engine rather than a bulb, and the HD Essential takes a replaceable LED bulb.
A bright reading light runs cool enough to sit beside you all evening, and you are not up a stepladder changing a bulb every year.
Why do they cost more than an ordinary lamp?
In a high-quality reading light you pay for the daylight spectrum, an arm and dimming that hold where you set them, a five-year warranty on the light and a lifetime warranty on the arm, and a forty-year-old company standing behind both. Most lamps are built down to a price, and we build Serious Lights to be repaired rather than thrown away. With the home trial, you can judge it at home, and if it is not for you, we collect it and refund you in full.
Why is small print harder to read once the evenings get darker?
In the summer you can read by a window well into the evening, but once the clocks go back most people switch a lamp on by late afternoon. Under an ordinary lamp, small print is usually the first thing people find harder to read.
A Serious Light rebuilds daylight indoors, so small print can look as clear on a dark evening as it does by a window in June.
How long does delivery take?
UK delivery is by DHL tracked courier and usually takes two to three working days. It is free with your code.It costs £12.95.
The Original and Essential arrive fully built, and the Pro's arm simply slots into its base. Either way, you plug it in and read the same evening.
Spend the darker evenings doing what you love.
You can judge it on the dark evenings ahead, when you would use it most.
Quote code at checkout.
Start my 90-day home trialTry it at home for up to 90 days. If it is not for you, we collect it free from any UK mainland address and refund you in full.
Or call free on 0800 085 1088, Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 5.30pm.