The TP-Link Tapo L535E is a smart LED light bulb that delivers deep, rich colors and tunable whites. With support for the smart home standard Matter, it can integrate seamlessly into your Alexa, HomeKit, Google, or SmartThings home automation ecosystem. It starts at $17.99 for one, though you can often find it for less, and it becomes even more affordable if you buy in bulk. With power usage reporting and a brighter 1,100-lumen output than the 800-lumen AiDot Linkind Matter Smart Light Bulb ($14.99), the Tapo L535E is our new Editors' Choice winner for color smart bulbs.

Pricing and Specs: Affordable Options, Serious Brightness

The L535E bulb is available on its own for $17.99, in a pack of two for $29.99, or in a pack of four for $49.99. The A19 type bulb has a standard E26 screw-in base and measures 4.5 by 2.3 inches (HW). It’s a dimmable RGBW bulb capable of displaying millions of colors and tunable whites, with a color temperature range of 2,500K to 6,500K. 

This bulb puts out 1,100 lumens, which is comparable with a 75-watt incandescent bulb and much brighter than the AiDot Linkind Matter Smart Light Bulb and the Pure Smart TruColor A19 Bulb ($16), both of which max out at 800 lumens. As with the Linkind bulb, the Tapo L535E has built-in Wi-Fi and supports Matter, which means it does not require a hub and will work with Alexa, Google, HomeKit, and SmartThings home automation platforms.

App and Features: Energy Tracking, Scenes, and Smart Automations

The L535E provides energy usage reports and offers two customizable special effects (called themes). The Party theme will quickly cycle through colors at a pre-specified speed (one to three seconds), and the Relax theme slowly transitions between colors at a pre-specified speed (one to three seconds). In comparison, the Linkind Matter Smart bulb offers more than a dozen customizable effects, including a Christmas theme and one that reacts to music.

The bulb uses the same Tapo mobile app as other Tapo devices, such as the Tapo D225 Video Doorbell Camera and the Tapo SolarCam C402. Its panel on the Home screen shows the bulb's name and current brightness level, and there’s a button to turn the light on or off.

Tap the panel to open a Device screen where you can turn the light on and off, select a color preset, adjust the brightness, and switch between color and white mode. In color mode, you can choose any color in the spectrum, and in white mode, you can choose any white color temperature between 2,500K (more yellow) and 6,500K (more blue).

Below the mode settings are tiles labeled Theme, Schedule, Timer, and Away. The Theme tiles let you select one of the above-mentioned effect themes, and the Schedule tile lets you create on/off schedules. Use the Timer tile to have the bulb turn on and off after a set period, and use the Away tile to configure it to turn on and off at random times while you’re away.

(Credit: TP-Link)

At the very bottom of the Device screen is a panel that displays how long the bulb has been running (in hours) and how much energy it has used (in kWh) with daily, weekly, and monthly readings. Below the energy panel is a Smart Actions panel where you can have the bulb turn off at night or turn on when you arrive home. Here you can enable scenes like Movie Night to have the bulb change color or brightness while watching TV, and to slowly dim as you prepare for bed. You can also create scenes to have the bulb interact with other Tapo devices, such as cameras, doorbells, and smart plugs.

Tap the gear icon in the upper-right corner to access settings that let you edit the bulb's name, add it to a group, use the Matter Setup code to add it to your home automation platform of choice, and update the firmware.

Performance: Smooth Setup and Consistent Real-World Results

Installing the Tapo L535E bulb couldn’t be easier. I already had the Tapo app installed, but if this is your first Tapo device, you’ll have to download the app and create an account. I tapped the plus icon in the upper-right corner of the Home screen, then tapped Add Device, and selected Lights from the menu. I selected Tapo L535 from the list of bulbs and followed the instructions to turn off the lamp and replace the existing bulb with the L535 bulb. I powered up the bulb, confirmed it was blinking, and it was immediately found. I entered my Wi-Fi credentials, gave the light a name and location, and the bulb was added to my Tapo app and my Alexa device list.

The L535E bulb produced rich, well-saturated colors in my tests and was very bright. Low-temperature whites appeared warm and yellowish, while high-temperature whites were more brilliant and cooler.

I had no trouble adding the bulb to my Alexa and HomeKit accounts using the Matter Code, and it always responded to my Alexa and Siri voice commands to change colors and turn on and off. In addition, it worked flawlessly with my HomeKit scenes and Alexa routines, as well as my Tapo Smart Actions, turning the light red when a Tapo camera detected motion.