Our test of the OxyLED TXD-300 arrives just in time for the tree and the crib. However, this chain of LED lights can actually be used practically anywhere and at any time of the year: the light points are in fact white light and can therefore also work to attract attention in the shop window or to create a soft light in garden (they are also waterproof).
How it's made
The peculiarity of this chain of lights is in the cable: it is in fact a triple copper wire thirty meters long interspersed with a small LED every 10 centimeters, for a total of 300 LEDs along the entire length.
The construction is rather cheap: the LEDs are in fact glued to the cable with transparent silicone material that wraps them completely protecting them from water and dust. The three copper cables then continue in one of the two ends inside a more protective transparent sheath: this portion is a couple of meters long and converges inside a small electronic brain in which there is a button for controlling the lights directly from the wire (alternatively supplied there is also a remote control powered by two batteries not included in the package).
The system ends with a cable approximately 30 centimeters long on which the Schuko-type plug for connection to the mains is fixed.
Installation
Although the quality of the copper cable does not impress, it does its duty and also does it well. The malleability of copper makes it possible to adapt the lights very easily. We used them to light up the Christmas tree and positioning them was really a breeze: we were able to twist it around the individual branches but also fold it to hide it in the innermost part of the tree.
The absence of a sheath also significantly reduces the weight of the cable, which did not weigh down the branches and made it easier for us to position the lights on the entire structure.
The only drawback is the typical color of the copper, which is more striking than the traditional black or dark green sheath that we usually find in the lights dedicated to the tree.
In fact, first of all, we installed the lights when the tree was already decorated, but for a better result of the final effect it would be better to position them when it is still bare.
Thus, in fact, there would be more room for maneuver to route the cable along the individual branches and each time conveying the cable towards the trunk in such a way as to eliminate the unsightly effect of the copper wire jumping from one tip to the other.
However, having a good portion of transparent cable that connects the LEDs to the power supply allows you to have greater possibilities of use, especially in the event that the power outlet is rather far from the LED lights and significantly reduces the need to use an extension cable.
How is it going
Whatever the positioning of the LEDs and the object around which they are installed, the operation is still the same. The switching on, off and adjustment of the play of lights can also be controlled by the button present in the electronic brain along the cable, alternatively there is the remote control that works remotely and offers some more functions.
From here you can also control the brightness and you can set a timer for automatic shutdown after 2, 4, 6 or 8 hours from switching on.
The lighting effects are different, ranging from the classic flicker to the slower and gradual turn on-off, alternate lighting and so on, for a total of 8 different modes which includes the automatic one, with which all the various games are shown cyclically. of light.
The color temperature of the light is rather warm (we are around 2500K) and consumption is really low (the user manual reports just 6W). Furthermore, the duration estimated by the manufacturer is also quite generous: at least 10,000 hours of operation are guaranteed, which would mean over 400 continuous days.
Assuming you use them in a shop with an average of 12 hours of ignition per day before having to replace them, it will take at least 3 years. If, on the other hand, you use them during the Christmas period that goes from 8 December to 6 January and you turn them off only at night for a duration of 16 hours a day, at least 20 years will pass before having to buy them again.
Of course this estimate also varies according to how these lights will be treated, but it must be said that the simplicity of the construction also facilitates a possible do-it-yourself repair: the copper wire can in fact be cut if too long as well as you can easily remove the burned out LEDs or maybe add new ones.
Those who wish can also try to color the individual LEDs: a couple of passes on the silicone cover with a permanent marker are enough to change the effect of the lights and adapt them according to the context and your tastes.
Conclusions
Our experience with Christmas lights stops using different models purchased in stores over the span of over twenty years that have nothing to do with this system, which we believe to be the most functional and useful for the purpose.
The copper cable is easy to repair, it is better controlled because it bends and maintains the designated position, it is very light and then the LEDs are small, unobtrusive but give a lot of light and can be customized with a marker if desired.
Then there is the convenience of the remote control, which can possibly be bypassed by the control via the recessed button on the electronic brain. Without forgetting the On / Off available on both, which therefore does not require you to plug in and unplug as it happens with most of the lights that we find in stores.
Price
OxyLED TXD-300 is on sale on Amazon at a price of about 30 euros.
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