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Military-inspired Andromeda Lamp gives you lighting flexibility

Military-inspired Andromeda Lamp gives you lighting flexibility
The Andromeda Lamp is based on the Picatinny rail
The Andromeda Lamp is based on the Picatinny rail
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The Andromeda Lamp is based on the Picatinny rail
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The Andromeda Lamp is based on the Picatinny rail
Instead of using the standard quad-rail system, Sketchy Design Studios developed its own tri-rail system
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Instead of using the standard quad-rail system, Sketchy Design Studios developed its own tri-rail system
Articulating, sliding arms and legs allow for many different configurations
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Articulating, sliding arms and legs allow for many different configurations
The Andromeda will ship with a filament bulb but its E-27 socket is compatible with other bulbs
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The Andromeda will ship with a filament bulb but its E-27 socket is compatible with other bulbs
The Andromeda Lamp takes on a personality all its own
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The Andromeda Lamp takes on a personality all its own
Knurled bolts on the arms make for easy adjusment
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Knurled bolts on the arms make for easy adjusment
The legs use Allen bolt adjustments
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The legs use Allen bolt adjustments
Some small tweaks give a totally new look
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Some small tweaks give a totally new look
The on/off switch is disguised as a nut near the base of the lamp
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The on/off switch is disguised as a nut near the base of the lamp
The Andromeda is available for wholesale-style pre-order pricing on Kickstarter
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The Andromeda is available for wholesale-style pre-order pricing on Kickstarter
Sketchy mentions customizing the Andromeda with a series of accessories
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Sketchy mentions customizing the Andromeda with a series of accessories
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Most lamps are strictly functional. Save for the light they add to a dark room, they essentially disappear quietly amidst louder, larger, more noticeable home accessories. The Andromeda Lamp is a different kind of lamp. The military-inspired lamp is a functional and fashionable (if military-spec-style lighting is to your taste) design that promises to stand out in any room.

Sketchy Design Studio bills the Andromeda Lamp as the "world's first military-inspired tri rail lamp." Like the designers behind the Battle Mug, the studio realizes that scope rails aren't only functional for military purposes, but they can also look pretty gnarly when transplanted into product categories far removed from the firearm.

More than just a battle-ready look, Sketchy's patent-pending Tri Rail system allows for all kinds of adjustment and customization. The shade arms slide up and down the rails and also bend into different positions, allowing for a multitude of styles. Similarly, the legs can be repositioned.

A standard lamp shade and pull chain would be completely out of place on such an industrial design. Instead, Sketchy equips the Andromeda with custom-designed mesh shades and a hidden power switch that looks like a big, burly nut. The main body is made of anodized black aluminum. Sketchy also plans to offer some lamp accessories for customization but isn't quite ready to reveal what those are.

Knurled bolts on the arms make for easy adjusment
Knurled bolts on the arms make for easy adjusment

Sketchy has put the Andromeda Lamp on Kickstarter in hopes of funding tooling and manufacturing costs. It also mentions expanding into other types of military-esque lighting solutions, such as wall sconces and flashlights, and says that it hopes the design eventually finds use in real military applications.

The studio lists the eventual retail price at US$560, a figure that has us questioning if it has any real commercial future. It's raised more than half of its $70,000 goal, with 44 days to go, but even if it funds a production run, how many people are really going to spend $560 on a lamp that basically just looks cool? A lot of people like guns and military items, and it kind of looks like a robot or space crawler, but in the end, it's a lamp. Plus, that hefty chunk of change is only going to feel bigger when a fiance of the future throws it in the garbage with all the other cool but useless guy gear

If the designers really took advantage of the lamp's adjustable nature to flesh out some specific configurations (e.g. a work light, a game table light, etc), it could be more than just a unique table lamp – it could be lighting's answer to the Swiss Army knife. But the firm's presentation is so focused on the components and build of the lamp, it just shows it sitting there on the table with different shade settings – cool, but $560 worth of cool?

Early-adopter Kickstarter supporters can secure the lamp for a fraction of the retail price. The $229 option is already sold out, so you may want to act fast on the $279 selection, if you dig the lamp.

Source: Kickstarter

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2 comments
2 comments
Daishi
I guess the price comes down too if you consider it a functional lamp or art but it is at least art.
I think it would have more appeal if they showcased it with one of the cooler looking LED light bulbs.
The LED ones are a lot more rugged anyway. I was using a Philips in a cheap lamp with no lamp shade in a room I was remodeling. The lamp fell from a table hard enough to break the lamp and the LED bulb was fine which would never happen with a glass bulb.
Joe Sobotka
Very cool!!! But at $560,, I certainly won't be buying it.