BenQ ScreenBar Halo 2 review
A lamp that clips to your monitor and lights the desk without lighting the screen.
A monitor-mounted light bar with an asymmetric anti-glare beam, an ambient backlight and a wireless control dial.
Check price on AmazonSpecifications
| Spec | Detail |
|---|---|
| Beam | ASYM-Light front lighting at an 18 degree anti-glare angle |
| Backlight | Adjustable ambient backlight to reduce screen-to-room contrast |
| Colour rendering | CRI greater than 95, per BenQ |
| Colour temperature | 2700K to 6500K, stepless brightness |
| Control | Wireless dial with a display showing exact values |
| Automation | Turns on and off with the monitor, adjusts to ambient light, remembers a favourite preset |
| Mounting | Clamp fitting monitors 0.17 to 2.36 inches thick, and 1000R to 1800R curved panels |
| LED lifespan | Tested to over 50,000 hours, per BenQ |
| Approx. price | Around $199 |
Specifications above come from BenQ's published specifications. Treat pricing as approximate, since Amazon pricing moves.
What it does well
- The asymmetric beam is the actual engineering here. Light goes down onto the desk at a shallow angle rather than forward onto the screen, so you get a lit page and an unreflective display at the same time.
- CRI above 95 means colours on paper look like they do in daylight, which matters if you are marking up printed work in colour or doing anything visual.
- It takes no desk space at all, which in a dorm room with a 100cm desk is worth more than it sounds.
- The 2700K to 6500K range lets you run it warm late at night and neutral during the day, which is a sensible habit regardless of what you believe about blue light.
- The wireless dial with a numeric readout is a genuinely better control than the touch strips on cheaper bars.
- It reduces the contrast between a bright screen and a dark room, which is a real and well understood source of visual discomfort.
Where it falls short
- It is $199 for a light. A clamp lamp at $17 lights a desk, and if you have desk space that is most of the benefit for a twelfth of the price.
- BenQ markets eye-care and blue-light-hazard-free LEDs. Be careful with that framing: the evidence that filtering blue light reduces digital eye strain is weak, and the better-supported explanations for tired eyes are glare, low blink rate and long uninterrupted focus at one distance. This light genuinely helps with glare and contrast. Do not buy it expecting a medical effect, and do not buy blue light glasses expecting one either.
- It only works on a monitor of the right thickness. On a laptop screen it is too heavy and BenQ sells a different product for that.
- The light falls on the desk in front of the monitor. If you read at the side of your desk, it will not reach.
- There is a cheaper BenQ that does most of this. The original ScreenBar at $109 has the same basic idea without the backlight, the wireless dial or the improved beam.
What owners report
Owner reports across the ScreenBar family are consistently positive about the one thing that matters: no reflection on the screen. People who have tried desk lamps behind or beside a monitor describe this as the fix, and that is the most repeated observation in the reviews.
The recurring criticism is price, and it is fair. A second thread reports that the automatic brightness adjustment is either loved or immediately turned off, with little middle ground. Mounting is generally reported as secure, with the caveat that very thin or unusually shaped monitor bezels can be awkward.
Owners who bought it hoping to cure eye strain report mixed results, which is what you would expect. The people who report the biggest improvement are those who were previously working with a bright screen in an otherwise unlit room, which is the specific problem the ambient backlight addresses.
Who it suits
- Anyone working at a monitor in a dark room, especially in the evening.
- Students with a small desk where a lamp base would take usable space.
- People who read and mark up printed pages at a computer desk and want accurate colour.
Who should skip it
- Anyone who mostly reads paper away from a screen, where a clamp lamp at $17 is the better buy.
- Laptop-only users, since this mounts on a monitor.
- Anyone buying it as a remedy for eye strain rather than as a lighting fix.
Alternatives worth considering
Sixty dollars less with the motion sensor and auto dimming still included. You give up the Halo 2's ambient backlight and the newest beam design, so take it if the room behind your monitor is already lit.
Check price on AmazonThe original, at roughly half the price. Same core idea of lighting the desk and not the screen, with simpler controls and no backlight. It is the value pick in the family.
Check price on AmazonOne twelfth of the price. It clamps to the desk edge, takes no surface space and lights a book properly. You will have to angle it to keep it off the screen, which is the entire problem the ScreenBar exists to solve.
Check price on AmazonCommon questions
Is a monitor light bar worth it?
It is if you work at a screen in a dark room and a desk lamp keeps reflecting off it. That is a narrow but real problem, and the asymmetric beam genuinely solves it. If you have space for a lamp and mostly read paper, a $17 clamp lamp does the job.
Do monitor lights or blue light glasses reduce eye strain?
Better lighting helps; blue light filtering probably does not. The evidence that blocking blue light reduces digital eye strain is weak, and reviews of the trials have generally not found a meaningful effect. What is better supported is reducing glare, reducing the contrast between a bright screen and a dark room, blinking more, and looking at something far away every twenty minutes or so. If your eyes hurt persistently, see an optometrist rather than buying an accessory.
ScreenBar Halo 2 vs a normal desk lamp?
The lamp is far cheaper and lights a wider area. The ScreenBar takes no desk space and puts no reflection on the screen. If your desk is small and screen-centred, the ScreenBar; if you read books at your desk, the lamp. Our clamp lamp versus desk lamp comparison covers the cheaper end of this decision.
What colour temperature should I study under?
Neutral to cool during the day, around 4000K to 5000K, and warmer in the evening, closer to 2700K to 3000K. The reason to go warm at night is sleep timing rather than eye strain, and it costs nothing to do. This light covers the whole range.
Will it fit my monitor?
BenQ specifies panels 0.17 to 2.36 inches thick and curves between 1000R and 1800R. Measure the top edge of your monitor before ordering. It will not fit a laptop lid.
Keep reading
- Clamp lamp vs desk lamp
- Book light vs room light
- Building a study environment that works
- ASUS ProArt PA248QV review
- Study essentials roundup
This review draws on published specifications, manufacturer figures and the consensus of verified owner reviews. We have not tested this product ourselves, and we say so rather than implying otherwise. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.