We have talked about lighting up your LEGO creations in Let There Be Light! Light Up Your LEGO World! and Light Up Your Halloween LEGO Haunted House!, and today I would like to share with you another option. There is a Hong Kong based small company that makes LEGO compatible LEGO light-bricks. They sent me some samples to try out and show you! 🙂
What I particularly like about these light-bricks is that no wiring is needed like what you see with some LEGO compatible LED light-kits. Each light-brick is a self-contained light-source with batteries included (same two small cell-batteries as in the official LEGO light-brick). All you have to do is push the little button at the back to turn it on or off.
These custom light-bricks are very similar to the LEGO light-bricks that are available in some LEGO sets, however there are some differences as well. First of all while the LEGO light-brick only comes in 2×3 LEGO brick size and with either yellow or red light, the custom light-bricks are available in several sizes and with lots of light color options (red, yellow, blue, green white). There are also choices for steady lights, blinking lights and multi-color blinking lights -that’s my favorite!
These custom LEGO light bricks are made of clear plastic with studs on top and connection-points at the bottom, so they are fully compatible with regular LEGO elements. The quality is very good. The top studs connect especially well to regular LEGO bricks. The bottom connections are a tad too tight, and I do have some concern that the bottom of the light-bricks would eventually develop hairline cracks after regular use. However this tends to be an issue even with official LEGO pieces made of clear plastic, as the material is more rigid than regular ABS. Here is a brief video showing you how the light-bricks work.
Below is a picture of regular LEGO light-bricks (red) versus the custom LEGO light-bricks (clear). Since the custom LEGO light-brick is fully clear plastic it spreads the light better then the official LEGO version.
As you can see the two versions of light-up bricks are pretty similar in size and shape, however one thing I particularly like about these custom LEGO light-bricks is that the on-off button is recessed.
The recessed on-off button allows these custom LEGO light bricks to be fully encased between regular LEGO bricks, something you cannot do with the regular LEGO light-brick. One thing I noticed though when I did this is that the custom LEGO light-bricks are a tad off as far as the size. The difference is very small, but it is important to keep in mind if you would plan to surround them with regular LEGO elements. Otherwise they would weaken the structure and also put stress on your LEGO bricks.
The size difference is most noticeable in the height (see pictures). The width is the same as LEGO bricks. The depth is just a tad off on the side where the battery-door is. So I would say that even though you can fully encase them, it is best to leave a bit of room at least on the sides where the size difference is more significant.
Other than this issue these custom LEGO light-bricks are an excellent option for lighting up your LEGO creations, especially since LEGO’s own light-up bricks are so rare and so limited in choices. These may not be on par with LEGO’s unmatched quality and precision, but they are close enough to fit right in with LEGO elements. Here is another picture of the ones I received fully lit up. The color-changing one is also there, but of course that feature won’t show up on the picture. 🙄
The guys who make these custom LEGO light-up bricks are working on putting up a website where you will be able to buy them for $2 each. The website is only half-finished at this point, but if you are interested you can check it out at LightUpBlock.com, and if you would like to get some before the website is fully functional contact Samson at this email address.
So what do you think? How do you like these options for lighting up your LEGO models? If you have any thoughts, feedback or questions feel free to share them in the comment section below. 😉
And you might also like to check out the following related posts:
These are neat! Where can you get these?
Would like to get these for my grandson
These would be great for MOCs. Green and Blue would be especially cool and the green could make creations such as a haunted house or ancient temple more eerie and creepy. Blue light-up bricks would be amazing for underwater creations. I only have two light-p bricks and no sound bricks but I aim to collect more and these new colors are awesome!
Changing lights? Disco Disco!
”lights, camera, action.” bravo, bravo.
Woah, awesome. Now they need to make a disco ball.
Interesting! These sound promising. Could you compare the brightness? I know it can spread easier, but I was wondering how bright they are and how long they last compared to Lego’s version.
The batteries are the exact same ones as in the LEGO light-bricks (two small cell-batteries), so they should last the same time. As far as the brightness, for some reason the light appears brighter. I think the plastic around the light is thinner, and it also makes a significant difference that the whole casing is clear plastic. Also one thing I forgot to mention in the article is that while in the LEGO light-brick the hole where the light fully shines thru is at the side, on this one it is at the top, but it also shines thru very strongly on the side where the bulb is located. Perhaps this is also a factor that gives it a brighter appearance.
Oh okay! Neat! Thanks!
it is also nice he includes little plastic tabs that sticks in between the batteries to stop the flow of current.
also in my review I forgot to mention that the battery casing is a little loose, a few times i had to hit the brick to hit the batter back in line so the light is not dimmed.
Hm… I didn’t have that problem with the battery casing, but it might be some slight production difference. And yes, I also like the little tab. 😀
I believe in the movie “Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium”, there’s a scene where the character Eric Applebaum has built a house in his room with some bricks like these.
Disco!!!!!!
Disco!!!!!!Oh yeah!
I like the idea—- But I see these the same way I see Mega Bloks. It’s not like After-Market Retro Video Game system accessories , it’s knock-off’s. I don’t ever purchase K-O’s ,so these are a no-go.
There is a difference between knock-offs and LEGO compatible accessories. One is a clear competitor to LEGO (like Megabloks, and all the Chinese knock-offs that copy LEGO products), while the customs simly enhances the hobby. It is true that some people avoid both and they won’t by from customizers like BrickArms, BrickForge, etc. That’s their choice and I can respoect that. I just want to make sure it is clear that customizers are not knock-offs. These LEGO lights don’t copy LEGO’s own light. They simply offer LEGO compatible lights in more colors and sizes and fill a gap. 😉
THAT’S SO COOL!! 🙂
I AM SO GOING TO BUY THIS!!!!
I like the idea too. Just sent them an email and got the reply that they only sell to resellers! Disappointed.
Hm… that’s probably a temporary arangement until they finish setting up their website. I was told they are working on it so people can shop right from there. I’m out of town right now, but I can contact them when I get home to see if they have an estimate of when it will be functional for retail buyers. 🙂
I have actually told the guy about Bricklink and that selling international is good on ebay and local hong kong selling is good with Yahoo Auction Hong Kong.
He later replied saying that bricklink is for official lego items, then I told him that bricklink can sell custom items too as long as u make it clear that the item your selling is indeed a custom item.
Good that you let him know about Bricklink. Also, eBay would be an excellent venue for them. I see items listed there from Hong Kong all the time.
I contacted Simson and he said they are happy to do online sales all over to world, not just wholesale. Maybe there was just some mis-communication. Hope this helps! 😉
Thanks for the follow up. I have contacted Samson again and he gratefully accepted my order. I have received the bricks this morning and tested it out on the Iron Man set. It looks great with the lights!
Glad you were able to get some. They are quite fun! 😀
hi tried to contact them on the as i like this idea very much
and just keep getting delivery failure email back
very dissapointed
Hm… let me look into this when I get back. I’m currently out of town, but I can contact them when I get home to see what’s going on. Does that work? 🙂
that would be great
thanks
Okay, I have contacted Samson, and he wanted to make sure you are using the correct email address. The link above in the article is correct, however the link on their website is wrong. There is an extra “s” that shouldn’t be there. The correct email address is info@liteupblock.com
Hi, I would just like to share my Review and Photo Album showcasing the LITEUP Bricks.
Please let me know what do u think of my review. You review is clear.
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.571811282851912.1073741836.110400738992971&type=3
Mass production line review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Jk_lcpKUdo
Original Pre Production Line Review
Lots of awesome pictures! Thanks for sharing! 😀
I have just sent an email off to get some for myself I loved them that much , my son was watching some of the videos on youtube and was very excited at the thought of lights inside his plane, can’t wait ..thanks mate for the heads up on a great product 😀
Glad your son likes them! Yes, there are awesome to light up your LEGO creatons! 🙂
HI. I am random.
It seems Lego are trying to do what Laser Pegs have already done… Light up construction blocks. I think laser pegs did it better. They are much nicer blocks.
Tim, no need to spam this post. If you want me to review your products, just send me a PM. 😉
I just got a normal one and it won’t turn on, can someone help me?