Lume vs Datacolor LightColor Meter
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Lume
Control multiple portable LED lights simultaneously and individually from your iPhone. Achieve professional-quality lighting for photos and videos, enhancing your creative output for social media or portfolios.
- Simultaneous sync of multiple lights
- Individual light control
- Professional lighting for photos/videos
- Enhance creative output
- Social media content creation
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Lume Cube - Staff pick on Kickstarter, named USA Today’s Best of CES and VideoMaker Editor's CES Choice Award winner. With this intuitive companion iPhone app, you can simultaneously sync and individually control Lume Cubes and Lume Cube AIRs to create dynamic, dramatic, professional quality images and video to add to your portfolio or upload directly to social media. Photography is the study of light, the right light is critical to the creation of any masterpiece. Lume Cubes and Lume Cube AIRs are controlled by this iPhone app, opening new creative possibilities for photographers of any skill level. The ability to simultaneously sync and individually control multiple Lume Cubes and Lume Cube AIRs through the app makes Lume-X the ultimate tool for capturing content on the fly or setting up an entire scene. These rugged little lights are the perfect solution for the novice iPhonographer looking to take their images to the next level or for the seasoned vet needing to add the perfect light to get their desired result.
Datacolor LightColor Meter
This pocket-sized device streams real-time light and color data to your smartphone, offering precise control over exposure and color consistency for photos, videos, and cinema. It measures various light types and color parameters, and includes gel filter libraries for creative adjustments.
- Real-time light and color data streaming
- Exposure and lighting ratio control
- Color consistency across setups
- Measures Lux, Chromaticity, CCT, DUV
- Includes gel filter libraries
- Simultaneous measurements from multiple meters
- Hands-free functionality
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· The Datacolor LightColor Meter is a Bluetooth-enabled, multifunctional tool that fits in your pocket, continuously streaming both light and color data in real-time, to your smartphone. · Perfect for photos, videos, cinema and hybrid photo/video shoots, the LightColor Meter takes the guesswork out of exposure settings, giving you better control of lighting ratios as well as color consistency across varied lighting conditions and multiple camera setups. · The Datacolor LightColor Meter accurately measures all types of lighting, from fluctuating outdoor light, mixed natural/artificial location lighting, plus any type of studio lighting, including continuous lighting and strobe/flash. · It goes beyond a regular light meter to also measure color temperature, Lux, Chromaticity, CCT and DUV. Additionally, the device comes with filter libraries from Profoto®, LEE® and Rosco® to help you choose the right color gels for functional or creative color adjustments. · The rugged, travel-friendly device goes anywhere you’re shooting, providing you with a wireless versatility that lets you easily fine-tune your lighting and exposure without having to leave your camera. · You can attach the device to a light stand or tripod, use the through-hole for lanyards to hang the meter where needed, use the alligator clip that’s included to attach the LightColor Meter to clothing or other fabrics or use the rare earth magnet on the back of the device for easy magnetic attachment. · You can seamlessly sync multiple Datacolor LightColor Meters to get light and color temperature measurements from several locations simultaneously. The device accurately measures light and color temperature from a distance of up to 80 feet, allowing you to cover wide areas and is perfect for ensuring uniform lighting for green screens for easy and effective chroma keying in post-production. Key Feature Highlights o Incident Metering for Ambient & Flash o Mobile App/Wireless Bluetooth 4.0 LE o Photo, Video, Cine Exposure Modes o Measures Lux, Chromaticity, CCT, and +/- Green (Duv) o Measures Any Kind of Light Source o Color Temperature Range: 1,600K - 20,000K o Luminance Range: 1.0 - 1,000,000 lux o Cine Settings: Frame Rate, Shutter Angle/Speed & ND Filter Compensation o HSS Flash & Flash Duration Measurements o Included: Gel Filter Libraries from Profoto®, LEE® and Rosco® o Simultaneous Measurements from Multiple Meters Up to 80 ft Away o Hands-Free Functionality - incl. Magnet, ¼”-20 Mount o Cord-in (PC Sync) o Custom Exposure Profiles
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Lume at 2.8 against Datacolor LightColor Meter's 1.7. Lume also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and ratings volume (90 vs 7). Datacolor LightColor Meter's advantage is update cadence (fortnightly vs every 3 months). On price, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Lume holds the better App Store score, 2.8 against 1.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Lume has 90 ratings behind it against 7, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 23% of Lume's written reviews are positive against 17% of Datacolor LightColor Meter's.
Lume ships an update every 3 months, Datacolor LightColor Meter fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Lume | Datacolor LightColor Meter |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.8 (90 ratings) — better | 1.7 (7 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 23.2% of reviews — better | 16.7% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 90 — better | 7 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 9.0 — better | 12.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 23 MB | 30 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Lume Cube, LLC | Datacolor Inc. |
Customer experience
Lume
Datacolor LightColor Meter
Bugs and requests
Lume
Reported bugs
41 issues- Bluetooth connection is lost frequently
- App crashes frequently
- UI is janky, cluttered, and parts are off-screen
- Labels and toggles don't always function correctly
- Sliders used as buttons are confusing
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- Battery meter is inaccurate when ON
- App doesn't optimize for iPad lenses
- Cube light is harsh on edges
- App doesn't support RAW
- Camera interface needs update
- App requires full phone access (camera, mic, photos)
- Doesn't utilize volume buttons as shutter release
- Dive mode doesn't work
- No support for iPhone 11 (Pro) cameras
- Camera angles don't match iPhone X/11
- Dragging left on intensity sliders triggers delete bar
- Email required to pair Bluetooth
- Light settings are funky and get stuck
- Brightness slider is off by a power of 10 (e.g., 5% is 50%)
- iPhone gets hot when app is running
- App drains phone battery significantly
- Dark mode text fields are unreadable
- App defaults to camera app, not light controls
- Only one light can be connected
- UI is broken, portions don't show up
- App doesn't work with Cube 2.0 for brightness control
- Difficult to navigate
- Hard to read (battery percentage)
- App is stuck on photo/video mode with blinking logo
- Cannot register product
- Bluetooth cannot find light
- App is ugly and starts with camera app
- Lights won't connect after new update on iPhone
- Dive Mode not explained
- Optical trigger not working consistently
- Not compatible with iPhone SE, 5s, 5
- Subject needs to wait a second for light
- No controls or options in the app
- No menu or 'how to connect'
- Previous version had more flash options
- Strobe option not useful for night photography
Requested features
15 requests- Support for newer GoPro models
- Update app for iPhone 13 Pro Max camera features (4K, RAW, manual controls)
- Control individual cubes or groups of cubes
- Shoot in RAW format
- Add manual camera functions (WB, Shutter Speed)
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- Improve camera interface and lens optimization
- Dark mode support
- Use volume buttons as shutter release
- Add timer option for group shots
- Support for Bluetooth remote shutter remotes
- Add grouping option for multiple lights
- More flash options (flash length)
- Integration with established camera apps
- Improve UI/UX design
- Add instructions and walkthroughs
Datacolor LightColor Meter
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Lume
No in-app purchases
Datacolor LightColor Meter
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Lume free?
Is Datacolor LightColor Meter free?
Which has better reviews, Lume or Datacolor LightColor Meter?
Do Lume or Datacolor LightColor Meter have ads?
Which is updated more often, Lume or Datacolor LightColor Meter?
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