Cricut BrightPad Review

The Cricut Bright Pad represents a lightbox that crafters can utilize as a backlight for crafts like weeding vinyl. It delivers light to brighten up workspaces.

Having a bright, even light not only allows people to notice all the details of their crafts but also prevents eye strain as they work on their projects. It’s a compact and super-versatile unit.

You can use this unit for weeding vinyl and iron-on, making jewellery, model building, tracing drawings, lettering, pictures, and paper piecing quilt blocks.

If you’re interested in buying Cricut Bright Pad, read my detailed Cricut Bright Pad review before you do. Let’s take a closer look at the features, pros and cons.

Cricut Bright Pad Review

The Cricut Bright Pad is the newest weeding and tracing tools on the market. It’s lightweight, compact, and has an elegant design. It resembles a standard tablet.

It’s loaded with 5 settings which are utilized to set up the brightness of the pad and allow people to add a proper amount of light to their workspace, according to their needs.

Upon purchase of this pad, consumers get a package including a power cable, user manual, and the pad. Using the Cricut Bright Pad is easy. Therefore, it’s great for beginners.

All you need to do is plug in the power cable to a power outlet and push the power switch.

The pad is fitted with features to make sure that it can soak up any shock and reach the buyers’ address in one piece. The light setting can be adjusted with +/- buttons.

They’re located on the side of the pad. Let’s talk about the main features of this innovative, popular pad, and find out what makes it so special. Who’s the Bright Pad made for?

Uniform LED Backlight

Most low-quality lightboxes feature inferior halogen bulbs that usually transmit uneven light and require regular replacement. That’s not the case with this unit.

The Cricut Bright Pad is loaded with LED lighting which lasts over 50,000 hours. The best part? It’s evenly lit all across the surface and provides a cooler white light.

Light Adjustment Features

What I like about this premium-grade lightbox is the adjustable light.

You can only utilize the +/- switches in the corner. A single press on either of these buttons decreases or increases the light. This is a handy and pretty good feature.

However, I would also like to see the brand introduce touch-sensitive switches in the future. It’s not that they’re not good or responsive. On the contrary, they’re great.

But touch-sensitive buttons are easier to use, in my opinion. Adjusting the light takes a few seconds. The brightness settings are at approximately the following levels:

• 400 Lumens
• 1300 Lumens
• 2200 Lumens
• 3100 Lumens
• 4000 Lumens

Spacious Workspace

The pad’s workspace is compact. You will get 9 x 11.5 inches of workspace. Therefore, you will get a unit that’s easy to store but still have a generous lit workspace.

Non-slip Platform

The bottom surface of this machine has an anti-slip coating. This has been specifically made to lower the potential risk of accidents and spills.

Whether you want to utilize it on your lap or other surfaces, your mind will be at ease because you know it’s a non-slip base. This feature also ensures stability.

Compact Design

Who wants to utilize a bulky and heavy lightbox? Luckily, this model is light in weight to a point that it resembles a regular tablet. It’s compact and lightweight.

It’s 0.35 inches deep. Therefore, even if you’re utilizing it on your desk, you wouldn’t need to alter your posture or prop your elbows. I just love the low profile design.

USB Power Cord

The power cord it’s well-made. It provides an instant supply of power which is great because the Bright Pad doesn’t come with an inbuilt rechargeable battery.

The USB power cord makes sure that your unit gets a stable and decent supply of power which increases the life of your unit. And ensues a better user experience.

High-scratch Hardness Level

This is a level that’s utilized to determine how strong a material is. And if it’s scratch-resistant or not. It goes from 1-10 with 10 representing the highest level available.

This unit boasts a 6H level. This is quite impressive for an electronic gadget. Similar lightbox units offer a maximum of 3.5H which means that the Cricut Bright Pad is durable.

If you’re unfamiliar with this feature, keep in mind that the durability and scratch-resistance of your unit depend on the level of scratch hardness. The higher, the better!

Warranty

The Bright Pad is covered by a 1-year warranty just like other Cricut units purchased from an authorized seller. The limited warranty doesn’t cover misuse or accidental damage.

Pros

First and foremost, you can find other decent light pads for less money on the market. You can purchase a decent-sized bright box for as little as $20 at Amazon.

However, they’re not as advanced as the Cricut Bright Pad. This unit has many benefits you may want to consider. Let’s summarize the advantages of this unit.

Lightweight

The Cricut Bright Pad is super-lightweight. It’s only 2.9 pounds. Therefore, you can put your Bright Pad in your lap and work without cutting off circulations.

The best part? It’s easy to carry around. If you have held a standard tablet, you will love the fact that this unit is only a bit heavier than a standard tablet.

Compact

The Cricut Bright Pad is also compact.

It has a slim design which is great for crafters who utilize their pad for hours. You wouldn’t have to keep your arms and hands lifted in the air to perform on its surface.

Imagine working the entire day on an iron-on vinyl without taking a break and keeping your wrist on the desk for hours. It’s painful. This unit makes you feel like writing on a dense notebook.

Perfect Size

The display is large enough to easily see a letter-sized paper which is ideal for various projects. It has a lit space of 9 inches x 11.5 inches.

Thanks to the ideal size, enough you can easily put the Bright Pad into your tote bag and work on the go. If you’re a regular crafter, this is a large enough surface space.

But if you’re used to working on drafting tables, you might find this space not large enough to work on. You would have to copy patterns in parts by moving your sheets around.

Wide Range of Brightness

One of the special features of the Cricut Bright Pad is the adjustable brightness settings. You can adjust the brightness to the next lumens:

• 400
• 1300
• 2200
• 3100
• 4000

This is amazing for me! I tend to craft a lot. And sometimes I work in darker rooms. Therefore, I need to reduce the brightness of the bright box so I don’t blind myself.

Unlike pads from cheaper brands, the light on this unit doesn’t flicker. This is a huge advantage for users like myself who get headaches from staring at flickering lights.

User-friendly

The Cricut Bright Pad is easy to utilize because it only has 3 buttons. It’s packed with a power button to turn it on and off. And +/- buttons that manage the brightness.

Non-slip Base

The Cricut Bright Pad features tabs at the bottom to prevent it from sliding.

This is pretty helpful because, without this, the unit would probably go flying off the desk as you attempt to complete a super stubborn piece of vinyl. It’s ideal for accident-prone users!

Scratch-resistant

What I like most about this unit is the polycarbonate surface with a 6H hardness. This means that things with a hardness level below 6H won’t be able to scratch it.

Low-quality light pads have 3.5H hardness. The Bright Pad is more durable than other pads. At this level of hardness, x-acto knives and steel blades won’t be able to damage it.

Scrapping the top of your unit will eventually cause it to show dings and grooves that will influence the integrity of your tracing. It would be like working on top of your cutting mat. Your pencil will catch on a groove and destroy everything.

Choice of Colours

Last but not least, I like the choice of colours. You can pick between rose and mind. It complements the other Cricut cutting units like the Maker or the Explore Air 2.

Cons

The moment you open your box, you will notice the welcome booklet, manual, a USB power cord, and of course your new best friend, the Cricut Bright Pad.

One of the disadvantages of this unit is the lack of a built-in rechargeable battery. The USB cord isn’t for recharging. It has to be plugged into a power source constantly.

If this isn’t a deal-breaker for you, purchase the Bright Pad today. However, if it’s a deal-breaker, look for a bright pad with a built-in rechargeable battery.

Although I don’t like the fact that I have to keep the Bright Pad constantly into a power source, it doesn’t bother me much. There’s something that can help.

Purchase a few cheap extension cords and you can work wherever you want. You can also buy a battery pack. Or use the one you already have for your phone.

Voila! You have a mobile pad in seconds. Plug the Bright Pad in and take the unit with you anywhere you go. Another disadvantage is the smooth surface.

I don’t find this as a serious problem but other users do. They claim that the vinyl tends to glide across the top of the pad. Just attach them to the top using tape.

As you can notice, I have a solution for every problem. If you’re not bothered by these minor issues, buy the Cricut Bright Pad at Amazon or Cricut’s official page.

Do I Need a Cricut Bright Pad?

The Cricut Bright Pad is crafting equipment used to light up creations. You may have heard of light pads. If you have, you’re probably familiar with how they perform.

The Bright Pad is a light pad that’s extremely helpful for working in darker environments. Or at night. Or for those creations that have hard to see, small pieces. It’s also user-friendly.

And compact. Therefore, you can take it with you anywhere you go and work on the go. What I like most about this unit is the ideal size (9 inches x 11.5 inches) for portability.

The Cricut Bright Pad is the ideal crafting companion that brightens up creations for reduced eye strain and easier crafting. You can use it for quilting, weeding and tracing.

It’s durable, thin, and light for portability and comfort. With its low profile design, you can trace sitting in your favourite chair or at a desk. I use my Bright Pad for various projects.

I also let my children utilize it to learn how to write and spell their names. The possibilities with this unit seem endless. Here is just a couple of project ideas the unit can help with:

• Drawing/tracing
• Learning calligraphy
• Weeding iron-on or vinyl
• Paper piecing for quilts
• Jewellery making

Is the Cricut Bright Pad Worth it?

I love my Bright Pad because it’s the perfect crafting companion that brightens up creations for reduced eyestrain and easier crafting. It’s compact, lightweight and super-versatile.

You can use this unit for weeding, quilting, and tracing. It doesn’t come with inferior halogen bulbs that transmit uneven light and need to be replaced regularly like other units out there.

The Cricut Bright Pad is loaded with LED lighting which lasts over 50,000 hours. The best part? It’s evenly lit all across the surface and has a cooler white light. It’s worth every penny.

What is Cricut Bright Pad Used for?

Cricut Bright Pad isn’t just for weeding and tracing vinyl. It’s also suitable for making jewellery. You can use it as a work area and keep track of the tiny beads and metal parts.

It’s also great for water colouring. You won’t need to pencil in the outlines. Slip the outline of the design under the watercolour paper and forget about erasing pencil marks.

Some consumers expressed the opportunities for utilizing the Bright Pad for creating icing and chocolate designs for baking. Simply place wax paper on top of the design.

Then, begin piping in the sweets. Keep the sugar away from the Cricut Bright Pad. Otherwise, clean up is going to be a problem for this purpose. As you can see, it’s a versatile unit.

What Does the Cricut Bright Pad Do?

The Bright Pad is a versatile device. You can use it for different projects. First of all, it’s ideal for weeding out the designs. I remember how much I’ve struggled before the Cricut Bright Pad.

Second of all, it’s perfect for tracing. Thanks to the five lighting strengths, crafters can trace via stubborn paper as well. This unit is great for jewellery making, learning calligraphy, and more.

How to a Use Cricut Bright Pad?

If you’re looking for a multipurpose crafting unit, look no further than Cricut Bright Pad.

The possibilities with this device seem endless as long as you know how best to utilize it. It’s perfect for completing tasks with confidence such as the following:

Tracing

Thanks to its super slim design, the Bright Pad sits comfortably on your workspace allowing users to just sit and work with comfort. The best part?

Thanks to its lightweight design, you can easily utilize it even when sitting on your favourite couch, chair or just anywhere. It’s the perfect tracing tool.

Detailed Crafting

No matter if you’re building models, creating jewellery or diving into fine needlework, this pad provides all the light you need to make everything right.

You can utilize the Bright Pad as a comfortable work area with confidence, especially when completing a precise crafting task such as making jewellery.

Weeding

Each time you slice vinyl or iron-on, it’s important to weed out the bad cuts. Therefore, you would need to utilize a non-sliding base and a sharp weeder.

The Cricut Bright Pad provides both necessities! However, keep in mind that you would still need to tape down the corners for a better weeding experience.

Handling Glitter Iron-on

Glitter iron-on is a porous material. Therefore, the pad’s light is supposed to go through it. This makes it easy to slice lines that, otherwise, would be hard to see.

Just bend the material over the surface of your pad for better working experience. This makes the lines much wider and easily noticeable for a simpler wedding.

How Does the Cricut Bright Pad Work?

You can utilize your Bright Pad anywhere near a power source. This unit includes a 6-foot power cord so you don’t have to be glued to the power source.

Also, you don’t need a Cricut machine to use it. All you’re supposed to do is press the power button and set up your level of brightness according to your crafting needs.

You have five brightness levels to choose from. They’re easily adjustable for different projects. I realized when I’m weeding glitter vinyl, the highest level is the best.

Where to Buy Cricut Bright Pad?

You can buy the Bright Pad at Amazon. It’s also available at Cricut’s official website. Also, make sure that you’re buying from an authorized seller.

This unit is covered by a 1-year limited warranty which doesn’t cover any damage if you’re using the pad for commercial use instead of home use.

Cricut Bright Pad for Weeding

Light pads have proven to be useful in vinyl crafting. Vinyl crafting is when you create a design by cutting letters or images onto a sheet of vinyl. You can make this utilizing a sharp knife.

However, for intricate designs, it’s suggested to use a cutting machine. After the initial pattern has been cut onto the sheet, you would have to ‘weed’ out or remove the parts that you don’t need.

The finishing design will then come out and can be moved onto the surface you plan to decorate. This is a tricky process. It’s hard to view the cuts on the vinyl if the curves and lines are fine.

To be able to view which section to pick out, I used to put my sheet on the side of the lamp’s cover. This is where light pads kick it. The cuts are presented by the light that passes through.

Cricut Bright Pad for Tracing

If you have a printed pattern that you want to copy via tracing, you would need to utilize a thin piece of paper on top of your pattern.

And pass over the curves and lines with your drawing tool. But what if you wanted to copy your pattern onto denser paper, vinyl or a plastic sheet?

This is where light pads kick in. It’s simple. The bright pad is a translucent, plat plane where light appears from underneath.

When you put a piece of paper with your drawn or printed design on it, your design becomes visible via another sheet of paper.

You no longer need tracing papers to copy patterns. I have utilized the Bright Pad for tracing embroidery patterns on dense fabric.

And it worked nicely. Also, you can utilize it for practising your hand in copying letterings or calligraphy. It’s also great for paper piecing, stamping, and water colouring.

Cricut Bright Pad Sale

The low-profile, lightweight Cricut Bright Pad turns crafting into a simpler task while reducing eye strain. It’s currently discounted! You can buy the Bright Pad for less than $50.

Conclusion

If you’re looking for a multipurpose, premium-grade light pad, look no further than Bright Pad. Using this device unlocks the potential of crafters and boosts creativity.

As you can notice from my detailed Cricut Bright Pad review, the pros outweigh the cons. Therefore, you don’t have to worry about serious issues if you buy this device.