Quntis Monitor Light Bar — the $40 Stand‑in for BenQ’s ScreenBar Halo

If you’ve had your eye on BenQ’s ScreenBar but can’t stomach the $170 price tag, Quntis’s monitor light bar deserves a serious look. The latest 16.7‑inch version with a wireless puck remote costs about a third of the BenQ yet checks almost every essentials box: stepless dimming, 3000 – 6500 K color‑temperature range, auto‑dimming via an ambient‑light sensor, and a counter‑weighted clamp that sits flush atop flat or curved displays up to 38 ″. The frosted diffuser throws a 45‑degree cone straight down onto your keyboard and notebook, leaving the screen reflection‑free and your desk evenly washed in up to 900 lux of CRI‑95 light—great for late‑night code or spreadsheet marathons. Build quality is better than the price hints: an anodized‑aluminum housing, silicone monitor pad, and a braided USB‑C cable that powers off your PC or a charger. The wireless dial feels uncannily like BenQ’s—press to change mode, twist to dim or warm—yet Quntis adds four memory presets so you can bounce between “day,” “evening,” “movie,” and “night‑light” settings instantly. Flick the back‑light button and a soft RGB glow spills onto the wall, giving you a bias‑lighting bonus BenQ reserves for its top Halo model. Real‑world use is what sells it. After a week on my 34‑inch ultrawide, I stopped reaching for the overhead lamp altogether: white‑paper docs looked pure, IPS‑panel blacks looked deeper, and my eyes felt noticeably less dry during marathon edit sessions. Setup took three minutes—drop it on the bezel, plug in USB‑C, pair the dial automatically—and the bar hasn’t budged since, even with a webcam perched on top. Users on Amazon echo the experience, calling it “the best light for the best price” and praising how well it hugs curved monitors. Where it still trails BenQ: there’s no HDR‑adaptive dimming, the remote’s plastic shell isn’t as hefty, and the light remembers only one brightness/temperature combo per preset—not the two‑axis recall BenQ manages. But at roughly $55–$65 versus $169–$179, those compromises feel small. If your goal is a glare‑free desk that still looks sleek on a budget, Quntis nails it. And because every link on Wired Aesthetic points straight to Amazon, upgrading is literally one click away—no excuses left to keep working under harsh ceiling bulbs. Affiliate Note: This product is available via Amazon, and all links in this post go directly to their listing. If you buy using my link, I may earn a small commission—at no extra cost to you.