3 in 1 LED Panel Lights: Three Colours from One Switch

What is a 3 in 1 panel light?

A 3 in 1 panel light is a recessed LED panel that can give three colours of white from one fitting: warm white, natural white and cool white. Inside it carries more than one set of LEDs, and its driver decides which set lights up. You change the colour with the ordinary wall switch, so it needs no remote, no app and no extra wiring.

It solves a common family argument. One person wants the soft yellow light of a hotel room, another wants the bright white of an office, and a third wants something in between for cooking. With a 3 in 1 panel each of them gets their way from the same ceiling.

We make VIYONA LED 3 in 1 panels at our works in Marol, Andheri East, Mumbai, in two series: the aluminium casting slim panel at 9W, 15W and 22W, and the super slim panel at 15W. This page covers how they switch, what they cost against the plain panels, and where the extra cost is worth paying.

How it changes colour: the switch trick

The panel is wired like any other light: phase through the wall switch to the driver. The driver keeps track of the colour only while the off is short; after a longer off it usually restarts at its first colour. When you switch off and quickly on again, it moves to the next colour. In common practice the order runs warm, natural, cool, then back to warm, but makers differ.

How a 3 in 1 panel changes colour

Drawn by us. The order and the timing of the off-on vary between makers; follow the carton of the panel you buy.

Two habits follow. Flick quickly: a long pause may reset the panel to its first colour. And expect a power cut or inverter changeover to sometimes move the colour on its own, because the driver sees it as an off-on.

Our 3 in 1 panels and their MRP

These are the printed MRPs from our current catalogue.

The aluminium casting slim 3 in 1 panels pack 10 per box; the super slim 1035 packs 20 per box. Our catalogue prints the 15W and 22W casting 3 in 1 panels under 1027 and 1028, the same numbers as the plain panels of those wattages, so always order them by name: “3 in 1 aluminium casting slim panel 15W”, not just the code.

What the extra colours cost

Set each 3 in 1 against the plain panel of the same series and wattage, and the premium is not the same across the range:

The 22W casting 3 in 1 and the plain 22W casting panel are both printed at ₹600, so at that wattage the colour choice costs nothing extra. At 15W in the casting series the gap is ₹90 (₹490 against ₹400). The biggest gaps are on the 9W (₹450 against ₹290) and the super slim 15W (₹590 against ₹420).

Which colour where

The three colours are usually around 3000K warm, 4000K natural and 6500K cool; the carton gives the exact figures. As a guide:

• Warm white: bedrooms at night, the living room in the evening, the puja room.
• Natural white: the everyday setting for living rooms and kitchens; true to colour without the glare.
• Cool white: reading, homework, cleaning, a kitchen counter, a shop where labels must be read.

That is exactly why a 3 in 1 makes sense in a living room or a child’s bedroom that doubles as a study: one room, three uses. In a bathroom or passage nobody changes the colour, so a plain panel does the job for less.

Our guides to warm white vs cool white and the best light for study go deeper into colour by room.

Wiring: what works and what does not

A 3 in 1 panel needs only phase and neutral to the driver, the same as a plain panel, so it can replace a plain panel without new wiring. A few controls do not get on with it:

• One-way switch: works, and is how the colour is changed.
• Two-way switching: works from either switch; each quick off-on moves the colour.
• Fan regulator or dimmer: never on an LED panel driver.
• Smart or touch switch: some leak a small current or switch slowly, which can confuse the driver.
• Timer or sensor: may switch on in whatever colour the panel lands on.

If a panel glows faintly when off, the cause is usually the switch or wiring, not the panel; see LED glowing when switched off.

Casting slim or super slim 3 in 1?

At 15W you can have the 3 in 1 in either series. The aluminium casting slim version is ₹490; the super slim 1035 is ₹590.

Choose the casting slim on price: it is ₹100 cheaper at MRP and packs 10 per box, which is easier to use up on a single project. Otherwise choose by the depth of your ceiling void: our catalogue does not print body depths, so check the panel of each series, the super slim included, against the void before ordering. Our super slim panel light page covers what to measure.

Our LED panel light manufacturer page compares the series in full. Do not mix the two in one room. The rims and the exact tints differ, and a ceiling with two looks is the first thing a visitor notices. If you need 9W or 22W in 3 in 1, the casting slim series is the only choice in our range. For panel sizes and cut-outs, see LED panel light size.

Is a 3 in 1 panel worth it?

It depends on the room and the wattage, not on the panel:

• Yes: living rooms, children’s rooms, kitchens with a dining corner, any room used for more than one thing.
• Yes, at no extra cost: wherever you need 22W in the casting series.
• Probably not: bathrooms, passages, store rooms, balconies.
• Think twice: a large hall where ten panels would all need to change together.

The last point matters. Each panel cycles by itself, so panels on one switch normally stay in step, but one that was replaced, or one that missed a flick, can end up a colour behind the rest. Keep all 3 in 1 panels of a room on one switch, and if one drifts, switch the circuit off for a while and start again.

A living room example: plain or 3 in 1

Take a typical living room in a Mumbai 2BHK, about 3.5 by 4.5 metres, with a false ceiling and four 15W casting slim panels spread across it. Here is the panel bill both ways at MRP:

• 4 × plain 15W (1027) at ₹400: ₹1,600
• 4 × 3 in 1 15W at ₹490: ₹1,960
• Difference: ₹360 for the whole room

Spread over a room that is used every evening for years, that is a small price for being able to switch to warm for a film and to cool for a party or cleaning. Use four 22W casting panels instead, in a larger hall, and the difference drops to nothing: four at ₹600 cost ₹2,400 plain or 3 in 1.

Do the same sum for a bathroom, though, and the extra buys nothing anyone will use. That is why most contractors put 3 in 1 panels in the living room and children’s rooms, and plain panels everywhere else. For the number of panels a room needs, our guide on how many lights in a room works it out by size.

3 in 1 panels in shops, clinics and offices

A 3 in 1 panel is just as useful in a small business. A clinic can run natural white through the day and switch to cool white for an examination; a salon can check hair colour under one white and relax customers under another; a garment shop can show a customer how cloth looks in warm home light and in cool daylight.

In a large office the case is weaker. Many panels on many switches drift out of step, and staff rarely change the colour once it is set. There, plain natural white panels are cheaper and simpler.

For shop lighting in general, including shelves and display areas, see our guide to LED lights for a shop.

Problems and quick fixes

• One panel a different colour: switch the circuit off for a minute, then on; all panels should restart together.
• Colour changes on its own: power blips and inverter changeovers count as an off-on.
• Flicker in one colour only: usually the driver; try a spare of the right wattage band.
• Won’t change colour: the off-on was too slow, or the switch is not breaking the supply fully.

Flicker in general has many causes, most of them in the wiring rather than the fitting; our guide on why LED lights flicker walks through them. Our spare panel drivers are listed for plain panels; for a 3 in 1 driver, ask us before ordering, because it must do the colour switching too.

Buying 3 in 1 panels

We sell in full boxes only. A box of ten 15W casting slim 3 in 1 panels comes to ₹4,900 at MRP; a box of twenty 1035 super slim 3 in 1 panels comes to ₹11,800.

On the order, write the series, the wattage and 3 in 1, and for the super slim 1035 the shape, round or square; ask us which shapes the casting series comes in. Warranty runs 5 to 10 years by product; ask for the term on the code you buy. The aluminium casting slim panel product page lists the casting series, and panel light vs downlight compares panels with our other ceiling fittings.

Where we supply

Every fitting on this page is made at our works in Marol, Andheri East, Mumbai, and sold through dealers across Maharashtra and in many other states. See where we supply in Maharashtra and how we supply the rest of India. Orders placed through our office are delivered all over India, in full boxes only.

From our catalogue: aluminium casting slim panels, Ultra Prime and slim panels and surface LED lights.

For the whole range, see VIYONA LED lights and our LED light price list.