LED Lights 9/19/11

9/19/11

Consumer Reports’ Kimberly Janeway is evaluating some of the latest LED bulbs in her home. She thinks objects look pretty good under this light. Kimberly Janeway, “You want a lightbulb that’s as close to the incandescent. It has warm color. This LED happens to be a lot like that.” Consumer Reports also put a variety of LED bulbs through tests in its labs. These bulbs are very expensive – anywhere from 17 dollars for this table lamp bulb to more than 60 dollars for this floodlight. Bob Markovich Consumer Reports, “Even with an LED’s high cost, you can still save 100 dollars or more over its life compared to a standard incandescent.”

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And LEDs last longer. These have been burning continuously for nearly nine thousand hours. Incandescents only last one to two thousand hours. Bob Markovich, “LEDs have some distinct advantages over CFLs. They reach full brightness instantly, and some are also better at dimming.” But not all LEDs are good at distributing light. See how this Sylvania 60-watt Ultra LED shines most of its light up towards the ceiling. It doesn’t give you much light to read under. Far better for table or floor lamps, this 40-dollar Philips Ambient. It’s the equivalent of a 60-watt incandescent bulb and claims to last almost 23 years. And for outdoor floodlights, try this EcoSmart Par 38 for 45 dollars. It promises to last even longer. “