Posted on 04/22/2012 8:59:47 AM PDT by tobyhill
How much would you pay for an amazing, state-of-the-art light bulb? Shoppers will be asking themselves that very question at Home Depot and other outlets starting Sunday — Earth Day — when the bulb that won a $10 million government contest goes on sale.
The bulb is the most energy-efficient yet, lasts about 20 years and is supposed to give off a pleasing, natural-looking light. But what separates it from the pack most is the price: $60.
That price reflects the cost of the components, especially the top-notch chips, or diodes, that give off the light, and is the price commercial customers will pay. But the manufacturer, Netherlands-based Philips, is discounting it right away to $50 for consumers, and working on deals with electric utilities to discount it even further, by as much as $20 to $30.
This means the bulb will cost anywhere from $20 to $60, depending on where it's found. Online, consumers will be paying $50 for each bulb, because utilities don't subsidize online sales.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
that’s actually not a bad marketing strategy. They get the bulbs for next to nothing and more than make up the difference in energy sales. But not very greeny-weenie ;-)
The Philips contest winner is way overpriced - look to see the LED prices come down dramatically in the next few years. However, LEDs are not likely to replace CFL for general illumination. The component prices for LED are tied to the commodity price of the massive aluminum heatsink - a component absent from CFLs. Each type of lamp has its place.
Yes. That’s why traffic light bulbs last so long. Of course you get less light but your aren’t changing bulbs every few months. Here’s a good article.
http://donklipstein.com/longlife.html
These ought to last a while!
http://www.bulbs.com/Incandescent_Bulbs/200V+/results.aspx
Okay. Help us out here.
Name? Available online?
The world wide market is about 2.5 million homes-the same number that purchased a Prius.
You have some good points, but I think your examples are over-stated in terms of costs. Guess I’d have to see the figures. In any case, I’m always suspicious of business models that depend on rebates for business.
I suspect that when they claim it will last 20 years they mean it will probably take 20 years to sell one of these $60 turkeys.
www.farmtek.com
Infinity led ultra A-19 bulbs - 19.95 each. Replaces a standard 60w bulb.
I’ll be ordering myself a few.
I have always been disappointed with the actual longevity of supposed long-life light bulbs. I think the best you can hope for is that they last 20% longer than a regular bulb, if that.
How did you see the full movie? I can’t find it on Netflix, but would like to watch.
I never had an incandescent bulb last less than 2 years unless it was just a bad bulb from the pack and then I took it back. Are there returns 20 years when someone buys one?
i did, very interesting, was on YouTube but was removed. it should be available via torrent though
For $60 you could buy 100 old incandescents at retailers who are getting rid of their stock.
If the bulb lasts 6 months, you’ll have enough for 50 years.
Edison light bulb burns for over 100 years.
They said certain computers would last 20 years back in the late 90’s.
This bulb will be obsolete within two years, in less than five years we will have illumination products that are chemiluminescence. lamps may evolve into an advanced chemical stick that requires a meager voltage source once a day, and may last for over a hundred years.
Correct. Buddy of mine is into lighting/electrical in general.
He says an LED buld could very easily outlast and have better efficiency, all the criteria (there may be a few incandescent types that have a better color spectrum) than you would want from a bulb.
Problem is, the power supply.
Takes a bulky rectifier/transformer setup to step down the 110 AC to the four or five volt DC that LED’s like. And just like ballasts in florescents, these are the parts that are prone to fail.
If a guy was to partially rewire his house, and alot of people did it, you could light the whole place with LED bulbs off the shelf that cost about 75 cents each and last for ten years minimum.
One of my handful of 5 year CFLs lasted less than 6 months. The thing turned magenta on me. Bring back incandescent bulbs. They use more energy but have no mercury making them better for the environment.
And it likely doesn't cost any more than a dime to produce...
If it’s made in China, it’ll fry itself in two years, tops.And it's likely chock full of toxic poisons.And it likely doesn't cost any more than a dime to produce...
In the real world, days last for a lot more than four hours.
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