LEDs emerge to fight fluorescents

AP ^ | 05/10/07 | PETER SVENSSON

[TChris]

...lawmakers in the U.S. and abroad are talking about banning the century-old technology because of its contribution to global warming.

And again, Global Warming^TM is presumed to be factual, beyond discussion.

I can hardly wait for the coming carbon emission tax for simply breathing!

[domenad]

Now LEDs I can really get behind. They will last for 25-40 years, are far more efficient than fluorescents, create almost no heat, emit a very pleasing light, and don’t require a hazmat team if you break one. I would put them all over my house if they came to market.

[xcamel]

Organic LED’s are even better (OLED) but are a bit slow coming to market.

[steveo]

I agree 100%, I got tired of replacing our pool light every two to three years. I bought a LED pool light. It’s not as bright, but I can change it to different colors if I want. I don’t foresee having to replace it ever.

[P-40]

using about five times more energy to produce the same amount of light.

That's news to me.

[NY.SS-Bar9]

You mean you would switch without being told to by the government?

Gee - just the way the free market is supposed to work.

[CJ Wolf]

it cost about a a buck a watt equvilent. For example the light put out by a 60 watt bulb can be replaced with an LED ‘bulb’ for around $60.

[taxed2death]

“Now LEDs I can really get behind. They will last for 25-40 years, are far more efficient than fluorescents, create almost no heat, emit a very pleasing light, and don’t require a hazmat team if you break one. I would put them all over my house if they came to market.”

I just ordered two to illuminate a motorcycle in my shop window. To say I am less than impressed is an understatement.

Each bulb I ordered was about 45$ and has 72 LED’s in each one. They draw 8 watts each. When hung 6 feet above the motorcycle they light up about as much as a pen light with two AA batteries.

[Moonman62]

The performance of LED's degrade over their lifetime. They should probably be replaced one quarter into their expected lifetime. The current generation does produce heat, a lot of it if you want bright light, but that should improve with future generations. It's possible to get pleasing light, but those LED's cost more.

The dominance of LED's is inevitable, but the technology is not quite there yet for house or commercial lighting.

[P-40]

What kind did you get? I've had pretty good luck with these.

http://www.ccrane.com/lights/led-light-bulbs/index.aspx

[domenad]

Politicians must think I’m much dumber than I am. Let’s see - modern technology that will pay for itself 50X over, or 19th century technology that heats up my house and only turns 5% of the power into light? Yeah, I need government to make the final call on that.

[B Knotts]

Is every aspect of our lives now subject to regulation by government fiat? Is it not sufficient to simply offer a more efficient product, and allow the market to adopt it voluntarily?

I’m tired of the trend towards “little” authoritarianism, and want to turn it back. Who is with me?

[Leftism is Mentally Deranged]

Good, but watch out for the tungsten nazis to dictate what we screw in our light sockets.

[Atlas Sneezed]

I wouldn’t be surprised if more energy is wasted due to the holes required for typical ceiling “can lights” of any type, as the heat/A-C is wasted from ample leaks. They turn houses into sieves.

[PeterPrinciple]

Organic LED’s

Whats that? A firefly?

[Ouderkirk]

By the inverse square law the amount of light decreases as the distance from the source increases

I = {P}/{A} = {P}/{4*pi*r^2}

[Varmint Al]

Here is one, but at $70 is a bit steep in price.

http://www.cyberguys.com/templates/searchdetail.asp?productID=13111

Good Hunting... from Varmint Al

[Sender]

LED bulbs are already on the market but their price is extremely high. You can get soft-lighting, 20-LED bulbs for as little as $15, but they don't put out nearly as much light as a 60-watt bulb. If you want a lot of light, figure on paying $50-$65 or more for each bulb. As compared to less than a dollar for an incandescent bulb, LEDs have a long way to go to end up on every store shelf.

LEDs can definitely deliver on the light though, as I have a 5-watt LED flashlight that is pretty bright and saves the batteries. It's only half as bright as my incandescent flashlight though, which eats bulbs and batteries but puts out 120 lumens.

[xcamel]

see:
http://www.oled-display.net/whiteoled.htm