Home Depot’s $20 EcoSmart LED light: What’s inside?
Several weeks ago Home Depot introduced its new EcoSmart dimmable LED replacement light for a 40W incandescent for $20 with a 5-yr guarantee. The light works great – nice, warm-ish, diffuse light, dims perfectly, no noise.
What’s inside? Let’s see…
The light has a hard plastic dome-shaped outer shell. Here’s our first glimpse of the LEDs used:
Not the usual intense light sources we’ve seen in other LED lights: These are large surface-area LEDs that make for a very pleasant diffuse light source. And the light only requires two of them to put out 429 lumens at 8.6W.
Here’s a close-up of the LEDs - I removed one to look for a manufacturer’s label or mark, since Lighting Science Group, the bulb’s designer, doesn’t want to divulge its suppliers.
Compare it to the non-dimmable 7.5W bulb I took apart in February, with its 7 LEDs that put out (according to the specs on the packaging) 560lm.
Well, I couldn’t find a manufacturer’s label, but there is an apparent part number; AM6L1, and the part looks like an LED array, meaning that, rather than a single emitter, the LED packages up several tiny LED chips in one package and cover them with a single phosphor. It’s a good choice to use such a diffused light source – no pixilation.
But whose LEDs does the light use? Here’s a link to the Citizen’s LED catalog. (Citizen is a Japanese LED manufacturer.) It looks like AM6L1 deconstructs to this 6W LED array, meaning that the Ecosmart light derates its two LEDs and runs them at well under 6W each, which is a smart move.
Moving on – let’s look at the drive circuitry. Whoa – the electronics are all encapsulated! This is a good design choice for Lighting Science, since it cushions the electronics from all of the vibrations inherent in a small, easily accessed light bulb, but it’s not so nice for us, as we peer into the guts. No matter – the encapsulation material came off fairly easily, exposing all of the drive electronics.
Now the big question is – who’s LED driver/dimming IC does the light use??
The most promising IC – ie, the one with the most leads — is a 10-pin MSOP with a cryptic “SULB” on the top. (U1 at the top of the board in the photo below.) A brisk Google search reveals “SULB” as the “Top Mark” for National’s LM3445 triac-dimmable LED driver. (PDF of app sheet with SULB.) I could see only one electrolytic capacitor: a 50uF Nichicon rated at 105°C. (The black capacitor-like components are inductors.)
The e-cap (just partially visible to the right) is potential weak link and this design uses a good-quality part. Compared to other LED lights, this one has relatively little hand-soldering. As we know from Geoff Potter’s research, solder joints are the Achilles’ heel of LED lighting reliability. Going with a highly-integrated LED driver part like the LM3445 in itself gets rid of a lot of solder joints.
Now let’s go back to the heat sink. The metal baseplate of the LEDs mount directly on the finned metal heatsink using a dab of thermal grease.
(Referring to the previous 7-LED light example, the LEDs sat on a metal-core substrate and then on a flexible thermal interface before mounting on the heat sink.) Ecosmart uses a simple approach that gets the heat out of the LEDs as quickly as possible.
Its overall design philosophy seems to be to increase reliability by reducing the parts count and thus the associated solder points.
For more on the importance of solder joints as a likely culprit for LED light reliability issues, here’s an article that interviews Geof Potter, LED reliability expert with TI.
Better yet, attend EDN’s “Designing with LEDs” Workshop in Chicago this September 29th and hear Geof speak in person. More information and register here.
Andy T commented:
I, myself, am hesitant to look at any component from a company too cheap to pay for its own advertising and that is hijacking blogs, as it indicates to me that the beancounters may be in charge of it.
LEDDriverGuy commented:
Check out the ACDC offline LED driver SQ9910 for the light bulb from Sequoia Microelectronics. It has better features like Over temperature protection, soft start, and clock jittering.
www.sqme.com.tw
William Ketel commented:
I keep hearing and reading the comments about solder joints being the reliability problem with electronic lighting, but none of the failures in any of my lighting products appeared to be solder-related. Of course, it is possible that these were built with that old-fashioned, high-reliability lead solder that has now been banned from consumer products. Has anyone ever been able to verify a failure traceable to a failed solder joint?
RichardL commented:
From your analysis, could you provide estimates on environmental performance such as:
Humidity - e.g. for outdoor fixtures?
Temperature - e.g for refriigerators, enclosed globes and outdoor fixtures?
Vibration - e.g. for ceiling fans
By the way, Sylvania light bulb specs are:
40W / 445 lumens / 2850K color temp.
60W / 870 lumens / 2850K color temp.
Great article, nicely written.
BB commented:
To Gene:
Runnning a 130V bulb on 120V is very inefficient (luminary efficiency);
Running a 130V bulb on a dimmer is even less efficient (luminary); not because of the triac/dimmer, but because of the lack of luminary efficincy of a filament voltage at reduced voltage;
Your cost per candela is very high.
VekTor commented:
Some truly excellent technical and independent test data on this bulb are available from the manufacturer:
products.lsgc.com/product/difinity-a19/
Click on "files" to get the listing of the tech documents. Some REALLY good stuff there.
For the person who was asking earlier, the CRI of this bulb is 87. I'm very happy with color rendering from the ones I have.
I haven't found another bulb with a color temperature this low (there's a 3000K model and a 2700K model) and simultaneously a CRI that high... and still have a significant cost savings over incandescent bulbs. This thing will pay for itself many times over, long before the 5 year warranty expires.
I'll be buying a whole bunch of these once the $30, 60-watt-equivalent version becomes available from Home Depot later this fall. That's a 770 lumen bulb on a 13 watt draw, but otherwise has the same characteristics as this bulb.
Andy T commented:
That's what you get for living in a backwards, luddite, place like Pleasanton, though I'm sure you can find a cattle dehorner in any store there. It'll take a while for your dialup modem to load the page, but you'll find it here: www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1vZ1xhi/R-202188260/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053
Alex commented:
Hi Margey, I went to Home Depot in Pleasanton, California they dom't know anything about that LED lamp, whre did you get it?
2point4ghz commented:
It's still a stop gap solution. Too darn many parts running too hot, like CFL's, and likely also designed right to the very edge of the components too. Magnetics, capacitors, MOSFETs, on and on. We need a shift in thinking and not just try to shoe horn LED's into the 1920's Edison screw in base, it's just not the solution. Also, what's the life on these lamps? We all know how we get sold down the river on the CFL's "7 year life". I can't tell you how many name brand CFL's I've thrown out after a year or two, and I've even had a few go up in smoke. So,LED's need to be for real, offer value today, yet have some kind of roadmap for the future that bucks the screw in culture.
eco-nutt commented:
Save the sperm whales, buy LED light!!!!
Barak Hussain Obama commented:
I will make it illegal to posess incandencent light bulbs after Jan 1 2011 and command everyone to buy LED light bulbs. We will be employing all the countries unemployed and illegals to search your house for illegal light bulbs, thereby bringing the unemployment rate to 0%.
JR commented:
Hi. First off, thanks to the author for a clear bias-less teardown with focus on technical details rather than picture composition to make it look prettier - not that it doesn't look nice.
A $20 light bulb at Home Depot? I just can't see other than us techies and hippies buying that stuff. For $20 I can buy regular bulbs and pay for their electricity consumption for the next 4 years.
PS: I'm off to Home Depot to buy one...
EE10PIE commented:
Since when did 430lumens become equivalent to 40W? Next time in HD, look at a typical incandescent and see 1600Lumens! Per my old math this is 27W equivalent. Margery didn't comment on this bulbs directionality either. I wonder how it compares when mounted in different fixtures: downlight, table lamp, etc.
mickeyf commented:
I love LEDs in theory. When CFCs came out there were great claims for usage life that turned out not to be met in practice. I'll be happy to see that LEDs actually have great life.
Romas commented:
One thing to easier remove of the encapsulation material - soak device in acetone or similar diluent. After some hour, you can easy to remove all encapsulation material without visual circuitry damage. This work with most of solid encapsulation materials
LED Paul commented:
By the way. I'm the owner of an LED company in Canada. We own our Integrated Sphere and we perform extensive tests on many LED products. Bulbs, strips, and other fixtures. One of our larger customers has over 260,000 LED's presently running in their building... today... now. They've been using our LED's since 2005 and won't go back to incandescent. I forgot to mention a "big one" in my previous email... insurance. (pertaining to the guy on the ladder, changing the same incandescent or florescent bulbs, every few months)
LED Paul commented:
Don't forget the ROI in commercial applications.
The cost of changing bulbs is pretty big. Monthly bulb audit, work schedule, man lift equipment, procurement, disposal, and I'm sure I left a few things out. LED for business is the way to go.
William Ketel commented:
It is almost entertaining to see accountants arguing about technology and the merits of 12 volt distribution in a house. When we talk about transporting power long distances, those lines go on for a hundred miles or more with no taps. For an interesting chase, try to buy a DC step-down transformer, 220 volts DC to 12 or 24 volts DC, something with better than 95% efficiency and at a price of less than $5 per watt. Good Luck! Also, I have done a lot of contract service on big DC battery arrays, 156VDC, 2000A into a short. There is enough hazard there to keep most people from wanting to do the job. So it is lucrative for me.
The LED light analysis was very informative, and it showed us that still the capacitor winds up being the part least trusted. I always considered that there was a trade-off in reliability, since reducing the number of components usually results in either more complex individual parts, or in more highly stressed parts. And of course, the lead solder issue-consider that using a more reliable process will result in fewer products going to scrap, and besides, who eats old bulbs and old computers?
George W. Bush commented:
Can we use these at Guantanamo Bay? The glass looks nice and sharp.
organfixsing commented:
Early days in Sydney Australia saw DC distribution in the CBD of around 200V. Apparently if you had a failure of an incandescent lamp, the DC could produce a continuous arc which would travel up the wires into the ceiling! Woohoo, the joys of DC.
Ron commented:
We bought one of these over the weekend. well designed and engineered except for...
RFI
the lamp interferes with the clock radios in the bedroom (that's where the lamp is).
oldtimer8080 commented:
I ain't buying the rip-off HD solution.
My solution ( it works so far ):
The CHEAP 1.5 W LED edison base bulbs from Geeks.com. 1 warm CCFL to 3 of these bulbs in a fixture and 3 bulb fixtures in out of the way places..
Bathrooms: 5 LED bulbs and 1 warm CCFL.
If you already did the ceiling fan installs, setting up to use these energy savers is a snap!
The LEDs have outlasted several CCFLS in the same fixtures so far....
And I only pay $2.50 each for 50,000 hrs MTBF...
Third world commented:
Why did they go for 40 W? The technology far exceeds such low lumens. After reading the comments I can see a lot of misinformation out there. Too much to even try to correct. I have tried to get involved in the LED market but shipping here makes even protyping impossible. The reason for line voltage connection is to allow direct replacement of CFL's and incandescent. To retrofit. Government regulations are controlling the requirements for PFC.
rcwithlime commented:
Savings on life of LED @ 50K hrs (using Cor van de Water's figures)equates down to $42/yr savings (If lamp burning continously). Subtract the $20 price tag and savings of $20/y as compared to std. 40 watt incondescent bulb (with cost of replacement 1x/yr.)Most lights are only used a fraction of the time, so savings would still result, but at a greatly reduced yearly return. This does not seem like a lot, but multiply that x # of lamps in your home that can be converted, and you can easily realize the $40/yr savings. (As long as 40 watts suffices for the area/application).
JoukoN commented:
In addition to the ease of AC to change the voltage level by using transformers there is another reason why AC is preferred. With AC the protection by fuses is easy because the AC short circuit current will be zero twice during the cycle and thus easy to break by the fuse. Breaking DC short circuit current requires the fuse to produce high enough voltage over the fuse to force the current down. Due to the inductance in the circuit the decrease of the current may take quite long time and thus the fuse has to be capable to dissipate high energy. Further, bolted shorts are not even the worst case for the fuse because it melts the wire inside the fuse simultaneously in all the intended points thus creating immediately the full voltage over the fuse. In small overload the fuse starts to melt gradually and thus may fail (explode!) before the voltage is high enough for breaking the current. The DC fusing is naturally more problematic with higher voltages. Thus most DC systems have quite low voltage in the range 12 - 48 V.
skr commented:
so what's the CRI of that bulb?
sjr commented:
The reason high-voltage AC is used for long-distance transmission is simple: the availability of cheap and reliable passive transformers to convert the high-voltage/low-current used for long-distance to the safer lower-voltage/higher-current used in local and in-home distribution. When the power grids were first built in the late 1800's, these transformers were the only option.
The P=I*I*R loss is reduced if the voltage is increased and the current is decreased, resulting in less heating of those long-distance transmission lines. This true of AC and DC distribution.
Long-distance is a misnomer because the long-distance lines are tapped often for local power distribution, meaning many high-to-low voltage conversion taps along the line.
For the reasons given earlier, specifically the Pk to RMS voltage difference, true point-to-point long-distance transmission is more cost-effective at DC where the cost of very large inverter facilities is limited to the two ends of the wire. Even if we had an all-DC system, the DC-DC conversion is active and less reliable than a passive AC-AC transformer.
sr commented:
In response to McGyver: The average motorhome doesn't have the microwave or the air-conditioner on the 12V panel and the refrigerator primarily uses propane. Why? Because at 12V (13.6 actually) you can't run enough current through inexpensive/practical wiring to run these appliances, let alone start them.
120/220VAC will be around for a long time.
Doug McNutt commented:
Less there be confusion, this lamp is designed for 80 to 277 VAC service possibly preceded by a triac dimmer previously used for an incandescent bulb. No DC wiring required in the house. The harmonic current drawn might eventually be a problem if a lot of the things are used in a 3 phase environment. It does have some power factor correction but not much.
Andy T commented:
@McGuyver: having wired my house, I can tell you that we had some runs that were about 80 feet long from the main breaker box. I used 12 gauge wire thoughout to eliminate resistive losses and voltage drops. To deliver the same power, a 12V system requires 10X the current, so for a constant resistance wire, I'd lose 100X the power in the wiring. That's why.
Then there are the losses with converting 220VAC to 12V..typically 80% efficiency if you use a laminated transformer, call it 90% if you use a switcher.
Lights are not the only thing serviced by a wiring run, if you're going to go there with that argument. You'll need 12V TVs, mixers, blenders, vacuum cleaners, furnace blower motors etc etc etc.
woody commented:
insightful, complete and useful
Chris-V commented:
Excellent reverse engineering work.
Very encouraging, I am sure the 60-75-100W will arrive in the next two years, The price will keep going down and probably in 3-4 years will reach the critical w/$ to be accepted by many people.
McGyver commented:
Margery... Are we related somehow?? I also enjoy taking things apart to see how they work!
On the subject of DC VS AC... Just take a look at virtually ANY RV... not to mention your own car (or truck...or airplane... or boat). 12VDC distribution seems to work out very well there... Applying that to the home would be just on a slightly grander scale.... WHY do we actually NEED 110VAC any way??? For lighting especially, most AC circuits could be replaced with 12VDC... a battery system could be installed for power and be replenished by solar cells (already available) or SMALL wind turbines (already available)... What else could that power... Do you really need 110 for all home entertainment? There are radio / DVD/ TV RV and Automobile systems at Wal-Mart right now that are essentially 12V plug-and-play... but otherwise the ONLY reason to have 110VAC is because of all the electrical devices out there that are designed around it.
Tommy H.... WHERE can we actually take CFC's for disposal anyway??
Guido commented:
it looks a very nice product but I am wondering how it works when two or three lamps are connected in parallel at the same dimmer: is the dimming level the same for each lamp? I think nobody will buy them if they produce different brightness levels...
Andy T commented:
oopsie - I meant constant resistance, not current, since power is lost in the resistance of the line....
Quebec Hydro (aka Andy T ) commented:
"Anytime anywhere. Everyone knows AC beats out DC for transmission purposes."
Ummm...not really Nikky. You have to size the transmission line for peak voltage in an AC transmission scheme - same goes for the insulators - primarily due to breakdown of air, as well as along dirty insulators. With DC, you are running at peak voltage all the time. Wire sizing is for current, which is the same RMS-wise for both systems.
For the same peak AC voltage (root 2 of peak), though, a DC system will transmit TWICE the power, since power is proportional to the square of voltage.
Nicolas Tesla commented:
Tom,
Every wonder why you never had kids? Cause no chick in her right mind would have relations with you.
Thomas Edison commented:
Hey Nick, did you ever wonder why you never had any kids? You fried your beans bonehead!
Nicolas Tesla commented:
Hey Tom,
Anytime anywhere. Everyone knows AC beats out DC for transmission purposes. If they would have listened to me we wouldn't need wires! You fools!
Thomas Edison commented:
I told you so! We should have distributed DC voltage not this AC crap. I should have belted Tesla when I had the chance!
Chicago Al commented:
To DC House: 24v dc is a lot different than the 200v dc that supton is considering, unless of course it was a typo. Playing with outlets (yes, kids still do it) would result in very bad outcomes.
bobSmith commented:
@Chicago Al - ROFL!!!
I'm really surprised that people think 100W bulbs are so great. They stink! Two 40W bulbs (spaced apart enough) give much better overal lighting and coverage than one hot bright stinking 100W bulb. It's light output (and coverage over an area) that matters, not how many watts used.
DC House commented:
I have 12V and 24V all over my house for Low Lighting levels or spot lighting and solar back up. No dead yet.
Andy T commented:
Phosphors are inert when you make them into a compound. A lot of "green energy' solutions create a level of smugness that fails to recognize that these compounds had to be made somewhere from their constituents, and that is what I specifically mentioned in my post - these is a key factor we, as engineers, should not forget as we pat ourselves on the back.
Just like "green" electric cars, when your dog poops in someone else's yard (China for phosphors, Oregon and Nevada by California) you're happy because your own yard is "green".
How Long commented:
If you people in the UK think this light is so great, go swim to China and pic up a few. Has anyone turned on a light for 50,000 hours. This light will get so hot you will be lucky to get 200 lumens after 500 hrs. Caps won't last. If you did save $240 over 30 years, ---going to buy a new Mercedes? This is garbage and LED bozo-ville.
Chicago Al commented:
supton are you suggesting that DC voltage be distributed throughout a home? That it would be available at outlets or other connection devices? I hope not. There would be way too many dead people.
Get Real commented:
$20 for a 40 watt bulb. This is child's play. You should be able to get 400 lumens for about $10.00 with only 3 watts. Price would still be too high. This will be in the trash can in less than one year. Too hot, price to high. Stick with a 40 watt standard bulbs for 40 cents.
Gene commented:
OMG anothe one that does not know Ohm's law. Drop the wattage then drop load and increase the voltage threshold and the wattage goes down. Now do the math ~15 watts and no replacemns for $0.00 investment. Just set up a better system and the need goes down drasticaly. Did you ever here of built in obsolencence. Does everyone belive in the tooth fairy?
Bing commented:
I like to comment on a previous post about the toxicity of phosphors. The Cerium-doped Yttrium Aluminum Garnet (YAG:Ce) phosphor mentioned is actually a very much inert material, even under high temperature. The poster is confusing it with the elemental cerium, which is reactive etc. It is like claiming table salt is toxic because it contains sodium, which is a soft metal that also react with water violently to produce hydrogen, and the fume produced is also toxic. Various compounds of sodium are also toxic (e.g. sodium cyanide). But all this has nothing to do with sodium in the form of table salt.
On the other hand, mercury in CFL exists in elementary form, which is a real health concern.
A little knowledge is indeed a dangerous thing.
Disclaimer - not affiliated with led or phosphors industry.
supton commented:
I have to wonder when someone will figure out that we are heading towards nothing running on AC in our homes, save a few motors. Lighting, TV's, computers--they all run on DC in the end. And every unit has to convert ~170V DC (or even higher overseas) into 12V, 5V, 3.3V or even lower. AC makes for great line distribution, but I have to wonder if some gain could be made in making say 20-50kW invertors for each home, with whatever it takes to make them efficent at light to heavy loading; and then distribute say 200V DC and maybe 20V DC. Could such a large invertor run at >90% efficency. I dunno--but it can't possibly have more parts than the combination of parts living the power supply for my cell phone charger, my TV, my 2 laptops, 2 desktops, their monitors...
m commented:
So there is still the issue of possibly lead and other toxic materials used to make these (as another pointed out). If we really want to be green, it would seem to me that houses should have a secondary electrical system (with a single AC/DC converter near the main breaker box) that provides DC at the voltage and current needed to power many LED based lights for the entire house. Then you could reduce the number of circuit boards being used and thrown out. Combine that with solar and wind power and we might be getting further along (though toxic materials are probably used in the making of solar panels too).
Timbo commented:
What a great product! Are these available in the UK? If not, any idea when?
Oh, and Derf - just because we live in Europe, doesn't mean we live in the dark. We just choose to try and reduce environmental pollution by using lower wattage lights, instead of going the American way and leaving all the hundreds of lights on every time we leave the building!
Cor van de Water commented:
Gene: you probably never did the calculation of electricity cost between incandescent and efficient bulbs like CFL and LED.
Even if your incandescents would last as long as the LED (probably 50,000 hours or so) then do the math: 40W versus 8W (trying to do apples-to-apples) means 32W difference x 50,000 hours = 1600 kWh or about $240 at $0.15 per kWh.
Now you may not be interested in lifetime of your bulbs, but the energy savings are impressive!
Terry commented:
What a blaster! Great!
Gary commented:
I'll consider switching to these LEDs when the unit price is
Andy T commented:
LOL - as long as humans are involved, we'll poop on the planet in some form, so don't kid yourself too much about green...greener, yes, green, notsomuch - the YAG phosphors in LEDs, albeit in tiny amounts (though in manufacturing the quantities are moderate), contain this stuff (quoted from Wikipedia):
Cerium, like all rare-earth metals, is of low to moderate toxicity. Cerium is a strong reducing agent and ignites spontaneously in air at 65 to 80 °C. Fumes from cerium fires are toxic. Water should not be used to stop cerium fires, as cerium reacts with water to produce hydrogen gas. Workers exposed to cerium have experienced itching, sensitivity to heat, and skin lesions. Animals injected with large doses of cerium have died due to cardiovascular collapse. Cerium(IV) oxide is a powerful oxidizing agent at high temperatures and will react with combustible organic materials. While cerium is not radioactive, the impure commercial grade may contain traces of thorium, which is radioactive.
In experiments on animals, yttrium and its compounds caused lung and liver damage, though toxicity varies with different yttrium compounds. In rats, inhalation of yttrium citrate caused pulmonary edema and dyspnea, while inhalation of yttrium chloride caused liver edema, pleural effusions, and pulmonary hyperemia. Exposure to yttrium compounds in humans may cause lung disease. Workers exposed to airborne yttrium europium vanadate dust experienced mild eye, skin, and upper respiratory tract irritation—though this may have been caused by the vanadium content rather than the yttrium. Acute exposure to yttrium compounds can cause shortness of breath, coughing, chest pain, and cyanosis.
Derf commented:
Hum - while this is a nice article and great teardown, I'm a bit confused over the basic product. Other than (perhaps) my refrigerator, I can't think of any 40w bulbs in my home. This isn't Europe - we need at least a 100w version.
tommyh commented:
Something nobody notices is the LEDs have no mercury. After lights stop working they usually go to the landfill or are dumped into the ocean. Landfills drain down into the ground water (our drinking water). The groundwater reaches the oceans. Sperm whales now have about 160 times the toxicity limit of mercury. Compact fluorescents and tube flourescents all contain mercury. People are supposed to dispose of old fluorescents by packing them them up and paying to have them sent to a recycler. How many people and businesses do this? LEDs are our hope for a clean planet AND energy efficiency.
Maybe purchasing LEDs now helps companies scale up production and bring down the costs.
Gene commented:
I'm amused with all this bulb life and reliability chatter. I live in a 19 year old house that the builder equipped with 130V bulbs. Over 60% of the part time duty bulbs are still operating albeit they are all on dimmers. So the bulb life is of little importance since common sense tells us that the practice of equipping a home or commercial building with 130V lighting will extend the life 10X at minimum. The operating cost savings with a dimmer is another 10-20% and specifying lower wattage is another 50% since lighting as film speed is a log function so a 50% reduction in power is only one f stop lower.
Come on folks a little common sense with an eye on value can make a huge difference and not cost an arm and a leg to operate or implement.
Margery commented:
Andy T, I'm here to testify: Safety glasses are a wonderful thing.
Joe S. please feel free to email me with any links to your designs.
Matteo commented:
Comparing LEDs to CFLs is like comparing a Chevy Vega to a Ferrari.. So much more you can do with LEDs, such a better light source..
Andy T commented:
You'll have to change your nom de plume to Shirley Holmes...nice detective work, Margery.
A mean woman with a hammer, as well.
Commin Cents commented:
This is a great article, well done, not dragged out, and full of information.
I do not see the big deal because with a 40 W bulb equivalent, who needs to dim it?
And then, CFL bulbs put out as much as a 40W incandescent with about 10W, and this is 8.6W, no great savings.
Now, when you can sell somnoluminescence for $20, I am interested.
J. Williams commented:
P.S. Nice tear down and analysis. Thanks.
J. Williams commented:
I'll play devil's advocate. Current CFL's are running about $2.50 at Sam's Club. That means this bulb has about a $17.50 premium over a typical 60W equivalent CFL. The 60W equivalent uses 13 watts of power. This unit consumes 8.5 watts (for less light too but I'll ignore that for now). That is a difference of 4.5 watts. Since electricity is about 15 cents per kilowatt hour for $17.50 you can buy 116 kW-hrs. Divide that by the power savings of 4.5 watts and you get 25,777 hours before you break even. That's three years of 24/7 operation. Nope, not there yet. I'm not quite ready to buy.
SMP4433 commented:
Wait for 6 months before real data comes out from early users.
Joe S. commented:
I work in the electrical department of a Southern NJ Home Depot. I love the bulbs and promote them to my customers. They come back for more. I explain the price is low when you figure the LED lamp will last five years, & the energy savings could make a difference in one's home based on the quantity of common bulbs replaced with the Ecosmart LED lamp.
I also design LED products and kits for various products and the Ecosmart design is excellent.
far1 commented:
Thank you for taking the time to do this. It's great to be able to see how the components are integrated into the subsystem to allow the LEDs to become a useful interchange. I hope the design proves successful and is repeated in other packages so we can cut down on our waste of energy and get to a sustainable reality.
Bix commented:
Once they make a 100 watt dimmable for $20, I'll start buying. 40 watt is not enough, too much eye strain unless I double the number of lights I currently have.
Tex33 commented:
I'm curious if these will meet Energy Star criteria, such as power factor, lm/W, L70 lifetime, etc.?
