New $50 GE Lightbulb Lasts 17 Years

[TDmvp]

http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/...0.000000:b0:z5






Replacing your old lightbulbs with fluorescent models saves money. Replacing them with LED bulbs promises even greater efficiency ... at a hefty price.

LED bulbs are dramatically more expensive than fluorescents (bulbs in stores are usually compact fluorescents, or CFLs), partly because the technology is so new. Hoping to bring the cost of bulbs down is GE, which has announced plans to bring out an LED bulb that gives you 17 years worth of light and costs $50 per bulb.

According to Treehugger.com, LED bulbs haven't made a big splash in the market yet because of a lack of warm lighting (though the colors and temperatures are getting much better across the board).

GE says the new bulb uses just 9 watts and provides a 77% energy savings
while lasting 25 times as long as the 40-watt bulb it's intended to replace. It also fits into standard incandescent sockets -- which should be a given because who would want to buy an LED bulb if it also requires replacing the socket?

The site also points out that the bulbs are merely 40 watt models at present. Who uses 40 watt bulbs, even in their closets? We need 60 and 100 watt replacement bulbs. Prices of these bulbs should drop as competition increases, especially in light of US federal lighting efficiency standards that start in 2012 and phase out incandescent bulbs altogether.

In 2012, 100-watt incandescents can no longer be made, with 75-watt bulbs phasing out in 2013, and 60- and 40-watt bulbs disappearing in 2014.




WOW they really are totally phasing out the incandescents which I like...
The new CFL's suck you can't see crap in their lighting and they want you to call in a clean up crew if you break one.

[gtown]

Call me when they come up with a bulb that can meet the luminosity of incandescents. Recently bought a box of CFL from Home Depot. I was back returning them within 30 minutes. That's how much they suck.

[orinjkrush]

i like the knuckleball grips

[misturanderson]

Originally Posted by gtown

Call me when they come up with a bulb that can meet the luminosity of incandescents. Recently bought a box of CFL from Home Depot. I was back returning them within 30 minutes. That's how much they suck.

Is that just because you can't wait the 1-2 minutes it takes for them to warm up and reach full brightness?

[Florida_Bronco]

That's a pretty cool development.

[maher_tyler]

Originally Posted by misturanderson

Is that just because you can't wait the 1-2 minutes it takes for them to warm up and reach full brightness?

They do seem to get brighter the longer you leave them on...

[ColoradoDarin]

Originally Posted by misturanderson

Is that just because you can't wait the 1-2 minutes it takes for them to warm up and reach full brightness?

Yeah, who wants light when you turn the switch on? I have a few in my house and it's not really bad, but I don't put them in areas where I just want light for a minute or so (like the pantry). So I'm going to have to stock up a lot of bulbs before it's illegal.

I love that government is so smart that they are going to force us to buy crappy lightbulbs.

[TailgateNut]

Originally Posted by maher_tyler

They do seem to get brighter the longer you leave them on...

Duh!!!

[TailgateNut]

Originally Posted by TDmvp

http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/...0.000000:b0:z5






Replacing your old lightbulbs with fluorescent models saves money. Replacing them with LED bulbs promises even greater efficiency ... at a hefty price.

LED bulbs are dramatically more expensive than fluorescents (bulbs in stores are usually compact fluorescents, or CFLs), partly because the technology is so new. Hoping to bring the cost of bulbs down is GE, which has announced plans to bring out an LED bulb that gives you 17 years worth of light and costs $50 per bulb.

According to Treehugger.com, LED bulbs haven't made a big splash in the market yet because of a lack of warm lighting (though the colors and temperatures are getting much better across the board).

GE says the new bulb uses just 9 watts and provides a 77% energy savings
while lasting 25 times as long as the 40-watt bulb it's intended to replace. It also fits into standard incandescent sockets -- which should be a given because who would want to buy an LED bulb if it also requires replacing the socket?

The site also points out that the bulbs are merely 40 watt models at present. Who uses 40 watt bulbs, even in their closets? We need 60 and 100 watt replacement bulbs. Prices of these bulbs should drop as competition increases, especially in light of US federal lighting efficiency standards that start in 2012 and phase out incandescent bulbs altogether.

In 2012, 100-watt incandescents can no longer be made, with 75-watt bulbs phasing out in 2013, and 60- and 40-watt bulbs disappearing in 2014.




WOW they really are totally phasing out the incandescents which I like...
The new CFL's suck you can't see crap in their lighting and they want you to call in a clean up crew if you break one.

Last 17 years-Tested for one year!

[Sir_Robin]

Originally Posted by TDmvp

The new CFL's suck you can't see crap in their lighting and they want you to call in a clean up crew if you break one.

When did mercury get classified as so dangerous entire schools have to be closed while a hazmat crew comes in to clean up one broken mercury filled thermometer? I know it's dangerous, and I certainly don't want to be making hats with it for a living, but come on. Did I miss a memo some where?

[oubronco]

Originally Posted by TailgateNut

Last 17 years-Tested for one year!

I caught that too

[Drek]

Originally Posted by Sir_Robin

When did mercury get classified as so dangerous entire schools have to be closed while a hazmat crew comes in to clean up one broken mercury filled thermometer? I know it's dangerous, and I certainly don't want to be making hats with it for a living, but come on. Did I miss a memo some where?

When schools decided that was more cost effective than risking one kid getting mercury poisoning and having to hand out an eight figure settlement to that child's family.

The alternative would be to keep a licensed hazwoper employee on site. This is what most larger schools with chemistry labs and the like should actually be doing, since environmental protection and worker safety agencies across this country could walk into almost any high school and hand out thousands of dollars in fines due to a shocking lack of documentation of the hazardous chemicals on site.

[baja]

Big deal!

http://www.centennialbulb.org/

Welcome to the homepage devoted to the Longest burning Light Bulb in history. Now in its 109th year of illumination. For those of you coming here for the first time, feel free to explore the pages of our amazing little bulb, with pictures, stories, facts, and history. If you are returning, our newest additions are the stories of our latest visitors, Claudia Cowan of FoxNews, Joan Ubeda from Spain, and Karin Steinberger from Germany.

[That One Guy]

That last one looks more like the coils from my toaster thrown inside glass. The point is to make it energy efficient and long lasting.

[snowspot66]

Originally Posted by That One Guy

That last one looks more like the coils from my toaster thrown inside glass. The point is to make it energy efficient and long lasting.

The limited lifespan is just so we buy more. They'll probably come out with some really high efficiency bulbs that last only a year or two.