undefined | Better HN

0 pointsjsmith453y ago0 comments

I really wish i could find a brand that would reliably tick all the boxes:

- Does not overdrive the LEDs and Does not run power supply components at the limit of what they can. (Thus good longevity)

- Has a current based driver, so that slight voltage shifts from an appliance kicking on don't result in an obvious brightness shift.

- Suitable for use in recessed lighting or enclosed fixtures. (For better or worse, can lights and enclosed fixtures are still relatively common.)

- Makes bulbs in most common shapes like A19, chandelier, and PAR/BR shapes (for recessed lighting fixtures)

- Dimmable (And yes, I am quite well aware that being in conjunction with a current source driver is more complicated, but it is still possible). I'm not even particularly big on dimming, but I am big on smart switches, and many of those include dimming capabilities, and I don't want to worry about which bulbs I put where.

- Good color rendering index (and other similar features)

Even the linked companies products don't meet the full list. Their only dimmable A-series bulbs are the filament bulbs, which are not suitable for all use cases. Similarly, non of the non-filament bulbs in the A series shapes are marked as suitable for use in an enclosure.

0 comments

cesaref3y ago

Not sure where you are located, but if you have ceiling halogens to replace, there are two options - to use a low voltage bulb + separate PSU or the 'all in one' bulbs. Here in the UK they are designated GU10 for mains voltage and MR16 for 12v. If you go with 12v bulbs, you can invest in a decent power supply for them, and hence also avoid the poor quality bulb problem.

It's possible to get power supplies to support multiple bulbs daisy chained, so you can invest in one decent power supply.

For general bulbs (e.g. chandelier tulip bulbs) i've found it to be really hard to find stuff that works reliably. 'Normal' round bulbs seem to be more reliable for some reason.

smolder3y ago

The only bulbs I've found that work in tight enclosures without overheating and failing are a design that's probably 90% aluminum heatsink by weight and over 50% by volume, with a relatively small dome diffuser on top. I couldn't find a US distributor, so bought a box direct from the manufacturer on Alibaba. They were $20+ per bulb even from the factory, so not cheap. Beyond the crazy cooling, they have a thermal shutoff feature to prevent failure if they get too hot. Generally it's better to find an appropriately breathable fixture for LED bulbs, or even better, ditch retrofit bulbs and get something with a separate DC power supply.

ikekkdcjkfke3y ago

I think ikea has some nice bulbs. Almost no flicker on slo mo camera. Their rechargeable batteries however are bad

mixmastamyk3y ago

Their bulbs and batteries work great here.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse