We are sharing here most of a review we posted on the Amazon web site, as we are just delighted with these amazing LED light bulbs – a real breakthough. As noted in the review, you can see them in operation in our kitchen.
Review of 900 Lumen 9 Watt LED Light Bulbs
I have tried many LED light bulbs over the last year or so claiming to be replacements for 50W + incandescents for use in normal fixtures, and this is the first bulb to actually exceed my expectations, and at a lower price than most of the competition.
The bulb is slightly whiter than warm white and it is bright – definitely brighter than a 60W incandescent bulb. In fact I have used the first two I ordered to replace 50W halogen flood lamps in our kitchen and these LED bulbs provide a brighter light even though they are not directional like the halogen floods – they spread light over about 180 degrees compared to a typical flood’s spread of 35 degrees.
These are the first LED bulbs I have seen that produce 100 lumens per Watt. So 900 lumens from 9W. By replacing two halogen floods I have more light with 18W than I had before with 100W. These specs also make these bulbs among the first to truly exceed CFLs in efficiency, thus the review title of a “breakthrough in LED light bulbs”. And of course they bring the other major LED advantage of turning on almost instantly at full brightness, not to mention the lack of any mercury related disposal issues if indeed they ever need replaced.
(These bulbs are not dimmable so if your application requires that capability you will need another product. I have also purchased two Philips 409904 Dimmable AmbientLED 12.5-Watt A19 Light Bulbs and if the weird appearance is not a problem these are an excellent choice if dimming is required and you need 800 lumens plus from the bulb.)
The guarantee is spectacular – if the bulb burns out during YOUR lifetime return it for a free replacement. Of course this is only as good as the life of the company as well, but it does indicate the confidence that the vendor has in their product.
Also intriguing is that the bulb looks almost like a regular A19 incandescent bulb, with a silvery coating on the bottom half. It lacks the very visible and massive external heat-sinks of similar products. It remains to be seen whether this lack of a visible heat-sink will impact the bulb life and/or long term performance.
