Cree Introduces 200 Lumen/Watt Production Power LEDs 421
ndverdo writes "Cree just announced production power LEDs reaching 200 lumen/watt. Approximately doubling the previous peak LED light efficiency, the new LEDs will require less cooling. This should enable the MK-R series to finally provide direct no-hassle replacements to popular form-factors such as MR-16 spots and incandescent lighting in general. The LEDs are sampling and it is stated that 'production quantities are available with standard lead times.'"
Cooling is the issue (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Cooling is the issue (Score:5, Interesting)
The reduced cooling should help in lowering the costs of the LED versus the CFL and the reduced energy consumption will be a help as well.
Yesterday I went to Walmart to get new light bulbs, old CFLs I had burned out. There Walmart had LED bulbs in stock, at around $20 a bulb. I ended up going to Sam's to get CFLs, an 8 pack cost less than $6.
Falcon
Re:420 (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Cooling is the issue (Score:3, Interesting)
Shopping at Walmart or Sam's hurts America. Don't be a jerk.
Re:Cooling is the issue (Score:4, Interesting)
I've tried different brands of CFL ( generic, GE, Philips, Nelson ) , many sizes as well (including a monster 65W unit) and the failure rate is high compared to the proposed life on the boxes. Initially I think it was that I had them in enclosed diffuser bulbs and I dare say with the way our Summer weather is here it killed the first batch through overheating of the electronics in the CFL bases. However, after ensuring they all had good cooling (even bare bulbs) there were still plenty of failures, so I'm just thinking that overall it would seem that CFL drivers aren't yet up to scratch, or at least the manufactures are cutting corners on the components.
I've switched to the faux-traditional-halogen replacement bulbs and they seem to be doing a lot better. Looking forward to converting to LEDs soon.
The memories - anyone heard of the LM3909? (Score:5, Interesting)
When I started working with LEDs they just introduced the LM3909 oscillator - it allowed an LED (only red in those days) to blink for an entire year on a single D cell.
What keeps amazing me about LEDs is just how little energy they need to start lighting up. I'm not really into electronics anymore (was only tinkering with it since I was 11), but I recall that by using a FET for constant current [dapj.com] meant you could be pretty flexible about the supply voltage (within limits, of course, the dissipation has to go somewhere), and by researching what it was (been a while) I came across other interesting ideas [evilmadscientist.com].
As a single, simple component, I find LEDs are about the most interesting ones to experiment with (and LDRs, and NTCs, and .. :) ). They are nice to introduce children to electronics because they instantly do something visible..
Go backwards: History got it right (Score:5, Interesting)
I replaced the 6v 2.4watt filament bulb in it with a high power white MES LED module designed to have 100 degree illumination. Powered by a single PP3 radio battery under the saddle, it produces a 15 foot cone of light on the road ahead of me lighting everything up to handlebar height (yes, I'm overvolting a 6v LED module but it doesnt seem to cause any problems, it still runs cool)
I hope these don't end up as car lighting (Score:5, Interesting)
I've noticed a disturbing trend. Car manufacturers have been using the new lightning technologies to cram e.g. the headlights into ever smaller spaces. The resulting light beam still conforms to regulations, but because the peak intensity is much higher, those headlights are much more likely to dazzle oncoming traffic. The higher the light intensity of the lamp (lm/cm^2) the worse this will get.
Re:Cooling is the issue (Score:4, Interesting)
I use these:
http://1000bulbs.com/product/58963/LED-409946.html?utm_source=SmartFeedGoogleBase&utm_medium=Shopping&utm_term=LED-409946&utm_content=LED+Light+Bulbs+-+60+Watt+Equal&utm_campaign=SmartFeedGoogleBaseShopping&gclid=CND43cb5wbQCFelDMgodCyIABA [1000bulbs.com]
About 1/5 the power of an incandescent and about 1/2 the power of a CFL for the same light. Also, supposed to last 15 years.
Neat.
CRI is a poor measurement (Score:4, Interesting)
It takes 8 colour swatches and measures the rendering of those. It does not do a good job of looking at actual spectrum, and there are far more than 8 colours to worry about in the real world. Look at the spectrum of an LED vs CFL some day. The CFLs are very, very spikey with lots of holes, the LEDs are continuous with more gentle peaks.
We need a new system for measuring light quality, and indeed standards agencies are looking in to it.