Lighting our world

LEDs are available for traditional socket fittings

Is LED the future of lighting?

Over the last 15 years we've seen a lot of changes in the way we light our homes and our cities.  Many territories have now outlawed the sale of incandescent bulbs, much to the chagrin of people who like these cheap and reliable light sources.  Instead they must now rely on the compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) or possibly they may splash out on LED.

The Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL)

  LEDs come in many colour options            

CFLs are a big improvement on incandescent bulbs in terms of longevity and power consumption.  They are, however, not universally popular for many reasons - their purchase price is higher than incandescent, they contain some nasty elements (like mercury) and the quality of the light does not match what people are used to.  CFL is very much mainstream now, so like it or not, they do sell in big numbers.  Just make sure that you buy the ones that operate at the right colour temperature for the situation.  (Most people who like the light from incandescent bulbs are used to a colour temperature of around just under 3000K from their CFL.)

The Light Emitting Diode (LED)

The newer kid on the block and one with a very bright (haha) future is the Light Emitting Diode or LED.  LEDs are used in all sorts of appliances.  They have found favour with the multimedia industry as a reliable and high performing back light for LCD televisions and computer monitors.  We see them used in torches and indicator lights on all kinds of appliances.  Why?  Well, they put out a terrific amount of light for their size, they consume only a small amount of power, the light quality is good and they last an awfully long time.

LED is also starting to appear as a technology that will light our homes, offices and streets.  Unfortunately,  there are a few hurdles that this technology must first overcome before it's truly ready for the mainstream.  Currently LED bulbs and LED tubes seem to be horrendously expensive.  Sure enough the purchase price is high alongside CFL but the expected lifetime is very good at around 50,000 hours.  The LED doesn't contain the nasty elements that plague CFL and the quality (if not the quantity) of light emitted is very palatable.  LED can be manufactured in many different colours so it is particularly well suited to fancy lighting solutions.

                  The light emitting diode (LED)                             

Researchers are also holding out high hopes for LED as an external lighting technology.  LED can be made highly directional, thus reducing light leakage - a major problem for street lighting, which tends to dazzle motorists and certainly destroys the hopes of any quality star-gazing in our cities.

Don't expect to be fitting out your homes with LED in the near future but bank on seeing their increased usage in  ornamental lighting situations and in commercial settings where their longevity makes them an economical option even with the currently high purchase costs.

Links to Lighting

Some LED lighting options from those clever IKEA people

LED lighting could improve city star-gazing (BBC)

Experimental LED lights from IKEA (Gizmodo)

Comparing CFL and LED

LED lighting     CFL facts

Innovative lighting for the future (Gizmodo)