However, it seems the LED lights manufacturers are working on to compete with the CFL market. Last Wednesday, General Electric announced the Bright Stik, a cylindrical 60-watt equivalent available in soft white for $9.97 for a three-pack through Home Depot. This followed Phillips which last month came on the market at $4.97, with a two-for-one deal for the first 90 days. TCP, a company that makes energy-efficient lighting under its own brand as well as for Home Depot and Walmart, has an LED on the market for $4.88.
“We needed to paint a picture for consumers and retailers of, ‘O.K., what does it mean if C.F.L. doesn’t exist?’” said Tom Boyle, G.E. Lighting’s chief innovation manager. “This is our shot at it.”
LEDs have long been more expensive, but those who favor them say they offer better light quality and more flexibility. Although compact fluorescents still far outsell LEDs, expert says that the demand for compact fluorescents is dwindling, while it is rising for LEDs. “The only thing C.F.L.s had going for them for a number of years is that they were a lot cheaper,” said Jesse Foote, a lighting industry analyst at Navigant, a research and consulting firm. “The cost difference at this point is not big enough to really justify the rest of the differences,” he said.
“Frankly, everybody will get out of C.F.L. over time,” said Linda Pastor, LED product manager at G.E. Lighting, where executives say they will continue to ship compact fluorescents but will no longer invest in their development. “It’s just a question of when.”
Phillips, on the other hand, continues to invest in and introduce new compact fluorescent products, said Silvie Casanova, a spokeswoman. One is a bulb that dims more like an incandescent, going through warmer tones rather than just lowering light levels.
With such innovations, we couldn’t just wait what more can LED signs technology can offer to the world.
