Re: Does this product exist?
Caleb - I'd be interested to know who you heard this from (PM me if you'd rather not post publicly). While it may be true in some isolated cases, it's simply not true as a blanket statement. Because in general, a specific power LED will be available for around 5 years (this does vary), manufacturers typically design around the latest and greatest to maximize the time they have between product generations. So a brand new hardware store lamp design is probably using newer LED technology than a 4 year entertainment fixture. Plus, newer LED packages tend to by higher efficiency, higher output, lower cost/lumen, better binning, and can withstand higher operating temperatures. All those parameters are useful when designing products for sale, as a generation newer LED can mean that you have a superior product to your competitor. This is one of the reasons that most of the big LED lighting companies stick with the industry leaders in LEDs instead of using the less expensive products from Korea and China - the cheap LEDs are typically a generation or more behind.
Note: I work for Color Kinetics, a division of Philips.
Additionally, there's a lot more money in the volume of consumer products than in the several orders of magnitude fewer entertainment fixtures, so successful product differentiation due to better technology or specs can be a significant market opportunity.
There are still quite a number of holes in the market - the L-prize bulb, while technically advanced, is butt-ugly, and still not rated for use in enclosed fixtures. Because of this, I can't use them in fixtures that are exposed (too ugly), and I also can't use them in fixtures where they're unseen, since the bulb can't handle the heat of the enclosed globe of my light. That leaves me with I think one desk lamp with a suitable shade where I could use this bulb. I have gone to this one:
Philips - AmbientLED Energy saving household light 7W A19 Soft White - 046677409913 - Standard - Energy-saving light bulbs - Lighting which looks a lot better than the L-prize bulb, but still has the same "not for use in enclosed fixtures" limitation. It's also cheaper than the L-prize bulb. When an "enclosable" LED bulb exists, I'll buy a couple dozen.
I'm also waiting for the mini socket version of some kind of 60watt replacement fan bulb - they make 3w LEDs, but they're not even close to bright enough.
Someone solving these problems will sell a lot of bulbs, and it won't be with old tech.
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I've spent a year of my life at the day job evaluating and replacing about 800 bulbs, Par30s and MR16s, with LEDs. We went with Philips gear (Rob you can pay me later), and in the time of the project (slightly over a year from about April 2011 - August 2012) there have been 3 generations of Philips bulbs we looked at. Dizzying is an understatement. That being said, in the downtown hi-rise I work in, electricity runs about $.40/kw ($.10 for the electricity plus $.30 for the cooling to remove the heat), and our project payback is less than 12 months. We've had the bulbs in for 9 months or so and out of 800 fixtures, have had zero failures. Energy savings aside, the bulbs will pay for themselves just in labor saved from bulb changes.