LEDs are everywhere these days, offering good levels of energy efficiency, attractive design, and reliability.
All at an increasingly attractive price. For most applications, they provide a great lighting option. But is it always the best?
Well, this depends on how we define best. In terms of colour perception, LEDs still have some way to go to offer truly broad spectrum colour rendering, comparable with a tungsten halogen lamp. And the better ones tend to be more expensive. So if you need to light pictures or retail merchandise, choose your LED with care. Dimming is another complex area with many pitfalls. Nobody wants flickering lights or noisy buzzing.
But they are the most energy efficient, yes? Well, not necessarily. While better LEDs offer very high energy efficiency, at the cheaper end of the market they may not beat the efficiency of a well-designed fluorescent fitting. And the most efficient fitting of them all? Surprisingly this remains the low-pressure sodium lamp, better known as yellow street lighting, dating from the era of vinyl records and soda streams. Not that we are predicting a retro return to yellow lighting anytime soon at your local hipster café.
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