Sylvania Living Spaces CFL bulbs + DOT it LED lights

I'm a big fan of CFL bulbs.

How can you not like a product that uses 1/4 of the electricity of incandescent bulbs to cast the same amount of light? Using less energy not only saves money, it also reduces the demand on the electrical grid and lessens the urgency of building new power plants.

Add in the fact that CFL bulbs are rated to last around 12-times longer than incandescents (approximately 12,000 hours for CFLs versus 1,000 hours for incandescents) and the argument in favor of CFLs becomes even stronger.

Many hotel chains and stores have recognized the benefits of CFLs and made the switch. So why are some consumers holding back?

1) Price. CFL bulbs used to be much more expensive than incandescents, but prices have been falling. CFLs will still cost more at the register, but when you factor in replacement costs and energy savings, CFLs definitely make sense from a pocketbook perspective.

2) Mercury. This is a valid point. Mercury is an extremely hazardous substance and CFLs do contain mercury while incandescents don't. On the other hand, CFL manufacturers have been working hard to reduce the amount of mercury in their bulbs. Last year, we covered the Sylvania Micro-Mini Twist, which contains just 1.5 milligrams of mercury. For comparison sake, we linked to Gaiam, which pointed out that the old mercury thermometers many of us used to use in our homes contained 500 milligrams of mercury. Still, you do need to be careful if a bulb should happen to break (PDF) and you can't just dispose of the bulbs by throwing them in the trash when they do eventually wear out. You wouldn't want that mercury to leak into a landfill. Fortunately, many major retailers have programs to accept old CFL bulbs free of charge for proper disposal.

(Here's some more info from TreeHugger and the US EPA on what to do if a mercury-containing CFL bulb breaks in your home.)

3) Light quality. This is the big one for many people and it's one with which I can sympathize. CFL bulbs have been belittled for having an unpleasantly cold or bluish light. Personally, I think these concerns have been a bit overblown too, but if you've been worried that CFLs will plunge you into depression, fear no more. Sylvania has recently come out with a new series of Living Spaces(TM) CFL bulbs that provide what Sylvania (accurately) calls "Cozy, Comfortable Lighting(TM)".

Honestly, I didn't realize that my old CFL bulbs were not cozy or comfortable, but when I swapped in the new Living Spaces 23-watt bulbs (slightly fewer lumens than a 100-watt incandescent), I immediately noticed the difference.

Frankly, the new bulb did perk up my demeanor and make me want to skip around the apartment a little. Yep, it was like having a cheerful petit ball of sunshine in my home.

I also liked the fact that the packaging is made of 100% recyclable paperboard.

By the way, in case you're wondering how Sylvania gets such a warm light from its CFL bulbs, the company attributes the difference to "enhanced phosphors".

Note that these new Living Spaces bulbs still have the small dimensions of the Micro-Mini Twist. They also still contain less than 1.5 milligrams of mercury each, according to Sylvania.

Caveat - Sylvania warns that these bulbs are not designed to be used in dimmable lamps, but if you have a lamp with a dimmer, Sylvania has introduced a new line of Mini Twist Dimmable bulbs.

FYI, Sylvania doesn't just make CFL bulbs. In fact, the company has taken the exciting step of introducing a number of LED-powered lighting solutions. Since LEDs are even more efficient than CFLs (i.e. use less power to produce an equivalent amount of lumens), this is an exciting step.

LED bulbs are still rather expensive, but we had a chance to test two Sylvania LED products - the DOT-it(R) Solar and the DOT-it Linear Swivel.

As the name suggests, the DOT-it Solar is solar-powered. Sylvania has very cleverly designed the light with a suction cup so you can stick it your window where the solar-panel will suck up plenty of power to help the 3 LEDs shine for a long time.

The DOT-it Linear Swivel runs on batteries (three AAAs) and can be mounted in numerous ways (velcro, magnetic, adhesive) under a cabinet, in a garage or anywhere else you might need some really bright, tightly-focused light. And here's an idea: you can use rechargeable AAA batteries to reduce landfill waste and make your lighting even more efficient!

These DOT-it products seem like a nice option if you need a bit of extra light someplace and want an efficient solution that doesn't involve any wiring.

Incidentally, the DOT-it Linear Swivel features a very cool on-off mechanism where you lightly run your finger over a "touch sensor" to control the light. Not exactly sure how that works, but it is (as they say in California, "hella cool").

Also, a slight warning about the power of these LEDs: Don't look directly into the light. The DOT-it Swivel is meant to shine down onto a countertop or workspace, but while testing it, I had it pointed up so I could examine it more closely. I accidentally looked at the light saw spots for a while afterwards. Conclusion - these puppies are bright.

Where to buy:

Shop the Sylvania online store for a full selection of DOT-it lights including the DOT-it Solar ($14.99) and the DOT-it Linear Swivel ($9.99).

Sylvania says the Living Spaces bulbs are available at Lowe's ($13-15 for 2-pack), but we were unable to find them in Lowe's online store. Call your local Lowe's store to see if they bulbs are in stock.

You can also find many Sylvania DOT-it products (complete with customer reviews) at Amazon.com.