I was all excited about using LEDs in the shower I'm remodeling in my basement, but unfortunately they failed the color test pretty badly. My wife didn't like them at all.

I haven't found an LED that has a solid, broad spectrum color profile, and I think that's because of the nature of LEDs themselves. They're monochromatic by nature, and I have a sinking feeling that this is the root of their efficiency. I wonder if an efficient LED *can* be full-spectrum color.

They're great for head-mounted work lights, though. Can't be beat.

In reference to Pete's comment about the full-spectrum color, I went to a seminar put on by Osram-Sylvania. One of their highlights was two identical rooms -- one lit with incandescent, one lit with LED. You could not tell the difference. There were identical!! Unfortunately the cost for the LEDs were astrononomical. Having said that, the LEDs last a life time and use less than the CFL (compact fluorescent) -- For example: 60 Watt Incandescent = 11 - 15 Watt CFL (good brand name) = 3 - 4 Watt LED.

I have two LEDs in a 'candelabra' fixture. They work, but light quality and quantity has a ways to go. There's no easy way to convey colors on the internet (one of the other colors the vendor offered may, in retrospect, have been a better choice).

But there's an even easier way to take advantage of LEDs - christmas lights. We replaced the Christmas lights on our tree this past year with "winter white" LEDs, they look great. They also seem less hot than incandescents, which may increase tree life. Finally, my two year old has an affinity for the lights, so the cooler temperature and plastic covering also seem safer.

We use an LED flashlight at our cabin as a nightlight in our child's room. It goes all night, for about 15-20 nights before needing another 4AA batteries! They should ban regular-bulb flashlights for all the batteries they send to landfills.

I would like to see a nice, bright LED replacement for the hot and power-hungry Halogen mini-light. Nobody talks about these, but they're all the rage in new fixtures, and I bet they eat juice like crazy.

General LED question
I'm surprised Adam suggests LED flashlights...I bought one a year or so ago and was very surprised that they provide no "beam". LEDs are very bright if you look at them but hold the beam more than a foot from a piece of paper and you can't read it.

Lorne,

Did you know that disposeable AA batteries cost about $2000 per kWh? Sounds like you should get some rechargeable AA batteries for your nightlight. They cost more upfront but you'd recoup the cost in a few months. They can be recharged hundreds of times and take only a couple hours to recharge.

I have purchased LED lights to light my kitchen counter tops. They are terrible - worse than a night light! If someone would come up with something GOOD, it wouldn't be such a tough sell to get most people to "Go Green." This goes for all areas such as using solar panels to heat water. You would still need to run (waste) your water for 10 minutes before the hot water reaches the shower and then it only heats it up to 90% in sunny regions so electricity is still required. This is not a great sell for most people. We need to be offered the MOST EFFICIENT, EASIEST and LEAST EXPENSIVE ways to conserve. Once all of these goals are met, it will be more likely for us lazy Americans to buy into the plan.

The color of the light from LEDs is a major impediment to acceptance. At least one LED company, Cree, is finally making a true "soft white" or warm glow LED. Cree also has produced the highest efficiency LED evaluated by NIST so far, but "who is best or most efficient" changes frequently.

The problem with white LEDs is it takes at least 3 to 4 expensive ones to equal the light from a 10 watt CFL, plus the cost of a DC power circuit to drive them.

The LED market is also being flooded by Asian companies making poorly designed products. These have a distinct and unattractive blue or purple halo of light, a very harsh output often with poorer energy efficiencies.

Too bad GE teamed up with one of these Asian suppliers instead of looking into the domestic developments at places like Rensselaer Polytechnic and Cree. Doesn't show much ecomagination to flood the market with lighting that won't be accepted. Or maybe it is more important to them to keep the existing inefficient incandescent products around a little longer.

A suggestion from a woman who likes the CFL bulbs - for a softer, more flattering color of light, use a warm color of lamp shade or light fixture cover. After all, these are not the office-type fixtures that give a greenish undertone to skin and hair. CFL's provide excellent illumination which is, in my opinion, similar to daylight.
I'm not impressed with the LEDs I've seen so far in flashlights but will consider them as technology improves and cost comes down.

The good news is LED light prices are falling like a rock. I bought an LED flashlight a couple of years ago for about $60. I bought another one a couple of weeks ago for about $6.

LEDs are very well suited as a replacement for highly directional light, such as xenon and halogen bulbs used in under cabinet kitchen lighting .

I found some here: http://www.lampsplus.com/Products/UnderCabinet/

They would also be good to replace halogen track lighting.