If OLEDs and other LEDs are able to provide a warm yellow light that doesn't flicker, then I hope that the US does not outlaw incandescent bulbs before OLEDs are cost-effective

CFLs are horrible: they flicker, the color is wrong, they give me headaches. Yes, I've tried the latest. No, they have not improved all that much over ten years ago that I have seen. If I have to give up useful, comfortable light in order to save energy, I hope there will be some alternatives to CFLs.

I have replaced 90% of the incandescent in my house with the latest in higher end CFLs. I do NOT get "flicker", there is instant on technology that gets rid of the warm up time. And in my bathroom fixtures I have CFL's designed in the warm light wavelength, that doesn’t give that stark white glare. At first glance you wouldn't even be able to tell they are CFL's because they are designed to look just like the old white globe lamps. If I could upload a picture for you Vir Modestus, I'd bet you would be impressed with how far CFL technology has really come. Improved phosphor formulations have improved the subjective color of the light emitted by CFLs such that some sources rate the best 'soft white' CFLs as subjectively similar in color to standard incandescent lamps. You get what you pay for I've noticed. I've taken the "cheaper off brand" bulbs back because of their low quality, and spent a couple extra dollars on a long term investment that doesn't take any change on my part for what color light I like to have around the house. I have one in the brighter "blue" spectrum on my front and back porch, and entry way, warmer ones in soft white in my reading lamp kitchen, bedrooms and office, and a little warmer towards the yellow spectrum in my bathrooms.
Now for LED technology, I must say I'm very anxious to see where they are taking this field! I've already invested in a few LED lights for starting my seedlings in the spring; they are in the red and blue spectrums. And they don't spike my electric bill when I'm just trying to start corn, lettuce, & tomatoes to get a head start on the shorter growing seasons in Colorado. I've been very impressed with them so far, keep this OLED technology coming! I'm willing and ready to add some for under cabinet lighting in my kitchen once it is available!

I agree about the varying quality of LEDs. There IS a difference. It's a matter of trial and error but I would much rather pay a little more for a better quality bulb. I'm all for the OLEDs as soon as they're consumer ready.

I'm in the migraine/headache camp. While applauding the energy savings of cfl's and the death of incandescent bulbs, i am very concerned that I will need to be living with dark glasses on all the time and avoiding most public places. We are about to do some re-modeling - suggestions of good cfl's would be very welcome.

thanks
judith

It's about time someone mentioned the future of lighting beyond cfl's. LED technology has been around for a while, they burn much less electricity then cfl's. I wasn't quite sure why the government hasn't done more to promote this technology. I understand it takes a while to integrate the new technology and bring down the cost.

I hope they do NOT legislate on specific technologies. They should be legislating on specifications for lighting.
In other words, incandescent lighting might not be a dead technology, based on some recent developments on filament design. It would be a shame if sales of incandescent lights were made illegal if they ended up being as efficient as LED, OLED, or CFL.
Legislate on lux/watt, not technology.
I feel precisely the same way about legislation promoting hybrid cars (even though I have one). They should be legislating on efficient cars, encouraging innovation, not specific technologies.
Promoting hybrids, per se, yields things like subsidies for hybrid Hummers and the like.

Try GLOBE brand lights. I actually get them for free from the city of Chicago (they give them out like candy at a parade) and I'm very pleased, they are not super-bright when first turned on but they do not flicker, they have a soft "incandescent like" glow and are only 13 watts. I'm also very picky about my lighting and these seem to be the best around. Fleet and Sylvania (the ones at Menards, Lowes, or Home Depot) are OK but just don't stack up to the Globe.

Fluorescent lights or incandescent lights don't really make a difference on my electric bill. I use an Ott light when I am working on a painting or woodburning. The ceiling lights are all fluorescent lights. But, I try to keep them turned off and only turn them on if I have to. I have seen a difference though between the fluorescent lights that I tend to buy vs. the ones the housing maintenance guys tend to buy. I've tried to use compact fluorescent lights in lamps and other areas that normally would have incandescent lights. The problem that I've found is that the compact fluorescent lights tend to burn out sooner.

Would I use a flexible light panel as described in the article? Maybe, depending on a variety of factors, with cost being at the top of the list.

I just had a remodeling project done on my house where most of the standard light switches were replaced with dimmers. The contractor told me that a dimmed incandescent bulb saves as much energy as a CFL. I'm sure this depends on how much you dim the lights, but I'm curious to know if anyone has any data on this. Also I've heard that dimmable CFLs leave a lot to be desired. Has anyone had experience with a good dimmable CFL bulb?

As for dimmed incandescent bulbs, they have to be at at least half power before the filament gets to a high enough temperature to give off anything beyond infrared. Remember that incandescents are only about 5% efficient at producing light; they're fine as electric heaters. (Double-lifetime ones are even worse from the extra filament support reducing overall filament temperature.) The reason halogen bulbs are twice as efficient as normal incandescent bulbs is that the filaments are able to sustain much higher temperatures without burning out; go in the other direction and you have a dull red mini heater. The electrician was full of it; he probably didn't want to get into reduced bulb lifetime issues with dimmed conventional CFLs, which get along with dimmers about as well as mice get along with cats.

CFL sales are declining without the support of continued incentive programs: http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/28/as-cfl-sales-fall-more-incentives-urged/

I am not sure the public is embracing them as a short-term solution to anything right now.

Halogen lights are the pits!

I live in the tropics and the heat emitted by them is high and unwanted in a warm climate. They might do as de facto heaters in a cold climate [ where they were used mostly]. However, they are common in many houses [ugh!].

We have undimmed CFL and fluorescent lights - and looking at LED. I think there are some people for which the only possible CFL to use is the "shielded" double glass type, and even then, they may still be troubled. A lot has been written in the literature about this issue.

However, most people are not affected.

Conventional LED prices are falling quickly - and in commercial areas, the extended life, which means lower maintenance due to longer periods between replacement, as well as lower energy costs, will drive a BIG switch very soon.