by Cristina Foung 
My favorite green product of the week: the EarthLED EvoLux S LED light bulb
What is it?
A while back, I wrote about the EarthLED CL-3, but that was before I knew about the EvoLux S. Let me tell you…this is quite a bulb. Here are the basics: it’s a 13-watt LED light bulb that puts out 900 lumens. It uses an advanced CREE 13 watt light engine and has a standard base, so it can fit pretty much anywhere a standard incandescent (or CFL) can.
Why is it better?
Well, for the amount of light it puts out, it uses far less electricity than incandescent or CFL bulbs use (EarthLED says that the EvoLux S is comparable to a 100-watt incandescent). So clearly in terms of energy efficiency, it wins hands down.
Based on a formula to calculate the lifetime cost of a light bulb, a 100-watt incandescent light bulb which puts out 950 lumens and runs for 1,500 hours will cost you about $11.04 per megalumen-hour. Although the upfront cost of LED light bulbs is much higher, turns out for the EarthLED EvoLux S, you’ll spend only $3.22 per megalumen-hour (assuming $0.10/kWh). EarthLED reports that it only costs $5.70 to run an EvoLux S for a year.
And finally, it’s just a good light bulb. I’ve had mine for about a week – the light is not as diffuse as an incandescent or CFL but it’s amazingly bright. Doing the touch test, an incandescent got hot within 5 minutes of having the lamp on. The CFL warmed within about 7 minutes. The LED? Even after having it on for an hour, I could put my hand on it and it was cool.
The only drawbacks of note that I’ve experienced (and that others have confirmed) are a) light diffusion (I think the bulb would be a little better suited in an overhead downlight rather than in a bedside table lamp); and b) you can hear the fan. It’s pretty quiet. But if you’re reading by it, you can hear it hum. Overall, it’s a great option for a bright LED light bulb that’s available now.
Where can you find it?
You can get your very own EvoLux S in warm or cool white for a bargain price of $79.99 (ouch, I know, but think of the lifetime savings) from the EarthLED online store.
Besides her green products column on Cleantech Blog, Cristina is a passionate advocate for green living at the Green Home Huddle at Huddler.com, which focuses on electric cars, energy efficient appliances, and other green products.
