GE 47448 12/23/29-Watt CFL (50/100/150-Watt equivalent) Energy Smart Spiral 3-Way Light Bulb
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of GE 47448 12/23/29-Watt CFL (50/100/150-Watt equivalent) Energy Smart Spiral 3-Way Light Bulb
Customer Review: Great idea, poor design.
Summary: 1 Stars
We bought one of these about a year ago for our free-standing living room lamp. When we got it home, it would not fit due to the cradle that holds the shate being too small. I found a larger cradle and installed it along with the bulb, and everything worked fine. We used the lamp for about two hours in the early morning only. In three months, it burned out. I no longer had the receipt, so I just ate the $10 loss on that one and went to incandescent. I noticed the incandescent had a bit of a flicker when turned on, so I replaced the socket assembly and it then worked fine. Then I got thinking that maybe this flicker is what caused the short life span of the 3 way CFL, so decided to try ANOTHER $10 GE 3-wya CFL. I bought it yesterday, screwed it in and tested it - it worked fine.
This morning, I turned it on LOW and started computer work.'
It failed in about 30 minutes.
I have owned TWO of these, and the average life span of the two is six weeks at two hours a day - 84 hours.
Customer Review: Huge...wouldn't fit any of my lamps
Summary: 3 Stars
This bulb is huge. It wouldn't fit any of my lamps. It's going straight back to the store.Customer Review: I Expected More and Got Less ....
Summary: 2 Stars
I bought these as replacements for Verilux 50-100-150 Daylight Spectrum incandescent light bulbs. The Verilux bulbs are great in the winter time, effectively warding off SAD, and they last a long time before burning out (I replaced one about every 2 or 3 years). I was enticed by the description of the CFL's as having the same light as a soft white light and that they used less electricity, so I took a chance.
The CFL bulbs are not all they're cracked up to be. Sure, they may use less electricity and thay may last a long time but they have their drawbacks. For one, they're taller than the lights they replace, about an inch to an inch-and-a-half taller. They just barely fit within my lamp's harp and since they're square at the top, they just graze the round top of the harp. On a second lamp, they're so tall they prevent the harp from fully seating on the bulb holder, so the installation does not accept any robust handling. Good thing that light is switched on from a wall switch.
Second, in spite of being advertised as having the same light as a soft white bulb, they give off a slightly greenish glow that is not as pleasant as the Verilux bulbs they replace. Is that what they mean when they say CFL bulbs are environmentally "green?" Still, the light they give off is bright enough, and there's a distinct increase in brightness as one goes from the 50 to the 100 to the 150-watt setting. All-in-all, the light they give off is OK but it's not a warm or inviting light and in viewing a Verilux bulb and the CFL bulb side-by-side one would not choose the CFL bulb.
Third, if an incandescent bulb breaks, you sweep up the pieces and throw them in the garbage. The CFL's, if I'm not mistaken, have a fine-print warning on the box saying that while they contain only trace amounts of mercury, one should use caution in how they're disposed of. Just how much caution one should use is unsaid and what disposal procedures should be followed is a mystery to me.
In sum, don't expect these bulbs to give off the same soft white light you're used to. Be cautious in handling them. Be sure you have an inch or so of extra space above the 50-100-150 bulb you're replacing.
Oh, one more thing: they take about a second to light up after they're switched on (so ignore the thought that maybe it burned out), and when they do light up they are noticeably dim for the first 15 seconds or so until they "warm" up.
Customer Review: Larger than a standard incandescent bulb
Summary: 3 Stars
Just want folks to be aware that these measure approximately 6.5" in length, or about an inch longer than a typical-sized incandescent bulb (like 60 or 100 W variety). I was interested in getting one of these to replace the 50/100/150 W incandescent bulb in my living room lamp (the tall, free-standing kind), but found it to be too long as it comes out of the top by about an inch. For now I am waiting for a company to come out with a CFL 50/100/150 equivalent that matches up in size better.Customer Review: Lousy quality
Summary: 1 Stars
Have had to take back two of these bulbs -- the first one made a popping sound a few days after placement and went out on all three settings, the other only worked on the middle setting. I purchased these at Target, but will go to Home Depot to look for a better option.