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I have been testing various brands of LED lamps over the last year to try to find something I can live with in my own home, and recommend to clients (architect). For me, energy efficiency and brightness are important, but not as cruical as the color and quality of light. CRI (color rendering index) has been important in my search.
I have been experimenting with the Sylvania Ultra HD Sylvania 78748 LED10PAR20/DIM/P/930/FL30 Dimmable LED Light Bulb. While the quality of light is excellent (95 CRI), it does not have to comfortable warm glow of halogen incandescent, and it casts a very sharp shadow. This may work well in a retail or gallery type situation, but in my living room it is too stark looking. What I'm looking for here is a comforting warm glow for subtile accent and ambiance lighting with the fixtures dimmed.
Enter the Toshiba. I purchased one of these to try out, and I was instantly impressed after I installed it. The color is nearly identical to the PAR20s I have installed in the other fixtures. And the soft shadow it casts is nearly identical as well. At 100% it is slightly more orange, but as you dim them, it becomes closer in color to the halogens (incandescents get redder as you dim them, while LEDs stay pretty much the same color. A good thing if you want color consistency, like in a kitchen or bath, but may not be desirable if you are looking for warm ambiance in a living room). Dimmed all the way down, the Toshiba looks a little whiter than the halogens, but still very comforting. Also good with the Leutron magnetic slider. The only downside is the delay when turning on is a little long longer than the Sylvania.
I'd say if you are looking for an LED that will be nearly indistinguishable from a halogen PAR20, this is the one. Particularly where you want the slightly redder, more romantic glow (that humans find so comforting due to thousands of years of deriving light from fire). If you want a slightly whiter light for task lighting in the kitchen or office, I'd look at the 3000K version. FWIW, I prefer a slightly softer shadow for task lighting, as a very sharp shadow, while increasing contrast, can be a little fatiguing, so still would probably stay away form the Sylvania.
Update: Regarding the dimming, these dim very smoothly, with no flicker. However you may need to use a dimmer designed for LED to get them to their lowest output. I was using Leutron Maestro dimmers, and I found I had to run one incandescent PAR20 in the circuit in order to get full dimming. I have since switched to the new Maestro CF/LED dimmer, and it works flawlessly. This is not a fault of the eCores, but a characteristic of all LEDs. The voltage required to fully dim LEDs is so much lower than that needed to dim incandescents, and most conventional dimmers simply don't go that low, so it's a good idea to figure replacement dimmers into the equation if you will use them.
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I was prepared to like this product.I am using this in a range hood. It doesn't dim with a three position (off/ low/ high) dimming switch. It might work with a continuous "knob" style dimmer switch (rheostat or variable resistance for you EE's out there), but this bulb won't even light up on the "low" setting of the three position (off/ low/ high) dimming paddle switch I have on my range hood.
I DO like the 2700K light it provides. I DO NOT like how narrow the beam is.
I liked the following bulb from a different vendor better because it dims with the off/low/high switch on my range hood and also lights faster (the Toshiba bulb has a noticeable delay to come "on"). I can forgive the fact that this other bulb is 3000K for it's light "temperature" (this makes things illuminated by it seem more "washed out" and less "golden" than the 2700K Toshiba bulb). The following bulb also has a wider beam 40 degree angle vs the Toshiba's 27 degree angle, so a greater area of my cooktop is illuminated:
TCP LED9E26P2030KFL LED 9 Watt PAR20 40 Degree Flood Light by North
Best Deals for Toshiba LDRB0927ME6USD PAR 20 Dimmable 390 Lumens 9 Watt LED Light
I'll just second what reviewer funkle0 says. These are the closest replacement for halogen available. Their light quality is excellent throughout the dimming range, really even superior to halogen.I'm using a dozen of these Toshiba PAR20s with SmartHome Insteon dimmers and they work great. No flickering or weirdness. They dim down smoothly to 20% then go off.
These aren't the cheapest but believe me, the quality of these units is well worth the extra $10 per bulb. You won't be disappointed.
Honest reviews on Toshiba LDRB0927ME6USD PAR 20 Dimmable 390 Lumens 9 Watt LED Light
The lumen output of these LED bulbs are great and reach approx 55-60W compared to standard 50W PAR20. The light color is similar (with 2700K) and stable at different level. Worked with my current Cooper dimmer, no noise. Dimming range would be 20% to 100%. The lowest level on the dimmer correpondant to 2-5W on a standard PAR20 while cannot go lower than approx 20% of lumen output with these LED bulbs. Not a major issue but it is noticable as my two LED bulbs work together with an analog (standard) PAR20 on the same circuit. Lightning up delay of about 1 second compare to standard PAR20. No heat and flickering less than 1s when light up. 25 deg flood seems right but hard to comment on. Would buy again for this quality and preformance. My LED bulbs replace two analog standard PAR20 which cause burning spots on wood doors (distance less than 2 inch) because of heat.Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Toshiba LDRB0927ME6USD PAR 20 Dimmable 390 Lumens 9 Watt LED Light
These replaced 50W halogen flood lights and I can't tell the difference. there is a slight lag from when you flip the switch to when the light comes on, maybe a half a second. These also did not work in my recessed can lights that are controlled by an electronic switch with a remote wireless switch. They say dimmable, but I can't verify that my lights are all on/off.Great lights and about 2/3 the price of my local light bulb store that wanted $65 each.
