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Definitely I'm not blogging about the small, compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFLs) that we are all busy replacing their energy-wasting incandescents with. No, I mean the bulb that is one technological leap beyond CFL, the LED. Until recently, LEDs have been a little bit of a let down for everyday use but Philips have come up with a new bulb that can make the critics keep quiet. My basic plans have been to revamp my entire energy consumption strategy, to lower my carbon footprint to as close to ZERO as I can possibly manage and, at the same time, to have good, bright and comfortable lighting within my property rather than the uncomfortable blue glow that historically is produced with low energy lighting solutions. Under my big plans about self sufficiency and, in waiting of the departure of the age of the incandescent bulb, I've been looking into the best way to replace the lights in my home with lower-energy alternatives. Seeking out CFL replacements for the bayonet and screw-cap sockets in living rooms and bedrooms is and always has been a piece of cake. The number of reliable bulbs in various shapes, sizes and brightnesses has bloomed in recent years and their prices keep getting lower. (Actually, the prices are a steal - I replaced a bunch of bulbs at my parents' home recently and managed to buy 10 good-quality CFLs for 50p). A bit trickier are the lights in my bathroom and in my kitchen and dining room. These were a mixture of halogen spotlights with GU10 sockets and R50 reflector bulbs with screw caps. All were at least 50W each and they all had to go. As Russell Smith of Eco Parity Solutions found in the energy survey of my home a few weeks back, the carbon footprint of my electricity consumption was vast, and almost all of it was utilized in my lighting. First Up, I looked for direct alternatives for the R50 reflector bulbs. Megaman, a great supplier of low-energy lights, makes some but they're touch to find even in specialist DIY shops, so not the most accessible choice. Another option I thought about was to get all the light sockets in the kitchen and bathroom swapped over with typical gu10 led sockets if I could find a decent halogen-replacement. After some messing around, I settled on 11W Megaman spotlights: they're a bit longer than halogen bulbs but still fit in the standard sockets. Altogether I replaced 17 incandescent 50W bulbs with 11W CFL spotlights, each costing around 9. But there was something still bothering me. Before settling on the Megaman spotlights I had flirted with LEDs. Compelled by their even lower power consumption (sometimes just 2-3W) I even went ahead and bought a few to try out. But, as anyone who's gone down this road will agree, LEDs are still expensive and, overall, a bit rubbish in practice. The bulbs I got were very dim indeed and the light was an ugly blueish-white. They definitely weren't cheap - at around 10 quid each - and truly the only thing they had going for them was that they came on immediately. Even the Megaman CFLs I eventually settled on take around 30 seconds to get to full brightness from a cold start. But this just wasn't enough to convince me to use them. But man things change quickly. This month, Philips unveiled its new number of LED bulbs. I was not convinced that they'd be any better than the bucketfull I had tried already but, well, something has certainly changed in this technology. The 3W Econic spotlight is a direct replacement for the ubiquitous 35W halogen bulb and claims to have the same light output. When I tried it out, I found that Philips wasn't exaggerating. This might be brighter than any other LED I've come across. Putting two in our small shower room, after a while I forgot that the bulbs were not halogens. There are some little problems however. The light is whiter than is ideal but by no means harsh (I wouldn't, for example, have any problems using an array of these bulbs in my kitchen and bathroom but probably not bedrooms and lounges). Then there's the upfront charge, Check This Out and is very steep - each Econic bulb comes in at 25. But the manufacturers claim the bulb will keep going for 15 years. Given the electricity discounts over that period too, this may feel an investment worthwhile creating. This new range from Philips additionally includes some candle-shaped bulbs and a screw-cap bulb too. The most interesting thing about the Econic and its new stablemates is the fact that eventually here's an LED bulb worthwhile talking about.