March 28, 2024

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GE’s bright idea: a brighter Bright Stik LED


Chris Monroe/CNET

The original, 60W replacement version of GE’s Bright Stik LED was one of our favorite value bulbs of 2015. Now, for 2016, GE is releasing a bigger, brighter version of the Bright Stik that’s designed to put out as much light as a 100W incandescent bulb. Soft white versions of the light will sell in two-packs at Sam’s Club locations for a price of $16 — by far the lowest price we’ve seen for a 100W replacement LED from a major manufacturer.

That still might sound like a lot to spend on a light bulb, but factor the energy savings in. Assuming you’re using it for an average of three hours per day, a 100W incandescent will add about $12 to your yearly energy bill. On the other hand, with a power draw of just 16 watts, the 100W Replacement Bright Stik LED will add less than $2. At $8 each, the Bright Stik LED will pay for itself in less than a year, and it’ll also last about 15 times longer than that incandescent — 15,000 hours in total, backed by a five-year warranty.

  • Brightness: 1,520 lumens
  • Energy used: 16W
  • Color temperature: 2,850 K
  • Color rendering index: 80
  • Dimmable: No
  • Lifespan: 15,000 hours
  • Warranty: Five years
  • Price: $15.99 for two

GE claims that the new Bright Stiks put out 1,520 lumens’ worth of brightness — roughly double the lumens of the original Bright Stik LED, and fairly within the 100W replacement ballpark (most 100W bulbs will put out somewhere around 1,600 lumens). For now, the bulbs are only available in a soft white color temperature of 2,850 K, though 5,000 K daylight varieties are supposed to be on the way.

GE claims that the new Bright Stiks put out 1,520 lumens’ worth of brightness.


Chris Monroe/CNET

A GE representative tells me that Reveal-branded Bright Stik LEDs designed to make the colors in your home look better are also coming later in 2016. Those might be worth watching for — other GE Reveal bulbs have done very well in our tests, including the GE Reveal BR30 LED, which won our Editors’ Choice distinction.

Like the original, the 100W replacement version of the Bright Stik LED isn’t compatible with dimmer switches. That didn’t stop us from seeing value the first time around, and I see a lot of that same value here — especially considering that most other 100W replacement LEDs still cost at least $15 or even $20 each. We’ll take all of it into consideration when we test the bulb out and give it the full review treatment in the coming weeks.

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