Whether last year’s holiday lights are burned out, you’re hoping to make your house the brightest on the block or you’re just looking to upgrade your style, you can find LED technology to fit your illumination needs.
LED lights are dropping in price, but generally remain a little more expensive than incandescent lights. Their energy efficiency and longevity can make them a better deal in the long run, though. A 2015 study by Alpharetta-based Christmas Lights Etc. found that 57 percent of consumers prefer LED Christmas lights, indicating that consumers are willing to pay a little more upfront for the advanced technology and long-term benefits.
Consider these benefits and trends when shopping for LED lights.
Benefits of LED lights
LED holiday lights are 80 percent more energy efficient than incandescent lights. “Incandescent has a piece of filament inside of it that gets really hot, hot enough on the inside to put off light,” said Joey Corona, light bulb merchant for The Home Depot. “It also puts off a lot of heat and uses up a lot of energy. With LED technology, you’re able to put out the same type of light using a much lower amount of energy.”
LED lights also last longer than their incandescent predecessors. Today’s LED holiday lights last approximately 20 years – seven times longer than incandescent holiday string lights.
LED lights are usually constructed with plastic as opposed to glass, making them more durable and less likely to break. They’re also cool to the touch.
As another benefit, Corona said improvements to LED technology over the past couple of years make it virtually impossible to tell the difference between incandescent and LED lights. “When the first LEDs came out years back, they looked more like spaceships than they did light bulbs,” Corona said. “And all of the technology and innovation and advancements that have been made in LEDs at this point, have gotten us back to a light bulb that looks like a light bulb.”
It’s particularly easy to mimic incandescent Christmas string lights. “Within a Christmas light application versus like a light bulb, the incandescent light bulb is an easier application to replicate in such a small bulb,” said Matthew Wyllie, merchandising director at Lowe’s.
Trends in LED lights
The Home Depot’s AppLights products have the ability to connect the lights to a mobile device or tablet where users can control certain functions, like turning lights on and off, adjusting brightness and color or connecting them to other AppLights products. The AppLights LED Candy Cane Pathway Light Stakes (set of 8) cost $59.98 and light up fences, walkways or paths.
New lights at Lowe’s include their series of dual color lights, said Angie Shore, vice president of merchandising. The dual color sets allow consumers to choose warm white or multi colors within the same light set and come in mini lights, icicle lights and net lights. Net lights can decorate bushes, shrubs or large surfaces. One option is the GE Staybright 5-foot by 4-foot Multi-Function Color Changing net light set, which costs $25.98 at Lowe’s.
Although mini lights are the go-to shape for many customers, larger, oval-shaped “retro” lights are also popular again. For example, the GE Energy Smart 100-Count Multicolor LED string light set from Lowe’s costs $24.98 and features the larger bulbs.
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