Bulbs are getting even brainier in 2016

It’s not just you. With smart-home technology increasingly on the rise, light bulbs really are becoming more than just a symbol of intelligence and inspiration in a cartoon strip.



In April of last year, a report from Strategy Analytics’ Smart Home Strategies declared that smart bulbs were having a moment, and not a fleeting one at that. The proliferation of smart bulb alternatives to the original Philips Hue bulb has been remarkable, and they cover a wide range of price points and functionality.



LIFX, a Kickstarter-funded smart bulb manufacturer, recently made moves to cover that expanse with the introduction of a new affordable smart bulb last spring. The Wi-Fi-enabled White 800, which is priced at $39.99 retail, can emit a full range of energy-efficient colors and can be controlled remotely via mobile app. The more buzzy capabilities have to do with how it connects to other devices in one’s home — dimming automatically when a movie starts, or having your appliances “speak” to you by blinking a bulb in another room.



When NuTone launched its Smart Home Series shortly after that in May, a Smart Dimmable LED Light Bulb was part of the package. In October, BeON Home expanded its Bluetooth Smart home system to North America, which deploys smart modules hidden inside LED bulbs to provide emergency lighting during power outages — as well as to create the illusion that the owner is home.



Another example of the intersection of light bulbs and smart home technology are HomeBrite connected bulbs from Feit. These can be timed, dimmed and scheduled via Bluetooth.



But even the bulbs that aren’t dabbling in artificial intelligence are getting continually smarter. Standard LED bulbs aren’t so standard anymore, and many manufacturers are trying to outdo themselves with even greener (and better-looking) lighting.



New from Viribright is the Benchmark II LED Series, featuring the latest ViriTrue White Technology, which works by decreasing the thermal load and eliminating the need for red LEDs for CRI enhancement.



Cree also recently launched a new-and-improved LED bulb, this time with a lifetime of over 27 years (or 30,000 hours) — that’s six times longer than some LED bulbs, according to the company. The bulbs also have a higher color rendering index of 83, making it virtually indistinguishable from an incandescent.



Ace is certainly walking its talk, having recently reset its stores to feature a cutting-edge lighting assortment and extensively training its staff in lighting technology. The co-op also launched an LED retrofit service for small businesses that offers financing and utility rebates.



“LED is becoming the most desired technology, and while prices in the past were a barrier to entry, prices have reduced significantly at the end of 2015 (early 2016),” said Ace Hardware’s lighting merchant, John Essmann. “With more than 80% in energy savings, the time to upgrade lighting to LED is now.”