Dismantling: A19 LED Bulbs are expensive secrets

Most of the lamps and light sources today use standard A19 bulbs, which are now available in LED versions, but at a high price. For example, an LED bulb that is equivalent to a 40W or 60W ordinary bulb brightness has a retail price of $20 and $40, respectively. Some LED lights are dimmable, some are not adjustable; others have only a few dimming files for a particular LED light. These LED bulbs claim to have an expected life of 25,000 to 50,000 hours under normal three or four hours of use. These LED bulbs may be longer than the user if used properly and economically. But why are LED bulbs so expensive? Are they really worth the money?

In the process of finding the scientific answer by component analysis company MuAnalysis, we have dismantled five A19 LED bulbs: one of them is a Philips product (12.5W/800 lumens), equivalent to a 60W ordinary bulb; The products from Feit, GE, Pharox and Sylvania are equivalent to 40W ordinary bulbs. By dismantling these five bulbs, we found a lot of problems.

Each LED bulb is packaged in a special package. Unlike the shrink-wrapped packages of tungsten and CFL bulbs, the cool packaging of these LED bulbs adds to the overall cost. Obviously, these bulbs have not yet succumbed to ordinary goods; they are expensive and the momentum is expected to continue.

However, in the current environment where the price of electronic products is rapidly declining, the long service life is no longer the only focus of attention. So why is a light bulb product more expensive than a low-cost digital camera?

For simple products like light bulbs, the appearance is definitely a selling point. The appearance of each of the LED bulbs we have disassembled is unconventional. For example, GE's bulbs use ceramic necks and linings, and have a glass stem, which is more expensive than plastic and metal.

The bulb neck of all bulbs is equipped with a small printed circuit board. The large volume of electrolytic capacitors and transformers is the indispensable protagonist on the board. The LED reliability factor has been greatly improved; however, how long can the life of electrolytic capacitors be in high heat working conditions?

Dimmable bulbs use power transistors from Infineon or STMicroelectronics. Among these lamps, we did not find silicon carbide technology.