Cree brings three-way LEDs center stage (hands-on)
Cree's new $25 three-way LED bulb can simulate 30W, 60W, and 100W incandescents.
When Apple unveiled HomeKit for iOS 8 at WWDC 2014 earlier this week, Cree was among a handful of companies already compatible with the smart home, Siri-integrated platform. Now, Cree is generating even more buzz with today's announcement of a three-way 30W, 60W, and 100W replacement LED bulb.
This new bulb is available for $25 (£15, AU$27) at Home Depot online and in stores in the US, but UK and Australian availability have yet to be announced.
This is a pretty big deal for the LED industry. A quick online search will tell you that there aren't a ton of three-way LED bulbs available. That's especially true among big-name manufacturers, but Cree is making a clear effort to bring more versatility to its lineup. I wouldn't mind being able to transition from accent to reading light without needing to move to a different lamp with a different bulb.
| Cree 30W | Cree 60W | Cree 100W | |
| Lumens | 320 | 820 | 1,620 |
| Watts | 3 | 8 | 18 |
Efficiency (lumens/watt) | 106.7 | 102.5 | 90 |
While this specific bulb is new territory for Cree, it does share similarities with the brand's more basic LEDs. It retains the same 2,700K color temperature, 25,000-hour lifespan, and 10-year warranty as Cree's single 60W and 100W replacement LEDs . Not only that, but I couldn't tell a big difference between the three-way bulb's "60W" 820 lumens and the regular "60W" LED's 800 lumens. The same goes for the three-way bulb's "100W" 1,620 lumens and the regular "100W" LED's 1,600 lumens.
Upon closer inspection, you can see some subtle differences, but the main takeaway is that the three-way 60W and 100W replacement settings aren't dramatically different from what we observed in Cree's standard 60W and 100W bulbs. Of course, we'll have a more detailed analysis of the specs in the upcoming review, complete with spectrometer readings and all other sorts of LED bulb goodness.