Wait a few days. According to their press release, the new Cree bulbs are supposed to be stock at HD by March 21st.

Here is a link that might be useful: New Cree bulbs

The Cree bulbs look nice and conventional and should have excellent omnidirectionality and dimmability, and be reasonably priced Light quality - I'm not so sure - CRI only 80, lower than most CFLs. I like that they're mostly incandescent-matching 2700K rather than 3000K of most $10 LEDs. I'll reserve final judgement until after I can try one out.

Agree about the old Philips yellow 3-section bulbs, don't like the light quality, and they look spacey when off. The newer replacements are similarly shaped but all white and call less attention to themselves. Don't know if they'll give off better light.

I picked up my first ever LED yesterday: Cree LED 60 W, 800 lumens, 2700 for $12.99 (the Cree LED 40W was $10) at HD. Curious how long it will last.

This morning it's snowy here, so I took a look at it and it does seem to emit a warm light similar to the incandescent and less blue than the CFL it replaced (the latter always seemed to burn out).

We also bought some 75 W incandescent to carry us over while incandescent bulbs are switched out. Really wish I had gotten some 100 Watts before the phase out.

What does CRI refer to? Thanks.

color rendering index - an industry-standard metric for measuring how well a light bulb renders and distinguishes different colors. Typically, higher CRI = vibrant colors, low CRI bulbs dull colors. But the CRI index has been shown not to perfectly correlate with human perception of light quality. It's a good general guide, and the only one that's the same between manufacturers, but not a pefect indicator of light quality, and I've seen certain 80-something CRI bulbs that give off seemingly perfect light.

Thanks lee676. After posting my question, I decided to start a tutorial on LED by Lightolier, since a good chunk of my kitchen model will be spent on updating lighting. Most GC's suggest LED (both CANS and UC's). Some suggest switch out CANS (compatible with future LED bulbs) and Xenon UC's.

I hear Lightolier (ePhillips) makes a good LED product. Any thoughts?

Sparklingwater, the following thread should answer a number of your queries

Here is a link that might be useful: Led recessed lighting guide

Thanks davidtay. I read through that illuminating thread once, but you're right, time to read it again!