LED lamps Ecola (Ekola): review of the line, advantages and disadvantages, consumer reviews

Expert: Andrey Nikolaevich Kuznetsov

*Review of the best according to the editors of expertology.ru. About the selection criteria. This material is subjective in nature, does not constitute advertising and does not serve as a purchase guide. Before purchasing, consultation with a specialist is required.

LED lamps for home use are an excellent alternative to traditional lighting fixtures. They do not flicker, can have different color temperatures, consume minimal energy and have a long service life. But the main thing is to choose the right lamp.

Therefore, we have compiled a rating of the 12 best manufacturers of LED light bulbs, whose products are characterized by high reliability and quality.

How to choose an LED light bulb

When choosing an LED lamp, you should pay attention to the following parameters:

1. Actual or equivalent power;
2. Light flow;
3. Colorful temperature;
4. Color rendering index;
5. Ripple factor.

LED lamp power

may be defined factually or equivalently. The first parameter shows how much electricity the device consumes. It can be very small - literally 6-10 watts, but this should not be confusing. Because LEDs consume minimal current. So, a 6-watt LED lamp shines as brightly as a 40-watt incandescent lamp; and a 10-watt LED is like a 60-watt incandescent.

Actually, this particular parameter can be indicated on the packaging - “equivalent to a 40 W incandescent lamp”, “equivalent to a 60 W incandescent lamp”.

Light flow

– a parameter that determines the brightness of the light bulb. More objective than actual or equivalent power. LED bulbs with a flux of 400 lumens are similar in brightness to 40-watt incandescent lamps, 600 lumens are similar to 60-watt incandescent lamps, and 1000 lumens are similar to 100-watt incandescent lamps.

Colorful temperature

– a parameter that describes whether the lamp will shine with warm or cold light. So:

1. Up to 2800 K - “warm yellow”, like old incandescent lamps;
2. About 3000 K - “warm white”, like modern incandescent lamps;
3. About 4000 K - “neutral white”, for kitchens and office spaces;
4. About 5000 K - “cool white”, for utility rooms. In the house with such a lamp it will be uncomfortable, and it causes severe strain on the eyes.

Color rendering index

– an important parameter that determines how much the light from the light bulb will affect the shades of surrounding objects. It is designated by CRI or Ra characteristics. It is recommended that the color rendering index be at least 80, and preferably 90 or higher.

With a low color rendering index, objects around you will look gray or unnaturally yellow, which affects not only your mood, but also the overall level of comfort in the room.

The pulsation coefficient shows the uniformity of the glow

. For most good LED lamps it is around 5%. If the pulsation coefficient is more than 35%, it is better not to use such a lamp - it will lead to serious eye strain.

Other characteristics do not have a special impact on operational parameters. Therefore, you don’t have to consider them - or choose LED light bulbs based on your wishes and requirements.

Quality of LED lamps now and 4 years ago

Before you read the rating, I want to inform you that at present (2019-2021) the quality of all manufacturers of LED lamps has noticeably deteriorated. Most likely this is due to an economic point of view. It is not beneficial for manufacturers that, given the popularity of LED lamps, their actual service life is 3-4 years. Some manufacturers do not install a driver at all and connect the LEDs in series; if one of them burns out, the entire lamp stops lighting. Some install a driver, but deliberately increase the output current in order to speed up the degradation of the LEDs. Still others use low-quality radiators or do not use them at all. And for LEDs, good cooling is almost mandatory!

e27 LED light source with cooling heatsink

Some buying tips:

• Do not choose e27 lamps that are too powerful, as they are more difficult to cool. It’s better to have a couple of 5-10 W lamps than one powerful 20-35 W lamp. There won't be much difference in price.
• The optimal power of filament lamps is 5-7 W. High power lamps should be purchased with a radiator. Especially filament lamps - they heat up even more

Filament light source lamp e27

• The larger the base of the LED lamp, the better. Again, for reasons of LED degradation due to their heating. Minimize the purchase of LED lamps with e14, g4, g9 ... etc. sockets.
• You should buy lamps with a warranty (2-3 years) and closer to home :)

I hope the quality of LED lamps will soon be much better.

Rating of the best manufacturers of LED light bulbs

Kinds

Ecola company offers a huge range of different light-producing designs. These include the following:

Lamps. The company presents a large selection of lamps that differ in the structure of the base and shape. They offer base types GX53, GX70, E14, E27, E40 or GU 5.3, G9. Bulb shapes come in corn, candle, ball, spiral or regular pear shapes. Thanks to the wide range of shapes and designs, light bulbs can be matched to any chandelier or sconce. The lamps are made both LED and energy saving. Glass also comes in different varieties: you can choose frosted or transparent. The degree of light intensity depends on this: frosted glass absorbs about 5% of the light and scatters it, while transparent glass transmits the beam almost completely.

• Ribbon. The use of this relatively new type of lighting has already become a favorite among all professional designers. Ease of installation and an abundance of options make LED strip an excellent choice for “difficult” areas. The Ecola company offers tapes of various widths with different degrees of brightness, and it can vary depending on the power of the LEDs themselves and the frequency of their location. Various unusual colors such as red, green, blue, white and others allow you to choose from the model range what you need. The degrees of protection also vary: you can choose an LED strip for the bathroom.
• Panels. This type appeared in the Ecola product line quite recently. The manufacturer claims that such a panel can easily replace conventional lamp fixtures made from Armstrong ceilings. LED panels are available in a variety of wattages and color temperatures, and consume significantly less electrical energy than standard ceiling lamps.

The best manufacturers of LED light bulbs

Philips

Rating: 4.9

Why it: Proven eye safety and state-of-the-art technology.

Philips is one of the oldest manufacturers of lighting devices in general and LED lamps in particular. But its main advantage is the use of the latest technologies. Thus, the current product line includes solutions with the glow temperature switchable at the touch of a button, ultra-budget models of the Essential series for a quick and economical transition to LED devices, and even filament lamps with a transparent glass body that provide uniform angles of incidence of light.

All LED lamps developed and sold by this company have passed laboratory tests confirming their safety for vision. This is achieved not only thanks to specially set temperature parameters, but also to the almost complete absence of flicker - the pulsation coefficient, even in ultra-budget models of the Essential series, rarely exceeds 10%.

Advantages

• All lamps have passed laboratory tests showing safety of use;
• There are models with switchable color temperature;
• There are super-budget solutions.

Flaws

• High price for recessed and filament lamps;
• Narrow light dispersion angle for budget models.

Total: what to buy?

Obviously, foreign brands OSRAM and Philips hold the mark. But the domestic ERGOLUX and Navigator were almost as good as them in our test, and they cost significantly less. Of course, the issue of resource remains open, but even if these lamps last less, the savings will still be noticeable.

This is interesting:

• How to fix an LED light bulb yourself: step-by-step instructions

The best manufacturers of LED smart light bulbs

Xiaomi

Rating: 4.9

Why it: Low price, compatible with proprietary smart home platform.

The main advantage of LED light bulbs from the Chinese company Xiaomi is full compatibility with the proprietary smart home platform. To configure the device, you do not need to buy additional hubs or prescribe operating algorithms. There is already a Xiaomi “head center” in the house - the light bulb will automatically connect to it.

Xiaomi Yeelight smart LED lamps are also good as lighting sources. They support more than 16 million colors thanks to RGB LED elements, adjustable color temperatures from 1500 to 6500 Kelvin (from "dim warm yellow" to "cool white"), and have a flicker rate of less than 10%.

The lamp supports communication with a smartphone and control via voice assistants Google Assistant and Yandex.Alice (via third-party plugins). You can connect other applications - for example, automate via IFTTT.

Advantages

• Full integration into the Mi Home system;
• Wide range of color temperatures and shades available;
• Expandable functionality through third-party applications.

Flaws

• Sometimes the application is unstable;
• It is difficult to find a model with the required base;
• Poorly Russified software.

Redmond

Rating: 4.8

Why it: Very low price, supports full remote control.

The Redmond smart LED light bulb is the cheapest device in its segment of the rating. At the time of writing, it can be purchased for literally a few hundred rubles! At the same time, the device supports completely remote control, as well as automatic switching on and off according to a schedule or via connection with a smartphone.

For complete remote control, the device is equipped with support for proprietary Ready for Sky technology, which connects all the company’s smart technology into a single home network with Internet access through the Gateway application.

Automatic switching on and off works in three scenarios. The first is through the application itself. The second is through the connection between the smartphone and the device: for example, when the owner comes home. The third is on schedule. Another important advantage of the device is that it is equipped with a standard E27 socket.

Advantages

• Fast and easy connection;
• Supports full remote control;
• Stable work.

Flaws

• The device itself is large;
• Plastic case.

Positive aspects of the brand

The brand undoubtedly has positive aspects. These are the immutable ones:

• price - unlike its eminent counterparts, the Eastern European company firmly adheres to the policy of accessibility in relation to its products, solutions are constantly being sought to replace expensive parts with simple analogues while maintaining performance;
• large selection - the brand does not pursue exclusivity, looking for options for a wide variety of tastes and circumstances, both traditional and special;
• unusualness – among the proposals you can find both stylish, minimalist design and bright, unusual shapes and bold combinations.

At one time, it was Ecola that produced stunning colored spiral light bulbs, from one glance at which a wave of positivity and curiosity arose in those passing by.

The colored light bulbs are entirely the company's initiative. There are no other brands that produce something similar, or their analogues are too few. The brand's engineers warn that if you connect several different colors into one chandelier at once, according to the laws of physics the light will turn out white

The most important thing is that manufacturers do not rest on their laurels, but listen sensitively to feedback, instantly responding to customer demand with an actual offer. The company is constantly developing, and today is able to provide real, working quality.