Every year the EdisonReport releases it’s Top 10 MUST SEE list of products. At the end of the year, we announce our LightTrades™ Awards, which list the ten best products introduced at all tradeshows. By being online and realtime, EdisonReport is able to evaluate products days before the start of the show as opposed to most award programs that require submittals up to three months prior. allowing our team to consider products that may not have been ready for submittal earlier in the year.
The team of judges evaluated 184 products—our most ever—and there are some fascinating products. With all of the business and networking that occur at the show, we encourage our audience to dedicate sufficient time and walk the floor and really experience the products. Below are the best that we are aware of:
Acuity Brands. Did we start with Acuity Brands because of their position in the alphabet, or because we think this is the best of the best? You decide. The RUBIK is a recessed, low profile, cell-like LED series of ceiling luminaires that enable lighting designers to think beyond the grid – with almost limitless possibilities. The 9, 5 & 3 cell luminaires work together to create traditional or original designs without modifying the ceiling. All forms of RUBIK are available with dynamic lighting features, including: white, tunable white, gray-scale and color accent. Do not leave the show without seeing this product. We believe the RUBIK to be the most appropriately named product being launched this year. The RUBIK is available in both the Acuity Brands booth and the JUNO booth and we witnessed a quick demo on Sunday. A very cool product. Booths 3217 and 3437.
Sengled has a hot product in their BR30 with JBL speakers. It’s just fun! Your humble editor first saw this product at the Consumer Electronic Show (CES) in Las Vegas when James Highgate demonstrated it in great detail. Highgate sent a few samples, which somehow ended up in my son’s home. I purchased a set on Bulbs.com, which somehow ended up in my daughter’s house. I purchased a third set, which as of this writing, are still installed in my home. Because I don’t have much of a life, I found it highly amusing to discretely change the color of my Philips Hue lamps for friends and neighbors and watch them freak out a bit. With Sengled, I slowly raise the volume of Adele and everyone looks up to try to find the speakers. It’s great and I think the Sengled BR30 with JBL speakers has made my Amazon Alexa jealous! Booth #424 – New Exhibitor Pavilion
While Cree recently introduced 205 LPW at the source level, our judges went with their TrueWhitePlus™ Technology, which is a spectral control breakthrough that delivers a better light experience. High CRI may not always be what retailers desire; instead they may want saturation in specific colors. Historically, to get the saturation, products fall off the black body curve and become pink or green, or they lose efficiency, or both! With TrueWhitePlus, Cree is able to offer the saturation, while optimizing the color spectrum and staying on the black body curve. Further, it is still high efficiency. This should be a big hit with retailers and the specification community. Booth 2637.
Echelon will exhibit their Lumewave™ Powerline-RF Gateway, a next-generation outdoor lighting control solution, which seamlessly integrates power line and wireless–two of the most widely used connectivity technologies. We believe this to be an industry exclusive. Apurba Pradhan told us that he belives every single light should be intelligently controlled, and Lumewave™ Powerline-RF Gateway enables cities to mix and match connectivity options, using wired and/or wireless links. He went on to explain that this is especially important when retrofitting decorative or historic luminaires. Booth 4501.
Forest Lighting. Our judges had a fierce discussion regarding retrofitting fluorescent fixtures and whether it is best to keep the ballast (easy install) or bypass the ballast (better long term-maintenance). The answer is both and Forest Lighting has that solution with their UniV8 T8 LED, which is unique because it’s technology is ballast-compatible or direct wired. Obviously, this reduces inventory for distributors, contractors, and end-users, and simplifies product selection. UniV8 T8 LED is available in 4 color temperatures, rated at >100 LPW, and lasts 50,000 hours. It is UL Listed for both Type A&B. Booth 1311.
Lumenetix has a winner with their araya Logic Module (ALM). The araya enables the highest quality of tunable light over the broadest tuning range and the ability to add saturation and hue levels of specific colors. The cost of the ALM approaches the tipping point where tunable color can compete with high quality fixed white. The small cost premium justifies the added benefits allowing ALM to offer the beauty and consistency of natural sunlight at an affordable cost. Booth 5529.
GREEN CREATIVE will exhibit their INNOFIT Series, which offers a clever field-adjustable lumen selector for three distinct lumen levels equivalent to various CFL lamp. Retrofits are very important and profitable in our industry and the simpler the better. The adjustable housing clips and wide trim ring allow the downlights to fit a large range of housings without the need for additional accessories. It can also be used in new construction. The INNOFIT SERIES commercial downlights come in 4”, 6”, 8” and 9.5” form factors, 2700K, 3000K, 3500K and 4000K color temperatures, run on 120-277V universal voltage and last 40,000 hours. Booth 1443.
Hubbell Control Solutions will show their NX Fixture Controller which is a simple modular system that can replace everything from stand-alone controls to wired to wireless networks, panel systems, and indoor/outdoor systems, etc. The module sensor can control on/off, intensity and color temperature (that’s big!). Our judges found this to be a neat product because it uses a standard RJ45 to connect the various aspects. If you want only an occupancy sensor, fine. It does that at the same cost point that one would normally pay for occupancy. If you want to talk to a NX wired system, simply daisy chain the devices and you are set. If you prefer a radio such as Zigby, EnOcean or NX Wireless, that’s easy. If you would like to work with Daintree who was recently acquired by Current who is powered by GE, you can do that as well. Booth 1521.
Deco has a clever (and cleverly named) product with their GO-kit. GO stands for Game Over! It is a retrofit kit, which converts a fluorescent fixture to a high end architectural fixture with a single chassis and four different lenses. Booth 5253.
Eaton will display their Ephesus All Field LED Sport Light which is a high-performing, energy-efficient sports lighting luminaire offering propriety controls (wired and wireless) and monitoring capabilities through Bluetooth low energy technology. Custom-engineered optics direct light precisely where needed while minimizing glare, resulting in a brighter, more uniform LED system than traditional systems and creating a better stage for players and fans. The fixtures are easy-to-install, virtually maintenance-free for years and offer the lowest total operating costs. Booth 2916