LED GU10 Bulbs

Reviewing these GU10 lamps.

These lights are pretty damn bright ! They are quite 'glary' when viewed from the side, as they are longer and mount flush to, or even proud of, fittings rather than slightly recessed as a conventional halogen GU10 would.

Unfortunately, the Achilles heel of these as with many LED products is not the LED itself but the electronics behind it. I've several of these lamps that have seen good service, but one went after only a few hours of use. The seller (Brightlightz) didn't honour the warranty and replace it - just kept saying he would. I doubt I'd buy from him again.

Nearly 3 years ago we bought lampholders and LED GU10 bulbs at the same time from City Electrical Factors. This was for the kitchen. The bulb brand is Kosnic. They were supposed to last for xxx. The bulbs began failing after about a year which is nothing like the life they are supposed to have. I needed more so I asked Simply LED (Burton & Sons) who said that Kosnic is a poor quality brand and their own were much longer lasting. These came in plain white boxes and I changed the whole lot. Surprise surprise they started failing within a year and Burton & Sons (after being threatened with Trading Standards) replaced the failures. All was well for a while. Failures began again. Now, Burton & Sons (SimplyLED) does not answer. Failure rate now is several a week, sometimes 2 in a day, and the original Kosnic bulbs are being used up fast. My wife is dusting down the hurricane lamp. When they fail, there is usually a bang and the fuse trips out. The failed lamps are often black and so is the lampholder. Sometimes the clear plastic disc at the front falls off, this has only happened with the bulbs from Simply LED. The kitchen is the only room we have used LED in and the only room where we have experienced rapid bulb failure, and we did not have rapid bulb failure in the kitchen with halogen bulbs! Do not buy these things! People have told me that if you do buy them, only buy top brands but who knows? I am now calling in electricians to check the wiring etc and I will post a supplement to this review if anything is found to be wrong. This however would not change my review of SimplyLED who I have found to be very unresponsive. They are offering a five year warranty today on their website but what use is it?