Comments by "eDoc2020" (@eDoc2020) on "A troubling trend in lighting?" video.

Same here. There hasn't been a TC video dedicated about it but I think Alec has mentioned the shift from physical tactile controls to touchscreens and the like. I just find it annoying but it also presents an accessibility problem, something Alec also has opinions on.
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@gregorymalchuk272 GU10 is just another base for line-voltage bulbs. As such, it provides no* benefit over the standard screw base. What we need is a standard form factor for flat "light engines" as they are often called. *An actual benefit of GU10 over ES is that it is more compact.
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@radiotec76 Your bulbs likely are using switchers. The majority may be linear but I'd guess ~25% are switchers. Side note the circuits used in CFLs are quite different than regular switchmode supplies. They are much simpler, only using two transistors and little else.
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LED grow lights seem to have settled on a de-facto standard set of connectors, making the drivers user-replaceable.
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@gregorymalchuk272 I saw those mentioned on another comment. They're still not ideal as they seem quite small and there's no thermal contact with the fixture. More ideal would be a 4 inch or so (~10 cm) square which is pressed against the fixture via a thermal transfer pad to keep everything cool.
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I think capacitors are rarely the cause of LED bulb failures. In fact from what I've seen most of them should continue operating without electrolytic capacitors, just with more flicker. Most hard failures seem to be from the bond wires inside the LED chips breaking. Power supplies in LCD TVs and other "real" electronics are very different than LED bulbs.
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@radiotec76 LED bulbs tend to use linear power supplies because they are cheaper yet are still reasonably efficient because they match the LED voltage to the line voltage. A side effect is that they are more reliable and produce less interference. Note I'm talking about bulbs. Fixtures with a separate driver are almost always switch mode and a fair number of bulbs are too.
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@neglectfulsausage7689 Incandescent bulbs are still legal to buy in the US if they fall under exemptions. Unfortunately this means you mostly find "rough service bulbs" which are less efficient than regular bulbs.
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@neglectfulsausage7689 That just proves my point. I'm mostly finding 40w fan bulbs and they only put out ~350 lumens, and similar 60w bulbs are ~560 lumens. Old-school 40s are ~500 lumens and 60s are ~800 so there's a huge efficiency gap. The newer ones also produce a duller light which I dislike.
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@zaandam0172 Some LED bulbs use switching power supplies which generate interference, but some use linear power supplies which are much cleaner. Due to the limited space in the base filament style bulbs are invariably always the latter.
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At least those invariably have user replaceable batteries, so waste is limited especially if rechargeable batteries are used. I think some newer ones even have built-in rechargeable batteries.
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@mernokimuvek Not every way. Screw-in lamps are polarized. But despite technical superiority the established standard is practically superior unless there is a compelling reason to switch. Half an inch is not a compelling reason.
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@mernokimuvek While not necessary polarization is still nice to have with electronic lamps so the fuse goes on the live side. And it's hard to accidentally put your fingers in a light socket and get shocked. US style plugs are much more of a shock risk than light sockets.
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Connectors are some of the most expensive components around. To make the LEDs easily removable would likely make the fixtures several times more expensive, especially if you retain adequate heatsinking. Honestly, the solution to replacing individual LEDs is getting a soldering iron.
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Most modern LED bulbs have an aluminum can under the plastic cover. It's not quite as good at heat transfer but it's cheaper than needing to fully isolate exposed metal and it's certainly better than no heatsink.
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Alec, you appear to be using wire nuts improperly. Stranded wire should lead solid ones when you put the nut on. Wirenuts are great if used great but as the Wago folks point out novices are more likely to properly use lever nuts. If you get this wrong they definitely have a point.
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