I hate CFL. The house we bought a few months ago was full of CFLs everywhere. I hate, hate, hate them. I can turn on the can lights in the kitchen at night, and it is so dim until they warm up. I know, someone is going to say that they are cheap ones or this or that. I went out and returned some "cheap" ones I bought about a year ago for our old house and bought more expensive CFLs and they didn't do much for me either. The "this 15 watt CFL is the same light output as a 75 watt incandescent" statements are crap. Maybe the light coming out right at the glass itself, but in real world situations, they aren't as bright.
So I don't care for them (hate hate hate).
They aren't the massive energy saving awesomeness that they are bragged up as being either. On the other hand, LEDs are super energy efficient, but they are way more costly and have the issues mentioned above by people.
Will CFLs save some money for some people? sure, for some, but I don't like the trade-offs. I want instant, full power light now, not once they warm up... Don't mention the fact that they are super toxic. I was reading somewhere about 6 months ago that if a CFL falls on your (the example was) carpeted floor and breaks, you are supposed to evacuate the room of people and pets, to let the fumes dissipate, and then you are supposed to cut out the carpet and pad from the area around the broken bulb and put that and the broken bulb into a thick plastic bag and take it to a recycling center that handles toxins... Not for me... I still hate them.
I think that LEDs will get there someday. Heck, CFLs weren't very cheap when they first came out either. I guess I better stock up on my energy hogging 100 watt incandescent before the end of the year... (No, I don't really use 100 watt bulbs anywhere.)
