Cree (LLF) LR6 6 in. Dimmable LED Downlight

I had the opportunity to test out this light very briefly thanks to Vinnie at Ferguson. The light appears to be extremely well constructed, on par with other high end LED's.

The genius or achilles heal of this light , depending on which side your on, is that it replaces your entire recessed light baffle and trim kit (its plain white on this light). I assume this was to allow the manufacturer to get the actual light emitting portion closer to the edge of the recess (but I'm just spit balling). This wouldn't bother me, but if you are partial to black baffles or a fancy gold trim kit, you'll have to go with out.

The light and heatsink are huge, especially compared to a standard LED floodlight. On the back of the unit, it has 3 fins that can be folded out to help secure it in the recessed light can (they seemed pretty sturdy).

I tested this light in a normal receptacle, not in a recessed light can, but this still allowed me to assess the color temp and fill capability. Its rated at 2700k and I'd say thats pretty accurate. Its has that warm glow you'd expect from an incandescent bulb, not that harsh blue hue you get from some cheaper LED's. The light seemed to "flood" really well, emitting a good blanket of light.

I only had about 5 minutes with this light and was testing it in my garage, not in the home, but based on the color temp and construction and compared to other LED floodlights, I'd say this is a pretty good LED solution if you are looking to spend the money. The rep said they sale for around $90. If I were to make the LED investment, this would probably be the light I'd go with. That said, $90 is a little high for me (I have 32 recessed light cans), so I'll have to wait for the cost to drop a bit.

I purchased the Home Depot Eco Options version of the bulb. When dimmed the light looks and dims the same as an incandescent. Instant brightness, no warm up period for full light intensity. Full brightness does give the effect that a skylight has been installed.

I have 7 of these in the kitchen ceiling. A dimmer is a definite plus as the light is very bright at full wattage. The light distribution is extremely even. As an added bonus the recessed lights look so much better with the trim and full glass insert. No unsightly bulb to look at in the housing.

I had previously used 14 watt (65 watt equivalent) dimmable fluorescent bulb in the cans. The light from the led unit is much brighter.

Installation is simple. Just pull down the trim unit on your recessed lighting. Unclip the "hood" from the porcelain bulb holder(socket) mine had 2 clips to push in. Screw the module in the bulb socket and push the unit back into the ceiling. Removal is simple. Just twist the unit counter clockwise and pull down. The unit is then ready to remove, just like a conventional light bulb.

In July I installed one above the bath tub and one above the shower stall. Wow! the tile and glass have come to life. The light adds a sparkle to the glass and tile. We feel like we are in a showroom now. The tile and glass always had a grey look to it. The light quality from this has really enhanced the bathroom.

I wish I had more recessed lights to put this unit in.

This  gives off great light, better by a little than the best cfl. Its is just too expensive at the time. It is also significantly brighter than the 65 watt br30 that it replaced.Since it the only light on a circuit, it does not draw enough electricity to use a dimmer.. update- they are down to $81.
next update- price down to $72.00, still not cheap, but I am biting again. Bought 4 more as we love the one we have. It gives off no discernable heat , Nice in the summer. My wife used to crank up the AC in the kitchen and a large part of that was the recessed lights. Payback time is now under 3 years even without the AC part of the equation. Will it last 20 years. I would even be happy with 10, by then we will probably have 4 watt leds as apposed to this 10 watt.

as an addendum to my earlies review, It will dim as a only light on 1 circuit. Thanks diddler for the info, I only wish Cree had given me the same in my email conversations with them. Light is now perfect, but for price. I am sure it will come down as all new technologies do and I will be on it for all of my recessed lighting.