Lightbulbs - why frosted?

[kanicbird]

With all the todo about the regulations that ended some of the production of the standard IC blub, it has brought to light a question. Why have frosted bulbs become the standard?

I admit to liking clear bulbs, one where you can see the filament. To me it is almost a work of art. Halogens also come in clear and have their beauty, though a bit more cluttered. LED’s, well a few, also come in clear and are very nice ascetically.

I do like the ‘point source’ of light better then a undistinguished ‘light blub’ that frosted and CF blubs produce and it the right lamp can produce a very nice crystal like light scattering effect.

So what say ye, frosted or clear?

[johnpost]

i thought there was a clear answer but upon thinking about it the answer is certainly more diffuse.

[standingwave]

clear vs. frosted lightbulbs?

[Mangetout]

Point sources of light can be painfully bright, if the fitting is one that permits a direct view of the light source - for these, I would always tend toward a frosted lamp. In fact, because that’s most of the light fittings I’ve ever had, I only kept the frosted kind in stock. (I do agree that the clear ones are beautiful though)

[purplehorseshoe]

Diffused light is easier on the eyes.

[Trinopus]

@kanicbird

. . . I admit to liking clear bulbs, one where you can see the filament. To me it is almost a work of art. Halogens also come in clear and have their beauty, though a bit more cluttered. LED’s, well a few, also come in clear and are very nice ascetically.

I do like the ‘point source’ of light better then a undistinguished ‘light blub’ that frosted and CF blubs produce and it the right lamp can produce a very nice crystal like light scattering effect. . . .

I grew up on clear, but prefer frosted. I read a lot, and like the diffuse light on the page of a book.

If I had a chandelier with lots of crystal, I’d go with clear, to bring out the little rainbows. But, otherwise, frosted is my pref.