What does Omnidirectional mean?

For a LED light bulb to be called omni-directional, it must have at least a 300 degree beam angle. Great strides have been made in LED technology to provide full illumination with no dark spots.

Earlier LED Light Bulbs

In the first generations, "A" type LED light bulbs, although bright and energy saving, did not provide the ultimate answer in every lighting application because of their directional characteristics. LED light bulbs you may have purchased prior to mid 2013 probably have a 180 degree view angle illustrated on the left. Not very much light is projected below the black line on the illustration. When used in translucent glass, you would experience a shadow below the line.

Today's Omnidirectional LED Light Bulbs

Now that problem has been solved. LED light bulbs with a beam angle of 300 degrees or more project the light forward as well as downward to the base of the bulb. So when you are shopping for LED replacement bulbs, pay attention to the beam angle. The bigger the number, the wider coverage you will have.

pendants lit with omni directional led light bulbs

How They Look

You can enlarge the image at left if you'd like. These are pendant lights hanging in our lighting showroom. You'll see different glass and how well the omnidirectional LED bulbs fill the glass with light without an abrupt line or deep shadow.