TheaterFire

The UK banned incandescent lights in 2016 and Christmas hasn’t looked the same since. Has anyone found a replacement?

Posted by csthree12345@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 502 comments

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502 Comments

UnacceptableUse@reddit

This is from an American perspective but he's talking about the same problem: https://youtu.be/qSFNufruSKw
View on Reddit #70313848

-Hi-Reddit@reddit

https://www.seasonsreflection.com/vintaglo I have some arriving this year, if anyone replies to this after December I'll give a brief review.
View on Reddit #70315707

joffff@reddit

Remindme! 8 weeks
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-Hi-Reddit@reddit

I've edited my comment with my review; sorry it took so long.
View on Reddit #74891565

joffff@reddit

Thanks!
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Correct-Arm-8539@reddit

!remindme 60 days vintaglo review
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-Hi-Reddit@reddit

I've edited my comment with my review; sorry it took so long.
View on Reddit #74891653

Correct-Arm-8539@reddit

No pressure, I'd just assume you have a life. Thanks for the review
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-Hi-Reddit@reddit

Not really; just ADHD :')
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Big_Conversation533@reddit

How did you get these ordered to the UK?
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-Hi-Reddit@reddit

I have a friend in Texas, but it did cost him/me $60 USD in shipping via UPS to get them from him to me.
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LJBrooker@reddit

Just ordered them from the official site. You also need a stepdown transformer, remember. They need 110-120v
View on Reddit #70347224

Big_Conversation533@reddit

Ah - I couldn't seem to enter my UK address. Do you mind sharing how much you paid for shipping?
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LJBrooker@reddit

We preordered before it changed company and website etc. Honestly couldn't tell you what shipping cost at the time.
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cingskones@reddit

Oh please, yes!!
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-Hi-Reddit@reddit

I've edited my comment with my review; sorry it took so long.
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viper_polo@reddit

What do you think?
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-Hi-Reddit@reddit

I've edited my comment with my review; sorry it took so long.
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-Hi-Reddit@reddit

Unfortunately they havent arrived yet. Sorry!
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Minty-Apple-Pie@reddit

what stepdown transformer do you plan to use to go from 240v to 120v?
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-Hi-Reddit@reddit

I used this: https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/SC5328.html
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EssentialParadox@reddit

I’d like to hear your review!
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-Hi-Reddit@reddit

I've edited my comment with my review; sorry it took so long.
View on Reddit #74891559

Correct-Arm-8539@reddit

So, how were they? I take it you've just taken them down.
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ialtag-bheag@reddit

But they run on 120V. Won't work if you plug it into a UK socket at 240V.
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Lonely-Speed9943@reddit

240v to 120v converters are readily available for under £15.
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dr_wtf@reddit

Those have 120Hz PWM, which is low enough that I'd notice it in my peripheral vision and it would trigger migraines. Since it gets that from half-wave rectification, on UK mains (which are 50Hz instead of 60Hz like in the US), that would drop down to 100Hz, which would be really bad. The flicker would most likely be noticeable to most people, even people not super-sensitive to it like I am. It's a pity they don't just run off DC, so you could just swap out the DC adaptor with a UK one, which would also avoid any potential safety issues with crappy voltage transformers. It's also a pity more people aren't more discerning about their LEDs. I won't buy anything below 95 CRI and ideally 97+. If everyone did this, we wouldn't have the problem of so many crappy LEDs because there would be more high CRI ones available. As it is, they are really hard to find, because most people don't even know there's a difference, so the market for them is pretty small. As the video notes, high CRI warm-white LEDs look good on their own (low CRI white ones look really harsh) and if you wanted to, you could just paint them yourself. I used to have some really nice high-CRI xmas lights, but they stopped working and the company doesn't make them anymore. Haven't been able to find a good replacement in the last couple of years.
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Sweet-Psychology-254@reddit

I didn’t know there even were high-CRI xmas lights aside from vintaglo.
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CarpeCyprinidae@reddit

If you cheap out on power converters you are at the same safety level as having real candles on a real pine Xmas tree inside your house
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Comfortable_Bed193@reddit

Shame they don’t deliver to the Uk
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tenement@reddit

They aren't the fairy light style but I've been building a collection of tru-tones which I love! https://tru-tone.com/pages/classic-light-set
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LJBrooker@reddit

Ours arrived this week. Just a note, you'll need a stepdown transformer. They run off 110v.
View on Reddit #70347185

danddersson@reddit

Huh, that style of lamp (incandescent version) was a more recent, poor replacment for PROPER christmas lights. The good ones had the actual lamp glass made into various shapes and colored. Simple ones were cones, but the better ones were in many shapes, such as snow-clad cottages, Father Christmas heads, acorns, etc. Christmas lights have never been the same since they stopped doing those. (You only got about a dozen on a string, not 1000+, so the whole appearance was different)
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juanito_f90@reddit

Yeah, 10, 20 or if you were rich, you’d have a 50!
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peaspiepuddingchips@reddit

Oh no, the multicolour ones I wanted are already sold out
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kirkum2020@reddit

Warm white and colour caps are a guaranteed massive improvement. Now it's being talked about i expect to see them become the standard very quickly.
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umognog@reddit

Having spent 2 hours last week with a sharpie colouring in a white set for Halloween decor, all i could think of was the fact that this year, there shall be no technology connections video on this subject.
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umognog@reddit

I was wrong; he made another video https://youtu.be/oy7BrKNmZAQ
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umognog@reddit

Holy crap.... https://youtu.be/oy7BrKNmZAQ
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CantaloupeLopsided62@reddit

This technology connections is completely right.
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Jamziboy0@reddit

haha came here to post this!
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copypastespecialist@reddit

Same, technology connections is a guilty pleasure, being in the UK I’ve nobody to bang on about my air conditioning, heat pump, solar or ev energy use statistics. He’d appreciate how I’ve programmed my system
View on Reddit #70333256

Aggressive_Deal7058@reddit

We love Technology Connections in our house. It's one of my 12 year old daughters favorite things to watch.
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DirectPen3441@reddit

I have no particular interest in laserdiscs yet I find his videos on them fascinating. 
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Oriental-Nightfish@reddit

We often sit down to watch these while eating dinner. He hooked us with his vid on how pinball machines worked. Fascinating stuff!
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BarryTownCouncil@reddit

Why on earth would you feel guilty about TC? That makes zero sense, he's great!
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autobulb@reddit

Didn't you get the memo? You're not allowed to like anything even remotely American on this sub.
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copypastespecialist@reddit

This particular American has a fondness for the eu, the glee he had when he discovered there was guidance and regulation on illuminating brake lights under regenerative braking was obvious
View on Reddit #70343264

copypastespecialist@reddit

I had to explain to my mother what I was watching on tv when she came and after I was like, “ this guy needed a new fridge so got this cheap red one temporarily and is systematically testing it and its efficiency and performance “ or something like that she just started at me like I was insane. When I told her I wasn’t interested in getting one myself she looked convinced I was insane
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TSR2Wingtip@reddit

Same. As soon as I saw the question. I love that channel. 
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WorriedHelicopter764@reddit

I love technology connections.
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20127010603170562316@reddit

I noped after the second ad, but I assume this is Technology Connections?
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LonelySmiling@reddit

Adblocker / adblocking apps are widely available!
View on Reddit #70334695

Shockwavepulsar@reddit

YouTube have been shit hot at getting around adblockers lately and do A B testing so while an app may work for you it may not work for everybody. 
View on Reddit #70340626

phatboi23@reddit

ublock origin updates pretty damn quick to fix youtube's bullshit.
View on Reddit #70344431

Monsoon_Storm@reddit

ublock origin still works on Firefox (and other firefox based browsers)
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lazlowoodbine@reddit

Who else would it be? Yes. The answer is yes.
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PeterJamesUK@reddit

Nearly 3 million people can't be wrong!
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cherrymxorange@reddit

I haven't clicked either, but if it isn't Technology Connections I'd be very surprised
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Minty-Apple-Pie@reddit

This is fantastic. Finally someone has articulated what it is we've lost, and what we need to have again. Thanks for linking this.
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Tof12345@reddit

I knew it was going to be Technology Connect before even clicking the link.
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JT_3K@reddit

Beat me to it also. This is the answer
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Exact_Setting9562@reddit

Oh I don't miss the old lights.  So nice to have lights that just work! And probably won't kill me. 
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veryblocky@reddit

I miss the look of them, not the myriad of issues we had with them
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pickyourteethup@reddit

Sounds like true nostalgia, on the surface it was great. But when I think a bit deeper it was actually quite bad in a lot of ways I'm glad I don't have to deal with any more
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AdmRL_@reddit

Basically describing everything pre 2000. Everyone thinks the 70s and 80s was great because they look at the photos and don't remember all the bullshit it took to actually get the photo in the first place.
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Boattailfmj@reddit

I disagree. Life was better, simpler, easier before Y2K. I think when some people flew airliners into buildings it was the beginning of the end of a simpler time.
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NoWorriesOk3454@reddit

The buildings were detonated from inside. They were STEEL structures, and there was nothing wrong with them. Photoshopped videos is what we all got to see. You don't have to believe me. If Wikipedia calls this a 'conspiracy theory' - even better. That was a rather expensive show - wasn't it - at least we know where some of our taxes gone :)
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Exact_Setting9562@reddit

We were younger then. That helped too. 
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Justplaythefkngnote@reddit

And getting your holiday pics back and Boots had put stickers on saying 'not enough light' on your favourite ones so they didn't bother developing them !
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Outraged_Chihuahua@reddit

One bulb has gone, we now need to change each one individually until they work again. On a string of 300 lights.
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Nebulousdbc@reddit

All the incandescent sets I've experienced usually had a link wire inside that would pass current through the set even if one burned out
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PiecesOfRing@reddit

If they run in a series, you literally just replace the first one that's not lit up. Not rocket science, really
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w0lfyre@reddit

yeah but that kind of makes christmas. or idk it did for me as a child i have such fond memories of it with my dad
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GoldEstablishment445@reddit

At the garden centre I worked at a couple of years ago they had strings of 2000 LEDs wired in series so as soon as one failed the whole lot went out. And they seemed to have a high failure rate cos loads got returned. They were £80 too so you’d expect better
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GoldTap9957@reddit

nostalgia rarely includes all the headaches we dealt with back then
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coolsimon123@reddit

Myriad issues
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Golarion@reddit

Call it nostalgia but the old lights had a particular quality to them that is completely lost with the sterile LED lights. 
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cherrymxorange@reddit

Nostalgia yes, but also the visual difference between tinting a filament bulb that was producing a wide spectrum of light, and using an already coloured diode that's producing a near perfect colour already. Plus the fact that blue/green (especially green) come across to our eyes much brighter than red/orange, which was being fixed previously and pushed the other way because the filaments were putting out a warm white. I miss proper christmas lights almost as much as I miss sodium vapour street lights, though I do think our new LED's are much better from a light polution POV.
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DoctorOctagonapus@reddit

I wonder if you can replicate that with a warm white LED and a coloured tint?
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3Cogs@reddit

Alec Watson did an episode about replicating incandescent Christmas lights using LEDs on his Technology Connections channel. There's quite a bit to it, and the result wasn't exactly the same: https://youtu.be/qSFNufruSKw?si=xCst8KPrGEgXqEnw
View on Reddit #70342471

AnxiousFungus@reddit

The annual Christmas light episode is now on!
View on Reddit #72941705

fortheloveofcrap@reddit

Yes! This is the guy I thought of straight away. An impressive level of dedication to Xmas twinkles (and great tips on dishwashers too 😉)
View on Reddit #70344679

Sancho_Panzas_Donkey@reddit

Even his No Effort Novembers show more efforts than most channels put in!
View on Reddit #70596637

3Cogs@reddit

I found his mechanical jukebox and pinball machine videos fascinating.
View on Reddit #70347042

JulesCT@reddit

I learned so much from watching this video! Perfect fuel for my nerd mind.
View on Reddit #70350900

3Cogs@reddit

I can watch and listen to him for hours. Seems like a really decent chap as well as being knowledgeable about old tech.
View on Reddit #70375547

Sweaty_Ear_9247@reddit

Have you seen his rant video at car turn signals? It makes me cry with laughter. He's so right, but his delivery is *chefs kiss*
View on Reddit #70529458

Live-Combination4738@reddit

Thanks for this, In the UK and miss these lights so much.
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AO2Gaming@reddit

Came here just to comment this, I regularly rewatch the series of videos to fall asleep to lol
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Vegetable-Parking758@reddit

The problem with this is, while you can do it and it would look better, it still wont get that full look. Because the white led will be made up of individual RGB diodes it won't ever cover the full spectrum of light, like a tungsten/incandescent does.
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colei_canis@reddit

> Because the white led will be made up of individual RGB diodes This is fairly out of date, while this was done in the past modern white LEDs are basically a solid state fluorescent light now. They stimulate a phosphor with blue LED light to produce white light with various spectra. While the spectrum obviously isn’t as good as incandescent the CRI is generally pretty good these days, the warmer ones look closer to incandescent than fluorescent in my opinion.
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Sophiiebabes@reddit

You can get full spectrum LEDs, they just cost more. I bought some full spectrum button LEDs a while ago for a project - they were £4.39 for 100, as opposed to £1.39 for 100 cheap ones
View on Reddit #70341432

Toodle-Peep@reddit

you 100% can, it's just cheaper for the manufacturer not to
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TraitorTyler@reddit

How on earth are the new streetlights better from a light pollution POV? It is x10 harder to see stars if you're surrounded by football stadium equivalent lighting coming from one of those new street lights than back in the day from a faint yellow hue.
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cherrymxorange@reddit

I don't think you're quite grasping what light pollution is. It's the collective light bleed of all manmade light into the sky. So no, it doesn't necessarily mean that you can see the sky better when you're surrounded by the street lights, but it means if you go somewhere with less street lights, you'll be able to see the sky better provided that the surrounding towns in a very wide area have taken steps to reduce their impact. Modern LED's produce less light pollution mostly because they were designed in an era where we actually cared about light pollution, and are therefore properly shielded to reduce light bleeding upwards, they're also able to be dimmed at off peak times when it's truly darker at night, amongst other things.
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SidewalksNCycling39@reddit

I'd have to personally disagree about the [lower-power] sodium streetlights... Despite orange being my favourite colour, I found them depressing, bathing everything in monotone, because you couldn't decipher any colours, presumably due to an abysmal colour-rendering index (CRI). The new LED ones, at least near me in Nottingham, are probably about ~4000K, still providing a bit of warmth, whilst actually allowing you to decipher the colours of the streetscape, and providing a bit better output, also. Less depressing, classier, and more [perceived] social safety, IMO.
View on Reddit #70453332

cherrymxorange@reddit

Separate to the vibes (I disagree with you there, but that's subjective) the biggest issue I have with the LED lights is their brightness and how they throw the light. In a lot of areas they were installed exactly where the old sodium vapour lights were, with no thought paid to how the LED's are brighter, but also don't cast their light nearly as far. So where I was living at the time, streets that used to be bathed in even orange light were now dotted with bright white spotlights. You'd walk under a light, your eyes would adjust and then you'd have like 20m of darkness, made worse by the fact that your eyes had adjusted to the light you just walked under. There were genuinely some areas that were well lit before, but now they were dark enough that you couldn't make out any detail on the pavement, or in some cases someone standing on the pavement wearing dark clothes would be almost completely obscured. Absolute nightmare, especially for women or people who were already slightly blind :/
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DirectPen3441@reddit

I was night driving a few weeks back and stumbled upon a car park that was completely illuminated by those old sodium street lights.  I had to stop there for a moment just to take it in.  It’s a really beautiful aesthetic even if those lights are not as efficient as LEDs. 
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My-Imperfect-House@reddit

It's not a "near perfect colour", it's an incredibly thin wavelength of light in a specific colour. That's why when you shine it on something it doesn't really brighten it up, because it will just paint everything the exact same thin wavelength of light so everything essentially looks mono coloured. The older lights projected a wider wave pattern, which our eyes are more naturally able to interpret.
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cherrymxorange@reddit

You've just repeated what I said but used three times as many words mate.
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My-Imperfect-House@reddit

I didn't and if you weren't an absolute twat you'd realise that.
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Darkwaxer@reddit

https://preview.redd.it/a390rj9941zf1.jpeg?width=1284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ae8ff54e8f54b07dedb869c94e55af8005867a04 Yeah absolutely agree. Took this photo just before the council changed all of our bulbs in 2021. It’s was my first snowy walk with my three month old puppy and I’m sad I won’t get so see such a warm snowy sight again. (above is screenshot of my phone background).
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TSotP@reddit

I miss the glow of the Arc Sodium lamps, but the LEDs aren't so bad any more. Warmer and less stark white these days.
View on Reddit #70392705

CarolineKnappShappey@reddit

I miss them too! When I’m feeling really nostalgic for them I dig out my Phoenix Nights DVD, as there are loads of outdoor shots with the orange sodium lamps.
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ImawhaleCR@reddit

I say good riddance to sodium streetlights, they were awful at the one job they were meant to do, which was light up things. Monochromatic light makes everything look drab and unpleasant, LED lighting means you can actually see in colour, which is quite useful given that's how we normally see.
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msully89@reddit

Humans throughout history have only ever seen nighttime from the illumination of flame light, at least the orange lights emulated it. LED lights are completely unnatural
View on Reddit #70350469

ImawhaleCR@reddit

What? Flame light is white, it's not orange. It's a warm and red tinted white, but it is still white light. Flame light, by virtue of being a flame, is very high CRI, which is a measure of how accurately it reproduces sunlight. Sodium lamps have a CRI that is kinda meaningless to measure as they're monochromatic, and don't in any way replicate sunlight. Even the crappiest white LEDs have CRIs above 50, and most modern ones will be above 70, and good ones will be 95+. This is far more natural than orange light, which isn't even close. To say that LED lights are unnatural because they're white and not orange is frankly ridiculous
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msully89@reddit

Every fire I've ever sat around has always looked orange to me. So has every candle I've ever lit
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ImawhaleCR@reddit

It is orange tinted because of the temperature among other reasons, but it is white light. You can see other colours using candlelight, you cannot see other colours if you use a sodium light. Try looking at a blue object using a candle and you'll be able to see that it's blue, under a sodium light it will look a shade of grey.
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Littl-est@reddit

Yes in that they barely give off any light at all except immediately around the bulb itself. Useful.
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Odd_Can_1758@reddit

I really wish it were true about the street lamps. There’s a street lamp about 25-30 metres to the left of my house at the rear. There’s warm yellow/orange glow never disturbed me and hardly lit up the rear gardens on my terrace. They replaced it with a new led bulb recently and my gosh, that white light ruins the aesthetic, spreads further and brighter across the gardens and just has a daytime feeling about not inducing of a night time feel at all! Maybe they don’t leak light upwards so much, but in the vicinity it’s horrible!
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TheKingOfWhatTheHeck@reddit

Damn I was just saying to my wife last night how sterile the night looks now.
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Weekly_Injury_9211@reddit

😳😳 did she slap you?
View on Reddit #70340414

BOBOnobobo@reddit

That's because it's a very different type of light. Look up technology connections video on this for more details, but basically: Blue, green, or red LEDs produce a very narrow spectrum of color. AKA one shade of blue, one shade of green and one of red. This gives them a "sharp" feel and high contrast. The old lights were soft white light: a very broad spectrum of wavelengths, from blue, green, yellow and red. Those lights were then covered with a green, red and blue cap that filtered out the other colours. This produced a much broader set of wavelengths (a lot of different blues for blue, etc) making them appear soft. Some companies replicated this with white broad spectrum LEDs and colored caps, resulting in no ce soft lights with all the benefits of modern LEDs.
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MrPloppyHead@reddit

Isnt the fear of having your house burn down part of the charm of christmas lights though.
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Sancho_Panzas_Donkey@reddit

I've only ever had that problem with the shite chinese adapters.
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discoveredunknown@reddit

I love the tacky nostalgic warmth the pictures OP attached bring me though.
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Exact_Setting9562@reddit

And Quality Street was a proper size back then!!
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discoveredunknown@reddit

Apparently this year they’re now 550g down from 600g and more expensive :(
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Exact_Setting9562@reddit

The price of chocolate has sky rocketed lately.  Climate change is spoiling Christmas!
View on Reddit #70341507

trooper276@reddit

I own a cookie company, chocolate prices have pretty much doubled in a year, despite buying at volume. The price hike is just starting to affect consumer chocolate goods now. Fortunately, the prices are starting to go back down again but i suspect they won't go back to where they were. Interesting side note... there was a vanilla bean shortage a few years back (due to poor harvests). Vanilla bean farms had to employ armed guards to prevent the beans being stolen and sold on the black market!
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Sancho_Panzas_Donkey@reddit

I'm in Colombia next week. I'll send you some :)
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Exact_Setting9562@reddit

Damnit. I could have filled my windowsills with vanilla beans and cornered the market.  (Behind secure double glazing of course)
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discoveredunknown@reddit

Yeah I’ve heard about this and it affecting the harvests, I also theorised also whether the cocoa farmers are tired of being fleeced and increased their prices too as well as this?
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V65Pilot@reddit

Bought my first box in over 50 years.....wow. disappointment in a plastic "tin".
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Live-Combination4738@reddit

Its cardboard this year
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V65Pilot@reddit

Mine was plastic
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KingPenguinUK@reddit

Unless you go Costco where it’s like 2kg lol
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SarkyMs@reddit

And damn expensive. There is a reason they were a special treat. A 2.5kg tin was £7 to £10 late 80s as a student in the late 80s that was a half of a good days wages. Whereas newer smaller tins are now half an hours wages. 2.5kg of quality street would cost £31.75 at nectar prices.
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earlgreytoday@reddit

And they came in a proper tin.
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cpt_hatstand@reddit

You've never accidentally put the wrong power pack in your led lights and nearly set the socket on fire...
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Trader_Anonymous@reddit

Yikes, that sounds terrifying! Always double-check the voltage before plugging in. But if you're looking for that warm glow, check out vintage-style LED bulbs—they’re designed to mimic the look of incandescents and might just bring back that cozy vibe for you.
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GeorgeFandango@reddit

[https://www.pressreader.com/usa/the-guardian-usa/20220915/282200834769273](https://www.pressreader.com/usa/the-guardian-usa/20220915/282200834769273)
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sputnikconspirator@reddit

It's not just the safety aspect but the bloody cost to run a filament light set compared to LED. A 240 filament set uses 173W whereas a 240 LED set uses 3.6W... Assuming you use both for 8 hours a day for all of November and December, you're looking at £27.85 in electricity for the filament and just £0.57p for the LED... (based on 33.55p kwh cost..)
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Exact_Setting9562@reddit

OMG that's a huge difference.  There's a house near me that puts out absolutely dozens of lights and decorations each year - to raise money for charity.  I'm sure it's all LED now but in the past they'd have been better off just donating their electric bill money. 
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bill_end@reddit

Depends how much you also value the enjoyment all the kids hit from looking at the lights.
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Exact_Setting9562@reddit

Tbh the queues of cars going past would put me off.  The neighbours must hate it !
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Theratchetnclank@reddit

I'd rather pay the £27 and have the soft and warm light tones rather then the dazzling LED.
View on Reddit #70351156

Silly_Length_1052@reddit

I loved then and still do. Whenever I find some old stock somewhere I tend to snatch them up. I genuinely prefer the light emitted. Led is far better at giving me headaches and flickering when theyre jot supposed to. But then again being completely fair to their problems, I can say that incandescent lights were at least 100x more dangerous and less efficient in almost every way. I also miss the heat they used to output. I loved LEDs when they first came out. They felt very cyber and futuristic. But when they banned the good stuff, it started to feel very cold and mechanical instead of warm and vibrant. I know you get "warm glows" etc in LED but its just not the same honestly imo. Dont get me wrong, led is the way and im glad theyre here to stay... I just wished they had the same charm in light as the older tech. I suppose this is how everyone felt when they stopped putting uranium in everything lol. They knew it had to go bit missed it charm even if they didn't like the radioactive slow death that came with em.
View on Reddit #70381063

Scooty-Poot@reddit

You’re telling me you didn’t like current testing 1,500 bulb to work out which one had blown because the incandescent light companies were apparently unaware of the existence of parallel circuits?
View on Reddit #70339002

TheS4ndm4n@reddit

They are aware. But those small bulbs only take a few volts. So you have to put a ton of them in series to connect it to an outlet. Could get a transformer and connect them in parallel. But you would need pretty thick wire to deal with the large currents. With LED's you have to use a transformer anyway. And because they use much less power, the current isn't a problem if you pick a low voltage and connect them in parallel.
View on Reddit #70374106

IndigoQuantum@reddit

True, but imagine the cost of a set of lights with each bulb individually wired back to a 2-wire bus
View on Reddit #70339571

PomPomBumblebee@reddit

Same. I just miss the purply pink colour. I have 2-3 different kinds of lights I mix 2 up with each year. I have a dense set of white LEDs, a mixture of coloured and coloured with big covers on them that remind me of something from the Grinch as it gives off big round colour that's a little faded in but cartoonish. I always use that final set with another as it just mixes things up a bit as my tree has multi coloured ornaments every year.
View on Reddit #70335647

LibraryOfFoxes@reddit

You can still get Noma Pickwick, Canterbury Belles or retro lights that have the pink! They are LED so don't look \*quite\* the same as the old ones, but not too far off.
View on Reddit #70363186

V65Pilot@reddit

My ex, back home, would have me hang icicle lights from all the eaves of the house every Christmas. I think I had close to 500m of them......it would take me the better part of a day. It did look nice though. The LED ones definitely made it easier....
View on Reddit #70346656

Worried-Penalty8744@reddit

Finding exactly which bulb broke to take out the whole set because your parents cheaped out was a nightmare. Also losing the spare fuse bulb which effectively ruined the whole set because every single fuse bulb was always different t
View on Reddit #70337092

TedWasler@reddit

There's a specific detail for me that just sends me back 50+ years without trying. The tree lights would sometimes cast a shadow, caused by tinsel, onto the wall just next to the tree. Don't know why, but that does it for me.
View on Reddit #70335156

rzezniq@reddit

This
View on Reddit #73621985

NoEnthusiasm2@reddit

We still use tinsel. Apparently it's not "classy" but who cares? We have coloured lights too. Still waiting to be arrested by the style police. I love the tinselly shadows!
View on Reddit #70342990

wkmcscouse@reddit

You can just buy them off the likes of Amazon and Temu etc all you need to do is turn them off before you go to bed they also don’t need to be on in the day
View on Reddit #73549251

beeurd@reddit

I don't mind LED lights, but I do dislike that so many people go for plain white or blue lights these days... It's already cold, why make it look cold too? Get some colourful light up, it's supposed to be jolly!
View on Reddit #70322180

EssentialParadox@reddit

I swear those people with garish blue LED lights actually hate Christmas and are trying to ruin it for everyone else.
View on Reddit #70333918

No_Nuns_No_Nuns_None@reddit

The blue lights just remind me of emergency services. No idea why anyone would associate blue with Christmas!
View on Reddit #70342871

nathderbyshire@reddit

Lots of Asian houses in my town have bright almost neon blue spotlights outside their front doors, one house alone has about ten pointing down and they're insanely bright they're hard to look at in night and looks awful. I'll never understand how people like blue lights
View on Reddit #70358096

Nebulousdbc@reddit

I've notice asians absolutely love ostentatious RGB strips/signage in the last few years. If a shop has a bright RGB strip cycling colours quickly or LED sign with busy animations or a barber shop with a massive red/white/blue spinny thing it's always staffed by asians.
View on Reddit #73143915

fermango@reddit

There's a house down the road from me has them 999 blue Christmas lights. They'd have them on through the night and when I left for work every morning in the dark, without fail, they'd catch my eye in a certain way that would make me stop the car because I'd swear the police were right in front of me. They infuriate me and I'm not looking forward to them again this year.
View on Reddit #70371369

downlau@reddit

It's been years but I still remember the house on a hilly corner that was fully decked out with blue LEDs...coming downhill and rounding the corner to get hit with the dazzle and temporary blindness, such festive joy.
View on Reddit #70350975

whiskydelta85@reddit

They’re a nightmare with my astigmatism, someone on my street covered their hedge with a net of blue lights last year and it messed with my depth perception every single time I went by their house
View on Reddit #70345512

EssentialParadox@reddit

Sounds horrid. It’s not just you either. Human eyes can’t focus on blue LEDs properly due to their short wavelength. It makes your vision just go blurry.
View on Reddit #70345834

whiskydelta85@reddit

Thank you! I always thought there was just something wrong with my eyes! 
View on Reddit #70346277

bitterlemon80@reddit

They are the people who paint their houses grey and white.
View on Reddit #70456011

Ok-Limit8392@reddit

Thank the goddess I’m not the only one who thinks that way. My family always gets the rainbow fairy lights and if we ever get single coloured ones, we get a variety so the colours mix
View on Reddit #70407455

gabbysuperstar@reddit

Or warm/yellowish white lights
View on Reddit #70383639

sputnikconspirator@reddit

Oh man, I need to be careful but after dealing with certain higher end stores, they used to actively refuse to buy multi colour LED for their range because the buyers thought they were "chavvy".... So that might explain the penchant for the whites and the blues in a lot of certain stores.
View on Reddit #70343152

Shockwavepulsar@reddit

Personal taste I suppose. I agree about the blue but I love the white lights on my tree. Coloured lights just seems very 70’s/80’s
View on Reddit #70340786

loveshot123@reddit

I absolutely love my white lights on my christmas tree. It gives a snowy look on my snow covered tree and contrasts beautifully with my blue baubles and poinsettia decorations. Some people just like the wintery look, whilst others like the green red and gold. I personally find the tradition green red and gold garish. Its personal taste.
View on Reddit #70340214

NecroVelcro@reddit

I've got two strings of small, white star lights on my tree but then it's also decorated with blue and silver tinsel and hanging decorations that include skull baubles, Gizmo from Gremlins and these. https://preview.redd.it/oiocsxtugzyf1.jpeg?width=986&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d3aed9c423eb03b44aaf5b756bd70bd3472b68df
View on Reddit #70332644

KelpFox05@reddit

You can get LED Christmas lights that are designed to replicate the look of older incandescent bulbs! [Example](https://share.google/QM7zGyVHtO6LMEgWb)
View on Reddit #70315211

KingDaveRa@reddit

Aldi have had 'retro' Christmas lights a few times and they are bloody good. I've got a set I use on one of my trees and they look as close to incandescents as you'll get (IMHO at least).
View on Reddit #70335067

sputnikconspirator@reddit

Noma, the company who made the ones KelpFox05's link actually made Aldi's retro LED lights in 2022 and 2023. The latest version of their LED Classic String lights were apparently developed to try and mimic the colour of filaments as closely as possible by fiddling with the colour temperatures of the LED until they could be as close as possible to retro filament bulbs.
View on Reddit #70343015

Objective-Golf-3847@reddit

I want to buy Noma but why are they so small!! 40 lights!?
View on Reddit #72850365

Sweet-Psychology-254@reddit

Where did you find out that info about the Noma lights?
View on Reddit #70479429

Jojo820849@reddit

Thank you!
View on Reddit #70354540

libbsibbs@reddit

I’m very happy with my warm colour LEDs from noma, very close to the nostalgic glow.
View on Reddit #70350989

Suspicious-Brick@reddit

Recommend Noma. They are very nostalgic, and I would use any others. Would rather have no lights that sterile LEDs.
View on Reddit #70346540

KingDaveRa@reddit

I've got a few Noma lights and they've been good so I'm not surprised they made the Aldi ones.
View on Reddit #70343066

ntfh_uk@reddit

In our local Aldi all the lights were battery powered today, very disappointing.
View on Reddit #70364786

Meowskiiii@reddit

Added to my shopping list, thanks!
View on Reddit #70339428

Nikki_the_clxwn@reddit

I've been looking for these lights everywhere but they've sold out!! Does anyone know if they'll be in stock again before Christmas?? Or should I buy the lights4fun version...
View on Reddit #70975450

East_Ad_4427@reddit

Are the “warm white” style closest incandescent bulbs?
View on Reddit #70459477

bitterlemon80@reddit

Or [these ](https://www.lights4fun.co.uk/products/150-multi-coloured-led-traditional-pickwick-christmas-lights) with fancy skirts!
View on Reddit #70456202

Littl-est@reddit

They don’t glow.
View on Reddit #70341368

Shenloanne@reddit

Perfect mate my wife's been chasing this for about a decade.
View on Reddit #70340807

captain-carrot@reddit

Ah man, I was just thinking surely we can put a warm white LED in a coloured casing.
View on Reddit #70340473

reeblebeeble@reddit

I have ones like this, they're great.
View on Reddit #70338271

janiestiredshoes@reddit

Is it just the shape or the actual light quality? Because it's the light quality that drives me nuts about the new ones (specifically blue...).
View on Reddit #70334742

Stopmotionheaven@reddit

They're warm white LEDs with coloured caps on them, in the style of the incandescent glass bulbs.
View on Reddit #70335899

janiestiredshoes@reddit

Excellent, sounds perfect!
View on Reddit #70338211

AttersH@reddit

We have these & they are just like the old fashioned ones!
View on Reddit #70335260

Stopmotionheaven@reddit

I just bought a set of these and they're pretty much perfect!
View on Reddit #70335873

Glass-Jackfruit-8096@reddit

Yep, I have the Noma ones and they’re good
View on Reddit #70336408

larrysbrain@reddit

Thanks! My partner has been looking for lights like these for years.
View on Reddit #70333428

beernon@reddit

Yes, i’m glad the risk of old incandescent bulbs setting fire to curtains is gone
View on Reddit #70317253

Liam_021996@reddit

I remember burning myself many times as a kid on the old incandescent bulbs. Glad my kids don't have the same fire and burn risks I had growing up 😂
View on Reddit #70317713

TraitorTyler@reddit

The UK WHAT? THIS is why Christmas looks so bland now? This is why everyone has those tacky LEDs? Leave it to Nanny State Britain to ban vibes.
View on Reddit #72805484

SkipsH@reddit

So I don't know if we have them, I'm about to look, but you want warm light, no flicker, colour capped LED lights 
View on Reddit #72472683

Glass_Promotion_515@reddit

they didnt ban incandescent lightbulbs
View on Reddit #72337865

acourtofdicks@reddit

But where the heck do we buy lights that look like incandescent lights 😭 I’m waiting on a 3rd delivery of lights despite my tree already being up and decorated. I don’t think fiancé will allow me to buy anymore lights if this latest set arent the vibe I want🥲
View on Reddit #71963950

DEADB33F@reddit

https://preview.redd.it/qp9ugibexxyf1.png?width=2181&format=png&auto=webp&s=ed2e02509f80a68ca555cc808820b8e4a5977d25 ...WCGW \--- NB. My no longer with us grandparents actually did used to have proper candles on their tree right into the early late 90s ....and no, they didn't die in a house fire
View on Reddit #70321836

No_Nuns_No_Nuns_None@reddit

https://preview.redd.it/4x6eyibhw0zf1.png?width=1080&format=png&auto=webp&s=79de7544a4edb2d7680f2c130dd7648b93f54fd0 I've got fake candles for my tree. You get a really nice, warm glow but they're so hard to space out evenly, especially on a real tree where there may be branches that aren't strong enough for them so they flop! There's only so much wire to work with between the candles for each candle placement, so I'd say about 60% of my tree decorating time is spent trying to get the candles spaced out vaguely evenly! I do love how they look though.
View on Reddit #70342749

DEADB33F@reddit

> branches that aren't strong enough for them so they flop! Use bits of garden string to tie branches from the middle to the main trunk. --- I supply and set up a large 15-20ft outdoor municipal tree most years. On a slightly larger scale this is what we do to get the branches nice & evenly spaced and capable of holding up the industrial Christmas lights without sagging too much.
View on Reddit #70347169

Prawnella@reddit

Cool!! I always wondered who gets to do that job! Where do your trees come from?
View on Reddit #71804128

DEADB33F@reddit

Grandparents used to have a pick your own fruit farm and planted Christmas trees in one corner of one field. They used to sell these in winter when the rest of the farm was shut down (this is when they were regular sized). [Here's me harvesting some as a kid](https://i.vgy.me/Bw0Eei.jpg) Fruit farm eventually closed down as they retired and half of the site got concreted over to make way for a green waste recycling center my uncle started (he now owns the site). The Christmas trees which were no longer being sold got massive so a couple decades later I asked him if we could do something with the remaining trees. Usually sell one a year, plus donate one to my Grandad's church (I'm not religious in the slightest but it cant do any harm to hedge your bets I guess), and I take one to put up in my garden.... [This is about one of the smallest ones remaining and it's still two storeys tall.](https://i.vgy.me/YOfRTM.jpg)
View on Reddit #71815379

Prawnella@reddit

This is a lovely story, thanks for humouring me 😀. The top picture of the trees being driven looks like it was good fun
View on Reddit #71875469

No_Nuns_No_Nuns_None@reddit

That's a great tip, thanks!
View on Reddit #70420968

ButtBattalion@reddit

My partner's parents still use candles on theirs every year. I've been very clear I'm not having candles on any trees in my house because what the fuck
View on Reddit #70334759

Bgtobgfu@reddit

Yeah I’m sure it looks lovely but that is absolutely mental
View on Reddit #70365589

caffeine_lights@reddit

I moved to Germany in 2013 and they were commonly sold and used at that time. I remember seeing actual candles on trees in public places, absolutely boggled my mind! These days much less so. I don't know what caused them to suddenly pay attention to health and safety but it seems a few things have changed, not just this one.
View on Reddit #70359050

-Copenhagen@reddit

Live candles on Christmas trees are still common in Denmark
View on Reddit #70353386

Salamanderonthefarm@reddit

Yep. I have candles on my tree, converted as an adult, and love them.
View on Reddit #70347659

luckeratron@reddit

I had the Christmas tree next to the wood burner one year, it didn't start a fire or anything. However when I took it outside to burn it it was so dry and resinous that as soon as a flame touched it it went up with a whoosh, it was like a petrol bomb. Singed my eyebrows! If that had happened indoors it would have been a major problem. We have since moved to a convincing fake tree and moved where we put the tree.
View on Reddit #70337414

A-Grey-World@reddit

Yeah, anyone that's ever burned a dried old Christmas tree should be terrified of putting a flame near the thing. We did it when we were a kid and I swear the flames were as high as the house.
View on Reddit #70339563

latflickr@reddit

Best example of survival bias ever
View on Reddit #70336875

Ok_Network_6468@reddit

They get really warm old fairy lights and im glad I don’t have to deal with that anymore, sure they looked pretty but were problematic for a variety of reasons and It’s good shops stopped selling them, I wouldn’t wish them back for nostalgia reasons I would cope.
View on Reddit #71771096

Dream-Accomplished@reddit

https://preview.redd.it/vazn73lzxv1g1.jpeg?width=4284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7caac1df6e1f7347fecdeb900b2376266f4b5fb7 I’ve been trying to find incandescent Christmas lights for years, happen to be in LA for work a few weeks ago, and whilst I was there (in a pharmacy of all places) found these!
View on Reddit #71473754

byron123x@reddit

They were absolutely horrible to deal with bulbs breaking whne you took them out of storage fuse bulbs. Not sure why you want a replacement LED all the way
View on Reddit #70692093

QBaseX@reddit

Have you been following Technology Connections on YouTube, and Alec's years-long quest to find LEDs with the same warmth as incandescent bulbs? Last December, he actually found some he's happy with.
View on Reddit #70634926

Locksey-EON@reddit

Eugh Replacing bulbs
View on Reddit #70629621

JacobMarley86@reddit

I remember every December without fail, my Mum having to swap the bulbs one by one to find which one had failed. Bless her heart.
View on Reddit #70317955

purrcthrowa@reddit

Nerd that I am, I used a signal injector you use for tracing cables and a detector pen. You connect the signal injector to a pin of the mains plug, and then run the pen along the cable until the pen stops detecting. Then you've found the broken bulb. The original purpose of the injector was for tracing a fault in an ethernet cable I had at home, but I also used it to check the integrity of the boundary cable for my (dreadful) robomow. The detector cost me something like £20 from eBay, IIRC.
View on Reddit #70335552

Bottled_Void@reddit

I remember finding out you can test a car battery just by measuring its voltage with a multimeter. Then being astonished at the number of people I work with that didn't own a multimeter.
View on Reddit #70347593

iMacDragon@reddit

You can somewhat test a car battery just by measuring it's voltage, but a proper test requires a current sink too.
View on Reddit #70623283

Old_Adagio_5278@reddit

I used to use a volt stick. A lot of lights run every second bulb to the end of the string then come back in-between. So I'd start halfway, desperate the wires and test each one. Voltage on both faults towards the plug, voltage on one faults towards the end of the string. Was a lot quicker than the neon I used to use. LED was a god send I thought. So much more reliable.
View on Reddit #70359285

TechnologyAndDreams@reddit

link?
View on Reddit #70343680

purrcthrowa@reddit

Somthing like this one: [https://amzn.eu/d/ishmbYu](https://amzn.eu/d/ishmbYu)
View on Reddit #70345368

Space-manatee@reddit

Bravo for the ingenuity, but isn’t about the journey rather than the destination?
View on Reddit #70337234

purrcthrowa@reddit

It is sticking two fingers up to tradition, admittedly.
View on Reddit #70345296

InternetProviderings@reddit

That really is ULTRA nerdy...but I love it! 🤣
View on Reddit #70337090

babyformulaandham@reddit

My dad had to do this too. He'd sit and untangle them and then test every bulb, every year. Then he'd sit with the camcorder and a rubbish bag on Christmas morning. Love him.
View on Reddit #70323393

GunstarGreen@reddit

Did anyone ever re-watch their Christmas mornings? I vaguely remember them being filmed but I have no recollection of rewatching them. 
View on Reddit #70334558

PoglesBee@reddit

A few years ago my dad digitised all our old family videos and sent them to all of us. It's one of the best gifts I could ever have gotten! As well as us having access to all these old Christmas mornings etc., because he did them all himself he has a clearer memory of everything and has organised them. We'll have family gatherings and talk about a certain Christmas or family holiday or birthday present and he'll quietly go over to the computer and dig out a relevant video. It's amazing!
View on Reddit #70335691

DirectPen3441@reddit

Love that for you. To be able to jump back in time. What a gift. 
View on Reddit #70438358

Stage_Party@reddit

I recently managed to get our old vcr recordings off my mum who took them when she left and for a decade refused to hand them over. I also found an old TV with built in vcr player, my dad watches to old vcrs occasionally and has managed to get my wife and her daughter watching them now too.
View on Reddit #70355377

Gutternips@reddit

I was born pre-video. My dad had a super-8 camera and filmed every birthday, Christmas and holiday. During Covid I treated myself to a super-8 digitiser and put them all into AVI files. It was an incredible nostalgia trip. I also e-mailed all the people in the films who are still alive with copies of them - they all loved it.
View on Reddit #70341537

cpt_hatstand@reddit

I watch the kids ones sometimes on my phone over the last few years, although that's generally just their reactions as they come downstairs
View on Reddit #70337292

Historical-Mix8865@reddit

Yeah, digitised them all and telecined the film recordings from even earlier Neat to have the day I got an N64 preserved amongst other times
View on Reddit #70335815

DameKumquat@reddit

My dad delegated that to me once I was five. Along with trying to explain series vs parallel circuits, which went totally over my head for years!
View on Reddit #70318223

tcpukl@reddit

You say that, but you remember it.
View on Reddit #70338813

DameKumquat@reddit

True, but it was only when I got to GCSE physics that it made any sense at all!
View on Reddit #70362824

robgod50@reddit

Did you pass?
View on Reddit #70381859

DameKumquat@reddit

I had an excellent teacher so yes, got an A, then promptly forgot most of it beyond wiring a plug.
View on Reddit #70384562

robgod50@reddit

Lol... I'm the same. Took physics, don't remember a thing except a diagram of a plug on the paper And you don't even have to do that anymore!
View on Reddit #70409756

tcpukl@reddit

I like to explain all sorts of things I know my kids don't immediately understand. But in the long run hopefully it gives a good grounding of common sense as well.
View on Reddit #70366447

JoolzM@reddit

I see what you did there!
View on Reddit #70378885

Trickydicky232@reddit

I think we shared the same childhood
View on Reddit #70349522

Justplaythefkngnote@reddit

Yeah my Dad was the one to do that. Such a patient man. My mum would never have made it to the end of the light testing did not have the calm patience it required!
View on Reddit #70390983

AdAdministrative7804@reddit

We just moved the dead section to be nesr the wall
View on Reddit #70336796

ResponsibleTomato841@reddit

I remember that was my job as a kid. Out came the box with the replacement bulbs all mixed up for some reason, and to work I went, I loved it lol
View on Reddit #70321448

Golden_Eclipse@reddit

Ebay.
View on Reddit #70618736

Low-Associate7877@reddit

I miss candles on a coat hanger. Yes they were a serious fire risk but so were chip pans and your Nan falling asleep with a fag on the go.
View on Reddit #70604738

product-of-my-time@reddit

Technology Connections made a video about a company that does incandescent-style LEDs (previously called Vintaglo, now called Merry Co), I imagine they can be wired to a UK plug or put on an adapter https://merryco.com/ https://youtu.be/qSFNufruSKw
View on Reddit #70603013

Katieirishchav@reddit

😍😍😍
View on Reddit #70577043

Only-Helicopter-5783@reddit

Incandescent are banned!? I had no idea. I got some off eBay, the colour is just so much nicer
View on Reddit #70572603

Hopeful-Car8210@reddit

Wait there banned 
View on Reddit #70569944

HahaLady1@reddit

Sorry but glad. They look poops compared to the new lights. I hated unrolling them and then when they didn’t work check every fricking bulb to check which one was the dud
View on Reddit #70553527

walrusio234@reddit

LEDs come like this 🤷
View on Reddit #70529603

Accomplished-Boot-81@reddit

I don't know if they will be available in the UK but this guy made a video on this exact topic and he found a suitable alternative https://youtu.be/qSFNufruSKw?si=8nXBb-akc_mwXC8j
View on Reddit #70505594

kittenish17@reddit

I agree. What I find is that the 'mix' of lights isn't right and the overall colour is blue rather than orange. So I have the red, blue. green, yellow LED lights, and two additional strings of orange (Halloween lights) and a pink, green and pale blue mix I found. Lots of lights but works for me to give me nostalgic warm feels.
View on Reddit #70492281

Both-Trash7021@reddit

Early 1980’s and my parents were still using Christmas tree lights from the 1960’s. The lights connected by a bayonet fitting and had to be plugged into an old lamp placed on the floor near the tree. I don’t know the term but it wasn’t shielded wire as we know it, plastic, it was a sort of brown fabric material. The lights themselves were really pretty. Each about an inch long. Little houses, a church, a horse drawn coach, stars, Santas … all painted, the paint was flaking off them. And my brother decided to simply touch the old lamp, near the fitting … he got a bad electric shock. Amazingly my parents were none fussed. “Well don’t touch it then”. “You were told not to”. And they remained on that Christmas. No GP visit or trip to the hospital considered for him. Although the following year the lights were replaced. But they still didn’t throw the old lights out, we found them in a box when we were clearing my Ma’s house out in 2023.
View on Reddit #70488143

elbapo@reddit

They were worse. LEDs can produce the same wavelengths of light, if they want. And be the same shape- if wanted. It's just fashions have changed. They also tend to work when you get them out of the loft. If you miss the testing every bulb process to find which one has burnt out- as part of your Christmas ritual- you do you. Not me.
View on Reddit #70338570

Sweet-Psychology-254@reddit

>LEDs can produce the same wavelengths of light, if they want 99% of Christmas Lights don’t, though, because they’re mass produced to low standards. Only Vintaglo (and maybe Noma) have LED ones comparable to Incandescent. 
View on Reddit #70479119

Wrong-Celebration-12@reddit

I have two sets of these for the tree, a few years of led's and I bit the bullet I couldn't handle it! I needed the 90's magic back [https://www.festive-lights.com/canterbury-belles-multi-coloured-led-outdoor-christmas-fairy-lights?gad\_source=1&gad\_campaignid=17347901885&gbraid=0AAAAAD7\_TlN9BZ-ZC1i4fxOWKI6VwYgse&gclid=Cj0KCQjwgpzIBhCOARIsABZm7vGt\_0YZuOO7vY6e2t8Xh-Xo03ibhj8pe70Y4lEpiTvd76Xpw5o9SocaAqUuEALw\_wcB#193=2092?glCurrency=GBP&glCountry=GB](https://www.festive-lights.com/canterbury-belles-multi-coloured-led-outdoor-christmas-fairy-lights?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=17347901885&gbraid=0AAAAAD7_TlN9BZ-ZC1i4fxOWKI6VwYgse&gclid=Cj0KCQjwgpzIBhCOARIsABZm7vGt_0YZuOO7vY6e2t8Xh-Xo03ibhj8pe70Y4lEpiTvd76Xpw5o9SocaAqUuEALw_wcB#193=2092?glCurrency=GBP&glCountry=GB)
View on Reddit #70333891

PillowIgloo182@reddit

They look lovely. Really want to bring back some soft glowing/ fun to our Christmas decs this year.
View on Reddit #70336022

Wrong-Celebration-12@reddit

100% recommend! Been using them since 2021 and only had to replace a few dead bulbs (replacements came with the lights) and they feel exactly like the ones I had as a kid
View on Reddit #70336455

Sweet-Psychology-254@reddit

Aren’t those LED bulbs, though? How are they blowing out? 
View on Reddit #70478879

josh50051@reddit

To clarify the UK didn't ban them. The entire world banned them. EU and USA banned filament bulbs , the one exception is for heating bulbs for heating , IE incubators.
View on Reddit #70339222

Sweet-Psychology-254@reddit

Weirdly enough my country (Australia) banned Incandescent Christmas lights, whereas the US and UK still seem to have them (moreso the US than the UK). 
View on Reddit #70478740

frazbombe1@reddit

Can't believe no one has mentioned technology connections on YouTube yet. He has been looking at this for years. I think there are finally some realistic alternative out. https://youtu.be/qSFNufruSKw?si=sGxiUhNmgVmLXh6M
View on Reddit #70335825

Sweet-Psychology-254@reddit

The Noma classic LED lights are supposed to be a good alternative too. 
View on Reddit #70478550

I-FEAR-EVERYTHING@reddit

That will be why I cant find them anywhere 😔 do you know if it was because they was unsafe? Or just Banned? I Hate LED. Its just not the same is it
View on Reddit #70468463

lolitalover2005@reddit

So I didn't know this and googled what that meant and let's just say we still have these on our Christmas tree 😭😭😭 tbh I think the lights are older than me (20) 😭😭😭 so that's why they get ridiculously burning hot!!!!
View on Reddit #70462310

That_Northern_bloke@reddit

My parents till have our old, non LED tree lights that must be nearly 30 years old, still going strong 
View on Reddit #70314660

JohnnySchoolman@reddit

Have you reported them to the Police or are you waiting for the random Christmas Tree inspection?
View on Reddit #70315826

eroticdiscourse@reddit

Maybe his Christmas licence hasn’t been renewed yet
View on Reddit #70320889

_FreddieLovesDelilah@reddit

Did you know that you don’t actually have to let in the Christmas Tree inspectors, they just send out those letters to intimidate you into buying your Christmas tree license.
View on Reddit #70378330

gabbysuperstar@reddit

Do they actually have these tree inspectors
View on Reddit #70383765

That_Northern_bloke@reddit

Yes, its called Special Branch
View on Reddit #70384343

GreatChaosFudge@reddit

This comment has been undeservedly neglected.
View on Reddit #70450776

That_Northern_bloke@reddit

Guess people are leafing it alone 
View on Reddit #70452972

tannercolin@reddit

Judging by some of the comments on this post I am certain someone has reported him
View on Reddit #70346090

Tough-Oven4317@reddit

They've repurposed some police choppers to look for illegal bulbs instead of just grow houses, they'll get them, I've got no worries about that. The swift hand of justice
View on Reddit #70318674

CaveJohnson82@reddit

Only 30?
View on Reddit #70342356

That_Northern_bloke@reddit

Well I'm 30 and I remember them from my earliest Christmases so I'm guessing 
View on Reddit #70342436

sprainedmind@reddit

My parents' set will be 50 next year! Yes, they still have the receipt, and the original packaging...
View on Reddit #70315871

Jazzlike_Elk_1675@reddit

Totally feel this- those old incandescent lights had such a warm, cozy glow. The LEDs now just feel too harsh. I’ve seen a few warm white or vintage LED sets on Amazon, but honestly none quite capture that classic Christmas vibe yet.
View on Reddit #70452956

Cute_Detective1215@reddit

These are similar to the old lights… I found this at John Lewis & Partners. What do you think? https://www.johnlewis.com/john-lewis-500-multifunction-led-berry-lights-lit-length-11m/multi/p113395912?tmad=c&tmcampid=7&s_share=jlappios_Y29tLmFwcGxlLlVJS2l0LmFjdGl2aXR5LkNvcHlUb1Bhc3RlYm9hcmQ=
View on Reddit #70429057

Cute_Detective1215@reddit

https://preview.redd.it/3a4sisv239zf1.png?width=2160&format=png&auto=webp&s=28b1044f631f3ddbb317b4ae736cda301d9424ae
View on Reddit #70429382

CapnSeabass@reddit

“Premier vintage gold Christmas tree lights” on Amazon. Saw them at a garden centre and gasped. It’s exactly the warm golden glow that I want my Christmas tree to have. Sadly I’ve never found a multicoloured string light that gives the nostalgic feel, but for a warm glow those ones are pretty good. There’s also a “vintage gold and red”, but I prefer the gold on its own.
View on Reddit #70429243

Drizznarte@reddit

Why worked in a specialist lamp and light store, 15 years ago. I'm so glad I don't have to mess around trying to fix Christmas lights anymore , those replaceable little bulbs all wired in series . Led for the win , soon individual addressable leds will be the norm , they have the best effects , when combined with a controller that can interpret a 3d space.
View on Reddit #70429143

Cute_Detective1215@reddit

These are as close to the old coloured fairy lights you can get now, I guess… I found this at John Lewis & Partners. What do you think? https://www.johnlewis.com/john-lewis-500-multifunction-led-berry-lights-lit-length-11m/multi/p113395912?tmad=c&tmcampid=7&s_share=jlappios_Y29tLmFwcGxlLlVJS2l0LmFjdGl2aXR5LkNvcHlUb1Bhc3RlYm9hcmQ=
View on Reddit #70428995

Cute_Detective1215@reddit

I found this at John Lewis & Partners. What do you think? https://www.johnlewis.com/john-lewis-500-multifunction-led-berry-lights-lit-length-11m/multi/p113395912?tmad=c&tmcampid=7&s_share=jlappios_Y29tLmFwcGxlLlVJS2l0LmFjdGl2aXR5LkNvcHlUb1Bhc3RlYm9hcmQ=
View on Reddit #70428907

Soap_Distant666@reddit

Back in the 60's we had 3 sets on lights on the tree, but none had a plug on, so my grandad would twist the wires together, poke them in the L & N holes on the socket, and hammer the TV plug in to push them in. No, I have no idea how I'm still alive either. Then again, in our box of decorations, there were some clip on candle holders and small coloured twisted candles for them. Yeah, actual candles on a real Xmas tree. Makes the wires in the plug sound safe doesn't it.
View on Reddit #70423427

lcmfe@reddit

I will look later if I remember, but Zoe Sugg was on the hunt for these for ages and found some last year. If you go to her tree decorating YouTube she talks about them and they look great
View on Reddit #70420119

redalexei@reddit

This raises a question I’ve wondered about…I hav various strings of outdoor LED Christmas lights and most of them have some lights which are no longer working. Is there an easy way to fix them? I assume not - because you’d need to cut out the offending lights and reconnect the ends. Is that right or is there an easier solution (which doesn’t involve binning and replacing 😋)?
View on Reddit #70418725

20127010603170562316@reddit

What pisses me off, is all the blue flashy LEDs on houses and in truck cabins around Christmas time. At a glance, I feel like I'm about to be pulled over.
View on Reddit #70323753

georgiebb@reddit

My neighbour loves their rapid blue flashing LEDs. It took me years not to get startled by it coming through my windows. The worry now is if I ever get pulled over the blue flashing lights will mean nothing to me
View on Reddit #70417312

ideasplace@reddit

https://youtu.be/qSFNufruSKw?si=zSMLBNFqueg0t40B
View on Reddit #70416652

mashed666@reddit

Remember when you tested them before they went on and worked great... Then you spent ages decorating the tree and plugged them back in and they didn't... Leds are better.
View on Reddit #70412988

ExtentWorking@reddit

You can still get Christmas lights with bulbs in as far as I know , I got some off Amazon , Victorian lantern type .
View on Reddit #70412972

mad_saffer@reddit

If the blue LEDs bother you, buy 2 sets of lights and take the blue bulbs out replacing them with the red and green from the other set.
View on Reddit #70412458

Defiant-Sand9498@reddit

I didn't even notice
View on Reddit #70408472

rainbowkey@reddit

Technology Connections has done a few excellent videos on exactly this. [Here is the most recent from last year.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSFNufruSKw)
View on Reddit #70406289

fu211@reddit

Woah there! Proper Xmas lights for me were beeswax candles not your new fangled lektricty stuff. We had a bucket of water beside the tree in case it went up. Then kids came along.
View on Reddit #70403830

HeartyBeast@reddit

Just get a chain whether you can change the colour, like Twinklies.  There are 100s of types of led chain out there to suit everyone’s vibe and without the fatalities caused every Christmas from housefires 
View on Reddit #70327935

QuirkyMerky@reddit

Was just about to say this!
View on Reddit #70401158

EpsomJames@reddit

Moved to Twinkly lights (other addressable colour string lights also applicable) a couple of years ago. Look absolutely amazing and with the RGB + white one you can chose any colour, even have dim warm white lights like you used to with the old incandescent lights.
View on Reddit #70338868

WillyPete@reddit

Got a Balsam and Hill tree last year, that uses the Twinkly system. The wife loves it. The app is cool, mapping the tree light positions with the phone's camera and then using that map to overlay the pattern you want.
View on Reddit #70342601

Paracosm24@reddit

I always try and keep my old incandescent light strings whenever possible. They can be a bit finicky with lights popping, and trying to find the right replacement bulb, but at least you can replace the bulbs. If an LED fails, that's it, game over.
View on Reddit #70397518

Patient-Context-9424@reddit

Why have they been banned?
View on Reddit #70396941

mpanase@reddit

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSFNufruSKw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSFNufruSKw)
View on Reddit #70396232

NocturneFogg@reddit

If you just get better quality LED lights with bigger shades you basically get back to the old look. The cheap ones often have a very low colour temp and also don’t have pinks and oranges etc.
View on Reddit #70395675

TangerineFew6830@reddit

Absolutely I have orange / gold and dark green lights cost me about £70 - on very and they are so lovely!
View on Reddit #70395363

Pauliboo2@reddit

[Technology Connections](https://youtu.be/qSFNufruSKw?si=H21lFU4cZlDd5N2P) did a video on this very subject and found some for you, though I don’t know if they’re available over here
View on Reddit #70393934

Kingtoke1@reddit

Just buy better bulbs. The options are there
View on Reddit #70392785

Elliecp@reddit

I brought some incandescent lights the other day from Amazon, can’t wait for Christmas!! They were expensive but worth it
View on Reddit #70391933

Reesy@reddit

Ooo I love that third pic, some nostalgia right there, that’s what our tree looked like as kids
View on Reddit #70391424

tartanthing@reddit

[Technology Connections](https://youtu.be/qSFNufruSKw?si=XS3MGKW4zbL4nri5) had the same problem. I don't know if they are available in the UK though. I'm old enough to remember lit candles on Christmas trees. Usually in Church. Why anyone thought that was a good idea is beyond me. We used the same lights year after year. Always the same rigmarole. Despite properly winding them round a piece of cardboard they came out in knots which took hours to undo and testing multiple bulbs to see which ones had blown. God knows how old they were, but I remember they had light bulb bayonet sockets made of Bakelite.
View on Reddit #70389246

ExecutiveChimp@reddit

While we're on the topic, can somebody explain to me why some people use only bright blue LEDs as Christmas decoration? It's the cold, bleak, winter season and you're going to cheer yourself up with the nice warn glow of an insect-o-cutor? I don't see the appeal.
View on Reddit #70345062

CarolineKnappShappey@reddit

I feel the same way! Just blue is so cold and unwelcoming. I am very lucky that my incandescent fairy lights are still going strong (going to jinx it now) but I love the glow from them. The light they cast is so warm and strangely, it calms me down.
View on Reddit #70388632

NinjamaticNemesis@reddit

Get some Twinkly lights. (Twinkly as a brand). Yes, they're (relatively) expensive, yes they're LED but you can literally program your Christmas tree to do anything from "Candy Cane" stripes to rainbows to whatever you draw on it (yup!!) to gentle, traditional style. Worth every penny.
View on Reddit #70387492

Mitridate101@reddit

[Technology Connections](https://youtu.be/qSFNufruSKw?si=8bHZ-fZnJOpI8vdI)
View on Reddit #70385613

Admirable-Land-5780@reddit

Just buy second hand ones thats what we have
View on Reddit #70383920

x99kjg@reddit

Still got ours, we refuse let them die!
View on Reddit #70383311

SirCrumpet88@reddit

https://www.noma.co.uk/products/80-multicolour-led-canterbury-belle-string-light
View on Reddit #70381138

johndom3d@reddit

Get the pastel coloured LEDs - so pretty! The whole set of 1000 of them is really bright but only takes a few watts.
View on Reddit #70379610

_FreddieLovesDelilah@reddit

Wow i didnt know they were banned. I do not miss going around testing the bulbs to find the one that blew and caused a whole length of bulbs to go out lol
View on Reddit #70378202

RugbyEdd@reddit

Try little candles perched on the branches. You can add different reactive metals for a bit of variation in colour.
View on Reddit #70376812

icarusballs@reddit

What about programmable ones? I got a couple of sets of “twinklys” and they are awesome (but expensive…)
View on Reddit #70376516

DaHarries@reddit

We still have the incandecents as somehow theyre still working. Bulbs are like 15 quid for 3 from some obscure seller but theyll stay until they give out.
View on Reddit #70375283

TopAd7154@reddit

I've always disliked coloured lights. I prefer a warm, white light... never got that.
View on Reddit #70374527

Ducra@reddit

I bloody hate LED lights! Instead of the cosy glow of incandescent, they are far too bright and glaring. Burn the fecking eyeballs aff ye.
View on Reddit #70373393

kdawg123412@reddit

Look up what incandescent means and then hark back to the 'good old days!'
View on Reddit #70372814

Upset_Cow_8517@reddit

Huh? They're not banned.
View on Reddit #70369946

MyRabbitisChaos@reddit

We went full nostalgia; Edwardian style! I'd grown a distaste for the gaudiness of modern Xmas decor. It was all plastic and tack that didn't last long and looked awful. So we went back in time. Natural tree, decor that's entirely natural or at least not plastic and foil. We use glass baubles, popcorn and dried fruit stings. Pinecones... You get the idea; metal, glass, wood, natural and a little resin allowed. For lighting we've gone back to candle lit trees. Xmas Eve tradition is now It's a Wonderful Life and the warm glow of the candlelit tree. I'm not trying to encourage the use of open flames on a tree. In fact I wholly discourage it. It IS incredibly risky and comes with a level of danger way outside of most people's risk profile. It requires planning and adjustment and minimising all the risks you can. But it can be done and for the last decade we've managed it without even remotely close to having an incident. We have found it has placed the tree back in the centre of attention instead of an afterthought. It takes care and focus and really gives the tree a whole new element as a focal point. I only include it in this post because this is the genuine alternative I found. https://preview.redd.it/7dq9hn6mr2zf1.jpeg?width=2982&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=eb3436f5c9ca85c545536db848016ad1f99e9d14
View on Reddit #70367180

sac666@reddit

Why is it banned? Quite ridiculous for government to start banning light bulbs unless they are actually dangerous?
View on Reddit #70367068

ARobertNotABob@reddit

Is a man abseiling from Machu Picchu incan descent?
View on Reddit #70365230

First_Monitor_4028@reddit

When my grandad died, we all got to choose a little something. I took some of his old baccy tins (golden Virginia) and they all have different things in. My fave are the incandescent Christmas tree bulbs.
View on Reddit #70365214

loveswimmingpools@reddit

You can get the softer yellowish led lights. I have those. I know what you mean about the blue ones. They give me a headache.
View on Reddit #70363670

plentyofizzinthezee@reddit

Just stay drunk all Christmas, all lights look hazy and warm that way
View on Reddit #70361631

Auschwitzmypants@reddit

I brought some second hand old ones off eBay and haven't looked back since, you can't beat the warm glow.
View on Reddit #70361288

justabookrat@reddit

Frosted LED lights I don't personally get the coloured fairy lights but the warm white frosted LEDs makes a great soft light thays very cozy and not harsh at all
View on Reddit #70358765

Double_Rhubarb_9659@reddit

I'm pretty sure my parents (now in their 80s) are still using their grandparents' Christmas lights which were probably bought circa 1960 and made in Hong Kong or Taiwan plus quite a few other sets that were bought when I was a kid, so at least 35 years ago! None of this LED nonsense. My dad was an electrical engineer and will hear no complaints about possible safety issues... That's what fuses and breakers are for apparently! I haven't been home for Christmas for quite a while but going this year so I'll find out and post here if they are still going.
View on Reddit #70358473

badger906@reddit

Finding the one bulb that was dead in a string that caused a quarter of it to not work was a pain in the ass
View on Reddit #70358301

reocoaker@reddit

They were absolutely shite.
View on Reddit #70357987

kylehyde84@reddit

I miss colourful Christmas trees so much. Warm white is so boring
View on Reddit #70315509

HeartyBeast@reddit

Why are your buying white LED lights then? I don’t understand 
View on Reddit #70327990

kylehyde84@reddit

It isn't just me to consider. If it was my house would be festooned like the 80s. No one likes that but me though. Modern coloured LEDs are crap too in comparison to the old bulb style ones
View on Reddit #70357824

TawnyTeaTowel@reddit

If only they still sold coloured lights… oh wait…
View on Reddit #70349739

cpt_hatstand@reddit

Better than cool/ice white though
View on Reddit #70337617

kylehyde84@reddit

Absolutely!
View on Reddit #70346721

Temporary_Delay_3708@reddit

It!s always worth a visit https://youtu.be/wOMd7pjUyEY?si=-d6cOrLU9Xl2zJpR
View on Reddit #70356631

fierypitsofhell@reddit

https://preview.redd.it/ujfnjx2c22zf1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=50cb3c5c9887e090709186fa6c96332e98238c1e Saw these in a garden centre on Saturday.
View on Reddit #70356013

fierypitsofhell@reddit

![img](ujfnjx2c22zf1) Saw these in a garden centre on Saturday. ETA Crews Hill near Enfield. Can’t remember which garden centre though as there are a few down that stretch of road.
View on Reddit #70356096

Tej0009871@reddit

I didn’t know this, something about the multicolour glow feels a sense of nostalgia
View on Reddit #70355251

hamsterchump@reddit

I just bought a set of the old ones, 140 bulbs, never been taken out of the box (must've got put away and forgotten in some loft somewhere, £5 on Vinted.
View on Reddit #70355125

JohnTitorsdaughter@reddit

Maybe your camera just got better, and it’s just your memory that’s blurry.
View on Reddit #70354390

snajk138@reddit

There are ones made from warm white leds with colour filters, rather than coloured leds. They are much nicer, though not as nice as the old type. 
View on Reddit #70354317

Darwins_Pointed_Stik@reddit

TIME FOR MY FAVORITE TECHNOLOGY CONNECTIONS OP: https://youtu.be/qSFNufruSKw?si=l5tqtqDQkKDpWd6Q
View on Reddit #70353969

JustGap8613@reddit

Since when were they banned it’s simply fashion.. there was a big drive to a Nordic style but last few years they’re come back and i bought some last year
View on Reddit #70353567

iamabigtree@reddit

The UK hasn't banned incandescent Christmas tree lights. You just haven't bothered to look.
View on Reddit #70334902

DeifniteProfessional@reddit

Tell us where you're buying new ones from then.
View on Reddit #70343200

iamabigtree@reddit

Amazon
View on Reddit #70344663

DeifniteProfessional@reddit

Yeah but like \*actually\*, because it's all LEDs as far as I can see
View on Reddit #70345154

iamabigtree@reddit

Yeah you search and it'll show LED mostly but there is some incandescent in there. Not many as I guess there isn't the market for it.
View on Reddit #70353174

TawnyTeaTowel@reddit

The Range had them last year IIRC
View on Reddit #70349994

Dry-Depth-4693@reddit

I have astigmatism, so all lights to me look like the old school ones. My mum does miss the old ones though.
View on Reddit #70353016

Griffrose@reddit

Cluster lights will make the tree shine
View on Reddit #70352614

littlestinkyone@reddit

Technology Connections is an American YouTuber who has been on an absolute MISSION for this for the last four(?) years. I believe he had a breakthrough last year, I will try to find the link
View on Reddit #70352304

paulywauly99@reddit

Plenty on EBay.
View on Reddit #70351277

munehaus@reddit

Technology Connections has done several videos on this. I think the conclusion was there is now a company making almost perfect replicas of the incandescent bulbs, but colouring the LED ones with some types of ink or paint can come close.
View on Reddit #70350756

Chuck_The_Lad@reddit

Never noticed the difference 
View on Reddit #70350135

KrozJr_UK@reddit

…we banned them? My mum saw strings at the local garden centre the other week, and was able to buy me replacement bulbs for the string I have strung up round my room year-round (autism, it’s a pretty light).
View on Reddit #70319060

TawnyTeaTowel@reddit

No, we didn’t. OP is mistaken.
View on Reddit #70349771

Roseaux1994@reddit

Become short-sighted and take your glasses off - tada!
View on Reddit #70348375

CmdrKerans@reddit

Get Twinkly lights. Easy to set up some very nice pastel/less saturated colours which are much easier on the eye.
View on Reddit #70348058

Salamanderonthefarm@reddit

I have candles on my tree! How’s that for nostalgia 😁
View on Reddit #70347547

oportoman@reddit

Old lights were a pain - let's not get nostalgic for something that often didn't work
View on Reddit #70347531

seby78@reddit

Totally agree
View on Reddit #70347294

sticky1953@reddit

The faux cobweb material can almost replicate the diffuse nature of the old bulbs.
View on Reddit #70346820

MoonageManic@reddit

They’re stupidly expensive but Philips Hue string lights allow you to change colours and brightness. I use them all year round so I can kid myself I’ve got better value from them.
View on Reddit #70332546

angatk@reddit

Buy twinkly instead
View on Reddit #70346647

DrBob2016@reddit

I miss my Dad getting the decorations out of the loft and spending most of the day trying to get the bulb string to work, despite the fact they were working when last used. This was a time before self shorting bulbs were used, so if one bulb blew the whole string would be dead. We also had a DIY string using standard 12/6V bulbs which were all soldered together in series and plugged into the ceiling light socket. He also painted them different colours, this was all draped around a real tree. How the hell he didn't burn the house down or electrocute someone beats me. H
View on Reddit #70346483

Warblingwurble@reddit

Noma pickwick lights are what you’re looking for. I got them last year and they’re perfect
View on Reddit #70346394

Wooden_Task5624@reddit

Warm LEDs are a real thing.
View on Reddit #70345528

TheBookofBobaFett3@reddit

I suspect it’s it so much the lights; but like old photos from boxing looked amazing, it was because the room was filled with cigarette smoke that added a lovely soft thick diffuse to lights. My gran god love her soul was like an industrial fog machine https://preview.redd.it/x4d1ndcgmzyf1.jpeg?width=221&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4daa46f42ddf37a1c64a3e9867918a3f1c61d810
View on Reddit #70333544

JGG5@reddit

The cloud of cigarette smoke was also one of the reasons that 40-year-olds back then looked like 60-year-olds now.
View on Reddit #70343296

TheBookofBobaFett3@reddit

But with beautiful diffused light 🤣
View on Reddit #70345371

PixelPerfecter@reddit

Industrial fog machine 😂
View on Reddit #70336829

DivideBYZero69@reddit

I prefer LEDs.
View on Reddit #70345362

s3mtek@reddit

If you've got the money, Govee Christmas Tree Lights are amazing. [Here's](https://www.youtube.com/shorts/3xSQC-LCSEM) a quick look
View on Reddit #70345299

BellybuttonWorld@reddit

It was the fibreglass 'Angel hair' that really gave the lights that ethereal look. I wonder how much is in my lungs.
View on Reddit #70345278

SykoManiax@reddit

its not about the lights but what tinsel you surround the lights with to create the glow
View on Reddit #70345271

rev-fr-john@reddit

Oh so here we are reminiscing about the soft warm glow and warmth of incandescent Christmas lights. Or are we simply blind to the absolutely dangerous decorations that not only break a fundamental law of electrical circuit design (never drop voltage over a lamp) but also caused multiple house fires as a result of breaking that law, but it got worse, on later versions as one filament failed the lamp had a mechanism to by pass the failed filament thus increasing the voltage to other lamps and also the chances of a house fire, then we get on the reality that despite legislation coming in that everything would either be earthed or double insulated Christmas lights were neither.
View on Reddit #70344719

Morris_Alanisette@reddit

Why incandescent bulbs? Bit modern if you ask me. If you're after nostalgia just hang candles on the tree.
View on Reddit #70344626

ddoogg88tdog@reddit

a pack of matches can replicate the same warm glow from a tree that caught fire
View on Reddit #70344106

Timely-Examination49@reddit

Just squint
View on Reddit #70343952

BusyBeeBridgette@reddit

They say they are banned. But you can still freely buy, sell, own, and use incandescent lights in the UK.
View on Reddit #70343870

MercuryJellyfish@reddit

I’ve thought this for a few years now. The frequencies of light coming out of LEDs don’t say Christmas to me, but there’s a generation coming that will only have known LED Christmas lights, and for them, those colours will say Christmas. I only use Warm White LEDs for Christmas lights. They at least seem close to incandescent light colour.
View on Reddit #70343837

Farmerloki@reddit

Incandescent lights are still legal to use in the uk.
View on Reddit #70327274

Zanockthael@reddit

It's actually kinda interesting now I've looked it up. It's illegal to manufacture and import them, but not illegal to sell, use or own them.  It makes perfect sense once you really think about it. It's a little like that idea of putting a minimum age on smoking. In the long term, there'll be no smokers left, without having to criminalise people who currently smoke.
View on Reddit #70343553

Joober81@reddit

I hate modern LED lights without shades, they’re just too bright and lack warmth. People cursing old lights not working…. You bought cheap lights connected in sequence. If you bought them connected in parallel it didn’t happen. You can buy modern version which are brilliant, search for Pickwick Christmas tree lights.
View on Reddit #70337345

sputnikconspirator@reddit

Also, if you must buy filament, check that they have a bridge inside the bulb too, the bridge is a secondary winding of wire at the bottom of the two filament prongs that allow current to still pass through the bulb if the main filament burns out, so the light chain stays lit even if a bulb goes out. Just make sure to replace the bulb asap ...
View on Reddit #70343522

geeered@reddit

Quite possibly you could just reduce the voltage going to the LEDs (or go fancy and do it properly with a PWM controller). Or buy some dimmable ones straight off. [https://www.amazon.co.uk/Twinkle-Star-Christmas-Waterproof-Decorations/dp/B0D4V4M9X9](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Twinkle-Star-Christmas-Waterproof-Decorations/dp/B0D4V4M9X9) Or to go really fancy, could get indivdually addressable ones: [https://www.amazon.co.uk/Nanoleaf-Holiday-Christmas-Addressable-Outdoor/dp/B0DGTYPSZB](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Nanoleaf-Holiday-Christmas-Addressable-Outdoor/dp/B0DGTYPSZB) (You can also get similar lights a lot cheaper not sold for Christmas use, but you'd need a separate controller.)
View on Reddit #70315030

Possible-Ad-2682@reddit

It's more to do with the way the colours are reproduced with LED lights rather than the actual brightness. Incandescent lights are literally just painted different colours, which would work equally well with warm white LEDs, it's just that very few manufacturers do it this way.
View on Reddit #70316755

DeifniteProfessional@reddit

LEDs have two distinct issues: 1) Flicker. They're a digital device, they are at mercy to digital flickerage 2) wavelengths - even the best LEDs only produce a narrow wavelength. You could make a handful of them that produce a combination of wavelegnths, then put them in filtered tubes and it would look better. I think this is how VintaGlo does it, but not sure
View on Reddit #70343369

Apidium@reddit

It's not *just* the brightness. It's the shade of colour too. Some shades are just - piercing. LED blue is a especially ghastly and blinding default shade. Being able to dim it doesn't change the fact it's just an offensive colour. To get it to shut up would require dimming it basically to the point it's turned off. A decent solution is a warm white led with painted shades in the various colours. But it's a delicate balance as if the led shade is too warm it will shift the colours but if it's just a shade too cool the evil blinding blue returns. I'm sure you have seen those terrible led headlights? Sometimes the hue of LEDs is just plain offensive. Cheap chsrimstas lights are exactly the area that cost cutting is rife and so more often than not you get offensive blues.
View on Reddit #70320906

WillyPete@reddit

There's a definite correlation to the introduction of Blue-source LED lights in homes and the rise in kids needing Melatonin treatments. https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/blue-light-has-a-dark-side >While light of any kind can suppress the secretion of melatonin, blue light at night does so more powerfully. Harvard researchers and their colleagues conducted an experiment comparing the effects of 6.5 hours of exposure to blue light to exposure to green light of comparable brightness. The blue light suppressed melatonin for about twice as long as the green light and shifted circadian rhythms by twice as much (3 hours vs. 1.5 hours).
View on Reddit #70342785

geeered@reddit

I've spent a bit too long in places like r/flashlight, so I know a bit too much about LED colour temperature. My last link gives you full RGB control of the colours (or I'd really hope so at that price, it's easily achievable),
View on Reddit #70321180

ZealousIDShop@reddit

Bring back putting candles straight on the tree. 
View on Reddit #70343317

BiscottiSenior9099@reddit

There are these new fangled lights called LED - I'm not sure they'll catch on though.
View on Reddit #70343208

DeifniteProfessional@reddit

Go to Ebay Search "vintage 90s Christmas lights" Give someone £20 Wait 3 days Classic bulbs back, baby! Though they're "banned" for a good reason, they consume 21W of power and they get hot as fuck lmao. But nothing beats the glow - I actually have three sets myself, can't be doing with this LED nonsense
View on Reddit #70342866

CaveJohnson82@reddit

They were banned?! I must tell my mum. She's still got some fibre optic ones from the 70s, although to be fair I'm not sure she's used them for a good few years. I miss the look of them for sure, but I don't miss the checking all the bulbs and my mum's annoyance when we didn't have enough spares. [These ones! ](https://www.pineappleretro.co.uk/products/vintage-1970s-festive-string-lights-fantasy-by-pifco-fibre-optic-ufo?srsltid=AfmBOopFWJxnaHJAhOvoNyqMp2eRsnjD_QG6-nGLnKTLQCsvFSsCqmbS) Found them trying to find the site I found a couple of years ago that sells retro style but modern LED fairy lights, couldn't find it though. Remember it was expensive and that's about it unfortunately.
View on Reddit #70342330

Death_Savager@reddit

LED lights are awful, they all look blue to me like a TV regardless of what colour or 'warm' ones you get. I found a site online that I bought some traditional lights from 2 years ago, not sure if they will be online stock still. Just had a quick look through emails and they are no longer there :(
View on Reddit #70342043

creepinghippo@reddit

Technology Connections kind of did.
View on Reddit #70341993

Fragrant_Yogurt1345@reddit

I’m not a fan of coloured lights but in terms of LED lights in general, we go for warm white only. Cold white LED screams dentist clinic chic
View on Reddit #70339290

breadmaker2025@reddit

The cooler white lights are for the kitchen and bathroom.
View on Reddit #70341868

LaundryMan2008@reddit

I have a set of LED lights where they put a white diode inside but used a coloured plastic on top instead
View on Reddit #70341722

Clear-Equivalent4911@reddit

I feel you, the harsh blue LEDs are the absolute worst. I've had some luck finding warmer, softer LED sets online that are specifically marketed as 'warm white'. They're not quite the same as the old ones, but they're a massive step up from the clinical ones in most shops.
View on Reddit #70341614

Littl-est@reddit

I had led lights and I attribute it to the start of everyone losing their damn minds. Give me my glow. It reminds me of those candle concerts, a bunch of fake cold led candles. Soulless. Like eating Ryvita.
View on Reddit #70341498

TMI2020@reddit

Noma do a classic/vintage range. They’re LED but they’re dimmer and defo similar to the old style lights. I’ve got several sets with different styles and I rate them. I do also have Noma sets that don’t say they’re LED and they require bulb changes…would these not be incandescent?
View on Reddit #70314782

EnvironmentalPop1195@reddit

i've never heard of them before thanks for the tip. don;t suppose you also know a site for the more retro types decorations too?
View on Reddit #70329824

TMI2020@reddit

https://www.ukchristmasworld.com/collections/fairy-lights I recently bought some from there but they also sell them on Amazon and eBay and I’ve bought them in local garden centres before too.
View on Reddit #70333444

InkyPaws@reddit

Omg the Pickwick ones are what we had for *years* Might need to get some even though the dog and cats make a tree precarious.
View on Reddit #70341273

EnvironmentalPop1195@reddit

Thanks
View on Reddit #70333950

austsianodel@reddit

I have the Noma lamps and flowers and they are great!
View on Reddit #70319331

fothergillfuckup@reddit

I prefer LED's to be honest. Far less fannying about.
View on Reddit #70341057

cardiffman100@reddit

I'm LED with rage at this decision
View on Reddit #70341014

ellielg@reddit

i still remember touching the incandescent lights on my nans christmas tree as a child. they went along with the glass ornaments 😂
View on Reddit #70340738

ben_jamin_h@reddit

https://www.noma.co.uk/collections/classiclights?srsltid=AfmBOoq7W-Xe9Thqnkv9YjWBFe9EOaxA88xRVYg5f1FskJh8fOISj6Vq Classic glow with modern tech
View on Reddit #70340696

apsims12@reddit

I'm not sure if they're available in the UK/EU market since I'm not going to look up the name of the brand again but- [Technology Connections](https://youtu.be/qSFNufruSKw?si=87ZclQR_y_TozUzD) has a good video on what you might be looking for
View on Reddit #70340661

Super-Nuntendo@reddit

Similar to how people prefer albums on vinyl vs digital format, even though the later is technically superior.
View on Reddit #70340611

shrewdlogarithm@reddit

Someone needs to discover Technology Connections on YouTube Alec has STRONG opinions on this and whilst he's US based, some of his answers are available here
View on Reddit #70340549

ZombSkull@reddit

I have exactly what you need, search for NOMA Classic Vintage Style Lights Buy those, not the ones that look like them but the actual NOMA brand, they've captured the look of the classic multicoloured lights perfect by using coloured bulb "glass" Vs actual coloured LEDs to give that soft warm glow of old incandescent bulb, the test is in the blue, no longer a blue led that burns into your retina! 
View on Reddit #70340384

Distortion_XVII@reddit

https://youtube.com/@technologyconnections?si=kjMUI5GC1fJay68G Cba to find the video but this guy did a few videos on this. He ended up finding a perfect LED replacement a few months ago. Honestly great channel too, worth a watch.
View on Reddit #70340362

Ellen_Degenerates86@reddit

A lot of you are remember christmases through incandescent-tinted glasses (that would kill you if they had the chance)
View on Reddit #70340256

monkeyk1990@reddit

Sharia law
View on Reddit #70340239

Over_Tea4610@reddit

There’s a couple of US brands so you’d need a step down convertor but here’s the two I’ve found; https://merryco.com/products/vintaglo-100ct-mini-led-christmas-light-set-yule-multi-with-green-wire and https://tru-tone.com/pages/classic-light-set
View on Reddit #70340014

sunheadeddeity@reddit

Loathed the tacky old multicoloured incandescent Xmas lights and nver had them. I really like the white leds, they set off the decorations beautifully.
View on Reddit #70339781

The-Mayor-of-Italy@reddit

>and Christmas hasn't looked the same since I can honestly say I haven't remotely noticed the difference
View on Reddit #70339767

Jeffuk88@reddit

Is this why street lighting is now so bright whereas it used to be relaxing?
View on Reddit #70339728

shit_poster_69_420@reddit

Pro tip, put a piece of sticky tape over each bulb and it gives off the old school glow.
View on Reddit #70339697

Aconite_Eagle@reddit

I just use these old lights. We've had a set for 40 years still work.
View on Reddit #70339351

Comfortable-mouse05@reddit

I don't miss them at all. They were a pain in the arse to maintain and troubleshoot
View on Reddit #70339121

Which_Performance_72@reddit

I had no idea the UK had banned them. My nan still has her window lights which are incandescent, I've been burnt/shocked by them at least once
View on Reddit #70318194

collinsl02@reddit

Incandescent bulbs for general household lighting were banned from being manufactured and sold several years ago, but it has never been illegal to own or operate them, plus it's fine to manufacture and sell them for specialist applications like vehicles, low voltage, and yes, Christmas lights.
View on Reddit #70331843

iamabigtree@reddit

Incandescent Christmas lights aren't banned. You can get them on Amazon and other places.
View on Reddit #70334881

APiousCultist@reddit

Amazon/ebay/Aliexpress/Wish sells plenty of technically illegal things over the years. Wristbands with radioisotopes in them, plugs that aren't up to code, devices with fake electrical ratings, products with lead in them. The lack of obvious enforcement really doesn't mean they're up to the required standards.
View on Reddit #70339099

Objective_Let_6385@reddit

This is why you need to read people's comments to the end
View on Reddit #70336666

West-Kaleidoscope129@reddit

I hated those weirdly shaped and spiky cover thingybobs that were put over the bulb. It was worse than stepping on Lego if you trod on one of those. I much prefer the LED lights. I also prefer white light to yellow light.
View on Reddit #70338934

Specialist-Web7854@reddit

Have you tried some with coloured glass over the bulbs? Something like this; https://www.lights4fun.co.uk/products/150-pastel-c9-bulb-connectable-christmas-tree-lights?
View on Reddit #70338913

ThatNegro98@reddit

I think they look shit, so its no loss to me. Theyre very tacky imo.
View on Reddit #70338805

FakePlayers@reddit

Technology Connections has a whole in-depth video about all the solutions tried to fix the look of LEDs. Most of it comes from the blue being too blue. Maybe it's worth you checking out?
View on Reddit #70338495

coldharbour1986@reddit

It's to do with how the implement the various colours but don't worry I've [got you! ](https://youtu.be/qSFNufruSKw?si=Gh0h7004m0KMZsxk)
View on Reddit #70338468

Diplomatic_Gunboats@reddit

Soft-focus camera lens.
View on Reddit #70338413

dirtymurt@reddit

I bought the Govee Christmas tree lights last Christmas. I built my own Retro Christmas scene with yellows and purples and reds and greens. I have no photos I'm afraid but it was epic and in a few short weeks they'll be out of the attic and back up. Closest I've got to the real thing without the fuse bulb lol.
View on Reddit #70338223

troymisti1@reddit

You're not the only one - https://youtu.be/qSFNufruSKw?si=8fNH8vkiHGvg2lvV
View on Reddit #70337777

just_some_guy65@reddit

I have to applaud the ingenuity that went into this first world non-problem
View on Reddit #70337772

Oak68@reddit

I’ve used “warm gold” led lights for years. Can’t stand the clinical bright white. Far too cold a light.
View on Reddit #70337762

cpt_hatstand@reddit

Love that companies are starting to realise this, but this is why I mostly stick with warm white lights
View on Reddit #70337595

grubbygromit@reddit

Search technology connections christmas lights on YouTube. He has done extensive research on this subject
View on Reddit #70337489

Skymningen@reddit

I bought TruGlow candle-like LEDs this year and hope they will give me the results I want. My parents have something similar and it’s the best thing apart from real candles that they have had.
View on Reddit #70337355

pencilrain99@reddit

You can still get the old lights and warm white led are the same colour
View on Reddit #70337271

Flashy-Ad1404@reddit

Aye, the old lights looked pretty. I definitely do not miss cursing as 20 didn't work, one kept falling apart and 3 blew the moment family came over....
View on Reddit #70337083

Worried-Penalty8744@reddit

Get on AliExpress and you can get as many incandescent lights as your heart desires. Best buy a fire extinguisher at the same time though.
View on Reddit #70337057

latflickr@reddit

I didn’t even noticed
View on Reddit #70336857

HenriDeToulouse@reddit

Technical connections on you tube has a video on this and I believe he found a suitable bulb
View on Reddit #70336835

Excali20@reddit

What was wrong with em
View on Reddit #70336795

Comfortable-Salad-90@reddit

https://preview.redd.it/f55ss8n140zf1.jpeg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a753fd83dc17978b0d44eb49887e4150fa3d9c2e
View on Reddit #70336728

CheeseusMaximus@reddit

I don't miss having to change the bulbs that's for sure!
View on Reddit #70336696

AvatarIII@reddit

You may find this video interesting https://youtu.be/qSFNufruSKw?si=0mN3XmBH-p2ruIJD
View on Reddit #70336602

13luw@reddit

ngl the old glass ones were pretty but I also trod on them more than once so…. Nah I like the new ones.
View on Reddit #70336521

VCOFTHENFE@reddit

My dad still has his pifco bell set from the early 80s. Still work 👍🏻👍🏻
View on Reddit #70336484

Great-Elevator3808@reddit

I'm pretty sure incandescent Christmas tree lights are still allowed (if virtually impossible to get), as are some types of pygmy, panel indicator and very low voltage lamps (such as automotive types)- but I'm happy to be corrected.
View on Reddit #70317968

kirkum2020@reddit

Not hard to get at all. The cheapo shops usually have some, and garden centres too.
View on Reddit #70322700

Glass-Jackfruit-8096@reddit

And there are loads second hand online, many never been out of the box
View on Reddit #70336448

Plus_Mirror_4917@reddit

Poundland had an exact copy of them a few years back and I haven't been able to find them again since!
View on Reddit #70336432

MaxMouseOCX@reddit

I'll settle for banning the blue ones that are slightly in my colour perception and slightly beyond it which makes them look out of focus despite everything else around them being in focus.
View on Reddit #70336279

Western-Mall5505@reddit

I remember my parents having to untangle them and putting the tops back on every year no matter how well packed they were.🤣
View on Reddit #70335895

Jimithejive@reddit

There’s a YouTube channel called technology connections, every year he does a video comparing all the different versions of led Christmas lights and whether they’re as good as the incandescent ones. He’s US based, so might refer to home depot or similar, but most of them are white label Chinese stock which you can source online.
View on Reddit #70335854

Capital_Car4839@reddit

We thought these weren’t a bad match! https://www.lights4fun.co.uk/products/150-multi-coloured-led-traditional-pickwick-christmas-lights
View on Reddit #70335723

Wonderful_Cost_9792@reddit

Less can be more.
View on Reddit #70335702

Awellknownstick@reddit

Ye LED are too bright.
View on Reddit #70335592

srm79@reddit

The problem with some of the cheaper LEDs is that the light produced by them is polarised, meaning it travels in one direction meaning they don't produce much glow. There are more expensive LEDs available that have diffusers attached that produce the glow, but they're at the higher price range
View on Reddit #70320574

formidableegg@reddit

Thanks, I didn't know about this. Is there a name for this that I can look for?
View on Reddit #70335557

Itmeld@reddit

Can you tweak leds?
View on Reddit #70335253

CarpeCyprinidae@reddit

Garden centres are the best place to buy Xmas lights - my local one has several different sets for sale currently that replicate classic tree lights, using a white LED inside a coloured plastic filter, and with the traditional style of bulb holder too
View on Reddit #70334836

wiggidywelder@reddit

My Mom likes to have a Christmas tree that was very much ̶a̶ ̶k̶i̶l̶l̶j̶o̶y̶ “in vogue” and thus she did away with the colours lights when I was about 7/8 to make way for the more “fashionable” white lights, as well as strictly blue and silver baubles, as the years went by these also went by the wayside and the tree switched completely to a black plastic abomination. Hence, as a fully grown adult I’ve proceeded to make my Xmas tree the brightest, kitschiest tree with, you guessed it, coloured lights. Since I’m now in my mid-thirties the whole incandescent light ban thing sort of passed me by so I haven’t noticed and I’m just happy to have coloured lights back on my tree.
View on Reddit #70334787

Walkingispainful@reddit

How did I only find out now, 9 years later, about this ban
View on Reddit #70334491

letsshittalk@reddit

We used to have fiber optic Christmas trees, but the cats destroyed them. Before that, I think we stopped decorating in the late '90s or early 2000s.
View on Reddit #70333418

clbbcrg@reddit

I miss house fires 🔥
View on Reddit #70333397

Skycbs@reddit

I much prefer LED lights from every point of view but especially the ability to get a decent white and not have to settle for brown. You couldn’t pay me to go back
View on Reddit #70329631

rosstafarien@reddit

I tossed all of our bluish LEDs last year. Found warm white LEDs that don't have a flicker and bought about 20 strings. Should last.
View on Reddit #70328438

FriendComplex8767@reddit

It's certainly not the same, but the hassle of dealing with incandescent bulbs was a very real issue. Not sure on the exact number, but fires burning down houses due to Christmas lights was a very real and common problem.
View on Reddit #70327299

SpinMeADog@reddit

did they? I think every part of my mum's tree has been exactly the same since about 1990
View on Reddit #70325148

One-Cardiologist-462@reddit

Yeah, the new ones just do not give that nostaligic, warm, magical glow that the incandescent ones do. I ordered a load in before the ban came into effect, and soldered a dimmer switch in series with each set. By operating them at about 50% brightness, I think I can stretch them to last a good number of years. Especially since I bought a load of spare bulbs too. My next approach, when they do fail, is to wire up my own ones. 20x 12v lamps in series will drop the full 240v mains. Porbably do a string of 25 to slightly undervolt them and make them last longer again. I simply refuse to go to LED ones. Disgusting looking.
View on Reddit #70319904

the_Athereon@reddit

Not quite. But I'm spending christmas with my dad this year and his lights and most other decorations are 29 years old. Aside from the tree, they're the same ones he's used every year.
View on Reddit #70319760

telephone_monkey_365@reddit

We have a ton of old sets from either charity shops or ebay. If you start looking round now you should have plenty by December.
View on Reddit #70319746

meltedlenondrop@reddit

I bought lights from creative gardens recently that were probably technically LED but they had the much softer colours more akin to incandescent - none of this primary colour nonsense.
View on Reddit #70319682

absent42@reddit

You can still get incandescent fairy lights on AliExpress.
View on Reddit #70314678

absent42@reddit

You can buy "Incandescent Christmas Fairy Light Multicolor" on AliExpress, they're not going to get seized at customs.
View on Reddit #70314424

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View on Reddit #70310128