GE Launched a Lower-Priced Connected Light Bulb

GE has been stepping into the smart home market, and its newest entry is a connected LED light bulb called Link. Link bulbs are basic, single-color lights primarily meant to allow homeowners to control lighting straight through a smartphone app.

Link bulbs are also some of the least expensive connected options out there. The bulbs will sell through Home Depot and are available from just below $15 to just below $25, depending on the type. Because of its lower pricing, GE is calling Link the “first commercially viable connected bulb.”

Though the market is still very young, Philips has emerged as the key name so far in connected lighting thanks to its Hue line. The famous color-changing Hue bulbs are on the pricier end, however, and even Philips’ all-white bulbs will sell for closer to $40 a piece. Link’s pricing, then, certainly puts GE at a good point to enter the market.

Link lights will all be controllable through Wink, an app made by Quirky. Quirky’s been starting to partner with GE on building smart home products and one can imagine this partnership eventually growing to create a strong ecosystem of smart appliances that can be easily controlled in one place. Link may still be a fairly expensive way to light your home, but the bulbs are estimated to last for nearly 23 years.