On 6/9/2011 5:48 PM, larry moe 'n curly wrote:

Smarty wrote:
Is there such a thing as a true "instant start" CFL which produces full
intensity brightness as soon as it is turned on?
I have some. They come on immediately, turn off, on, off, and then
finally stay on. They're first generation Philips CFLs with a
permanent 60 Hz ballast in the base and replacable fluorescent tube.
Heavy, too -- some floor lamps can't be trusted to stand up with one
installed.

As for modern CFLs, I don't know what brands or models are instant-on,
but I know they exist because some of them have circuit boards
designed for a thermistor (temperature sensitive resistor), but the
thermistor is left out (Max-lite, both original large base and newer
small base models).
I thank you for your reply and wonder if any of the modern CFLs which
use the circuit board you describe actually do come up to full
brightness very rapidly. If you have any specifics, please provide them
as I am glad to explore other options, mostly out of curiosity since I
have found the hybrid GE bulbs.

It seems that heating the filament and vaporizing some mercury cannot be
done instantly, despite claims to the contrary. GE's solution, using a
second halogen bulb temporarily, makes a whole lot of sense to me, and
illustrates the reality that a purely fluorescent lamp will take a
little time to warm up.