Check out Philips' svelte take on the LED (pictures)

The Philips SlimStyle LED is a low-cost, high-efficiency light bulb with a unique design. Click through to learn more.

The SlimStyle distributes the light-producing diodes around the upper perimeter of the bulb. They give off 800 lumens of light at a color temperature of 2,700 K from a power draw of just 10.5 watts.

Thanks to its unique design, the SlimStyle doesn't require aluminum heat sinks. That makes for a lightweight build -- and one that costs Philips a lot less to manufacture.

The distribution of the diodes along the top edge of the SlimStyle keeps them away from the bulb's base, where the heat comes from.

The SlimStyle promises omnidirectional light, but there are dim spots on each side of the bulb. You can see the difference between the omnidirectional Cree LED on the left and the almost omnidirectional SlimStyle on the right.

The SlimStyle comes in both 60W and 40W replacement varieties.

As LEDs go, the SlimStyle is perfectly adequate at rendering colors. Like most of the competition, it struggles with shades of red, though not as much as some.

The SlimStyle retails for just under $9 in the US, which converts to roughly AU$10 or £5 in the UK. Philips isn't planning on expanding the bulb beyond North America at this time, but they aren't ruling it out, either.