Looks like this thread was revived with a topic swerve - perhaps it makes sense for a moderator to split the recent general LED lamp discussions from the original discussion around phosphor-converted red LEDs...
That said, retrofit LED bulbs seem to have gone through at least three distinct technological maturity levels over the time they have been on the market.
The first was the "can this be done" level of the first couple generations of the bulbs. At this point, the focus was on getting a viable product into the market. Costs were generally high, performance was typically at about the same level as CFL or perhaps slightly above. Products were typically positioned as a step up from CFLs with longer life, and especially in the case of directional lamps, much better performance.
Once it was established that acceptable performance was possible, the market shifted to focus on cost-down. Corners were cut, limits of acceptable performance were tested, but it was possible to purchase an 800 lumen LED retrofit bulb for $1 on sale.
Once it was established that LED retrofit bulbs could compete on both performance (first level of maturity) and cost (second level of maturity), manufacturers shifted to finding a good balance between performance and cost. Costs crept back up, but fewer corners were cut, and performance generally increased from the rock-bottom price offerings.
At this point, LED retrofit bulbs are commodity items, with little variation between vendors and a couple different levels of price/performance tradeoff available. Within a tier (premium, economy), performance, lifetime, and price are essentially the same across vendors.
If you want something that's decent quality (at least in the US), I suggest looking for bulbs that meet the requirements of Energy Star. In addition to the efficacy, color quality, and light distribution requirements, Energy Star also requires at least a 35khr rated life, and performs testing to validate a manufacturer's claims. I'm guessing you'll pay more for that quality vs. the cheapest options on the market, though.