As sellers, we are often asked the question: "Tell me, which lamps are better - xenon or LED(hikari 9008 led bulbs)?"
Let's take a closer look at all types of headlamps.
Xenon
The principle of operation of the xenon lamp
Xenon or discharge car lamps have a more complex design than conventional halogen lamps.
The lamp consists of a sealed tube made of durable or quartz glass, inside of which, under pressure, a mixture of inert gas is pumped, most often xenon (which, in fact, gave the name to this type of lamp) and salt vapors of some metals. Two electrodes are soldered into the flask at the top and bottom, which pass through themselves a high-voltage discharge (hence the name "gas discharge"), "igniting" a mixture of gases in the bulb. In the low-voltage electrical circuit of the car, a pulse of power, capable of making the gas glow, especially inert (25-30 kV) - impossible, so the pulse comes from the high-voltage unit, in other words, from the ignition unit.
Hence the rule: discharge lamps without ignition units do not work. Moreover, each lamp requires its own ignition unit. Laugh? But in vain! As it turns out, there are still motorists who don't know this.
Xenon: pros and cons
Xenon has very good indicators of light brightness - in the range of 2300-3500 Lm. But, there are also disadvantages. When installing xenon lamps, it is important not only to mount them correctly, but also to carefully adjust them so that your updated bright headlights illuminate the road, and do not blind the eyes of oncoming drivers. But it is this action that many motorists often neglect, which we are convinced of, if we happen to be on an unlit highway at night.
By the way, the operating temperature of xenon lamps is 10-15% lower than that of halogen lamps, so it is not worth fearing that they will burn out open optics more than a standard halogen: there will be no more, they will be almost the same! As for the headlights equipped with a standard lens for halogen lamps, the xenon really burns out the reflector quite quickly. Therefore, owners of cars with a lensed headlight for halogen, we would still not recommend installing xenon in them.
Led headlamps
LED Headlamp Device
Almost the most progressive and the most dynamically developing group in the segment of automotive lamps. To date, there are many models on the market, different levels of quality and equipment give a wide choice. The website of the Avolt.ua presents LED headlamps of all kinds of shapes, purposes, cooling methods, color temperature, power, voltage and more.
At the heart of any LED lamp is an LED medium (chip), which, in fact, is the source of light. The rest of the design of the lamp provides and corrects its operation. Three years ago, the brightest and most effective were LED chips developed by leading manufacturers in this segment, such as Philips, Samsun, Bregelux. And today we can safely say that little-known Chinese companies in Europe managed to surpass the famous competitors and release LED chips, significantly increasing the light output, while reducing the operating temperature.
So the LED chip is a glowing element. For headlamps, a housing on which it is mounted is also needed, and the arrangement of the LEDs on the housing repeats the arrangement of the filament of a standard halogen lamp, with the exception of lamps recommended for installation in the lens.
For the effective operation of the lamp for a long time, a cooling system is necessary. It is active when a fan is built into the lamp housing, passive, when cooling is carried out by radiators in a natural way, and, combined, when a small powerful fan is built into the lamp housing, which is already a radiator in itself.
In recent years, many models of lamps have begun to appear, in their shape repeating halogen lamps of similar caps, with load resistors, rectifiers and other electronic stuffing, as well as adjusting elements of the cap. The more complex the lamp is arranged, the more expensive it is.
There are interesting features: for all models with a fan, manufacturers, as a rule, do not give a guarantee higher than one year, while for passive cooling lamps there is often a warranty period of 2, or even 3 years. No need to be afraid of this, from practice we note that models with forced cooling can just as long please you with a good light if you follow the rules of operation.
LED lamps are afraid of only two things - overheating and voltage drops. Consequently, there are only two rules - leave enough space under the headlight cover to cool the lamp and do not start the car with the light on.
Sometimes there is an interesting fact: even a very good lamp with good focus in this particular headlamp can lose to a simpler and cheaper one. It depends mainly on the shape and wear of the reflector. So, try it.
Which is better: xenon or LED?
So, to the question: what is the best way to replace standard incandescent lamps, I will definitely answer - LED. Why? Because:
- Even the most modest models of LED lamps are brighter than standard incandescent lamps at least 2 times, and more modern ones have long been significantly superior to xenon ones.
- Much easier to install and adjust. If one model is not suitable for you in terms of design features, it is very easy to choose another with similar technical characteristics.
- The operating temperature of LED lamps does not exceed 87 degrees Celsius, so they do not destroy the reflectors in your headlights.
- Unlike halogen, LED bulbs always have at least a minimum warranty period.
In conclusion, it remains to add - so that you do not choose for yourself, remember two important arguments:
1. A good light of your car will greatly increase your safety on the road, especially outside the lit time of day!
2. If a set of good lights for your car seemed too expensive, remember how much it costs to repair the suspension for it.
Source: https://hikariled.org/