Chances are good that you've seen LED lights in use, even if you don't know it. LED is a technology that refers to small diodes that convert electricity to light (LED stands for "light emitting diode"). The technology has been around for half a century, but only within the past 15 years have they been commonly used in everyday applications. Let's take a look at how LED technology is used.
Original Uses
Because of the small size of an LED (about a quarter-inch) and the small amount of energy required to power them, LED lights were originally used for "small purposes." This included providing the digital display for things like calculators, clocks, and indicator lights. Today, they continue to be used for those things. If you want to see an example of an LED light, still being used for one of those earlier uses, take a look at your computer keyboard. Any light you see on is an LED light. Other early uses that LEDs are still being used for include flashlights and traffic signals.
More Modern Uses
As technology has evolved, so have the uses for LED technology. Now you can see them used as indicators for newer devices such as DVD players, MP3 players and handheld gaming systems. Many flash drives (those small drives that you plug into ports on your computer to have easy access to files) also have LED indicator lights.
Beyond the Indicator
Also in recent time, LED technology has begun to expand beyond the world of indicator lights. It's now not uncommon to use them used as lighting fixtures, since they are more energy-efficient than standard fluorescent and incandescent lighting. They also give off almost no heat.
They're also being used now for video applications. For example, you can see them in use in open-air television screens such as at open-air concerts. Or for a smaller modern-day application, take a look at your TV's remote control. It works via an infrared LED light, transmitting a signal from the control to the television.
Why the Widespread Use?
To what does LED technology owe this rampant spread of its technology? Quite simply, because it works well, efficiently and cheaply. As noted, LED consumes very little electrical power. This means they last longer than standard light bulbs. They also last longer than the tubes inside older televisions and computer monitors. This spells savings to the consumer.
It's not all about the cost, either. LEDs can do things that other lights simply cannot do. Because of their small size, devices such as monitors and televisions can turn several lights on and others off at the same time. That's why LED is the technology of choice for sign boards. This function makes it easy to customize your own messages. With lower costs and more functionality added to the fact that LED is friendlier to the environment, it's small wonder that more businesses and consumers are choosing LED. These are the same reasons that you, too, should buy into the wonder of LED.
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