Continuous duty white LED for backlight?

[n3eg]

Is there a better way?

These things are rated for 10,000 hours, but they dim out at less than 1000.
http://www.sunbriteleds.com/product.asp?id=89
The last one in the list, the white one, is part of a backlight replacement for a Heathkit weather station that used to use a switching supply and fluorescent tube. When the switching supply died, I replaced it with a series/parallel array of these white LEDs powered by a 26 volt DC supply, 3 banks of 2 series LEDs.

Anybody know of a white LED that lasts longer in a continuous duty application, preferably a wedge base or T1 3/4 package and not some expensive die/heatsink photon blaster?

[Wim Hertog]

I would use Nichia SMD LEDs (http://www.dotlight.de/shop/product_...roducts_id/432) . If you drive them at 10mA or less they should last 50 000 hrs without significant dimming.

Also, a wide viewing angle makes it easy to backlight the LCD.