What's the Brightest a 5mm LED Can Get?

JNieporte · Apr 30, 2013

Title says it all. What's the maximum number of out-the-front lumens a single white 5mm LED (such as on the Fenix E01) can put out?

twl · Apr 30, 2013

I haven't really researched it, but I think it's probably somewhere around 10-12 lumens. Maybe even slightly more at the moment of turn-on.
I think the Nichia GS 5mm is the brightest one available.

JNieporte · Apr 30, 2013

I have a Defiant penlight (white 5mm LED) that runs on two AAAs and it's ANSI-rated at 21 lumens...
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Defiant-Pen-Light-809-2821-D/203138617#customer_reviews

Not sure if it's a Nichia or what...

AnAppleSnail · Apr 30, 2013

I have some 5mm LEDs that are a 3x1 array. 20-50 lumen, depending on planned service life.

twl · Apr 30, 2013

JNieporte said:
I have a Defiant penlight (white 5mm LED) that runs on two AAAs and it's ANSI-rated at 21 lumens...
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Defiant-Pen-Light-809-2821-D/203138617#customer_reviews

Not sure if it's a Nichia or what...

Not ANSI rated, as far as a Google search could turn up.

Yoda4561 · May 2, 2013

Right now I think state of the art is around 30 lumens. Most are less, and anything pushing more than 15 is probably suffering from reduced LED lifespan.

Fireclaw18 · May 2, 2013

Yoda4561 said:
Right now I think state of the art is around 30 lumens. Most are less, and anything pushing more than 15 is probably suffering from reduced LED lifespan.

Get one of those old shower-head style 100-led lights and replace all the cheap 5mm LEDs with 30 lumen ones, upgrade the driver and power supply, and get 3000 lumens?

alpg88 · May 2, 2013

there are .5w 5 chip 5mm leds that make ,on papaer, 25+lm, but i tried them, and they are garbage, at 100ma they overheat in a minute, and will loose brigness (read slowly burn out) in few weeks.

the best 5mm leds are nichia and cree, they are bright, about 10lm, and they are bright for very long time.

CarpentryHero · May 2, 2013

511 Atac PL is a 1aaa 24 lumen 5mm led light ANSI standard tested.

JNieporte · May 2, 2013

twl said:
Not ANSI rated, as far as a Google search could turn up.

The packaging says it is. Home Depot's website isn't updated, but the packaging shows the typical ANSI FL-1 Standard graphs and even says FL 1 Standard on it. Not trying to argue, just saying.

What's the Brightest a 5mm LED Can Get?

JNieporte

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twl

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AnAppleSnail

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twl

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