WHAT ARE LEDs/SMDs?
So what is an LED? Light Emitting Diodes are semiconductors. When electricity passes through them, they emit energy
in the form of light. They are "doped" with chemicals which determine the colour of the light. Lighten up I hear you
shout! OK, in one easy sentence:
LEDs convert the majority of energy to light, as opposed to incandescent bulbs, which produce
light as a by-product of being heated. That's why they are more efficient.
Surface Mounted Diodes are the new generation of LED lighting. They are three times brighter than the older LEDs and available in warm white, which means about the same colour light as your normal bulbs. Lovely. No more bluey whites (sorry Persil) which leave you feeling cold and miserable.
This range has all the electrical gubbins built-in to protect it from power surges from your alternator when you turn your engine off. So your capital outlay won't go pop in front of your eyes.
LEDs don't tend to stop working. Over time they dim. After 4 years of frequent use I have decided to replace my saloon and galley lights (these are the ones I use every day and for hours at a time during the winter months) as they have dimmed. The ones I only use occasionally in the bathroom and bedroom are still very bright.