With the development of technology, there are now quite mature design with automotive lighting technology, offering a wide array of choices in the market. From the traditional halogen bulbs, later appeared HID bulbs, to the latest LED bulbs, each kind of bulb has its advantages and disadvantages. So in this blog, we’ll talk about, what are the differences between these headlights?
1. What are Halogen Light Bulb
With over a century since the invention of automobiles, before the emergence of HID and LED bulbs, the predominant choice for vehicle lighting was the traditional halogen bulb. halogen bulbs, although old-fashioned, but with a lot of advantages, so far continue to be a staple in automotive lighting. Many budget-friendly car models are still equipped with halogen bulbs headlamps.
As cars began to carry electric system and power generation system, they transitioned to using power-emitting bulbs, such as similar household tungsten filament bulbs as a source of illumination. However, due to the moderate brightness, inefficiency, and the tendency for the lamp cover to darken over prolonged use, In addition, the ability to withstand road bumps is also a major consideration, which is why halogen bulbs were invented later. Halogen bulbs were later invented.
The key difference between halogen bulbs and household incandescent lamps lies in one point, that is, the glass envelope of halogen bulbs is filled with halogen gas (typically iodine or bromine), By leveraging the tungsten halogen cycle principle, the lifespan of the filament is greatly extended (almost 4 times of incandescent lamps). The design allows the filament at higher temperatures, emitting higher brightness, higher color temperature and higher luminous efficiency, while eliminating the issue of darkened lamp covers in the past.
However, since halogen bulbs require a higher operating temperature, ordinary glass envelope would melt and flow at this temperature, so quartz glass is used instead of regular glass and applied in halogen bulbs to withstand these conditions, making the manufacturing cost of halogen bulbs much higher than traditional incandescent bulbs. Nevertheless, compared with their lighting effects, the overall manufacturing cost is still affordable, which has also allowed halogen tungsten filament bulbs to be used as automotive lighting for more than 60 years without falling into disuse, until the birth of HID lighting technology. Currently, many cars on the market still use halogen bulbs as the lighting source for headlights, showcasing their enduring value.
It’s worth noting that the seemingly simplistic construction of halogen bulbs should not lead you to haphazardly purchase unknown products. After a long time, the plastic lamp casing can develop issues like yellowing and fogging. This is because halogen bulbs will generate ultraviolet light when they emit light, which will cause chronic damage and deterioration to the transparent lamp casing made of plastic. In addition, quartz glass cannot effectively block the outward scattering of ultraviolet light like regular glass. To address this, many major bulb manufacturers apply a coating that can block ultraviolet light on quartz glass to reduce the fogging speed of the plastic lamp casing of the headlight. Therefore, when replacing halogen bulbs, it is advisable to opt for products from reputable brand to better protect the lifespan of the headlight casing.
2. What is an HID Gas Discharge Bulb?
Before LED bulbs were introduced, HID bulbs were once the hottest commodities in the aftermarket industry. When they were first introduced, the price of a set was as high as tens of thousands of dollars. However, as the market expanded, the price also dropped sharply.While regulatory restrictions have reduced the number of people opting for conversions, there are still car owners utilize HID bulbs in projector headlights or fog lights, which can greatly improve the brightness of nighttime lighting and reduce glare issues. The brightness of HID bulbs is typically two to three times greater than that of traditional halogen bulbs, allowing for extremely bright lighting effects.
The full name of HID bulb is High-intensity Discharge Lamp, a high-pressure gas discharge lamp. Its working principle is that in a quartz tube, a pressurized electric arc is struck through the tungsten electrodes at both ends, which heats the metal elements to the evaporation point, forming a plasma state and emitting strong light.
The biggest feature of this lighting technology is that the brightness is several times higher than that of traditional halogen tungsten filament bulbs and the life is longer. HID bulbs began to gain popularity in automotive lighting technology around 20 years ago.
Initially, the cost of a complete set of HID bulbs was quite high, requiring specialized fixtures to install, making it a high-end lighting feature exclusive to owners of luxury vehicles. However, in recent years, as the specifications of HID bulbs have become more and more diverse, and the appearance of the bulbs used is the same as that of traditional halogen tungsten bulbs, many car owners used aftermarket modifications to achieve the brightness of HID lighting.
Yet, due to the light emission points and spectral reflection between HID and halogen tungsten bulbs are different, the light emitted by using the original lamp + HID bulb will be scattered, leading to severe glare for oncoming vehicles and posing a significant threat to road safety.
Due to the high brightness of HID bulbs themselves, they typically used in headlights with a horizontal automatic leveling system and projector lenses to avoid dazzling oncoming drivers. As technology progressed, a steering-linked function was added to sense the steering angle of the steering wheel and automatically adjust the lighting angle, allowing drivers to see into the corner while turning.
By adjusting the gas pressure inside the bulb or applying coatings on the lamp casing,, the HID lamp tube can emit light of different color temperatures, making the lighting color more diverse. However, a high color temperature in Kelvin (K) does not necessarily equate to high brightness, it’s crucial not to confuse the two. Higher wattage is needed to achieve greater brightness, but this also relatively leads to high operating temperature, which can increase the risk of damaging the lighting fixture.
It is worth mentioning that, whether it is a halogen bulb or a HID bulb, many car owners in the past used to increase the wattage of halogen or HID bulbs to enhance brightness, For instance, increasing the halogen bulb from 55/60W to 80/100W, and the HID from 35W to 50W, etc. We strongly advise against this practice , because although increasing the luminous power can increase the brightness, it will also elevate the operating temperature of the bulb. For a 50W HID bulb, the measured temperature of the lamp when it is lit can reach about 400 degrees Celsius, while the 80W halogen bulb is estimated to reach around 380 degrees Celsius.
Such high temperatures have a detrimental effect on the reflective surfaces inside the fixture, causing issues like scorching and darkening. When the light cannot be properly reflected, the emitted light becomes significantly dimmer, counter productively shortening the lifespan of the fixture.
3. What Are Automotive LED bulbs?
LED bulbs, which have emerged over the past decade. Its full name is Light Emitting Diode. They are semiconductor electronic component that can emit light. Initially used only for indicator lights (such as displaying text, turn signals, brake lights, etc.). In the past decade, due to the rapid improvement in luminous efficiency, it has gradually been used for headlight lighting. The substantial investments in this technology have driven prices down, although they still remain considerably higher than halogen bulbs.
The advantages of LED bulbs lie in their low operating temperature (about below 100 degrees Celsius), high luminous efficiency in emitting light in low-light conditions, power saving, quick full-brightness startup, long lifespan up to 100,000 hours, and shock resistance. Installing these bulbs on vehicle can extend the lifespan of the lighting fixture and the battery. Moreover, the brightness is higher compared to halogen bulbs,which made them become a popular choice for aftermarket lighting modification. However, they do come with some drawbacks. LED bulbs have lower lighting temperature, making them easy to produce fog in the headlight; large heat dissipation structure, affecting the difficulty and integrity of installation; Additionally, the small light-emitting surface area can cause glare during illumination and contribute to higher production costs. Due to these pros and cons, there are various factors to consider carefully when purchasing LED headlight bulbs.
As LED typically only emit light from one side, the maximum illumination angle of 120 degrees is commendable. However, automotive lights require a 360-degree light source. Therefore, enhancing the illumination angle poses a challenge that many LED bulb manufacturers must address. Subsequently, advancements such as the incorporation of additional lenses and Chip-on-Board (COB) LEDs have been introduced, all of which are to expand the lighting angle and meet the requirements of car lighting systems.
4. What Are Automotive LED Headlight Assembly?
More and more car models are equipped with LED headlights. Compared with LED headlight bulbs, although both use LED chips as light sources, the technical level and structure of the connotation are very different.
Automotive LED headlight assemblies are complete units that integrate LED technology for vehicle headlight illumination. These components consist of LED bulbs, housings, lenses, reflectors, and other components required for lighting functions. LED headlight assemblies are designed to provide vehicles with efficient, bright and long-lasting lighting solutions, with advantages such as energy saving, durability and improved road visibility. Compared with traditional lighting options such as halogen lamps and HID bulbs, LED technology has superior performance, making it increasingly popular for use in automotive headlight assemblies.
Why Choose LOYO Light
For over 15 years, has been a professional manufacturer specializing in the research, development, and production of LED light assemblies. They offer a huge array of powerful LED products, including headlights, fog lights, turn signal lights, tail lights, off-road lights, and motorcycle lights. LOYO has rich experience in the field of automotive lighting, and their products are well-known for their innovative design, high quality, excellent brightness, perfect beam pattern and long warranty, winning many positive reviews from customers around the world.
LOYO operates its own factory in China, offering comprehensive one-stop services that encompass everything from product design to production and logistics. As a manufacturer, LOYO guarantees exceptional product quality and offers competitive wholesale factory prices to suppliers, wholesalers, and retailers. Contact LOYO for more information on LED Light product offerings.