Has anyone tried both APA102 packages?
I would have thought the square lens might have a wider viewing angle, but the data sheets I’ve found list them both as 160 degrees. Do they look noticeably different in practice? Worth paying extra for?
Do you have a good source for the APA102[square] on strips? I’ve only really seen the APA102C(round) on strips so far, but I haven’t been hunting too hard this month.
I’m curious about the difference between the packages too. They look different, but seem otherwise identical? Why are there two packages in the same footprint at all?
new and old vesion . The squqre is the original apa1o2 and the apa 102 c is newer version some off the older apa 102 are only 5 bit grayscale … send my your mail so i can forward you the technical details …
I found a few on Aliexpress. Ray only seems to have 36/m strips. I found a few others but not sure if i’d risk ordering from anyone with no ratings. Some I found had conflicting pictures etc… I feel like a 144LED/m strip of these would look amazing. Sent ray a request…
Ray Wu 36/m
@hans_cromheecke johndburdett@gmail.com
Alex, The only other difference I had found in my searching was that the APA102 had better heatsinking.
John the info has left Vietnam… regard
Thanks hans, I’d like to find some of those apa102-3535 packages. Then we could make some crazy high density strips!
Slightly off topic, but “Ray” now has APA102c strips for pretty much the same price as 2812 strips. I got some 144 leds/m at $19/m and they are excellent. At that price I am going all APA102c
@John_Burdett Is this confirmed to exist (3535)? I have been pushing for this for a long time, my last quote was about $50,000 to set up new leadframes and min qty.
I contacted APA ELECTRONICS and was told I could order the APA102 LEDs direct from them from them via email. Check it out at http://www.neon-world.com
You all can contact them , ask for julia … With greetings from hans cromheecke include d piece
They sell direct and make special stiff on request . Apa is not big in company but very willing and inovative .
angel-serena@umail.hinet.net Julia from apa direct mail … and Julia is speaking English what not always the case is over in Taiwan.
Thanks hans, I sent them an email. Meanwhile, I got a response from Ray Wu this morning. He has 96led/m strips with the apa102, but pricey at $32/meter.
Now I’m really confused. Someone had said that the APA102[square] pixels were brighter for the same wattage too—can anyone verify that independently?
There is no significant brightness difference; although APA102 could be driven with 25mA per color.
APA102C is the lower quality and cheaper version of the two.
The significant difference is that the APA102 has an additonal thermal pad on the bottom, with direct contact to the chip and the 3 colors. With this they can dissipate heat much better. Heat is the killer of every LED. They start to age with temps higher as 60°C. The three colors have different degradation curves. That means the white (255,255,255) will shift in the trichromatic color space. In other words: the colors will change over time (months) and white is e.g. getting more greenish.
Spend more money on APA102 instead of APA102C ?
Well, depends on the use case: What is the expected ambient temp? How bright is the strip being driven? What temp do the LEDs have in operation? Is the color white of importance? How long shall the installation last?
For a product to sell I would go for the high quality.
For a nice lamp in my living room I choose the cheaper ones.