ECO Farm 480W LED Grow Light - ECO Series VS Plessey Hyperion White LED 400w Grow Light

 LEDs have been the top choices, be indoors or outdoors, for either hobbyist or commercial growers. But one big drawback of LEDs is their big size, making it hard to fit small spaces. That’s why people invented one type of LEDs which are still powerful for most vegetative and flowering flower, while don’t contain much space.

But COB isn’t just known for its compact size, it also has more light intensity, and advantages than traditional LEDs and other grow light types.

What Are COB LEDs?

COB, or Chip-on-Board, is the new LED technology. It has its name as the LED chips will be mounted onto the circuit board to create LED arrays.

Because of the way COBs are built, COB LEDs reduce the components used and maximize the number of LED chips on the circuit. This makes COB LEDs have a number of advantages over the traditional SMD (Surface Mounted Device) LEDs, which we will discuss later.

The Differences Between COB LEDs And Traditional SMD LEDs

SMD (Surface Mounted Device) LEDs are the most common LED grow light you can find on the market.

Though both SMDs and COBs share similar characteristics such as wide light spectral spectrum, long lifespan, and efficient light output, here are some of the key winning points of COBs over SMDs.

Improved Lumen Density
Since COBs can be packed with more LED chips on the same substrate than SMD, it has a stronger light intensity and higher uniformity.

More Focused Light
Because more led chips are contained within an area and with the support of a reflector, the light produced is denser. With the use of a reflector, you can have a stronger and more vibrant light intensity for flowering plants.

Smaller Size
A 200 lumen COB LED array can be much smaller than a 200 lumen SMD because COB makes better use of the space.

Less Heat
Because fewer components are used to make these LEDs, and the thermal sink is pointed toward the circuit board, COBs tend to emit less heat than traditional LEDs. But the material of the COB substrate, the heat sink structure, and the board circuit design play (Source) an important role in heat distribution. That’s why you should look for a quality COB LED.

However, you also must know the downsides.

COBs Have Less Versatility Than SMD LEDs.
Even though you cannot have as many LED chips on each array, SMDs allow accommodating more than one contact. And a single chip can have up to 3 diodes — each diode also has a separate circuit. This permits the SMD chips to have multiple colors — blue, red, green diode. Also, you can mix these colors by changing the light output of each color.

Meanwhile, even though COB LEDs have many diodes, they only accommodate 2 contacts and 1 circuit. That means you often see that COB LEDs produce a single color wavelength from time to time, and you cannot adjust it like other SMD LED lights.

SMDs Generate More Widespread Light Output.
It gives more light distribution than COBs. In this sense, traditional SMDs have better light coverage and penetration for the plant canopy, which makes it more convenient to grow in an opener grow area.

ECO Farm 480W LED Grow Light — ECO Series

Features:

This ECO Farm grow light has a lot of great features that other COB LED lights can’t compare. This includes a wide spectrum wavelength that ranges from 380nm — 780nm. A dimmable light control function is packed out of the box so that you can adjust the light intensity output from 10–200W. This comes very handy if you grow seedling or young plants and fear that strong light may burn the plants. It is also known for its great performance and stability that will last your growth system for years. The LED grow light is fairly strong with about 480W actual power consumed as stated by the seller, which is enough to grow both veg and flowering plants. At that light intensity, this seems to be a good bargain. Compared with other grow light manufacturers on the market, this is even a bit more inexpensive.

Plessey Hyperion White LED 400w Grow Light

Features:

The Plessey Hyperion white is the newest and best LED on the market that offers a complete spectrum and gives good umol output providing greater returns on your crop. The Hyperion is a full spectrum LED lighting system which will provide plants with the complete spectral range of light necessary to take plants through both the vegetative and flowering stages of growth. PAR (PPF) output 762 μmol (400nm — 700nm) and high μmol per watt output (1.9 μ mol per watt) which increased efficiency will provide a greater return on your crop. The highly efficient heat sink, meaning it runs at a low temperature with no mechanical cooling required. Robust design is suitable for any growing environment with IP66 rated high-level dust and waterproofing.

Why Choose COB LED Grow Lights?

The table below shows you that besides the cost, COB LED grow light tends to win over other grow light types in every criterium. Let’s blast through the details.

Light Intensity
This is the number one factor that affects your plant growth, especially flowering plants. Regarding this, COB LED is only behind HPS. It has a stronger light output than traditional LED grow lights and other light types.

Light Spectrum
All modern LED grow lights, including COB LEDs, are known for their widest spectrum wavelengths. Some bulbs also include 12-color spectrum colors, including IR (infrared ray) and UR (ultraviolet ray)

Heat Output
Heat ventilation is also a strong point of COB LED. Modern technology allows these LEDs to produce strong light output while controlling the heat emitted. Some high-end COBs also use quality substrate, drivers, fans, which control the heat to the minimum.

Size
Though COB LEDs with more power will be bigger, you’ll never have such a compact light that still generates lots of light like COB, which makes it better suited for small areas.

Lifespan
Depending on the COB material build, most COBs can last from 30,000–60,000 hours. This is several times higher than other grow light types.

What Are the Best LED Grow Lights and How We Picked Them

Value
Does the value match the price? Yes, products can be of top quality and still be affordable; a product may look costly but be well worth the price. On the other hand, a cheaper product may look appealing at first, but the quality may be so poor that it simply isn’t worth it.

Power Consumption
The best LED grow lights reviews will tell you that LED lights consume less power than regular lights, that they are more versatile, and that they are made of eco-friendly materials. In fact, a 200W LED light can easily cover the same area as a traditional 300W MH/HPS light, saving a lot of your hard-earned cash in the process.

Area Coverage
Before you become a master cultivator, you need to consider the size of the place (small room, tent) where you plan on planting your plants. For example, if you use only one light, you should plant around 1–8 seeds. Yet, fear not, as the products on our list offer the best indoor grow lights for weed and offer multiple options when it comes to coverage — from 7.8×7.5 ft to just 3×4 ft.

Durability & Coolness
The average lifespan of a LED bulb is approx 50,000 hours, which translates to around 5 years. The bulb’s durability will depend on the heat — hence why every good light has a built-in cooling system.

Satisfaction Guarantee
Last but not the least, we considered these criteria carefully while making our LED grow lights review. All products come with a minimum 1-year and a maximum 5-year warranty, followed by a 30- and 90-day refund policy.

Conclusion

To be a thriving cannabis cultivator you need to take a lot of things into consideration. For instance, do you have enough space? Do you have a specific budget? What kind of LED growing light should you choose?

The first two questions you need to answer yourself. As for the latter, we hope our article on the best LED grow lights did a good job of clearing any uncertainties and doubts you might’ve had.

Happy growing!