What are COB LED strip lights and how to use them?

Introducing COB LED Lights from IHY Lighting Co., Ltd. The latest innovation in LED light strips is now available from your most helpful IHY Lighting Co., Ltd. If you're wondering what COB lights are; how COB light strips differ from standard LED light strips; whether COB light strips are eco-friendly; what does COB in LED mean; or when should you use COB light strips, then you've come to the right place. After reading this article, you'll have all the COB LED knowledge!

What does COB light mean?

COB stands for chip on board. For the average person (even most LED fans), this doesn't explain the difference of COB. A COB light is a type of LED light strip that looks like a continuous, smooth light source, and the light strip emits an alluring glow. The diodes of a COB light strip are arranged closely together along the light strip and are covered with a phosphor coating that makes the COB light strip glow when lit. The light output of a COB light is greater than that of a standard LED light, but in addition to that, it has many advantages over traditional LED light strips. (e.g. cuttable, energy efficient, mounted with double-sided tape.)

To help you visualize the visual differences between traditional LED and COB strips in your mind, standard LED strips have a “dot” effect where you see each diode as an individual light source (dot). COB lights look like glow sticks due to their phosphor coating: long, bright, smooth glows where you can’t see the individual diodes of the COB unless you dim the COB down to one of the strip’s lowest output levels.

Have you ever seen people put diffusers on traditional LED strips to eliminate the dot effect? COB lights don’t need diffusers because they already have a radiant halo built in.

Let’s talk about chips. What is the chip mentioned in the name Chip on Board? LED strips use semiconductor chips for their diodes – this is where the current is turned into light (in broad layman terms). COB strips use what’s called flip-chip – a relatively new method of placing semiconductor chips that allows for more efficient heat dissipation. COB lights are able to fit more diodes per inch of strip thanks to innovations in chips and placement. More on the benefits of COB later.

Finally, to wrap up this basic introduction to COB lights, we have to address the question we know you’re thinking. We didn’t come up with the name “COB,” but it’s the name that’s stuck in the industry. When people talk about these lights, it’s “cob” (like corn on the cob; not cee-oh-bee. Who knows? Maybe we can get LED influencers to come up with a cool new name, like LED SuperGlow. We’ll let you know if that happens, but until then… back to business.)

What’s the difference between COB and LED lights?

COB lights are a type of LED light, but the diodes are smaller, mounted more tightly on a strip material, and covered with a phosphor coating that appears as a continuous beam of light when lit. COB lights are the latest innovation in LED lighting, which itself was an innovation from incandescent lighting. Since COB lights are based on LED technology, there are obviously a lot of similarities. But there are also some notable differences, including the look and style of the light output, the elimination of “hot spots,” and overall brightness.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the differences.

Energy Use

Watch out for environmental improvements! If you want a more eco-friendly option for your home, office, or business, you can also go green with COB strips. 24-volt COB strips are up to 100-110 lumens per watt. We know many people choose LEDs to save energy, and now you have more options—like COB strips—without sacrificing energy efficiency.

Look & Style

Smooth, bright, glowing, continuous—that's COB. No spots or dots, just a powerful, uninterrupted glow from the beginning to the end of the strip. If you thought LED strips were groundbreaking, COB strips are the next step. Elevate the look of your lighting installations with COB.

Lifespan

You've heard the phrase "lifetime." Then get ready to enjoy up to 50,000 hours of life with COB strips! If that surprises you, you can rest assured with a 6-year warranty that outperforms the industry standard. We believe in our products (made in our own factory to our exacting standards) and stand behind every strip we offer.

Other Tech Specs

Regular LED strips have a beam angle of about 140 degrees (the beam angle is the surface of the light-emitting diodes.) COB lights have a beam angle of a full 180 degrees – which partly explains why COB lights are noticeably brighter. We’ve already mentioned how many more diodes there are on a COB light than a standard LED. How many? The IHY COB LED Strip offers 155 LEDs per foot. That’s a lot of diodes glowing!

How are COB strips and traditional LED lights similar? COB lights have all the benefits you love about all the other LED strips. Both COBs and LED strips are flexible, easy to use and install, and provide clear, attractive light in applications where other lights can’t match. COBs are cuttable – even though the light appears to be uninterrupted, COBs can be cut at regular intervals along the strip. Simply find the cut line and cut the COB strip to the desired length using simple scissors. Are COBs dimmable? Yes! Like most other LED lights, COB lights are dimmable (IHY can provide you with one of the best dimmable drivers in the industry.) For those who are attracted to LEDs for their green attributes, COBs continue that tradition and are also environmentally friendly.

When it comes to the COB light strips offered by IHY, you can choose between warm white or cool white on our bright, light-filled light strips (outputting up to 360-390 lumens per foot). IHY's COB light strips use top-quality mounting tape, with genuine 3M double-sided tape to mount the lights. Shop IHY's 16.4-foot COB light strips in warm or cool white, 24 volt today.