Category Archives: LEDS

Combining online and offline: the future of cash registers

Hate going shopping in person but don't want to buy everything online? Consider the future of shopping where cash registers will not just be able to ring up your purchases, but be able to tell you what other items would match the sweater you're buying that day....including a review of your past purchases. Love the idea or hate it, that is the future of brick and mortar checkout. Combining the online catalog with a streamlined checkout process, the goal is to help you shop smarter, better and of Read more [...]

Android smartphone sales up a whopping 886%

Research firm, Canalys, reports that Android platform smartphone sales increased an amazing 886% in the 2nd quarter. An even bigger accomplishment is the fact that Android based phones now account for 34% of the market - topping all other platforms including Apple's popular iPhone platform. The press release from Canalys also reports that Android devices combined reached almost 475,000 units in Q2 2010 from no presence in the country a year ago. The Google-backed Android is available in phones Read more [...]

HTC Incredible’s real price tag: $163.35

iSuppli's Teardown Analysis Service conducted a study of the cost of materials for the HTC Incredible. The total was $163.35 for the parts and electronic components used to build the smartphone. Nearly 20% of the cost of the handset is from the processor which cost $31.40. Right behind the processor was the display and touch screen which is manufactured by Samsung. The display, which is an advanced Active Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode (AMOLED), cost $31.20. In third place was the memory Read more [...]

Make an inexpensive & simple UV LED Torch

From our friends at instructables comes an easy project for use with UV LEDS. To make this simple project, here's what you'll need: 2 Ultra Violet LEDS 1 1/4W resistors (the value of the resistor needs to be calculated based on the forward voltage of the LED you use) 1 non-working 9V battery (or a 9V battery clip) 1 new 9V battery Pliers Solder Soldering equipment The full instructions on the Instructables site will show you how to put everything together. Once assembled, the light snaps Read more [...]

More Allen Bradley carbon comp resistors now available!

We've updated our resistor inventory and added many more NOS Allen Bradley carbon comp resistors. Between the 1W values and 2W values, we now have over 150 different 1W and 2W carbon comp resistors on hand! Included in the selection are many Military (MIL-SPEC) Allen Bradley carbon comp resistors. The military resistors typically have a tighter tolerance than the standard resistors. Allen Bradley carbon comp resistors are valued for their consistency and uniformity. The Allen Bradley corporation Read more [...]

Turn your old PC fans into mini wind generators

Here's a great project that you can do either to experiment with wind turbines or to generate some energy! While the amount of energy produced is not overwhelming, this project can sure get your brain moving in the right direction. The best thing about this project is that you probably already have everything you need lying around: Thick plastic bottle Old PC fan, bigger the better! A few feet of small wire A piece of wood about 1.5" square and around 20cm long Two lengths of steel Read more [...]

How to Make Your Own LEDS? Whooooooooa

I found this how-to today on the great Popular Science web site. Now that I've read through the article - I am amazed that I've never seen these instructions written up before. Theodore Gray, who authors their popular "Gray Matter" column, gives the full scoop on the basic materials used to construct LEDS and provides the basic instructions needed to see just how LEDS work. OK, it is not so easy to find some synthetic silicon carbide (carborundum) laying around, but surely everyone could Read more [...]

LED Basics: How to tell which lead is positive or negative

Here are more questions we get asked a lot: What is the positive (or negative) lead on an LED? How do you determine the polarity of an LED? If you are talking about through hole LEDS, in most cases it's pretty easy to determine the polarity. If the LED has two leads, one longer than the other,the longer lead is the postive (also known as the anode) lead. If the LED has two leads with leads that are equal in length, you can look at the metal plate inside the LED. The smaller plate indicates Read more [...]

RGB Tricolor Flashing LEDS – Exciting New Product!

West Florida Components has just started to carry an exciting new product - RGB Tricolor Flashing LEDS! At first glance you might think "Why are they calling them both RGB AND Tricolor?" The reason is that each LED is actually 3 separate LEDS housed in one case. They operated in a sequence: first one color is lit at a time, then two light up, then all three. The cycle is completed when all three LEDS have been lit slowly, then begin to flash. Max voltage is around 3V. Here's a demonstration Read more [...]

7 Segment Displays

7 Segment LEDs or 7 segment displays are a type of electronic display devices used for displaying decimal numbers, in place of the more complicated dot matrix displays. 7 segment LEDs are used in a number of applications such as electronic meters, digital clocks and other such electronic devices. As the name suggests, these electronic components are made up from 7 segments that are used for displaying each of the numerals from 0 to 9. The segments are arranged in a rectangle pattern with two Read more [...]