Today’s bingo games are brighter, more colorful, and more interactive than ever before. Especially if you’re running your games off of a system like the MaxFlash video flashboard system, you’re treating your players to dazzling high-definition video output that’s just as much fun to watch as it is to play along with. The state-of-the-art graphics are customizable for your event, venue, or video advertising displays, meaning that no bingo game is one-size-fits-all.
When it comes to lighting your flashboard, many people face a conundrum: should I use the old incandescent or LED flashboard bulbs? While your system will work well on either, there are some very good reasons to make the switch over to LED, and those reasons are outlined below.
When you upgrade your system to LED flashboard bulbs, the first thing you’ll notice is that the LEDs are noticeably brighter than the incandescents. In fact, the old bulbs will look rather dim and dismal in comparison to the new ones. This isn’t just perception; LED bulbs are as much as FOUR times brighter than incandescent bulbs. This makes for an all-around better game, as well as providing a high-class feel to your venue and events.
Another reason to switch to LED flashboard bulbs is because they have a much longer lifespan than their incandescent counterparts. In fact, a LED bulb has a life expectancy of 30,000 hours, while a traditional 1820 lamp is typically only expected to last 1,000 hours.
What does this translate to in days, months, and years? If you operate an LED continuously, it will last for approximately 3.5 years, and if you operate it 50 percent of the time, it will last for 7 long years. Meanwhile, an incandescent bulb will last for only 40 days of continuous operation.
This means that a changeover to LED flashboard bulbs can save you lots of time and headache when it comes to bulb-changing. The cost of switching to LEDs is well worth it when you factor in the labor expense of changing out the 1820 lamps so frequently.
Another reason people love LED flashboard bulbs is the huge savings on energy costs. LED bulbs only use .56 watts of electricity to the 2.8 watts used by incandescents. In a 28-volt configuration, LEDS will only draw .020 amps, while an incandescent bulb will draw .10 amps.
In layman-speak, this means that LED bulbs use up to 80 percent less power. This not only saves you money; it’s also friendlier to Mother Earth. When you switch from incandescent to LED flashboard bulbs, everyone wins!
Temperature is an additional plus to switching over to LED flashboard bulbs. Especially in a configuration where the bulbs will be lit for a long period of time, incandescent bulbs tend to get hot. LED bulbs not only consume less power and last longer — they also generate much less heat than traditional bulbs. In fact, an LED flashboard bulb can be as much as 50 percent cooler than incandescent bulbs. One test of various bulb types showed part of an incandescent bulb rating as hot as 181°C, while the same area of an LED bulb turned on for the same amount of time came in at only 49°C.
The transition from incandescent to LED flashboard bulbs is more than worth it — not just for your customers who will be dazzled by the brighter, more impressive display — but for your bottom line which will immediately begin to reflect the savings.
To learn more about LED flashboard bulbs and other charitable and social gaming solutions, visit the Arrow International website. To keep up with the latest charitable and social gaming product news, sign up for our newsletter.