LED video displays can be a major investment for your business, so it’s important to know that you’re getting your money’s worth. Unfortunately, most people don’t know what features and specs to look for. In this quick guide, we’ll show you how to choose high-quality LED signs that you’ll be proud of for years to come.
Durability
One of the top considerations when looking for an LED sign is its ability to stand up to the environment. If your sign is going to be indoors, this isn’t as big of a concern. However, an outdoor LED sign has to be tough enough to withstand the weather conditions and temperatures of your area.
A well-built LED sign destined for outdoor use needs to be able to stand up to rain, humidity, wind, and even light hail. While you’ll never be able to prevent damage from every type of natural disaster, you should at least protect your sign from the usual weather and humidity levels where your business is located.
This goes for temperature as well. A high-quality LED sign should be rated for a reasonable range of temperatures for your area. The last thing you want is for your new sign to shut down just because it’s a hot day.
Efficiency
One of the top perks of LED signs is their incredible energy efficiency. It’s that return on investment that helps justify the initial purchase price. But if your sign doesn’t have options that will let you take full advantage of this efficiency, you won’t be getting the most out of it.
Look for a sign that includes auto-brightness options. Your sign doesn’t need to be quite so bright (and therefore use up more power) when the sun goes down. Some operating systems allow you to set a timer, but look for a sign with a light sensor installed. These automatically adjust for cloudy days as well.
If you don’t need your sign illuminated all the time, make sure to use the timer feature to automatically turn it off during those hours. Some businesses don’t want their sign on if they’re not open, so this can make that process much simpler. That being said, the diodes of a high-quality LED sign shouldn’t dim for a decade or more, so feel free to leave it on!
Image Quality
Of course, nothing else really matters if your image doesn’t look great. No discussion about high-quality LED signs would be complete without talking about the specs that will make or break your image quality.
The brightness of an LED screen is measured in “nits.” The more sunlight your sign is competing with, the higher the number should be. Look for a monitor with a brightness output of 6,000 nits for outdoor signs. On the other hand, indoor signs could go as low as 1,500 nits. Indoor screens next to a window might need a little more, around 3,000 nits.
Another key factor for your image quality is called contrast. That defines the range between the darkest color your LED screen can display and the brightest. The higher the contrast your screen is capable of, the better your images will look.
For top-quality images, you’ll also want a large range of color temperatures. Have you ever seen a screen that looked like it was tinted blue or yellow? If your monitor is appropriately calibrated and ranges between 3,000 and 6,500 degrees Kelvin, you won’t have to worry about such issues.
National Signs is Your One-Stop-Shop
When you partner with National Signs, you can choose from any of our high-quality LED sign options, including the industry-leading Daktronics products. Take a look at some of our past work with LED signs in our gallery, and start planning for your new sign today.
