Outdoor LED signage has become indispensable for organizations looking to offer relevant, easily updated information, alerts and advertising.
But before purchasing LED outdoor signage for your business, you must ensure you’re making a well-informed investment. Your digital signage is likely to last at least 10 years; careful planning will help ensure a successful experience, longer lifetime and lower cost.
Here are eight key factors to consider as you look for the best outdoor LED display screen to meet your needs:
Depending on where your outdoor digital sign is located, you may need to consider how it operates in hot or cold temperatures, as well as in rain, snow, wind, dust and humidity. Against these elements, the design of your screen and its enclosure is critical to the continuous operation and lifespan of the LEDs.
In terms of environmental factors, your first consideration should be removing heat from both the LED elements and their driving electronics. Ask any vendor about their thermal management solution and its ability to maintain LED temperatures within the elemental conditions you anticipate. To protect your signage from the elements, check that the enclosure design meets specifications for resistance to water, dust, humidity, etc. — whatever concerns apply to your location.
Can your potential supplier offer support and advice for the screen’s design and permitting process? Will they listen to all stakeholders and design a solution that fits their needs? Can they work with a customer project leader or recommend a qualified installer?
Hopefully, the answer to these questions is yes. You want a partner in this process, not simply a vendor.
Once your LED outdoor signage is installed, routine maintenance and servicing are critical to ensuring it always looks great and lasts as long as possible. Ask your vendor how often calibration is required — and how easy it is to accomplish — to ensure consistent image quality for years to come.
Similarly, establish how and when the screen will be serviced. Some vendors, such as Samsung, offer a network operations center (NOC) option to constantly monitor your sign and send a technician to fix any issues before you may even be aware of them. To avoid downtime, servicers will need easy access, too, so establish protocols for that.
How long has your potential LED supplier been in business? What are other customers’ experiences? Will the supplier be around in 10 years? Will they be responsive to any needs you may have after installation?
To ensure you get the best outdoor LED display possible, ask for references and referrals from their previous customers, especially for jobs done five or more years ago, to get insight into the provider’s integrity.
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To local and state governments, your display brightness can be a major safety concern. A sign that’s too bright may distract drivers and make it difficult to drive at night. Check if your LED display has an auto-dimming capability to lower the screen’s brightness relative to surrounding light, which should minimize it at night, saving power and keeping drivers’ eyes on the road.
The materials used in the LED screen and its enclosure can also lower the risk of dangerous signage failures and assuage any safety concerns. Look for products certified by Underwriters Laboratory (UL), which imposes strict safety requirements.
6. Price and warranty
You may be tempted to choose the least expensive LED signage option, but you’re likely to get what you pay for. Low-cost suppliers use lower-quality materials — not military-grade components. Their design teams may not ensure the safety and longevity of your signage. And they may under-specify the screen’s performance to lower the cost.
Many signage suppliers offer a warranty, but check the fine print to make sure you understand the exceptions and limitations. Here’s where you may be better off going with a trusted brand, even if it costs a bit more. Ultimately, smartly designed and well-built LED advertising screens will deliver greater overall savings.
Your LED supplier may not always be the organization that physically installs the screen. In many cases, you may end up hiring an architect, consultant or project manager to oversee or carry out the installation. Is your LED supplier ready and willing to work with these managers?
You may also simply want to appoint an installer who can manage the entire project. Can your supplier suggest a qualified installer? Again, check their references and ask about the success of previous installations.
Outdoor signage is meant to draw the attention of passersby and communicate a message about your brand. The vividness of the image has a significant impact on how that message is received. Your outdoor LED signage should be bright and vibrant, and it should display colors accurately. Skin tones that look washed out, for example, will draw negative attention, so check the LED supplier spec sheet to be sure the display shows true-to-life color.
Another key consideration is pixel pitch, in other words, the space between RGB pixels. It’s important you choose a vendor that will match the right pixel pitch for the viewing distance. Over specifying the pitch may cost more, but if the pixel pitch is too large, the visual quality may suffer.
Establishing an outdoor LED signage solution can be a daunting task with many moving parts — and concerns about visual quality, cost, safety and reliability. Starting with these eight tips in mind, you’ll be prepared to ask the right questions and set your project up for success.
For an array of innovative display options, check out the full lineup of LED outdoor signage by Samsung, designed to weather and outshine all sorts of unpredictable environments. Whether it’s one screen or dozens, you can configure and tailor their messaging in real time using an integrated CMS, as explained in this free complete guide.
What if we told you there’s an LED display solution provider and support network closer to home than you think? A progressive LED manufacturer based in Canada who is committed to leadership in the direct view LED industry, while never wavering on the identity for Canadian design, manufacturing, and service.
As a 100% Canadian owned and operated company, LIGHTVU Inc. offers premium LED display solutions manufactured and distributed from corporate headquarters in Alberta, Canada. Our brand works with a strong network of authorized resellers and technicians across Canada to ensure the highest levels of support for all of our customers. We exist to enhance clients’ spaces through meaningful visual experiences while offering the best possible customer support so our clients’ are never left in the dark.
Local Industry Understanding
At LIGHTVU, we understand the concerns that go along with buying an LED display. These projects require an investment and lots of planning, there’s no doubt about it. That’s why we provide one-on-one support from the beginning of the journey and continue supporting clients long after the installation has been completed. This level of support is much easier to accomplish when you are local. We look after you from the moment you contact us, through the purchasing process, the installation, and all the servicing afterwards. You will feel comfortable knowing we’re always here for you, and that we are here in Canada.
Custom Display Solutions
We offer more than just one type of LED display. We have something for every project both for indoor and outdoor spaces. We’ll share the right information, so you know which display to choose. Big project or small, we’ve worked on them all and we’re not afraid to take on fully custom projects. We offer off-the-shelf solutions for the more popular applications and custom designs for those who want to go beyond the status quo.
Quality Products
We understand what Canadians expect when they’re promised quality so we take every step possible to exceed expectations. “Quality displays” may seem like standard jargon but when dealing with cheap LED true quality is hard to come by. Don’t compromise the impact of your brands message by chosing a low-cost LED solution that doesn’t provide the performance you need.
Quality Engineering and Manufacturing
We use CNC manufactured components and 0.0002” accuracy laser-cut parts to ensure consistency. This means we can offer custom LED displays like you wouldn’t believe. The same standards are held for all of the products we distribute through our strong Canadian distribution partnership with Unilumin, a global top tier LED manufacturer. Unilumin’s team shares the commitment to high quality engineering and manufacturing. This allows our Canadian team to not only supply but also effectively support every LED display that leaves our factory.
Long Lifespan
Our displays offer 100,000 hour half-life LEDs. That means you can run your LED display 24-hours a day, 7-days a week at full brightness for over ten years before the LEDs dim to 50% of their original brightness. Many lower cost LED solutions offer only 50,000 hour life which directly correlates with life expectancy of the screen. 100,000 hour half-life is industry standard and we advise against choosing any product that doesn’t meet this specification.
Warranty
LIGHTVU offers warranty of 3 to 10 years and since we are in Canada we can actually provide customers with the warranty support they expect. With many LED manufacturers, 2 year warranty is the maximum you’re going to get. As a Canadian brand, we understand the importance of warranty and our team is proud to offer one of the best warranties in the industry.
Certification and Inspection
All of the LED display products we manufacture and distribute are inspected and certified in compliance with CEC (Canadian Electrical Code). This results in peace of mind knowing your space and the people in it are safe. We abide by Canada’s rules to ensure your investment is safe and the LED solution is technologically sound.
LIGHTVU is here for all your display project needs; no matter the size, we have a solution for you. We welcome the challenges each project brings. With our creativity, innovation, and constant research on new technological opportunities in the direct view LED display industry, we know we’re the right supplier for you.