Have I ever told you how much I hate blue LEDs?

"If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent" (essextee) 09/02/2020 at 18:54 • Filed to: None

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They just fucking suck. Every single device has them now, almost like they’re showing off since the y were such a huge breakthrough in the industry and didn’t get cheap until recently.

T hey light up the goddamn room like a discotheque, wreak havock with night vision, and it’s impossible to find devices that don’t have a thousand of them plastered all over. The single pinhead sized status light on my PC monitor is enough to act as a night light.

Argh.

Just Jeepin' > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 19:13

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That’s one problem I’m having with finding a replacement head unit for my Jeep: either the displays are too dim for topless driving ( every single din unit in existence) or they’re too bright for nighttime driving (not every double din unit, but enough).

This is what we'll show whenever you publish anything on Kinja: > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 19:13

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I literally had to open up my air conditioner when I first got it and tint it because the light was so bright it illuminated the room and kept us awake. They were cool 20 years ago or so when they first came out but they’re a played out annoyance when it comes right down to it.

phenotyp > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 19:15

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I taped over em all in my house. 

CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 19:15

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You’d....really hate my office

Ssfancyfresh > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 19:16

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The last aftermarket head unit I bought had this problem. I ended up disassembling the face plate and painting the back sides of the buttons to mute the glow. Worked like a champ 

onlytwowheels > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 19:17

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Maybe there is a purpose for this crap after all....

SiennaMan > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 19:17

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 Why on earth do they make head unit that bright and in blue?  That's crazy.  You should at least be able to hit a button that'd cut the screen brightness to where the radio is at about the brightness of that clock..

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > SiennaMan 09/02/2020 at 19:21

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There is a low setting but it’s still much brighter than the panel lights

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > Ssfancyfresh 09/02/2020 at 19:21

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That is my plan.

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever 09/02/2020 at 19:22

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You mean your rave club ???

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > This is what we'll show whenever you publish anything on Kinja: 09/02/2020 at 19:23

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I miss the days when the choice was green LED or red LED

ttyymmnn > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 19:24

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I have something like that on the aftermarket radio in my Odyssey. I can turn all the lights red except the bright ass blue one around the volume knob. That one stays bright ass blue. Driving at night, I have to fold the faceplate down, or just take it off. I hate it. There’s also a bright ass blue light on the phone charging block we take on vacation with us. It’s basically a night light. 

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > Just Jeepin' 09/02/2020 at 19:24

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If you can find one for sale try a Sony wx-900bt

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > ttyymmnn 09/02/2020 at 19:28

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It’s not even much brighter, it’s because of some sciency bullsh it about how our eyes perceive light . Short wavelengths (b lue end of the spectrum) are very disruptive to our night vision.

Just Jeepin' > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 19:30

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Any idea how well it’d hold up under frequent drenching?

PowderHound > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 19:32

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The speakers in my room have a green one when on and a blue one when Bluetooth is enabled on them. It is at least 10x brighter with the blue. I don’t notice the green at night yet if the blue is on my entire room is lit up

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > Just Jeepin' 09/02/2020 at 19:34

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In that case look for head units advertised as “marine”. They’re meant for boats and will be wat erproofed.

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > PowderHound 09/02/2020 at 19:35

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Yes it’s because blue LEDs suck ass.

onlytwowheels > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 19:43

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Would be nice if more vehicles offered a feature like Saab’s “Night Panel”. I didn’t use it often, but long drives through the night were easier on the eyes when it was used.

Just Jeepin' > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 19:45

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I tried that route. The two automotive head units I’ve had both lasted longer than the marine one. It didn’t survive the first summer (admittedly, it rained a lot that year).

CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever > onlytwowheels 09/02/2020 at 19:51

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Thats actually legit

facw > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 19:54

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And yeah the power LED on my machine is way too bright.

onlytwowheels > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever 09/02/2020 at 19:56

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Seems like a feature that has actual benefits for comfort and safety.  Should be a standard feature.

CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever > onlytwowheels 09/02/2020 at 19:57

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Totally.  

Sovande > Just Jeepin' 09/02/2020 at 19:57

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Have you considered something like a Bluetooth amp with your phone as the head unit? Solves the screen issue assuming you already use a phone mount and you can get a cubby in place of the radio. 

Just Jeepin' > Sovande 09/02/2020 at 20:03

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That’s a really interesting idea, thanks. That would solve my reliability problems with rain gradually destroying my head units , too.

Chariotoflove > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 20:16

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I like blue, but I have found that the one place I  can’t have it is on the alarm clock. It blazes at night.

PyroHoltz f@h Oppo 261120 > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 20:25

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Most decent head units have a dim mode for when you turn your headlights on. Some even allow you to adjust the max bright and dim brightness.

404 - User No Longer Available > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 20:32

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It was cool 20 years ago. ¯\_()_/¯

Literally 20 years ago... man I’m old.

Smallbear wants a modern Syclone, local Maple Leafs spammer > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 20:41

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Red lighting ftw. Blue lighting for the dumpster.

zipfuel > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 21:01

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It’s not like they’re even new, as a student in the early 2ks I had a PC Case with a jet engine front intake fan and Terminator T3 style side fan that both glowed blue enough that leaving downloads on overnight was aggravating. What I wouldn’t give for some nice soothing 80s red ones...

Edit: holy crap it still exists! Although mine was all silver

zipfuel > This is what we'll show whenever you publish anything on Kinja: 09/02/2020 at 21:04

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I have the same issue but since it’s only a temporary window unit I’ve solved it with a sock...

Sovande > Just Jeepin' 09/02/2020 at 21:07

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I have had this one in my El Camino for four years or so. It has a wired key pad you can use to pause and skip songs. 

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B00UTXQL74/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_8eeuFbJPGF2FR

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > zipfuel 09/02/2020 at 21:31

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Ugh. PC cases are an other rant of mine

CaptDale - is secretly British > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/02/2020 at 21:55

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My partner’s Miata has a head unit like that and I fucking hate it. What happened to dimmable red orange color from the 90s?

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > zipfuel 09/02/2020 at 22:32

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iCute?? That’s the brand my first PC case was way back in 2004! I still use that case for my Media Center PC, though it’s in a closed cupboard behind the TV now, so you can’t see it...mine had RGB LED fans, and a color-changing LED light in the center-front, with two light blue LED ‘bubble strips’ down either side on the front!

The color-changing LED has long since died and I replaced it with a blue LED that I had sitting around, but it was a pretty dim one...the bubble strips are still going strong. The bearings in both LED fans went, so there is an orange LED fan on top now and a normal plastic black fan on the side these days...

I think this is the only daytime pic I have of it from my uni dorm room back in like...2005...

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > ttyymmnn 09/02/2020 at 22:33

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W ouldn’t be too hard to swap the LED in that phone charger if you were handy with a soldering iron, I’d think!

ttyymmnn > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars 09/02/2020 at 22:43

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I’m not handy with a soldering iron. I am, however, handy with black tape. 

zipfuel > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars 09/03/2020 at 00:22

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I’m certain the brand wasn’t iCute when I bought mine back in the UK but I’ll bet these gaudy ass things appeared all over the world under a variety of names. Your old PC looks like a Vegas ice maker - I love it!

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > zipfuel 09/03/2020 at 08:32

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Haha, yeah.....it was pretty bright. Weirdly, it never bothered me. I left it on 24/7 (still do) even in uni and the noise from the fans and the lights never kept me from sleeping....if anything, they were a great way to still be able to see around the room in the dark without needing to put the lights on! :P

RangerSmith > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/03/2020 at 09:27

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Can we agree that this extends to blue Christmas lights?

RangerSmith > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 09/03/2020 at 09:27

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Can we agree that this extends to blue Christmas lights?

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > RangerSmith 09/03/2020 at 09:29

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Those are supposed to be all bright and dazzling though