These DotStar 5050 ~6000K RGB LEDs provide individually controlled 24-bit colour with fast 2-wire SPI communication and a 1.2kHz PWM rate for smooth lighting effects. Supplied as a pack of ten.
Make your own smart LED arrangement with the same integrated LED that is used in our new fancy DotStar strips.
This tiny 5050 (5mm x 5mm) SMD LED is fairly easy to solder and is the most compact way possible to integrate multiple bright LEDs to a design. If you want to prototype with these, we recommend our 5050-size LED breakout PCBs, solder them on for a breadboard-friendly package
They're also a great upgrade for people who have loved and used NeoPixels for a few years but want something even better. DotStar LEDs use generic 2-wire SPI, so you can push data much faster than with the NeoPixel 800 KHz protocol and there's no specific timing required.
Like NeoPixels, DotStar LEDs are 5050-sized LEDs with an embedded microcontroller inside the LED. You can set the colour/brightness of each LED to 24-bit colour (8 bits each red green and blue). Each LED acts like a shift register, reading incoming colour data on the input pins, and then shifting the previous colour data out on the output pin. By sending a long string of data, you can control an infinite number of LEDs, just tack on more or cut off unwanted LEDs at the end. The PWM is built into each LED-chip so once you set the colour you can stop talking to the strip and it will continue to PWM all the LEDs for you
On NeoPixels, this PWM rate happens 400 Hz, whereas the SK9822 version of DotStars have a 1.2 KHz PWM rate for a smoother look.
There is a tutorial showing wiring, power usage calculations, example code for usage, etc. Please check it out!
Features
Smart monochrome Cool White LEDs with integrated driver (DotStar technology)
5050 SMD package (5mm x 5mm) - compact and easy to solder
Three individual cool white dies for bright, consistent light output
24-bit high-frequency PWM control for smooth brightness adjustment
Generic 2-wire SPI protocol - faster data transmission than NeoPixel 800 KHz
Shift register design - control unlimited LEDs by chaining together
Built-in PWM continues automatically after brightness is set
Suitable for Persistence-of-Vision (POV) applications
Compatible with 5050 LED breakout PCBs for prototyping
Upgrade path from NeoPixel technology to monochromatic smart lighting
Package contains 10 individual LEDs
Includes comprehensive tutorial and example code
Specifications
Single LED: 5mm x 5mm / 0.2" x 0.2"
We don't have any more specifics about this particular LED other than it is 6000-6500K colour temp and seems to have 3 white LEDs in place of the normal Red/Green/Blue
