RGB LED POV Globe – Research LED

I started searching for a LED to use in this project.

Normally I would go to my local electronics supply story, but this project requires lots (~64) of LEDs and my local electronics store charges a premium for the LEDs, (@1.50 each) and I know I can get them for cheaper then that.

What type of LED

• RGB LED Thou hole, I want to use the thou hole LEDs as they are a lot more durable then the SMT versions and last longer.
• Wide angle. I would like a ~100 degree viewing angle (its measured from the center of the LED, so it more like a 200 viewing angle) but these types of LEDs are hard to come by so I might have to settle with 60 degree viewing angle.
• 30 mA or less at full brightness. The TLC5947 shift regulator chip that I am using supports a max of 30 mA and i am hoping to get a LED that uses less then that to prevent over heating.
• Diffused. I’m not sure why but all the other POV projects are using diffused LEDs. I have asked a question about this on electronics.stackexchange.com. But for right now I will just follow conventional wisdom.
• Common anode. The TLC5947 chip we use is a sink driver and therefor requires common anode.

I searched online from a few retailers such as http://www.alibaba.com (~$0.19) or http://ledssuperbright.com ($0.35) or http://www.adafruit.com ($1.0) orhttp://www.sparkfun.com (~$0.6) or http://www.digikey.com (~$1.1) or evilmadscience.com ($0.40)

I trust adafruit and sparkfun and have had good experiences from both of them in the past but I am worried that there is a such a huge range in price difference between each of these sites that I might be missing something critical. Again I asked more questions about the differences between different LEDs and what makes a good RGB LED.

I have ordered a few samples from different sites that supported free shipping, while I wait on a response to my questions.

RGB LED POV Globe

1. RGB LED POV Globe – Research
   
2. RGB LED POV Globe – Research LED
3. RGB LED POV Globe – Parts shopping
4. RGB LED POV Globe – Research other peoples projects.
5. RGB LED POV Globe – Software