Xenons Are SO Passe, LEDs Will Soon Be Outdated - Make Way For LASER Headlights

In some ways I agree because LEDS are not a necessity as they are more of a luxury. But since today a lot of European car makers are still offering Xenon headlamps as an option.... it's kind of hard to say that it will indeed go out of fashion so quickly

First full LED heaflamps were actually on the Lexus LS 600h in 2007.

The first LED exterior lights were on Cadillac over a decade earlier :)

^ and all cars should have LED tailights - the illuminate faster which means they make roads safer...you would think.

I don't know about you, but I can't tell the difference between lumination times of LED and incandescent bulbs. ;)

I CAN

the difference is Significant.

congratulations! You are the only person on earth who has to wait for an incandescent light bulb to turn on when you hit the light switch.

Is anyone really clamoring for who was first to come out with LEDs? I think not. However, Audi was the first to make it an overnight SUCCESS. No one cared about the LS600 with LEDs, it was never a big deal, neither was the Cadillac REAR LEDs. Audi singlehandedly create the boom on front lighting LEDs, and now it is implementing matrix LED to fully integrate daytime with nighttime front headlight lighting, moving completely away from Xenons. Others will copy and follow, while yet others will claim Jedi light saber technology is "in the works".

My first car with xenons was 1998 Nissan Patrol Super Safari. I remember how famous they were back then and every other person was talking about the blue headlights. LEDs are nice too but IMO they aren't as popular with people.

Best comment yet:

"Is it too much to ask for a shark with a frikken laser on it's head?"

Sure, all leading carmakers are already working on the next big thing. BMW just feels that everyone leaped over them with the LEDs and now they have to call the next big thing first as if they are the only ones. Let's face it, brightening the halo headlights was kinda lame just to try to match the impact and attractiveness of LEDs.

So I guess announcing laser technology somehow reduces the shame of being brushed aside.

LED's aren't ground breaking, I have them on my Christmas lights that I bought for $5 and were made in China!

Joe, while that may be true producing an LED headlight is quite different more costly, as xenon bulbs are most expensive that halogen, which is why most mainstream cars come standard with halogen bulbs - they are cheaper to replace and manufacture. I'm not sure but I believe the balast in xenon's makes them expensive.

I think the obvious advantage to LED vs. Xenon is bulb life....LED's last forever and consume minimal energy.

Nope, I can buy a 20watt LED for about $15. This one 20watt led will be many many times more bright then a similarly priced xenon. I've played around with "cheap" 2 watt LED's and they hurt my eyes lol.

Interesting - they're taking intense narrow bandwidth monochromatic light from the laser and then converting it to polychromatic light (white light). By choosing the correct laser frequency and appropriate phosphors, they can "customize" the white light output to achieve an ideal polychromatic source, where ideal is defined as best visibility etc. I wonder if they will develop a computerized headlight that instantly tunes to the optimum polychromatic output depending on ambient driving conditions.

According to BMW the first production car with Xenon's was the 1993 740..

I was blinded by the light.

if it was BMW with the LEDs you would be praising them and blasting Audi's halo lights. Your bias is transparent.

"LED daytime lights are so annoying, they make your Audi look like a KIA."

Ignoring 50 cars with AUDI grilles (Like the Tundra, Lancer and Sonic).

That sizzling sound you hear is the sound of thousands of retinas seared by laser headlights blasting a "near-parallel beam with an intensity a thousand times greater than that of conventional LEDs". Can't wait until some douchebag in a lifted truck with effing laser headlights is driving behind me on the 405.

LED's have been used on trucks since the mid 90's! I swapped out my rear lights on my 1997 wrangler when I bought it brand new in 1996 for the LED's that trucks use.
Audi was far from the first...

Now people can get lasik while they drive

I have had a laser flash light on my shotgun for over ten years, the light is incredible, almost like a car head light.

My German BiXenon's are so bright and sharp now I can only imagine what laser light will be like. (!)
Will it be a quantum improvement or just another marketing triumph?

Isn't a quantum the minimum amount of energy required for a reaction? lol

The envy is wonderful. It shows the true leadership role Audi has on the market. Envy being the most clear sign of success.

I must also add to my first statement above, that BMW feels so relegated to second place (or even third considering MB jumped on the Audi styling LED bandwagon) that it had to come up with something on the news. Audi already has the next generation matrix LEDs ready to be released, while BMW is talking star wars technology which has not yet even been finalized, much less approved for production. Anyone can talk about the future. Audi implements, BMW talks.

Wow, great job BMW, and very exciting this tech will be on the market in a year or two with the new i cars.

"Lasers have the potential to be simultaneously more powerful, more efficient, and smaller than other headlamp types."

" The benefits of a laser headlamp are compelling: a near parallel beam of light 1,000 times more intense than conventional LEDs but with less than half the energy consumption; 170 lumens of output per watt for laser headlamps, compared to 100 lumens per watt for LEDs. BMW was one of first automakers with stylized headlamps, in this case the corona rings or angel eyes around its headlamps (photo above). Regardless, the headlamp assemblies would be shallower front-to-back, allowing for greater flexibility in placement and less intrusion into the engine compartment, as long as the automaker uses only laser headlamps on a model."