Well not to turn from the info nubes put in above.
I got around to testing the Cheap Chinese light this evening.
Note my measurements aren’t an accurate like to like for the following reasons though a comparison can still be made.
First my bridgelux’s strips in the light below have seen at least a year+ worth of use so their efficiency will be a little lower now than say new, also im running two thrive eb3 strips in this array so that will also bring down the efficiency of my home built, and its runs at a lower wattage overall 53w vs the 65w of the Chinese light, and finally im using a lux meter not a par meter just as thats what i have so true par comparison efficiency i cannot do though general light output i can.
So with that out of the way and some measurements, math, price lookups and calculations later heres the breakdown.
With 22% more energy usage its only outputs around 12% more light, math wise that works out to be that the Chinese panel is around 8-8.5% less efficient in a Watts to Light output metric vs my current used Bridglelux eb 2/3 meanwell xlg setup.
Cost wise with these style panels being in the $30-40cnd range i compared them out to say a 10 strip eb gen3 slim or eb2 strip setup running off an xlg-240 driver and $20 worth of frame and wiring supplies to light up your standard 2’X4’ sized space “tent” , saying that the prices are essentially even for say 4 panels vs a comparable Bridgelux setup.
Longevity who knows… though chip layout at least for this panel has it so these chips are actually driven on the lower side so id expect at least the chips to likely last for a good while, driver though who knows.
So say if factoring in new bridgelux strips instead of my older and thrive ones, and the ability to opt for a warmer color temp allowing more reds with the bridgeluxs as this chiense light even with the extra reds in the panel it still seems to leans pretty heavily into the blue side color wise with my eye just due to the amount of 5000k chips they throw on the panel.
Id happen to estimate $ for $ the bridgeluxs will be 15-25+% more efficient though you will have to build it.
So all that said if say one had a 2x4 tent didnt want to build a light and you could get these even cheaper than say that $30-40cnd range they could very well grow some nice plants.
Another down side to check out in the photos below is the cheap panel’s driver likely doesn’t have adequate filtering capacitors or any as you get bad zebra striping in any photos which is just the camera picking up the 60hz ac frequency carrying over past the driver and to the light, with meanwell drivers ive never had that issue.
Verdict … Getting there though not yet at least for me, though if someone decided thats the route they wanted to go all i would say is fair and happy growing
Onto some basic pics, check out the zebra striping the camera pickes up with the cheap panel.