Yes. Hicarix Badge uses single-color LEDs, so it will light up only in the color you selected when purchasing (RED, AMBER, YELLOW, GREEN, AQUA, BLUE, PURPLE, or WHITE).

If full-color LEDs were used instead, the available power would not be sufficient.

In addition, Hicarix uses a system that transfers data by having light sensors read flashing patterns displayed on a smartphone screen.
With full-color support, the amount of data would increase by at least three times, which would also make transfer times more than three times longer and no longer practical for real-world use.

The difference comes from the cost of the LEDs (light-emitting diodes) themselves. All colors have exactly the same functionality.

Red LEDs were the first to become practical in the 1960s (GaAsP-based technology). Later, in the 1990s, brighter LED technology (AlGaInP-based) was established, and red and orange LEDs became mature technologies that are now mass-produced at relatively low cost.

Blue LEDs were long considered nearly impossible to make practical. However, in the 1990s, Shuji Nakamura and others succeeded in commercializing them using InGaN-based technology, which later led to the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physics. Even today, blue LEDs remain more difficult to manufacture and are therefore somewhat more expensive.

Green LEDs already existed in the 1970s (GaP-based), but they were very dim. After blue LED technology was developed, the same technology could be adapted to create bright green LEDs. Hicarix Badge 2 uses this brighter modern green LED technology.

White LEDs are made by further processing blue LEDs and adding a yellow phosphor layer so they appear white, making them slightly more expensive than blue LEDs.

AQUA (light blue/cyan) LEDs also use blue LED technology, but because the color sits between blue and green, even a slight variation can make them appear too green or too blue. Producing a stable and beautiful AQUA color is therefore difficult. In addition, demand for AQUA LEDs is much lower than for blue or green, so their price is not especially low.

Purple LEDs also use blue LED technology, but because purple light has one of the shortest visible wavelengths, manufacturing becomes even more difficult. In most products, purple is usually reproduced by mixing red, green, and blue LEDs in full-color LEDs rather than using a dedicated single-color purple LED. As a result, true single-color purple LEDs are rarely used in the world.

In fact, purple was not even part of the manufacturer’s standard lineup. The purple LEDs used for Hicarix Badge 2 were specially custom-made exclusively for this product, which is why they are the most expensive color in the lineup.

• AlGaInP=アルミニウム・ガリウム・インジウム・リン
• InGaN=インジウム・ガリウム・窒化物

Yes, they are compatible. The original Hicarix Badge can still be used as well.

Yes, it is safe.

The ferrite rubber magnet used in the Hicarix Badge 2 is not strong enough to affect smartphones.

In fact, many folio-style smartphone cases and tablet covers on the market use much stronger neodymium magnets, and they have been used safely for many years without issues.

No. Hicarix Badge 2 is not rechargeable and uses a commercially available CR2032 coin cell battery. You can easily replace it by purchasing a new battery from hardware stores or other retailers.

Rechargeable batteries (lithium-ion batteries) may seem convenient, but we chose not to use them because they are extremely delicate and require careful handling.

Rechargeable batteries carry a risk of fire if they are overcharged, subjected to strong impacts, or exposed to high temperatures. Preventing such accidents requires complex protection and control circuits. In fact, even products from major global manufacturers have occasionally experienced battery fire incidents. From an engineer’s perspective, it often feels that many people are not fully aware of these risks.

Hicarix Badge 2 is a wearable device. It may accidentally be dropped or exposed to intense summer heat and direct sunlight, so we have placed the highest priority on safety in its design.

Hicarix Badge 2 supports the following 256 playback speed levels. To adjust the speed more precisely in the app, press and hold the playback speed button.

The original Hicarix Badge only supports 16 speed levels from “Fast” to “Slow” because its timer is not very accurate.

FPS stands for “Frames Per Second,” and FPM stands for “Frames Per Minute.” These indicate how many frames are switched per second or per minute. “s” means seconds.

Hicarix Badge 2 does not use wireless communication such as Bluetooth. Instead, it uses optical communication, where data is transmitted by flashing patterns on a smartphone screen and read by built-in light sensors.

By avoiding Bluetooth, Hicarix Badge 2 can operate using a small CR2032 coin cell battery while remaining compact and affordable.

Some people ask, “Wouldn’t BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) work with a small battery as well?” In simple use cases such as tracking tags that communicate only briefly, that is true.

However, for devices like Hicarix Badge 2 that need to transfer a certain amount of data using GATT communication, battery voltage can drop during communication, making stable operation difficult. Using a lithium-ion battery could improve this, but batteries small enough to fit inside the Hicarix Badge 2 would not provide long lighting times and would also introduce safety concerns.

In addition, adding Bluetooth increases component costs and makes manufacturing more complex. In Japan, products that use radio communication such as Bluetooth require official radio certification (“Giteki”), which can cost anywhere from roughly ¥300,000 to over ¥1,000,000.

To officially sell a Bluetooth product, manufacturers must also pay a product registration fee to the Bluetooth SIG, the organization that manages Bluetooth standards. This fee is approximately ¥1.2 million (USD 8,000), which was far beyond what could realistically be afforded for an independently made handmade product.

For these reasons, Hicarix Badge 2 uses optical communication to avoid the cost and power limitations of wireless technology while keeping the device compact, practical, and affordable.

はい。保護用のフィルムですので剥がしても大丈夫です。

いいえ。電子基板を使用しているため、防水仕様ではありません。雨天や水濡れにはご注意ください。

はい。同梱されているため、購入後すぐにお使いいただけます。

アプリの設定言語は日本語と英語に対応しており、機械翻訳で繫体中国語、ベトナム語、韓国語にも対応しております。

「文字からパターン作成」機能では、文字を入力すると8×8の点灯パターンに変換されます。日本語で使用される文字に加え、アルファベットなどの基本ラテン文字、ベトナム語で使用される拡張ラテン文字（声調記号を含む）にも対応しています。

また繁体字中国語・簡体字中国語・韓国語については一部に対応しています。文字は年間およそ2,000文字のペース（2025年実績）で追加しています。

※アルファベット+数字+記号はUnicode（Basic Latin）、日本語はJIS X 0208（第1・第2水準）、ベトナム語はUnicode（Latin Extended + 声調記号）、繁体字中国語はCNS 11643 第1面、簡体字中国語はGB2312、韓国語はKS X 1001に基づく。

条件等をご案内いたしますのでお問い合わせフォームよりご連絡ください。