I actually just got and installed my Diode Dynamics LEDs 10 mins ago. I have been a computer and electronics person my whole life, and these look like very high quality LEDS. only thing i noticed, when i was installing the ones for the step lights (bottom of door) it was flickering and not lighting correctly at first, then i took a look at it and the wire leads coming out of it were just pushed in so they just happened to not make a full connection into the clips and instead ended up on the side of the clips so all i had to do was bend the wire a little more to the outside with my finger and it went in tighter and worked perfect.
As far as looks go, they are just as true white leds should look, perfectly white with a little hint of blue.
and no they dont glow when they are not supposed to be on.
AND they are cheaper than anywhere else, AND come with a year warranty... so if they do go bad for some reason within a year (which they should last much longer because leds last for like ever...) you get them replaced... and they even have a 30-day satisfaction guarantee which you will not even think about using because you will love them lol.

and @Loki123 usually leds will flicker because of either poor quality (which can come from any country, even USA), meaning that the solder joints are not strong enuff, not enuff solder, maybe even too much solder, or the leads like fall off/lose connection and get it back and get it again. also if they dont fit correctly in the socket the shaking of the car on bumps and such can cause the light to lose connection and go back in enough to light back up.
and diodes dont have resistors in them, they just require a certin amount of energy to complete a circut, if you dont pump enough energy to them then the energy stops there. Which reminds me, if you have a sub system with no capacitor, bass kicks could also cause the led to go off and on.

You just have to find a reputable company that isnt selling poorly made leds.

 

I take it these are zenor diodes or a very low voltage circuit. I thought diodes themselves didn't need resistors in series depending on the circuit, but LEDs required a current limiting resistor. I think if one were to take an LED light assembly apart they would find a resistor. Even the LED christmas lights have a resistor somewhere in the chain.

I have gone through a few sets from different manufacturers of 194 bulbs and both had flickering after a few months. Each time I go up in price - I started at a few bucks a pair on ebay and then $14 a pair at pierdigital.com and now I'm onto a new one from Halo Automotive - looks like a different design for $22 a pair.

I guess my question is - how do you spot poor quality LED's? Price? One would think that most are made in the same factories in Hong Kong and just re-packed and rebranded. I don't think most of the company's selling the LED's are the OEM (factory direct). There seems to be a life span of a few months on the LED's I have personally used - let me know if your new ones surpase that...

 

Diode dynamics stage 3 kit - easy to install, super bright.
However, their customer service wasn't super friendly with me. Also, they didn't include all of the bulbs I ordered (F/R turn signals) and haven't responded to email inquiry. YMMV

[Update] They just responded and are sending the missing bulbs. Took 2 days to respond, but just a couple hours from my 2nd email. Not really that bad. Also, the 2nd rep was much nicer. So, they now have my approval. Also, the bulbs are good, but installation is not an easy DIYer. I have the vert and have to take half the trunk apart for the rears. I can only imagine the front will be worse.

Cheers
Josh