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Back-Contact vs Back-Contact · Datasheet-Accurate · The AIKO Myth, Decoded

LONGi Hi-MO X10 vs AIKO Stellar 3N+

Both are genuine back-contact panels — LONGi's HPBC 2.0 and AIKO's N-type ABC — and on the datasheet they are neck-and-neck. This is the honest, spec-by-spec comparison. It is also where we clear up the two claims local dealers are pushing: that "AIKO makes the cells in LONGi's X10" and that "AIKO invented back-contact." Both are false — and AIKO is a good enough panel that it doesn't need them.

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BothGenuine back-contact cells
24.8% / 25.4%LONGi 670W · AIKO 685W top bin
15 / 30 yrSame product / performance warranty
2 MythsDebunked with sources

Quick Answer

AIKO is a real, capable back-contact panel — not a fake, and worth respecting. The AIKO Stellar 3N+ (N-type ABC) and the LONGi Hi-MO X10 (HPBC 2.0) are genuinely close: AIKO edges top-bin efficiency (25.4% at 685W) and fire rating (Class A); LONGi leads on operating-temperature range, published TUV-certified shade performance, the exclusive Anti-Dust coating and established Pakistan service. Both share a 15-year product / 30-year performance warranty and the same −0.26%/°C temperature coefficient. What is NOT true is the local-dealer story that AIKO supplies LONGi's cells or invented HPBC — LONGi makes its own cells in-house, and the original back-contact patents belong to Maxeon (which AIKO licences). Buy on the datasheet and the service, not the myth.

Master Comparison — Datasheet vs Datasheet

Spec LONGi Hi-MO X10 AIKO Stellar 3N+ 72 Edge
Cell technologyHPBC 2.0 — N-type back-contact (in-house)N-type ABC — All Back Contact (Maxeon-licensed)Both back-contact
Flagship power670 W685 WAIKO
Module efficiency (top bin)24.80%25.40%AIKO
Efficiency at matched 670 W24.80%24.6%LONGi
Temp. coefficient (Pmax)−0.26%/°C−0.26%/°CEqual
Product warranty15 years15 yearsEqual
Performance warranty30 yr — 88.85% @ yr 3030 yr — 88.85% @ yr 30Equal
Annual degradation (yr 2+)0.35%/yr≤0.35%/yrEqual
Fire ratingClass CClass AAIKO
Operating temperature−40 to +85°C−40 to +70°CLONGi
Partial-shade behaviourSoft-Breakdown — TUV-certified >70% less lossBack-contact tolerance (no published TUV figure)LONGi
Anti-soiling optionGuardian Anti-Dust nano-coatNoneLONGi
Dimensions2382 × 1134 × 30 mm2382 × 1134 × 30 mmEqual
Weight32.5 kg (bifacial)32.2 kgEqual
Maker scale (2024 modules)~80 GW — #2 module maker globally~6 GW — newer, smaller module brandLONGi
Pakistan availability & serviceEstablished, award-winning EPC supportNewer to the marketLONGi

Figures from the public LONGi Hi-MO X10 and AIKO Stellar 3N+ 72 (AIKO-A-MDE72Dw) datasheets. AIKO also offers 650–680 W bins; LONGi 640–670 W. "Edge" marks the datasheet leader for that row; many rows are a genuine tie.

⚠ The AIKO Myth — Two False Claims Local Dealers Push

Myth 1 — "AIKO supplies the cells inside LONGi's Hi-MO X10."
False, and backwards. LONGi designs and manufactures its own HPBC 2.0 back-contact cells in-house (mass-production cell efficiency above 26.6%). AIKO does not make LONGi's cells. The real historical link runs the other way: under a 2018 agreement, LONGi supplied monocrystalline wafers to AIKO. LONGi was the upstream supplier, not the reverse. (Source: longi.com/en/news/6819)

Myth 2 — "AIKO is the original patent holder of back-contact / HPBC."
False. The foundational back-contact (IBC) patents trace to Maxeon (the SunPower lineage). Maxeon sued AIKO for back-contact patent infringement across German courts, The Hague and the Unified Patent Court; in February 2026 the two settled, with AIKO taking 5-year licences from Maxeon. AIKO is a licensee of back-contact IP — not its inventor, and certainly not the inventor of LONGi's HPBC. (Source: juve-patent.com — "Maxeon and Aiko settle solar panel dispute")

⚡ Both Are Back-Contact — Here's the Honest Takeaway

  • The technology family is the same. ABC and HPBC both move every contact to the cell's rear — no front gridlines — which is why both beat front-contact TOPCon on efficiency-per-m² and partial-shade behaviour.
  • AIKO doesn't need the myth. Its datasheet stands on its own: a slightly higher top-bin efficiency and a Class A fire rating are real, verifiable wins.
  • LONGi's edges are the rooftop ones: a wider operating-temperature range, published TUV-certified shade data, an Anti-Dust option for dusty/textile sites, and an established service and warranty footprint in Pakistan.
  • Scale & warranty bankability: AIKO is a cell-industry heavyweight but a young, smaller module brand — roughly 6 GW of own-brand modules in 2024 vs LONGi's ~80 GW (the world's #2 module maker). That's a shorter own-brand track record standing behind a 25–30-year warranty — worth weighing for a 25-year asset.
  • LONGi is going all-in on back-contact. In Q1 2026 alone LONGi shipped 8.34 GW of back-contact modules — more than AIKO's entire 2024 module output — and has stated it will convert all of its domestic cell capacity to back-contact (HPBC) by the end of 2026. Back-contact isn't a side line for LONGi; it's the whole roadmap. (Source: pv-magazine, May 2026.)
  • Decide on the datasheet and the service — not on "who invented it" claims that, in AIKO's case, simply aren't true.

FAQ — LONGi vs AIKO

No — false and backwards. LONGi designs and manufactures its own HPBC 2.0 back-contact cells in-house (cell efficiency above 26.6%). AIKO does not make LONGi's cells. Historically the supply ran the other way: under a 2018 agreement LONGi supplied monocrystalline wafers to AIKO. (Source: longi.com/en/news/6819.)
No. The foundational back-contact (IBC) patents trace to Maxeon (SunPower lineage). Maxeon sued AIKO for infringement across German courts, The Hague and the Unified Patent Court, and in February 2026 they settled, with AIKO taking 5-year licences from Maxeon. AIKO is a back-contact licensee, not its originator. (Source: juve-patent.com.)
Yes — AIKO makes genuinely strong panels. Both are real back-contact modules and neck-and-neck. AIKO edges top-bin efficiency (25.4% at 685W) and fire rating (Class A); LONGi answers with a wider −40 to +85°C range, TUV-certified shade data, an Anti-Dust option and established Pakistan service. Same 15/30-year warranty and −0.26%/°C temp coefficient. Choose on datasheet + local service.
Both move all contacts to the rear (no front gridlines) — that's "back-contact," and both do it. AIKO's is ABC (All Back Contact, partly Maxeon-licensed); LONGi's is HPBC 2.0 (in-house). Both deliver the back-contact advantages over front-contact TOPCon. The differences are at the margins: top-bin efficiency, fire rating, operating-temperature range, anti-soiling options and local service — not the core technology.
Close, and both are excellent. AIKO edges raw efficiency and fire rating; LONGi leads on the rooftop factors — wider operating range, TUV-certified soft-breakdown shade performance (>70% less loss), the Guardian Anti-Dust coating for dusty/textile sites, and established award-winning service. For most Pakistani rooftops we recommend the LONGi X10 — while being clear AIKO is a genuine, capable alternative, not a fake.
Two are false: that AIKO supplies LONGi's cells, and that AIKO invented back-contact/HPBC. LONGi makes its own cells (and historically supplied wafers TO AIKO); Maxeon holds the original back-contact patents (AIKO licenced them in 2026). AIKO is a good panel on its own merits — judge it on its real datasheet, not the myths.

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