light

People ascribe great healing powers to LED lamps and are willing to make some notable sacrifices to use them. But the Med Spa Clinic in England has taken the concept to its therapeutic extreme.

The "Oxy-LED Light Spa Capsule" isn't directed only at the face as are other products, instead spreading its magic wavelengths over the entire body. The reason: Not only is it an emotional enhancer, but the pricey full-body spa supposedly promotes weight loss when combined with other therapies by causing "intense physical stimulation," according to BornRich. With claims like that, it might … Read more

If I had to describe LightPole in 10 words or fewer, I'd call it an interface for accessing location-aware services from mobile phones. More than anything else, LightPole's downloadable application offers a listings and mapping format that many location-based services, such as Yelp and Yahoo Local, can squeeze into to gain more visibility or avoid creating their own rich cell phone applications.

It works like this. Users looking for stuff--a good restaurant, happy hour specials, or Internet cafe--can click open LightPole, select a service (MappyHour and Hotspotr are two more,) and can read about the establishment, call the … Read more

High price and a strange color. No, we're not talking about a hairdo. Those are the two factors that have kept light-emitting diodes, or LEDs, from becoming a mainstream light source.

But that might change soon, said Zach Gibler, chief business development officer of Lighting Science Group, which plans to announce distribution deals with major retailers for its LED bulbs that screw into a regular socket.

LED bulbs for household use have already been around for some time, but their success has been limited. The main obstacles have been that they cost more than incandescent lightbulbs and emit a … Read more

Correction: The original post implied that the Church is no longer active. In fact, the band has been touring and putting out albums continuously for almost 30 years, and Tim Powles is still their drummer. Apologies for the mistake.

Modern musical technology makes the world smaller.

Example: Seattle band Half Light are big fans of Australian art-rock band The Church. [Disclosure: I played bass with another incarnation of Half Light in 2004 and 2005 and am still friendly with the band.] Americans of a certain age probably remember The Church's 1987 hit "Under the Milky Way," but … Read more

Depression among household pets may be worse than originally believed.

We thought the issue was more isolated last month upon learning of the "Fauna Sauna"--its name doesn't exactly scream credibility--a device that uses radiant heat "to bring healing to your pet right in your home." But now it has competition in the "SunSpa," another product that claims to control mood swings by simulating sunlight "for a warm and soothing heaven for your pets," according to Luxurylaunches. We're not sure about that, but it does look considerably more comfy than … Read more

Went to see Martin Scorsese's new concert film Shine A Light with the Rolling Stones, and I have to admit the aged rockers put on a good show. Sure, Mick and Keith's life-long love affair with the blues is still going strong, but their music has become strangely soulless. They jump around, make faces, and the energy level is high, but I didn't care. I've seen it all before, better--the Rolling Stones are now just a machine, reveling in their own outlaw, devil-may-care ethos, a mere simulation of their former selves. Kinda makes me glad the … Read more

The CD may be on its way out, but music and concert DVDs are doing just fine, thank you very much! Late last year I wrote a feature for Home Entertainment magazine running down some of my favorite music DVDs of all time. They were all "live" recordings--there wasn't a single MTV style "music video" in the bunch. This is an abridged version of the article, check the Home Entertainment website to check out the complete article. Oh, and I've added a few DVDs that didn't make the article.

Led Zeppelin

With a … Read more

There's apparently some kind of nostalgia kick going on around the "T-Qualizer" shirt that was all the rage a year ago. Yesterday we saw the same creators come out with an equalizer frame (the "SpeaQualizer)," and now there's the "T-Sketch."

This latest example of illuminated superfluousness features a sewn-in panel where you can write a message, which in turn shows up in colored lights powered by AAA batteries ranging from a "gentle glow" to a "pulsing strobe," according to Pocket-lint, depending on the appropriate delivery for the missive.… Read more

Sometimes our macro shots turn out underexposed because we're blocking the light source. At the same time, to avoid the harsh shadows created by built-in flashes, we end up contorting our bodies in awkward angles just to get some light.

With any luck, those days may be coming to an end with the LED Ring Light from Marumi. It works like this: A compact shooter's lens protrudes through its ring of eight LEDs while remaining attached to a three AAA-sized battery pack. A 12-centimeter flexible arm connects the flash to the power source so this gizmo can be … Read more