LEDs

It was bound to happen--I just didn't expect it so soon. I plunked down for a MacBook on Black Friday and now, not a week after receiving it, rumors are circulating that new and improved models are on the way. DigiTimes reports today that two Taiwanese manufactures, Kenmos Technology and Taiwan Nano Electro-Optical Technology (Nano-Op), have signed on to supply Apple and Dell with LED-backlit displays. LCDs that use LED backlights instead of traditional fluorescent lamps are thinner and more energy efficient.

Here I am, still in the honeymoon phase with my MacBook--we stayed up late last night for … Read more

Remember writing your name in the dark with a sparkler? Take that, add a long urban tradition of street graffiti, mix well with new lighting technologies. Cologne, Germany-based artists Lichtfaktor have made it their main mode of artistic creation. They've gathered a vast set of "paintbrushes" for their new medium--not just sparklers, but fluorescent tubes, LEDs, glow sticks, and plain old flashlights. It's not just for fun, either--they've created a following among the film crowd and major ad agencies alike.

Why did this LED lightbulb catch our eye? Three simple reasons: 1) We like LED stuff; 2) we like weird remotes even more, and 3) Caroline McCarthy demands that we post anything that might vaguely qualify as "color-changey."

Naturally, this multi-color LED lightbulb with remote was a no-brainer. The bulb, which we saw on the Gadgets Weblog, has 16 colors that can be adjusted at various brightness intensities and includes "transitions effects" such as longer times on particular colors and slow fades in between. Perfect to create the right mood, per orders from the The Ladies Man.… Read more

When old rockers go digital, they go all the way. Led Zeppelin was one of the longtime holdouts from iTunes and other digital music stores, but in 2007 they relented and released a greatest-hits collection, Mothership, simultaneously online and on CD. (A good business move: the physical album charted charted at #7, but the digital album came in at #2.) Since the album's Nov. 13 release, the band has also launched a new Web site, the coolest feature of which is a timeline with the setlist of every single Zeppelin concert. This Seattle show looks particularly astounding, with about … Read more

Most of the year, shoppers seeking to be ecologically correct worry about the age-old paper versus plastic bag dilemma (The answer? Bring your own bag.). Around this time of year, those who celebrate Christmas worry whether they should get an artificial or real tree.

Fake firs from the middle of the 20th century that once looked high-tech have made a retro comeback. Dressing up an old one can be relatively eco-friendly, whether it sports flocked snow, aluminum branches, or ceramic gumdrops. The Doris Day aesthetics might irk some neighbors, but at least you'd do the planet a favor by … Read more

Now here's a cleaning device that will make a true germaphobe either squeal with delight or cringe with fear--or both. And it's not something you'll find in a Roomba or Scooba either.

Dirt Devil's "Purpose for Pets Portable Extractor" may have an unusually prosaic name, but it's probably preferable to a more graphic description of its mission: to locate carpet stains that are invisible or at least difficult to see. The system uses built-in LEDs to illuminate the offending spots so they can be detected "like you're wearing infrared goggles," … Read more

After encountering what seems to be an inordinate number of high-end flashlights on Crave, we're beginning to suspect there's a secret society devoted to worshipping instruments of luminescence. And when you make one that resembles an antique gun--one of the most collectible items on late-night TV shopping networks the world over--then surely all bets are off.

Lumencraft's "GatLight V3" fits that description to a tee. It's a titanium flashlight with a built-in lithium battery that, as its name suggests, bears a design that resembles the Civil War-era Gatling machine gun.

But more than just … Read more

There are a lot of things that have racked up frequent flier miles on Crave. Oddly shaped USB drives, awe-inducing Guitar Hero videos, and Swarovsky-covered crap are all par for the course on the average day.

As far as I know, though, this is the first pop-up book we've seen that is also a fully operational lamp. And that's worth blogging about.

When opened, the Book of Lights creates an LED-powered pop-up lamp.

Available in traditional lampshade and Parisian streetlamp versions, it's available for preorder for $95 on Charles & Marie.

The big, linen-bound book is available … Read more