Pocket LED Penlight provides output of work light

Delivering 120 lumens, Pocket Floodlight(TM) features wide-angle light beam for up close use. Design provides clear, uniform light pattern, without hot spots and dark spots that are common to most flashlights. Measuring 6 in. long with 9/16 in. head diameter, Pocket Floodlight(TM) has glass lens and T6 aluminum body with black Type II anodizing. Threaded joints have rubber O-ring seals and tailcap switch is sealed with rubber cap.

Eco-friendly LED light bulbs contain hazardous substances, research shows

Small LED bulbs that are promoted as eco-friendly alternatives to traditional light bulbs contain high levels of lead, arsenic and a dozen other potentially hazardous substances that have been linked to various cancers, a new American study shows.

Researchers at the University of California in Irvine and Davis crushed LED bulbs from strands of Christmas lights and found that the red ones had up to eight times the amount of lead allowed under California law, while the other colours bulbs had even more contaminants. White bulbs contained the least lead, but they had high levels of nickel, said researcher Oladele Ogunseitan, chair of the university’s department of population health and disease prevention.

“LEDs are touted as the next generation of lighting. But as we try to find better products that do not deplete energy resources or contribute to global warming, we have to be vigilant about the toxicity hazards of those marketed as replacements,” he said in a statement.

The report is the first to look for toxic chemicals in LEDs, he added.

His team also studied larger LED bulbs in everything from traffic lights to headlights in cars. But the results, which are similar to the Christmas lights, have not been published yet.

LED lights have been widely hailed as a safer, more green choice compared to fluorescent bulbs, which contain mercury. Ogunseitan said he sent his findings to U.S. health regulators to warn them of potential dangers consumers could be facing.

LEDs are not classified as toxic products and there aren’t any disposal regulations, although the scientists now urge consumers to use gloves, a mask and a broom when they handle broken LED lights. Manufacturers and emergency crews who clean broken traffic lights should treat the LEDs as hazardous waste, they said.

The lead and other metals in the bulbs have been linked to hundreds of previous studies that look at cancer, neurological damage, kidney disease, skin rashes and other sicknesses, his team writes in their report, published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology.

Inhaling the fumes of a single broken light would not lead to cancer, but it could be a “tipping point” on top of chronic exposure to other carcinogens, the report warns.

It said that the copper used in some LEDs is also an ecological threat to fish, rivers and lakes.

“Risks are present in all parts of the lights and at every stage during production, use and disposal . . . consumers, manufacturers and first responders to accident scenes ought to be aware of this,” Ogunseitan said in the statement.

The LEDs could be redesigned so they’re made of safer materials, he said, calling the concern a “preventable risk.”

Some LED lights spark concern over toxins

Because it’s energy-efficient, LED lighting is spreading into new areas, but an academic study cautions that some types of LED lights use hazardous metals.

The University of California at Irvine last week published results of a study into the materials used for LEDs in Christmas tree lights and car brake lights and headlights. After crushing these types of lights, researchers measured the contents and found they contained varying amounts of toxic materials, including lead and arsenic.

“What our study showed clearly was that some LED lights qualify as hazardous waste, depending on color and light intensity, according to federal (US EPA) regulations, and State (California) regulations. The red, low intensity fixtures that we tested exceeded lead (Pb) standards for California regulation by about 8 times, and exceed the federal regulations by about 35 times,” said Oladele Ogunseitan, chair of UC Irvine’s Department of Population Health & Disease Prevention via e-mail.

Right now, these products are not classified as hazardous waste, but Ogunseitan recommended that people dispatched to clean up vehicle collisions use protective gear. Homeowners should also wear gloves and masks in the case of clean-up. The copper used in some LEDs can pose health hazards to river and lake ecosystems as well if disposed of in a landfill.

Ogunseitan said that the move to LED lighting is a case in which there should be mandatory product replacement testing. He claims that the potential environmental health impacts were not sufficiently tested before manufacturers put them in products as a replacement for incandescent bulbs.

Recycling recommended for large LEDs
Large LEDs bulbs with a screw-in bottom designed for home use are just coming onto the market as replacements for 40-watt or 60-watt incandescent bulbs. In addition to good efficiency and long life, these bulbs are marketed as an improvement over compact florescent bulbs because they don’t contain mercury. CFLs can be returned to many retail stores or municipal hazardous waste handling services for recycling.

When LED maker Cree introduced an LED bulb it expects to come out later this year, I asked about toxins and disposal. Cree vice president of marketing Greg Merritt said that there were no hazardous materials used in its bulb and that it is expected to comply with the ROHS European hazardous material directive.

UC Irvine’s Ogunseitan is testing large LED bulbs but has not yet published the results. “However, I can say that precautionary principle supports not throwing this in the regular trash for landfills,” he said.

Last month, I asked the Department of Energy about hazardous materials and large LED bulbs designed for home use. A representative said that, in general, these LED bulbs do not contain toxic chemicals in any significant amount. She added that consumers will face disposal only a few times in their lives given the long projected life of LEDs, which could be over 20 years, but it’s best for consumers to recycle them.

“That said, like most consumer electronics, at the end of their useful life, LEDs contain materials that are both valuable and recyclable. Where available, LEDs should be recycled using municipal recycling programs,” she said.

Light bulb phaseout can’t dim Edison’s incandescence

Consumers may not all be aglow with the idea, but the government-mandated phaseout of incandescent light bulbs has reached all the way to the winter home of Thomas Edison.
Under a 2007 federal energy law, manufacturers must phase out incandescent bulbs in favor of more efficient bulbs such as compact fluorescent lamps, or CFLs, LED bulbs or new styles of halogen lights.

The law phases out 100-watt incandescent bulbs in January 2012, followed by the 75-watt version in 2013 and the 60- and 45-watt bulbs in 2014.

At the Edison & Ford Winter Estates in Fort Myers, the incandescent garden lights have been replaced, even though Edison is credited with making the first practical incandescent light.

“Edison would have been all for this, because he was always looking for a better way to do something,” said Chris Pendleton, CEO of the estates.

While CFLs use at least 75 percent less energy, some consumers complain the lighting is dimmer, doesn’t look as warm and takes a while to reach full brightness. Some also worry about disposal requirements, because the bulbs contain a few milligrams of mercury.

“Every time I go to the store, I pick up a few (incandescent) light bulbs,” said Kay Horn, 62, of Fort Myers. “I probably have enough light bulbs for the next 15 years.”
Jack Lurie, owner of Tropical Hardware in Fort Myers, said he hears customers complain about the phasing out of incandescent bulbs and he said their sales have increased.

“There is plenty of stock now,” he said, “but that will change.”

The American Lighting Association’s Larry Lauck hasn’t seen statistical signs of stockpiling but has heard anecdotal reports.

Such reports are common whenever a new standard is introduced, says the Natural Resources Defense Council’s Noah Horowitz. He says consumers will be able to buy incandescent, but new ones will have more efficient halogen capsules.

“Unless you prefer paying higher electricity bills, there’s no reason to hoard old incandescent bulbs,” Horowitz says.

Richard Downing, 81, of Fort Myers has been using CFL bulbs in his home for almost 10 years. He has been a fan of fluorescent bulbs for 30 years, since he installed them on a 40-foot ketch.

“They drew the battery down a heck of lot less,” he said.

He said he is concerned about the bulbs’ mercury content, mainly because he worries consumers will just toss them in their garbage.

“You aren’t supposed to do that, but you know people will,” Downing said.

Lee County’s recycling program won’t collect the CFL bulbs, but homeowners can drop them off at the Household Chemical Waste Collection facility, 6441 Topaz Court in Fort Myers.

While that sounds inconvenient, Downing said he can’t say whether it is.
“In 10 years of using those lights, I’ve never had to replace one,” he said. “They might cost just a little more, but you make up what you spend very quickly in the energy savings and longevity.”

LG’s LED monitor/TV

LG’s LED monitor/TV

LAS VEGAS–Monitor TVs are nothing new, but it’ll take manufacturers some continued innovating to keep me excited. LG shows that it understands this with its latest monitor/TV, the M80D.

The M80D is LG’s first monitor/TV to use an LED backlight. The design is sleek and stylish and looks to be wall mountable.

Incoming specs:

• 1,920×1,080 resolution
• 250 cd/M2 brightness
• 5ms response time
• VGA, DVI, HDMI connections
• Component, VGA, HDMI, Audio in/out
• Built-in speakers with 2.1-channel sound

Samsung LED D8000 Series LCD 3D HDTV

New for 2011, the Samsung LED D8000 series 3D TV comes in a 0.2″ brushed metal bezel, a fine line that subtly frames the rich content on the screen and enhances the TV’s light form factor. The D8000 Series continues the minimalist style of the C8000 Series and uses an improved Quad Stand to ensure ultimate harmony between the TV and its environment.

The reduction in bezel size means consumers can enjoy a larger viewing screen and wider viewing angle without having to increase the physical size of their TVs, and makes using social applications like Skype and YouTube, browsing the Web, sharing content and playing games that much more inclusive.

With a 240Hz refresh rate, 2 millisecond motion picture response time (MPRT) and improved LED backlight scanning, this CES Innovation Award honoree offers true-to-life 2D, 3D and HD images with outstanding clarity. In addition to the Ultra Clear Panel, the TV is the first to offer Micro Dimming Plus technologies to provide the richest, most lifelike pictures with deep blacks and pure whites.

The D8000 Series comes with Samsung’s new 3D glasses and Samsung’s innovative Touch Control that can also stream TV programs to its built-in 3″ LCD screen, almost like a second TV, even while a Blu-ray disc is being played on the TV.

The D8000 has a built-in Wi-Fi connection and many convenient ways to manage and display content through Samsung’s Smart Hub portal. The set can connect to other devices using DLNA or Samsung’s patented One Foot Connection technology.

Sharp 3D Quattron LED TV Range Extended

The impressive range from Sharp has had some amazing new models added…

The technology that Sharp uses within its range of TVs is some of the best LCD technology out there today, and its 3D technology is up there with the best too.

The Quattro range has been extended with three new models to the Aquos Quattron LE835 range which is available in sizes 60, 52, 46 and 40 inches. To ensure the ultimate in 3D viewing is achieved, Sharp has included edge-lit LED back-lighting, AquoMotion 240 image processing. They are also well connected with web based apps such as Facebook, Twitter and Flickr along with on-demand movies such as Netflix.

Sharp’s flagship model LE935 3D TV, also includes the Sharp X-Gen Panel and Quad Pixel technology.

Look out for the above new models, hitting stores in the Spring.

GE Developed a New Energy-saving LED Bulb

It is reported that GE Appliances & Lighting, a dealer in major appliances, lighting, systems and services for commercial, industrial and residential use, has developed a new LED bulb that consumes only 9W of power and provide 77 percent energy savings while at the same time offering the same lighting output of a 40-watt incandescent bulb.

The new LED bulbs can last for 17 years and are expected to outperform currently available products that may be underwhelming consumers right now.

GE has claimed that their new LED bulb is better at directing the light downwards onto the intended area and produces 450 lumens whereas LED bulbs offered by other vendors can only produce 350 lumens. GE has also filed multiple patent applications for the bulb and expects it will be an ENERGYSTAR (News – Alert)-qualified LED omni-directional light bulb.

John Strainic, global product general manager at GE Lighting has commented that this is a bulb that can virtually light users’ kid’s bedroom desk lamp from birth through high school graduation. It’s an incredible advancement that’s emblematic of the imagination and innovation that GE’s applying to solve some of the world’s biggest challenges.

Strainic added that consumers are reluctant to move away from the less efficient incandescent because they prefer the light quality they produce. The new GE Energy Smart LED bulb will address that lighting preference head-on and give consumers yet another option to light their homes and businesses.

GE will put prototypes of the bulb – outfitted with Cree (News – Alert) XLamp XP-G LEDs – on display at two upcoming trade shows: Light + Building 2010 in Frankfurt, Germany, and LightFair 2010 in Las Vegas. The high-efficiency, high-lumen-output LEDs used in the GE bulbs are Cree’s smallest and brightest lighting-class LEDs, designed specifically for general lighting.

Analysts have suggested that the introduction of high-quality retrofit light bulbs, like the GE Energy Smart LED bulb can be the next step in LED lighting revolution.

Philips Unveils a 12-watt LED Light Bulb

It is reported that Royal Philips Electronics unveiled a 12-watt LED light bulb that it will begin selling as a substitute for standard 60-watt bulbs by the end of the year.

The bulb will be dimmable and will provide 806 lumens, with the potential to save up to 80% in energy consumption, compared to incandescent bulbs.

Philips said the bulb has a 25,000-hour lifetime.

With federal legislation phasing out inefficient lighting in the years to come, it’s likely that additional LED replacement bulbs will hit the shelves in 2011. Last week GE (NYSE: GE) unveiled its first–a replacement for 40-watt bulbs.

Philips also detailed broader marketing plans for its LED offerings in years to come. The company is introducing a home lighting system called LivingAmbiance, which wirelessly integrates luminaires and lamps to create different light settings–including a range of thousands of different color–with touch-button control.

In 2010, the company will introdue a product platform of outdoor luminaires that it hopes municipalities will adopt for streetlighting.

The company is currently exhibiting its new products and concepts at the Light + Building architecture fair Frankfurt Germany.

SAMSUNG 3D LED TV TO BE WON

Samsung’s Skype-enabled, 7000 and 8000 series High Definition 3D LED TVs reportedly sold over 10,000 units in just, and this achievement is made all the more remarkable simply because it was achieved within six weeks. Half of the TVs sold were 55? models for which the major reason is considered to be their capability to convert 2D stereoscopic images to 3D ones with just one push of a button.

and out of the total number sold, around half of them were of the 55″ variety. One of the main reasons this model is so successful is due to the TV’s 2D to 3D feature, where such conversion technology is available to enable users to convert 2D to 3D stereoscopic images with but a single touch of a touch of a button. It would be interesting to see whether the US will see such adoption rates or not.