We've been fans of Sanyo's rechargeable Eneloop batteries since they first entered the market in the lazy NiMH and NiCd days of 2005. We remember this because we, like Eneloops, don't suffer from the memory effect of our predecessors. Ok, ok, that date's in the press release but that doesn't change the fact that Eneloops will maintain their charge over time even when stored, ununsed in a drawer now does it? Anywho, Sanyo just announced its rechargeable Eneloop Lamp that serves to light your home when upright or your path when held like a flashlight -- automatically, just as soon as it passes the 90-degree mark. It also features a healing function that waxes a cool blue light into the tragic abyss of your misery and despair. The internal AAs recharge in about 12-hours when set atop the included induction charger. Fully charged, you can expect between 3- and 45-hours of white light, 12- to 16-hours of the blue stuff, and about 6 hours in flashlight mode. No price was given but it'll be on sale in Japan starting September 11th.

[Via Akihabara News]

Intel's Ajay Bhatt indeed deserves rock star status. Without his hard work we might not today have such a wondrous bounty of USB devices, like the hub pictured after the break. It not only sports a light for illuminating your keyboard or helping you find that last Skittle that skittered away into the dark confines of your desk, but it also has a rechargeable battery, meaning you can use it as a rather unwieldy reading light. New, too, is the Lego-themed (though not Lego®-branded) USB hub shown above, which enables you to elegantly add USB devices to your setup in blocks of four. Oh, and then there's the newfangled USB wristwatch ($26) which packs a connector at the end of the strap. Hot stuff, we tell ya.

Read - USB Hub with a built-in flashlight
Read - USB wristwatch
Read - Lego-themed USB hub

It's pretty rare that a portable solar-based device offers much more utility than impressing your friends, but PiSAT Solar's K-Light won't only make you the coolest kid on your block: it might actually prove useful the next time you take a hike or find yourself hanging out in a developing country. In 10 hours of daylight charging the unit gathers up to 20 hours worth of battery power for use in the low-power 8 LED mode, or 10 hours of life if used in 16 LED mode. It's also switchable between flashlight and lantern modes. That should be great for campers, but where the K-Light really "shines" (so to speak) is in places like Africa, where villagers without electricity often use makeshift kerosene lanterns for light at night. K-Light is designed for up to 10 years of full daily use in such a scenario, and PiSAT is working on an adapter to let the lantern's battery also charge a cellphone. At $50 a pop, the barrier to entry isn't incredibly high, and PiSAT is working with the Koinonia Foundation to provide start-up grants of K-Lights to groups of African women to create local businesses selling the lights. One-off purchases are also available now online for us non-entrepreneurial types.

Much like the toaster, the microwave and the sandal, the flashlight hasn't changed an awful lot since being first engineered in the late 1300s. Thankfully, we're finally seeing a little innovation in the space with Hammacher Schlemmer's Infrared Flashlight Video Recorder. Upon first looking it over, it's hard to tell that this thing is different from any other heavy duty tactical flashlight; underneath that matte black finish, however, are 17 infrared LEDs and a video camera capable of capturing footage (with audio!) up to 13 feet away from the device itself. Both video and snapshots are captured in VGA (640 x 480) quality, and while only 15 seconds can be logged on the 128MB of built-in memory, the miniSD expansion slot opens that up immensely. The rub? Nah, it's not the absurd $399.95 price tag, it's the "three C-sized batteries" requirement. Drat.

[Via OhGizmo]

These are tough, dangerous times, so if you're in the market for a flashlight it's probably true that you want it to be rugged enough to get your money's worth, and to hold up under whatever world-ending abuses you and (and your torch) may encounter. Enter 5.11 Tactical's Light for Life UC3.400 -- a flashlight whose three LEDs take 90 seconds to charge and have 90 minutes of uptime. Even more interesting (especially to thrifty health nuts), the LEDs are apparently rated for "more than 50,000 charge cycles," which is... oh... 130 years, assuming you use it once every single day. Sure, the claim is pretty much unprovable and highly suspicious, but let's just say we know what we're getting our vampire friends for the holidays this year.

[Via UberReview]

Why yes, FastMac -- we want 24 hours of talk time, 72 of audio, 20 of video, and 31 days of standby on our iPhones and iPhone 3Gs. Throw in a camera flash that doubles as a flashlight, and the ability to charge a USB device like a Bluetooth headset right off the phone, and you've got a deal on this iV charging kit of yours! Oh, there's a catch? It's a wee bit bulky, with an aesthetic similar to that of mophie's Juice Pack? Hey, it could be worse. This largification -- along with $79.50 -- is apparently the price you pay for digital endurance.

[Via Macworld]

Nah, it's no Mag-Lite, but the Tri-Solar LED Flashlight should handle most minor lighting needs. The unit can operate with one LED on, three LEDs on or all three LEDs flashing (you know, in case you realize the car you just hopped in is now making a beeline for the Bates Motel). Because a single solar panel can only catch so much sunlight, this one has a trifecta of cells that fold out and generate juice for the bulbs. Not too bad for $32, particularly when you realize that it doubles as a weapon.

[Thanks, Joe]

Here's a survival product combo we never thought of: an LED flashlight that talks you through the basic steps of CPR. It sort of makes sense, at least: high-efficiency LED in an ultra-compact AAA battery-based design that will talk you through an important emergency skill while the world crumbles around you. The whole flashlight measures 4-inches in length and sports push-button on/off and CPR read-off. Images of armageddon and self-taught nurses abound.

You thought the goggles did nothing before? Shine the 38-million-candle Maxablaster (which, we hear, has been bumped up to 52m in a recent build) and watch as faces melt Raiders of the Lost Ark style under its concentrated mercury arc plasma bulb powered by a 54 battery pack. Right now it's just the pet project of a Dutch engineer by the name of Ralf Ottow, which is probably for the best, since this would be far more effective at boring holes in concrete than lighting any scene.

[Thanks, Trev]

Sure, there's always the pukelight for good times around the house, but sometimes you've just got to do some damage -- which is where The Torch from Wicked Lasers comes in. The 4100-lumen flashlight is being considered for the Guinness Book of World Records, and can ignite paper, light cigarettes, melt plastic, and even fry an egg -- but only has a fifteen minute battery life. Check a video of The Torch taking out a pile of plastic bags after the break, and hit the read link for even more high-candlepower destruction.

[Via I4U News]

If you've ever been memorized by the eerie glow of a laser diode (that would be everybody, no?), and don't mind hacking up a spare DVD drive in order to craft your own laser-based flashlight, this here project is all you. By extracting the laser diode from an unused DVD optical drive and obtaining an AixiZ Laser Module, a Mini Mag, and an assortment of fairly common tools, the laser that formerly read your flicks can now light your way. Of course, you should realize that beaming any living thing in the eyes with such a device is unsafe (and frankly, downright unkind), but feel free to hit the read link below, check the vid after the jump, and get to work if your trusty flashlight just isn't brightening your day nights the way it used to.

Someone in Homeland Security's R&D department must have a sense of humor, because the agency is hoping to soon deploy an LED flashlight that causes uncontrollable vomiting. The light, which is being developed for DHS at Intelligent Optical Systems, first shines a high-intensity beam to stun the target and then begins flashing a series of pulses that change color and duration -- inducing "psychophysical" effects that that include nausea, vertigo, and vomiting. While the concept isn't that far-fetched -- similar symptoms have been seen in helicopter pilots affected by sunlight strobing through spinning blades -- you've got to wonder how many thousands of dollars have been spent developing a weapon that can be defeated by simply looking away.

[Via ABC News]

We've seen flashlights lose their way and get mixed up in all sorts of unrelated gadgetry over the years, but this conceptual multimedia player from Can-Hong Huang breaks new ground for flashlight-inspired gizmos worldwide. This curious creation reportedly boasts the ability to play back audio to a set of wireless earbuds or speaker dock, and even projects videos onto your pull-down screen (or spare wall, if you roll like that). The stick itself can be twisted and manipulated in order to change tracks and adjust the volume, but we're still not buying into this without some sort of remote to complete the package.