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Ultra-powerful laser could make incandescent light bulbs more efficient
Look, LED light bulbs are fanciful, great for Ma Earth and a fine addition to any home, barber shop or underground fight club. But let's be honest -- even the guy that bikes through blizzards to get to work and wears garb that he grew in his basement isn't apt to shell out $120 a pop to have what's likely the most efficient light bulb American dollars can buy. Enter Chunlei Guo from the University of Rochester, who has helped discover a process which could morph a traditional incandescent light bulb into a beacon of burning light without using nearly as much energy as before. In fact, his usage of the femtosecond laser pulse -- which creates a "unique array of nano- and micro-scale structures on the surface of a regular tungsten filament" -- could enable a bulb to increase output efficiency in order to emit 100-watts worth of light while sucking down less than 60-watts of power. Per usual, there's no telling when this new hotness is likely to hit the commercial realm, but one's thing for sure: we bet GE's paying attention.[Via Physorg]
Quantum dots make for more pleasing LED lamps
Many who grew up beneath a warm, inefficient incandescent or halogen glow are having a hard time coming to grips with the stale, stiff, efficient illumination provided by CFL or LED bulbs. Two companies, Nexxus Lighting and QD Vision, have paired up to change that, with the former providing an 8 watt (75 watt equivalent) LED bulb, and the latter providing a thin film of quantum dots that can precisely control its color. The dots are microscopic particles that filter light into different colors depending on their size, from red to blue as the dots get smaller -- some only 10 atoms in diameter. The first bulbs are due later this year, and while no word on price is given, Nexxus's current LED bulb costs $100 on its own and surely that layer of dots won't come cheap. Also, no word on whether you'll need to use a Handlink to turn the thing on and off.[Via Physorg]
Apple's System Preference icon goes "Green"
With the introduction of EPEAT Gold rated MacBooks and MacBook Pros last week, Apple has definitely been warming up to the environmental movement lately. So, it was only fitting that they would change a small part of System Preferences to reflect the EPEAT rating. That's right, the Energy Saver icon has changed from an old incandescent bulb to a newer, more energy-efficient fluorescent bulb. Now you will only have to change the energy saver icon every 7 years, but be careful when you dispose of the old icons because they contain mercury (just kidding). This change has only shown up on the new MacBooks and MacBook Pros. Do you think Apple will eventually update their entire line to have this new icon (and, of course, be EPEAT Gold rated)? We definitely hope so! Thanks to everyone who sent this in!
Tips to increase your microdisplay's lamp life
The single most annoying "feature" about microdisplays (DLP, LCD, & LCoS) is that stupid lamp. Sure, it maybe easy to change, but at $150-$350 and only lasting around 4000 hours - costly & annoying. Thankfully there are a few ways to improve the life of this little guy. HDTV Magazine runs down all of them but the two that you really need to watch is constantly turning the set on/off and AC power conditioning. By turning the TV on and off constantly, it puts lots of strain on the lamp and is the most destructive action to the bulb. So, if you are going to step out of the house for a minute or leave the room for a while, keep the TV on. They are low power consuming devices anyways. Second is power conditioning and regulation. While we will keep all the nitty gritty details for another post, a nice surge suppressor with battery backup is the way to go. (Look at Monster, Belkin, and Tripp Lite models)It will keep the power spikes to a minimum and if the power goes out, it will give you a chance to power down the set and let the fan cool down the bulb. Still with all this, there is no way to guarantee a how long that bulb will last.
DLPs and LCDs pricy little bulbs
OK microdisplay owners. Talk to us. DLPs and LCDs are popular types of HDTVs. They offer a great size to price ratio and the picture on them is great. But they have those little bulbs. MSNBC ran a story way back in the middle of April that is still floating around and we want to know your take on it. Basically, they are recommending the DLP because the owner will not have to replace the bulb for a few years to come. We here at HD Beat have heard of multiple bulb replacements per year in some cases.How long has your bulb lasted in your LCD/DLP? We need to know how long you watch the HDTV each day though in order to fully understand where you are coming from. Talk to us folks.
