led

Unclear on the concept: Night-vision Webcam

So let's get this straight: Night-vision devices are supposed to help you see things in the dark, like those night dart launchers, right? Not the other way around? That's what we thought, anyway, so we have no idea why anyone would want a "Night Vision WebCam."

This 1.3-megapixel camera has six infra-red LED bulbs "to light any video conversation no matter how dark the conditions may be," Coolest-Gadgets says. Silly us--we would have just turned on a lamp.

Maybe this would be useful in a dorm if you're trying not to wake … Read more

Activewear for the non-extremist

There are those who have an insatiable hunger for adventure, and then there are people like us. So for every item like the head-cam for extreme sports posted here, we feel obligated to offer a recreational item for those of us who are distinguished by our sloth-like nature. And in this case, that would be the "Lite and Motion Head Lite Cap."

Offered on the depressingly appropriate site FirstStreet--"for Boomers and Beyond"--this must-have accessory for adventurous shuffle-boarders features an LED lamp mounted on top of the cap, "making the wearer very visible … Read more

Concocting a recipe for the LED

Think of Intematix as a paint store for the energy market.

The company has come up with a way to quickly devise formulas for phosphors for light emitting diodes. Phosphors are essentially a coating for LED lights: put the right kind of phosphor over a blue LED and you get white light. The LED can then be put into a bulb or a lamp to light a room.

The problem is that blue LEDs, which get produced in massive numbers at chip factories, aren't uniform, according to Dave Epstein, a partner at Crosslink Capital and an investor in Intematix. … Read more

Because your surfboard needs LEDs

We've been somewhat critical of LED market saturation lately, and we're not apologizing for it either. But just to show that we're not totally unreasonable, we wholeheartedly endorse the idea behind "The Light Wave Surfboard" from Santa Cruz Light Wells.

Perhaps it's our California roots, but we're partial to anything that combines technology and surfing. And as Gizmodo notes, the Light Wave does just that, with battery-operated LEDs everywhere--running along the side, on the back and in a headlamp on the front "giving you just enough light to tell whether that … Read more

Another watch we love to hate

As we admired Seiko's e-ink watch last week, we'd almost forgotten about the LED timepiece trend that we've come to despise. Then, only a few days later, we were treated to the unfortunate image of the "Pixel Watch," which also takes a bangle-bracelet form while resembling one of the most confounding LED designs we've ever seen.

This unsightly wrist-beast boasts electro-luminescent technology to display the time, according to Red Ferret, though it frankly doesn't matter to us because we couldn't decipher it anyway. But we should be fair about its design: In … Read more

An ultra-bright night light?

We're resigned to the inexplicable ubiquity of LEDs, especially when they have absolutely no practical use. But we must draw the line when it comes to our children: Why, for example, would anyone want to use LEDs in a night light?

Granted, light-emitting diodes use much less power than standard bulbs, but they're also consistently touted by manufacturers for their ultra-bright illumination. And C. Crane's "LED Night Light" is no exception.

The last time we checked, night lights were generally used to cast a soft glow that allows children to sleep when they're still … Read more

The coolest, trippiest lighting system imaginable

I don't think you want to light up your house with this--but decorators in charge of restaurants, nightclubs, and hotel lobbies might want to take note. This is called theANEMIX, and it's a freaking 3D lighting-effect system. Yes. Wow. theANIMEX is the product of Chilean designers Ximena Munoz and Paulina Villalobos, who used the uber-efficient OSRAM LED technology to create panels that use dual layers (one luminescent, one reflective) to give off a lovely, bioluminescence-inspired 3D glow.

Really, really cool-looking stuff. It's far classier than the glowy stuff we typically post about here.

(Via CubeMe)

This won't scare salesmen, but it's good date repellant

When I was a kid, one of my friends had a doormat at her house that simply said "GO AWAY." Of course, it was a joke, and we all thought it was hilarious. But that was the 20th century, and nowadays a simple threatening message just won't do. This is the digital age, folks.

Apparently, now you have to scare your unwanted visitors away with an LED animation of the classic arcade game "Space Invaders." The Back Off Doormat, which retails for $110, is designed to do just that. It's powered by two AA … Read more

A simple way to bring LED love into your life

The Lounge Light Projector might resemble a can of WD-40 more than anything else, but it's actually a lamp affixed to a battery that can keep whatever-you-want lit up for 150 hours. (That's the battery life. The bulb itself lasts a whopping 100,000 hours.)

Plus, to use one of my favorite expressions, it's color-changey! But if that annoys you too much, you can push a "color hold" button on the Lounge Light Projector to "freeze" the gadget on a color that you like.

It'd be cool if you could get a … Read more

Light up your noggin in style

We're not quite sure why, but LEDs seem to have found particular usefulness when affixed to the skull. Various headgear products featuring the ultra-bright lights have been introduced to the market, ranging from forms worthy of a coal miner to an alien laboratory prober.

The problem is just that, however: They look like Halloween accoutrements. But the "LED Ear Light" actually manages to look kind of geeky chic, in a Borg-like way, by hanging the gadget from your ear sort of like a bulky Bluetooth headset. It weighs only an ounce, according to SCI FI Tech, and … Read more