Hasta La Gadget!

It’s time to get bright with no less than the new world’s most energy-efficient warm white LED lamp from Philips! This world record has been beaten with a massively fabulous 200 lumens per watt of high-quality white light – this is compared to a 100lm/W in fluorescent lighting as well as a paltry 15lm/W in traditional light bulbs. This next-generation LED lamp is set to hit the consumer market by 2015 in both office and industry applications while a home-ready lamp will be brought forth soon afterward.

With the prototype lamp Philips is presenting this week, the TLED that is, they’ve created a lamp that’s twice as efficient as its predecessors while using essentially half of the energy. If and when this technology hits the consumer market, major energy savings will take shape. According to Philips, the TLED lamp is intended to replace the antiquated fluorescent tube lighting used in the business world en masse – accounting for more than half of the world’s total lighting.

“After being recognized for our quality of LED light (mimicking traditional light bulbs) to creating new experience with Philips Hue (the connected light system for the home), we now present the next innovative step in doubling lighting efficiency. It’s exciting to imagine the massive energy and cost savings it will bring to our planet and customers.” – Rene van Schooten, CEO Light Sources & Electronics for Philips Lighting

Also according to Philips, the USA alone uses 200 terawatts of electricity annually in fluorescent lighting alone. If each and every one of these lights was replaced by TLEDS, the US would use right around 100 terawatts less annually, “saving more than US$12 billion and preventing around 60 million metric tons of CO2 from being released into the atmosphere.” Sounds pretty excellent, doesn’t it?

Get pumped up about the next generation of lights – the way forward is through! Have a peek at some additional Philips bits and pieces in our timeline below!

Philips TLED aims to replace all fluorescent bulbs in near future is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
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There’s something really meditative about these slotted lamps. They’re made out of wood from California cypress trees and the light inside is a constant current LED, but the sculptural elements come through more than the utility as a lamp. More »

Do you want a sociopathic robot to literally light up your life? Just follow Instructables user Dragonator’s lead and you’ll never feel safe in your own home again! Dragonator built a lamp that looks just like the Portal villainess using 3D printed parts and LEDs. If you’re really reckless, you can even make her move too.

Dragonator borrowed a couple of UP! 3D printers to complete his project. I’d love to summarize his instructions here, but just from looking at his build I’m sure you can all see that a lot of detailed labor and crafting went into it. As I said, Dragonator originally wanted to make the robotic arm move, but he designed other parts for the lamp in case you just want a lamp. That way you’ll also do away with most of the wiring. And possibly save yourself from being killed by a lamp. Luxo Jr. this is not.

Head to Dragonator’s Instructables page to check out his very detailed walkthrough. He also submitted his lamp to Instructable’s contest – winner gets an UP! 3D printer! – so if you liked his creation – or are deathly afraid of it – vote for him here!

[via Nerd Approved]

I have a tendency to be pretty modern in terms of my design choices around the house, so traditional chandeliers aren’t really my cup of tea. However, I might make an exception if I could have a chandelier that looked like an octopus.

These eyepopping chandeliers by artist Adam Wallacavage replace their candle-holding arms with twisty tentacles.

Each of these cephalopod chandeliers is made from various bits and bobs including lamp parts, epoxy clay and spray paint, among other things. While his designs may be based on some of the more unusual and creepy looking creatures on the planet, Adam manages to infuse a bit of whimsy and elegance into his designs, primarily through his choices of colors and finishing touches.

You can out more of Adam’s slithery octopus chandeliers over on his website.

Ironically, Adam is allergic to shellfish, as well as octopus.

[via High Fructose and Octavekitten via Laughing Squid]

I’m a big fan of Philips Hue LED bulbs. In fact, I’ve got two rooms of my house outfitted with the bulbs, and continue to add more. There’s something just so cool about walking into my home theater, pulling out my iPhone, and changing the colors in the room to set the mood for a movie or video game session.

But while the hardware is extraordinary, if there’s one complaint about the Hue, it’s the relatively limited smartphone app that Philips provides. Sure, it gets the job done, but opening up the platform to other developers will only result in more and better apps. Well, I’m happy to say that’s exactly what Philips has done.

Philips today announced its long-awaited software developer program for the Hue. The developer program provides open APIs, development guides and an iOS SDK, so you can easily make your own smartphone and tablet apps to control the bulbs.

While there’s already a growing community that’s been playing with the bulbs for several months now, it’s great to have officially-supported docs and tools from Philips themselves. Having these tools in hand should enable the creation of applications which can change bulb colors to music, video and other ideas which I haven’t even thought of yet. Heck, with enough Hue bulbs and the right app developer, you could probably make a (ridiculously expensive) video wall using the bulbs.

Developers interested in creating their own applications for the Hue can check out the developer platform at developers.meethue.com.

For those of you who didn’t jump on the Hue bandwagon when it first came out due to availability issues, they’re once again readily available from the Apple Store. The 3-bulb and bridge starter kit sells for $199.95 (USD), and additional bulbs sell for $59. Now that the SDK is available, I’m anxiously awaiting additional hardware from Philips. I’d love to see different lamp sizes and full-color wall dimmers (and lower prices) if you’re listening.