July 9 - 4:20pm EDT   A prototype of a light emitting device developed by Matsushita Electric Works (Panasonic) and a Japanese University engineering department that is more efficient and smaller than conventional LEDs was unveiled today. Unlike fluorescent lamps, such as CCFLs used in HDTVs, the device does not require mercury, using a 5nm or smaller nanosilicon device to create a ballistic electron discharge into xenon gas. With further development, the nanosilicon LED could be used in future notebook, computer and HDTV screens, extending battery life in portable devices thanks to its efficiency. [full story]

April 18 - 3:25pm EDT   The MacBook Air, with its use of an LED-lit display, is supposedly spurring adoption of the technology all throughout the industry, due to its energy conservation and even lighting. According to Macworld, Apple's slender ultraportable – due to its aesthetic appeal – is spurring an almost exponential rise in LED use in devices ranging from laptops and desktop LCD monitors, to LCD televisions. [full story]

March 11 - 3:45pm EDT   WiebeTech has announced the RTX200H-QR, a new RAID hard drive solution featuring RAID 0/1 for two drives in TrayFree bays. The TrayFree technology doesn't force the user to install hard drives into trays -- you can imply slide in a SATA drive and shut the door. The RTX200H-QR is compatible with four different interfaces: eSATA, FireWire 800, FireWire 400 (via included converter cable) and USB2. The new new metal bays also have two LEDs for power and access. Bays are lockable for added security. Hardware RAID 1 offers best possible protection of data by mirroring the drives in real time. Hot-swappable bays allow the user to remove and replace failed drives without shutting ... [full story]

January 7 - 2:40pm EST   JBL today unveiled a slew of music docks designed for Apple's iPod and iPhone. The company revealed no less than six different docking stations with built-in speakers due to ship at various times between now and Winter of 2008. The company's new offerings include the JBL On Time 200ID, JBL On Stage IIIP, On Time 400IHD, On Stage 200ID and On Stage 400ID, and JBL Duet 200. The company also announced that it is offering its JBL On Stage Micro in new color variations. [full story]

December 26 - 12:05pm EST   The Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) in Taiwan has demonstrated a new invention, one which may potentially extend the useful life of LCD monitors and TVs. An increasing number of displays are using LED backlighting to provide greater brightness and contrast, but the ITRI notes that after 1,000 hours of use, current backlights almost invariably begin dimming. To counter this, the new system monitors the backlight, and makes adjustments as necessary with the goal of preserving color richness. [full story]

December 18 - 11:00am EST   Fujitsu this morning became the first computer maker to announce a notebook based on Intel's upcoming mobile Penryn processor architecture. The 12.1-inch LOOX R70 will use a consciously unnamed Core 2 Duo processor that will both improve speed and help optimize battery life to extreme levels: a stock battery will let the system run for as much as 9.7 hours, by Fujitsu's reckoning. The use of a thin, LED-backlit screen will also reduce its weight to 2.8 pounds despite the inclusion of a DVD burner. [full story]