Welcome to the LEDs Magazine News & Insights newsletter for Jan. 13, 2021. On Thursday of this week, I will participate in a webcast panel presented by the IES in preparation for its solid-state lighting (SSL) research workshop with the DOE. I will join several other trade-press editors and Mark Lien from the IES will moderate to discuss many aspects of the lighting industry. Our Carrie Meadows covered the event plans in more detail. Plan to join at noon Eastern on Thursday.
The year 2021 is off to a slow start in terms of technology and the LED and SSL sectors. The virtual CES has not produced the expected surprises beyond TVs. I thought about writing a story on the $16,000 LED-equipped “smart bathtub” from Kohler. It is said to replicate the Japanese Forest Bathing Experience, although I don’t know what exactly that is.
I will say the Lander Boulder LED lantern that won a CES Innovation Award looks pretty neat. There is little detail on the Lander website, so it’s not likely available at this time. The summary says the portable lantern will deliver 300 hours of light and charge four other devices simultaneously.
As for real news in our sectors, we saw Xicato extend its light-engine warranty to ten years, covering both lumen and color maintenance. I know some of you may be tired of my constant focus on quality of light for the past couple of years. But this is a company that focused on quality of light from inception.
Our Mark Halper wrote a story about a really interesting consumer-scale germicidal UV-C device. Already available in Europe and coming to the US, the AirZing UV-Compact can deactivate airborne SARS-CoV-2 locally. The mercury lamp used in the device is sealed away from human skin and eyes. But I must say that I thought otherwise when I received the press release and product image. The animation imposed on the image shows waves flowing upward out of the device. I first thought that animation of clean air waves was UV-C radiation.
As I wrote last week, we will be trying to publish more feature-length, web-exclusive content for you in 2021. We have an interesting case study for you this week from India. It looks back at the market transformation to LED replacement lamps and how it was incentivized. The real insight is focused on how leaders maintained their positions.
You will find many more stories of interest in the body of today’s newsletter. And always feel free to contact me to discuss content we post or to pitch a contributed article.
- Maury Wright, (858) 748-6785, [email protected]