When it arrived a little more than three years ago, the Nissan JUKE used innovation to create a whole new market segment. Just as the Nissan Qashqai pioneered the original crossover market, the JUKE used dramatic design and advanced technology to break new ground in a more compact crossover package.

As OLED manufacturers explore potential application fields, such as commercial, retail and beauty applications, Philips Lumiblade has moved away from “Earthly” applications to a whole new frontier: outer space.

Science fiction movie Gravity, which clinched the award for Best Visual Effects at the 2014 Oscars, created the movie’s lighting effects with a custom made LED light box, according to a report by Digital Trends. 

Sony’s latest PS4 controller which comes with a LED bar has irked some consumers, according to a report by Product Review.com.

Canadian based designer Thibault Sld come up with lighting fixtures that are able to adjust and move in accordance to human activity in the room.

Large smartphone manufacturers were under the spotlight at the annual Mobile World Congress (MWC) on Jan. 24, 2014. Samsung and HTC launched their flagship smartphone models at the show. Samsung’s S5 and HTC’s M8 both incorporated dual flash LED designs. Dual-color flash LEDs are projected to become standard specs in high-end smartphones.

In the sapphire substrate industry, GT Advanced Technologies (GTAT) has reaped benefits from its multi-year partnership with Apple, but other sapphire substrate manufacturers have seen revenues drop. Veeco’s latest financial reports showed losses in 4Q13, reflecting a dire need to change business strategies, while Rubicon’s yearnings were below financial analyst estimations. With smartphone applications on the rise, manufacturers that enter the smartphone market early will be the biggest benefactors. 

At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a federal court has ordered a light bulb manufacturer and its owners to pay more than US$21 million for misleading consumers by exaggerating the performance of their Light Emitting Diode (LED) light bulbs.

Just one day after Samsung released its new LED product portfolio for smartphone applications, the company will be packing one of these products into its new smartphone Galaxy S5, according to a CNET report.

More and more American cities are being installed with LED light fixtures with embedded cameras and sensors. Newark airport is the latest among the long list of areas investing in surveillance technology in combination with LEDs. The newly installed LED fixtures are connected to a wireless surveillance system to provide safety for fliers and cut down on operating costs. Around 171 LED fixtures have been installed around the airport so far.

As Ultra High Definition (UHD) 4K2K TV continues to be a trendsetter in the market, TV manufacturers are hoping to develop high color gamut TV. Using quantum dot (QD) technology, Sony has successfully released high color gamut TV in 2013.  TV brands that have achieved technological breakthroughs with Mn 4+ red phosphor powder are also planning to stimulate market purchases with NTSC 100% high color gamut TV.

Swiss industrial design website Designerei GmbH has recently released a new concept design for the upcoming Apple iWatch. Although this is not the official Apple design, it can still be used to analyze possible developmental directions for the new technology used in the smart watch.

Apple has filed for a new flexible OLED display patent, and is rumored to be developing a bezel-free iPhone display, according to numerous media reports.

Two U.S. cities Detroit and Philadelphia have recently announced plans of upgrading to LED streetlights, according to recent U.S. media reports.

Under the influence of Apple, manufacturers have maintained a positive outlook for sapphire substrate applications in consumer electronics, according to a Chinese-language CNA report. Aside from Apple, Taiwanese manufacturers are also quickening sapphire substrate patent applications.

LightLab has signed an agreement with Osram Fluorescent Materials to co-develop a luminescent powder for general lighting. The two parties will jointly invest resources to develop a new powder optimized for LightLab’s EEE Light™ Technology.

Plastic Logic, the leader in the development and industrialisation of flexible organic electronics, and Novaled, a leading company in organic electronic materials and technology for OLED applications, announce a partnership which will transform and accelerate the market for flexible and wearable displays. The companies demonstrate today at the Flextech Conference in Phoenix, AZ a truly flexible, plastic, fully organic AMOLED display.

San Diego announced today that it will illuminate its downtown district with GE Lighting’s intelligent lighting system, including LED street lighting, making it the first city in the United States to adopt GE’s LightGrid™ technology. The new system, set to be in place by spring of this year, will offer improved and energy-efficient lighting that will save the city more than a quarter-million dollars in energy costs each year.

Apple OEM partner Foxconn’s Lunhua factory in Shenzhen has begun test assembly of sapphire substrate display cover iPhones, according to Chinese-language Apple Daily report. Foxconn has packaged 100 sapphire substrate display cover phones. Despite the small number assembled it is a huge development for Foxconn. Foxconn has declined to comment on individual client conditions.

Walking along the aisles close to the prototype lighting section at Lighting Japan 2014 at Tokyo Big Sight on Jan. 17, one could not miss the heavily perfumed smells of roses and stock that drifted out from Taiwanese LED manufacturer Macroblock’s booth.

Philips India and Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) have teamed up to give the Gateway of India a spectacular lighting makeover on January 24th.

A large number of LED manufacturers have set a high goal for quantity of LED bulb and LED tube light shipments. However, the number of manufacturers who are able to employ a completely automated production system is small. Only a limited number of LED manufactures are currently producing LED bulbs through automated production. LED tube design is yet to be integrated and differences between assembly processes has lead to the market not being fully equipped for automated production of tube lighting.

Taiwanese LED manufacturer Everlight intent of further developing LED luminaires becomes more evident at Lighting Japan 2014, which took place from Jan. 15-17 at Tokyo Big Sight. In the far corner of prototype lighting at the lighting trade show, Everlight Group subsidiary Liang displayed a series of new LED luminaire prototypes. The new player on the LED market speaks about its origins and brand philosophy.

At Lighting Japan 2014 in Tokyo Big Sight, OLED industry insiders of have noted that there is still a long way to go before the technology can become mature enough to compete with LEDs.

Following months of research and development, Wearable Experiments has invented a new way of enjoying a city, completely hands free. No need to be hunched over a map or mobile device, at one press of a button your jacket can take you there.

Apple has added a new patent to its flexible patent arsenal in Korea, according to a Patently Apple report. The report uncovered a discreetly filed patent under engineer member names, and noted as Apples patent lawsuits with Korean manufacturers Samsung and LG escalate, it makes all the sense that the company is filing more patents in the country.

Australian designer Andy Zhou, a fresh 2013 graduate of Bachelors of Industrial Design at Monash University has introduced a flexible OLED luminaire that can be programmed to flex and display various lighting patterns. Below is a detailed introduction of the OLED luminaire from Zhou’s website:

As the lighting industry evolves to solid state lighting, so do the requirements for LED assembly adhesives, sealants and functional coatings used in the manufacture of light-emitting diode bulbs, lamps, light fixtures and luminaries.

Orion Energy Systems is ringing in the New Year with the launch of the complete suite of LED Door Retrofit (LDR) products. The LDR is an energy efficient LED retrofit that is completely assembled within the door frame.

More people are not making the switch to riding bicycles because of safety risks. Riding at night can be dangerous because those behind have no way of telling which direction you are turning in when changing lanes. Zackees has released turn signal LED glove in hopes of changing that.