Continuing its 167-year history of offering the Best, the Only and the Unexpected, Hammacher Schlemmer introduces The Dual Therapy LED Skin Rejuvenator, a device that uses red and blue light therapy to diminish wrinkles and rejuvenate skin.

Epistar showcased for the first time LED chips for projectors at Taiwan International Lighting Show 2015 (TILS 2015) that took place in Taipei, Taiwan recently. The LED chips showcased could be applied in portable projectors, officially marking the company’s entry into the projector market. The company had developed the chips for several years, before commercializing the product and supplying it for client applications.

EVERLIGHT ELECTRONICS, a leading player in the global LED and optoelectronics industry with three decades of experience in optoelectronics, introduces the most high efficient/sulfur resistant ‘golden’ Series which performs brilliantly, even in severe environments, satisfying all demands of Automotive applications.

 Once again Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA), the global leader in lighting, is pushing the boundaries of how light can be used in and around the home to enhance a space, heighten a mood or simply ease day to day life. Philips Hue Go is an iF Design award winning, fully portable wireless lamp with all of the clever connectivity features of Philips Hue, meaning that it is now possible to experience the light that you want, wherever you want as you move around your house and garden*. With five new patented dynamic light effects to enrich special moments and interaction with more than 200 third-party apps, this newest addition to Philips Hue delivers total freedom with light.

No more packaging – Package-less Package. That is the fundamental solution which LED manufacturers are looking for to meet the market demands. Unfortunately, the era of Flip Chip-Chip Scale LED Package (FC CSP LED) is, however, emerging. It will make the time of the wide spread of LED light coming slowly step by step. Any LED manufacturers who aggressively jump over FC CSP LED and current leading-edge packaging technologies would be expected under the paradigm of no more packaging. A little of endeavour has been conducted to fulfil package-less package like Phosphor on Die and Package Free Chip.

Veeco Instruments announced today that KaiStar Lighting, based in Xiamen, China has ordered multiple TurboDisc® EPIK700™ Gallium Nitride (GaN) Metal Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition (MOCVD) systems. KaiStar, a joint venture between Epistar Corporation and Shenzhen Kaifa Technology Co., Ltd., will use the EPIK700 systems to ramp production of light emitting diodes (LEDs) for the general lighting market.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recognized MaxLite with a 2015 ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year Award for its leadership in reducing greenhouse gas emissions by manufacturing energy-efficient products and educating consumers about energy efficiency. MaxLite’s accomplishments will be recognized at the ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year Awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. on April 20, 2015.

LEDinside recently interviewed Kevin Lucido, Director of Global Marketing Communications at Lumileds, Philips, about the company’s business and technology developments after Go Scale Capital acquires the company.

Much to the industry’s surprise, Philips Lumileds was sold to Asian consortium led by Chinese investment firm GO Scale Capital Investment. The investment firm, which also invests in several Chinese LED companies, has acquired 80.1% of Lumileds shares. This development will likely assist Chinese LED market developments.

Costs. That is the only thing LED chip manufacturers think about, and who can blame them? LED chip prices are expected to drop to 50 cents for a 1,000 lumen LED lamps in 2015, said Epistar Chairman B.J. Lee at 2015 LED Executive Summit hosted by SEMI at TILS 2015 in TWTC Nangang Exhibition Hall, Taipei, Taiwan. Moreover, manufacturers might be facing the challenge of raising LED efficacy to 3,000 lm/$ within two years. Tightening profits are spurring manufacturers to develop new technology to drive down costs.

Leading LED chip industry experts had very different perspectives on GaN LED substrates at 2015 LED Executive Summit hosted by SEMI at TILS 2015 in TWTC Nangang Exhibition Hall, Taipei, Taiwan recently.

Intense market competition from Chinese manufacturers and deluge of LED suppliers on the market has made cost reducing strategies crucial for LED chip manufacturers’ survival. To cope in an increasingly low profit industry, LED chip manufacturers are developing more advanced and efficient LED chip technologies, finding cheaper chip materials, or exploring untapped niche markets. Representatives from global top LED chip manufacturers Epistar, Osram, Philips Lumileds (Lumileds), and Cree addressed these pressing issues recently at 2015 LED Executive Summit hosted by SEMI at TILS 2015, TWTC Nangang Exhibition Hall.

Philips kicked off the smart bulb market nearly three years ago with its pricey Huebulb, but at this year's CES a horde of new entrants emerged.  The transition from incandescent to more energy efficient bulbs is an opening through which smart bulbs – LED bulbs with wireless radios built in, which can be controlled remotely – are gaining a foothold according to Strategy Analytics' Smart Home Strategies latest report. Belkin, GE and Philips are joined by Awox, Cree, LIFX, Sengled and a host of others are profiled in "Smart Light Bulbs: The Competitive Landscape".

When Galina Zbrizher of Total Lighting Solutions in Vancouver, Canada started working in the lighting industry about 30 years ago, lighting design and technologies were still in the early stages of development. She participated in shaping the industry by serving on the Board of Directors of the International Association of Lighting Designers (IALD), serving as President of the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) – Toronto Section, a Chair of the IES Hospitality Facilities Committee and active contributor to the IES Design Guide for Hotel Lighting DG-25, by serving seven years on the LIGHTFAIR® International Conference Advisory Committee, and finally as a judge for several lighting design competitions and contributing author for lighting design publications.

As part of the Corporate Aviation Terminal at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA), the CIP lounge provides world-class facilities and personalized services for exclusive travelers.  

Hubbell Lighting, announced Precision-Paragon [P2] has released their new TKL conversion kit. The kit upgrades fluorescent lighting commonly found in offices and commercial, health care and educational facilities to energy-efficient LED lighting delivering up to 124 lumens per watt.

Ringdale, Texas-based manufacturer of USA-made ActiveLED® luminaries, announced its unprecedented Performance Warranty, also dubbed the No Light Loss Warranty. ActiveLED fixtures carry a 10-year guarantee that the lights will not only function, but will not lose light levels or change color for 10 years.

There are dozens of manufacturers in the global sapphire manufacturing market, but only tier one manufacturers are capable of supplying good quality sapphire ingots including Kyocera, Namiki, Monocrystal, DK AZTEC, USIO, Harbin Aurora Optoelectronics and Silan Opto. Leading sapphire manufacturers have launched production expansion plans to meet LED and non-LED market demands. LEDinside had an opportunity to interview Monocrystal Marketing Director Ludmila Zubova at TILS 2015 last week.

On March 31, a consortium of investors led by GO Scale Capital announced they have bought LED manufacturer Philips Lumileds from its parent company Royal Philips. Under this agreement, GO Scale Capital will pay Royal Philips US$3.3 billion for an 80.1% stake in its automotive lighting and LED components business, and the remaining 19.9% stays under Royal Philips. The transaction is scheduled to wrap up in the third quarter of 2015, pending regulatory approval and ratification of transaction terms. Following the deal, the LED and automotive business will operate under the name “Lumileds”. 

Rival Korean consumer electronics manufacturers LG and Samsung have finally agreed to bury the legal hatchet, reported BBC and PC Magazine.

LED grow light module markets at US $395 million in 2014 are forecast to reach $1.8 billion by 2021.  Rapid growth is anticipated as green house and plant factory growers find the LED grow lights improve agriculture, projected WinterGreen Research.

Until now, the wearables revolution in technology has centered mostly on health and fitness devices. Today it enters the realm of music with the Soundbrenner Pulse, the world’s first wearable device designed specifically for musicians. Engineered in Berlin by a team of entrepreneurial musicians and designed to help musicians keep the beat and become better performers, the Soundbrenner Pulse is available now to pre-order at //indiegogo.soundbrenner.com with special pricing of US $129. The retail price will be $149.

The promising new material molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) has an inherent issue that’s steeped in irony. The material’s greatest asset—its monolayer thickness—is also its biggest challenge.

Cree continues to relentlessly expand its leading LED bulb portfolio with the TW Series™ LED T8 Tube Replacement for consumers, making inferior linear fluorescent tubes a ‘thing of the past.’ Designed for simple, wire-free installation, the Cree® TW Series LED T8 Tube provides industry leading compatibility, beating the competition in light quality and performance, all at an affordable price. Available as 32-watt replacements, the TW Series LED T8 Tube Replacements are sold at The Home Depot®stores starting at just $21.97 and consuming up to 42 percent less energy than the 32W fluorescent tubes they replace.

Flexfire LEDs, a producer of linear LED lighting products and accessories, announces the opening of a new distribution center at 14761 Franklin Ave, Unit G, Tustin, CA, 92780. The U.S.-based company applauds the opening as an opportunity to expand its global operations, and further solidify its standing as a leading producer and supplier in the global marketplace for signature brand LED strip lighting products and accessories.

India’s LED industry is undergoing dramatic changes, and is entering an exponential growth phase as more manufacturers jump in, said Deepak Loomba, Managing Director and CEO of De Core Nanosemiconductors during a New Critical Territory in Global Lighting Marketing forum last Thursday at TILS 2015, Taipei, Taiwan.

Over the past year, the LED industry had pondered about the company that would eventually take over Philips lighting component (Philips Lumileds) and automotive business. Go Scale Capital's acquisiton of Lumileds just might be the solution to Chinese manufacturers lack of LED patents, said LEDinside analysts.

GO Scale Capital, an investment fund sponsored by GSR Ventures and Oak Investment Partners has announced today that it will acquire an 80.1% interest in Philips' combined LED components and Automotive lighting business, with Philips retaining the remaining 19.9%* interest. The transaction values the business at an enterprise value of approximately USD 3.3 billion. The transaction is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2015, subject to closing conditions, including customary regulatory approvals.

Leicester, a city in UK, will be spending almost GBP 1 million (US$1.48 million) in LED traffic lights, reported Leicester Mercury.

Veeco Instruments announced Susan Wang has been nominated for appointment to its Board of Directors. Her appointment is subject to shareholder approval, which is being sought at Veeco’s 2015 annual meeting of stockholders, scheduled to occur on May 13, 2015.