Samsung's Bada Mobile OS to Launch in Early 2010

Samsung's non-smartphone OS, which is surprisingly named Bada (rather than "Why?"), has already been announced, but now we hear that the first Bada phone should arrive in the first half of 2010. Given Samsung's recent dalliance with Android skins, maybe this is a new attempt to create something people might actually want to use. Still, we're just not that excited about another dumbphone OS, which is why news about Bada winds up here in the dark, forgotten corner of Gizmodo we call Remainders. [Engadget]

Google Talk Knows When You're on Android, and Likes It

The thing about Android is that we all depend on Google for all kinds of things, whether or not we ever plan on using an Android phone. So if Google wants, they can exert some pressure, through sweet exclusive features (like the Droid's turn-by-turn Maps) or little cues like this one. Google Talk now adds teeny adorable icons for Android users in the GTalk buddy list—but only Android, not iPhone, WebOS or BlackBerry. I'm not concerned about the "Google creep," but Google haters may find this seemingly innocuous feature a sign of trouble to come. [TechCrunch]

California Passes New Efficiency Standard for TVs

California, in a decision that's the first of its kind, passed a law requiring new, stricter efficiency standards for all TVs sold in the state. By 2011, they'll have to reduce energy requirements by 33%, and by 2013, that number goes up to 49%. It's not a huge deal, nor something consumers are likely to notice—but higher energy efficiency standards are okay in my book. The law has passed only in California, and is seeing a fair bit of opposition, so don't hold your breath for nationwide adoption—hence its place in Remainders today. [Mercury News]

Acer Ferrari Netbook's Tackiness Burns My Eyes

Okay seriously you guys, who the hell buys Ferrari versions of gadgets? They pop up with pretty alarming frequency given their eye-searing tackiness, and the latest victim is this humble Acer netbook. The netbook packs expected specs, including an AMD Athlon Neo processor at 1.2GHz, up to 4GB memory, 160GB hard drive and snoooooore. But why ruin that solid, sleep-inducing mediocrity with such shockingly garish styling? It'll be available in Japan on November 27th. [Akihabara News]

How do they do it? With a triple junction compound solar cell that uses three photo absorption layers made from elements like indium and gallium. I'll leave it to the physical chemistry geniuses among you to explain exactly what that means in the comments.

You might have heard of efficiency ratings that climb into the 40% range. Sharp even lists one in their press release. To clarify, those are different tests. Apparently there's a distinction made in efficiency ratings between concentrated and unfocused light. The more you know, right?

Don't expect to be covering your house in these soon, they're meant for use in satellites. [Akihabara via Engadget]

The move is important since data centers are becoming an ever-increasing drain on the energy grid, accounting for about 1.5 percent of all electricity consumed in the U.S. in 2006 (expected to rise to 2.5 percent in three years). While the efficiency levels Google touted are admirable, data center trackers cautioned that the test results hadn't been verified by a third party. [NYTimes]

The issue lies with the theoretical efficiency ceiling assigned to OLEDs in a 2001 paper published in Nature. That paper suggested OLEDs would eventually be capable of converting 41 to 63% of electricity passed through them into light. The current ceiling for OLEDs is 25% efficiency, and that is where the most recent research out of Utah says it will probably stay.

In the end, all this talk of percentages and efficiency might be moot, especially considering OLEDs main purpose will be to replace LCD screens, not illuminate rooms or serve as the running lights on an Audi A5. OLEDs are also a superior light source for flexible materials, so there's that, too. They just won't be lighting up any kitchens or anything like that anytime soon.

To summarize, the future appears bright—for both LEDs and OLEDs. To each their own, we suppose. [NewsWise via CrunchGear]

OSRAM Achieves Quantum Leap in Brightness and Efficiency of White LEDs
SANTA CLARA, Calif. —(Business Wire)— Jul. 21, 2008 By improving all the technologies involved in the manufacture of LEDs, OSRAM development engineers have achieved new records for the brightness and efficiency of white LEDs in the laboratory. Under standard conditions with an operating current of 350 mA, brightness peaked at a value of 155 lm, and efficiency at 136 lm/W. In generating these results, researchers used white prototype LEDs with 1 mm-square chips. The light produced had a color temperature of 5000K, with color coordinates at 0.349/0.393 (cx/cy).

The key to OSRAM's success was the efficient interplay among all the advances made in materials and technologies. A perfectly matched system of optimized chip technology, a highly advanced and extremely efficient light converter, and a special high-performance package all combined to produce the world record performance results.

Potential applications for this high-performance LED technology include general illumination, the automotive sector, and any application that calls for large, high-power LEDs. These semiconductor light sources are also suitable for high operating currents. At 1.4 A, they can produce up to 500 lm of white light. This means that in the future the LEDs can also be used for projection applications as blue and green chip versions.

Dr. Rudiger Muller, CEO at OSRAM Opto Semiconductors, commented: "It was the successful convergence of OSRAM know-how in different fields that led to these new records in efficiency and brightness. Starting with the light converter, we will be gradually moving these new developments into production." OSRAM has already applied for patents for the technologies that lie behind these world record performance levels

Since Osram says plans are now to move this tech from the lab into production, we can certainly expect to see LEDs in even more places in the future. [Osram]

Using "rough" silicon wires, produced by a process known as "electroless etching," where silicon nano-wires are synthesized in an aqueous solution, over a thin, semiconductor crystallized base, the scientists have been able to exploit the process of galvanic displacement of silicon. This displacement technique, which uses silver ions, causes the thermoelectric efficiency to be increased on the rough surfaces of the nano-wires.

The breakthrough comes from the boffins at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the University of California, who believe they have found a way to increase the conversion efficiency by a factor of 100. Though they are unable to pin the exact physics of why this works, what they can be certain of is that it definitely does work.

The potential uses for such a technology are mind blowing; from power-jackets that recharge gadgets kept in their pockets to vehicles that utilizes your farts for headlight juice, and pretty much everything else in between. It will be a long while before anything like this makes it to the consumer market, but the development is an exciting one. Expect my son to blog about future developments concerning these nano-wires in 2016. [Tom's Hardware]

It's pretty neat for people who use programs like Photoshop all day and do macroable things, but my repetitive tasks are harder to program one-button macros for. I mean, I can't get it to IM Chen to talk about video games in the middle of the afternoon, nor can I get it to go poke around in the fridge even though I know I have no food. But hey, when they figure out how to make one of those, I'll be the first in line to buy one. I'm all about efficiency, after all. –Adam Frucci

Product Page [via Oh Gizmo!]

The prototype operates quietly in wind speeds from 7mph to 120mph, twice the range of conventional wind turbines, plus it's a lot smaller and easier to maintain. Install two of them next to each other and they'll look like a pair of eyes peering into the wind. Meanwhile, you'll be looking at selling power back to the electric company. – Charlie White

Silent wind turbine is ultra-efficient [Engineer Live, via treehugger]

Essentially, the "Mightier Mouse" will use two different mechanisms to track movement. The first, that we already know and love, is the optical tracking sensor. This will stay intact. The new feature will be the accelerometer, as you've seen in the Wiimote. The patent explains that motion detection is a far more energy efficient tool of tracking than older methods, and when periodically compared (even calibrated?) to the optical information, can function with accuracy.

I'm all for energy efficiency and the continuous innovation of the products we use every day. Plus, I just love the word "accelerometer". We'll see how this plays out. – Mark Wilson

Patent Info [via slashgear]