Green tech and robots to take over Tokyo at Ceatec 2009

In Japan, for one week a year the spotlight of this gadget-obsessed country is shifted from the urban neon oasis of Tokyo's Akihabara neighborhood and trained on an expansive convention hall an hour's commute outside of the city.

On Tuesday the purveyors of TVs thinner than a credit card, cell phones pressed with 3D screens, humanoid robots, and the latest in electric car technology descend, along with media, analysts, retail buyers, and industry executives for the opening of the Combined Exhibition of Advanced Technologies, known by the acronym Ceatec.

It's the Japanese equivalent of Las Vegas' CES and Berlin's IFA, and like those two shows earlier this year, attendance is expected to be good, if slightly contracted as companies have cut back on expenses in light of the current economy.
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Six-watt dimmable LED bulb to sell soon on Amazon

Is it time to make the leap to LED lights for the home? Perhaps, but only if you're willing to make a return-on-investment calculation.

Lemnis Lighting on Friday said that its Pharox60 LED light is now available in the US online and soon will be for sale on Amazon. The dimmable bulb, shaped like a traditional incandescent bulb, consumes 6 watts of power and can replace a 60-watt bulb.

That dramatic drop in electricity use comes at the cost of US$39.95. The premium can be recouped in three years, or as little as one year for consumers with time-of-day pricing tariffs, according to the company. The current price is a special offer; the bulb will cost US$49.95 after the beginning of next year.

"Compared to the entry price for solar panels, we feel this is a more accessible energy saving investment," said Warner Philips, founder of the Netherlands-based company whose great-grandfather founded the Dutch lighting giant Philips.
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US goes green with EcoATM which pays for used gadgets

You know that old Motorola Razr that's been sitting in your nightstand for the last year? If you live near Omaha, Neb., you can march up to the EcoATM at the Nebraska Furniture Mart, toss it in, and automatically get an in-store trade-up coupon or gift card.

The self-serve e-cycling station electronically inspects phones, assigns them real-time secondary market value, and provides in-store payment--if the handset still has any monetary worth. If not, consumers can choose to assign the device to the recycle bin, and then it's on its way to getting recycled or refurbished.

The kiosk at the Omaha store is the first such station to be installed by San Diego-based start-up EcoATM, and it's serving as a test case in advance of a scheduled larger rollout.

The company, formerly called ReMobile, declared the Nebraska machine an immediate success when it went into operation September 21--both in the number of recycled devices collected and the trade-up purchases.
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NEC announces new energy-efficient monitors

Energy-efficient computer monitors are seemingly the new black. With each new press release vendors never fail to mention how much power their products use, or more specifically, don't use. Nothing wrong with that, really; I'm just usually skeptical of manufacturer's claims. Which is why CNET does its own power efficiency testing. Check out our green guide to get a glimpse of the lengths we go through.

In keeping with the latest trend, on Thursday, NEC announced three new "energy-efficient" computer monitors. I put "energy-efficient" in quotes 'cause, you know, I've yet to actually test them.

The monitors include the 19-inch AS191 (4:3 aspect ratio), 19-inch widescreen AS191WM and 22-inch widescreen AS221WM.
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Keep track of your power usage with solar stickers

Place this one in the "interesting idea, bad execution" category.

Label With Green is a concept design by Shao Wei Huang, Chia-Yi Cho, Yu Pei Kuo, and Chung Kai Chiang that I spotted on Yanko. The idea is that you'd get a package of solar stickers, each of which powers a separate gadget component such as the display, speaker, keypad, camera, or solar battery.

Adding more stickers manually is supposed to make you more aware of how much power your device is taking up and presumably train you to adjust your behavior accordingly--whatever that might mean.
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