HP Offers High-Brightness Blue LED Lamps

Starting in August, Hewlett-Packard Co. will market its first blue-light lamps based on indium gallium nitride LEDs (light-emitting diodes). This addition to its line of bright red, orange, and amber LEDs completes HP's color spectrum for full-color flat-panel and outdoor applications. HP recommends the lamps wherever there is a need for soft, soothing backlighting or indicators. In consumer applications, such as stereo equipment and kitchen appliances, a blue LED lamp complements the blue of commonly used vacuum fluorescent displays, the company adds. The lamps come in a 5 mm package with typical intensities of 1,100 millicandela (mcd) at a 15 degree viewing angle--450 mcd at a 30 degree viewing angle (at 20 mA).