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The California Energy Commission (CEC) delayed a vote on setting new energy-efficiency standards for TVs in the state, planning to now address the issue at its Nov. 18 business meeting. The Commission is considering proposed sales restriction for energy-hogging TVs that will be imposed in two tiers, in January 2011 and January 2013, though the first phase of restrictions will not include TVs larger than 58 inches. Click here to read the proposed energy requirements. The proposal has generated much controversy, pitting the environmental advocates… View this story
Displays • Flat Panel • HDTV • LCD • Plasma • Industry • Manufacturers • Dealers • Retailers • Green Technology • Info and Answers • Product News

The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) hails the smart grid as one of “5 Technology Trends to Watch” in 2010. The CEA’s annual list is a barometer of emerging technologies. CEA research finds that 70 percent of Americans are concerned about the cost of their monthly electricity bill, which is predicted to rise with growing demand. In writing on the smart grid, Chris Ely states: “Energy efficiency and green-energy production (including solar, wind and hydro) is a growing component in national energy policy. In fact, the… View this story
Industry • Power Management • Green Technology • Info and Answers

Almost everyone by now knows the long-term benefits of a smart grid: It will displace much of our country’s oil imports and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. But arriving there could take decades. Even arriving at a workable smart grid is a massive undertaking, necessitating the establishment of hundreds of standards so the grid’s many pieces and parts can work together in a reliable and secure way, according the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in its draft of a Framework and Roadmap for Smart… View this story
Home Control • Industry • Networking and Communication • Power Management • Green Technology • Info and Answers

The fight over proposed sales restrictions of energy hogging TVs in California is raging on, with both sides making impassioned cases before the California Energy Commission (CEC) in a public hearing yesterday, Oct. 13. The CEC has proposed limiting the sales of TVs in the state to only those that meet energy-efficiency standards, starting in 2011 and with a second, stricter tier of requirements in 2013. Trade groups such as the Consumer Electronic Association (CEA) and the Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association (CEDIA) oppose… View this story
Displays • LCD • Plasma • Industry • Manufacturers • Installers • Dealers • Retailers • Power Management • Green Technology • Info and Answers

You’ve probably heard of this smart grid. It’s coming. And with it, we’ll be doing a lot more home energy management. The smart grid is a way to enable a more efficient distribution of our electric power, and can save the United States a lot of energy that’s wasted in inefficient systems and transmission. And although a lot of it will happen behind the scenes, it will affect each and every one of us. Here are three things you need to know: 1. The smart… View this story
Industry • Power Management • Green Technology • Info and Answers

Technology companies placed in four of the top five spots in Newsweek’s survey of the greenest top 500 corporations in the United States. That’s great news, though a few of the top green dogs may be no surprise: Hewlett-Packard and Dell, ranked number one and two, respectively, have had strong environmental and recycling policies in place for years. Some of the other rankings in the survey may surprise you. Microsoft beat out Apple, and Yahoo topped Google. AT&T and Apple failed to break into the… View this story
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The California Energy Commission (CEC) has decided not to propose restricting the sale of TVs with screen sizes larger than 58 inches that do not meet energy efficiency standards. The CEC’s proposal to restrict the sale of TVs that don’t meet energy efficiency standards has been met with resistance from groups that say the move will effectively ban the sale of most big-screen and plasma-based TVs. The final proposal from the CEC has been posted and omits sales restrictions of televisions with screens in excess… View this story
Displays • LCD • Plasma • Industry • Manufacturers • Retailers • Green Technology • Info and Answers

Can a trade show focusing on home electronics be green? CEDIA (Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association) is trying. The CEDIA Expo to be held this week in Atlanta has made some green initiatives, such as eliminating paper from educational course guides. According to the organization, last year CEDIA saved more than 10,000 pounds of paper by reducing print quantities, 9,000 of which was saved by moving to a paperless format for the CEDIA University course participant guides. CEDIA is again offering attendees a chance… View this story
Industry • Shows and Expos • Green Technology • Info and Answers

The California Energy Commission (CEC) still plans to vote on a controversial television energy use requirement that could restrict the sale of inefficient TVs in the state, starting in 2011. Opponents to the plan, led by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), say the restrictions would effectively ban the sale of plasma-based TVs and many large-screen LCD TVs. The CEC says the mandates will save Californians $18 to nearly $30 per year per television in energy costs. The CEA says it will cost the state $50… View this story
Displays • LCD • Plasma • Industry • Manufacturers • Retailers • Green Technology • Info and Answers

Best Buy released a 3D advertisement in the newspaper this past Sunday. It wasn’t as simple as picking up the paper and having the products dance off the page. Oh, no. It required a PC, a Webcam, a dark room and … well, bestbuyin3d.com can explain it better. Some of the stories I read about the ad were tongue-in-cheek and mocked the idea. But you have to give the big-box store some credit for at least trying. After all, it’s in a high-stakes battle with… View this story
Industry • Retailers • Info and Answers

In our smart grid future, we’ll see smart appliances that can shut off when an electric utility reaches peak capacity. That will save us money on increased time-of-use rates. And this will happen. But what about even smarter appliances that give us options, like whether to delay that dish washing until later at night when the rates go down, or still dry your clothes, but at a lower power level? GE says it could bring such appliances to the market by the end of the… View this story
Appliances • Refrigerators • Industry • Networking and Communication • Routers and Switches • Power Management • Green Technology • Info and Answers

Custom electronics pros call themselves a slew of different names. Some go by “electronics integrators”; others are more comfortable with “home systems specialist.” There are also those who find “systems designer” more fitting. You’ll also hear terms such as low-voltage contractor, home electronics installer and custom integrator tossed around. “There seems to be a real identity crisis within our industry,” says Perry Workman of Audio Input, Joplin, Mo. There’s a good reason these professionals can’t come to a consensus. Home electronics is highly diversified, consisting… View this story
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