LED Backlit (mercury-free) Laptops Arrive

Steve Jobs isn't the only guy in town that realizes the benefits of LED backlights over CCFLs -- there's also Dell, HP, Asus, and Kohjinsha. The benefits include longer lifespan, no mercury, less breakable than CCFL... the list goes on and on!

Dell gets into the act with the XPS m1330, a tasty 4lb notebook with dual core and an LED backlight option. Cost is unknown but the good news is that brightness is not sacrificed with the LED baklight because it is a full 80cd/m2 brighter than the CCFL option (300cd/m2 with LED vs 220 with CCFL backlight).

If you are one of those people that feels hard drives are so last year then you are in luck, the m1330 also lists a 32GB SSD as one of the drive options. but overall Dell appears to be releasing a great new option for the road warrior.

Asus also has their U1F 2.2lb subnotebook with "better luminance, faster response time and lower power consumption than the traditional LCD"

A company whose name may be unfamiliar to you, Kohjinsha, has had an LED backlit based 2.12lb laptop out since before Christmas: SA1F00A. I own one of these myself and I absolutely love the battery life and the display. The price is right < $800 USD but the processor is slow (500MHz).

If you are more a tablet kind of guy or gal, HP isn't leaving you out of the LED love fest. Their new 2710p tablet and 2510p laptop are coming out in Q3. The laptop is 2.9 lbs with a 12.1-inch screen and the 2710p tablet is 3.6lbs also with a 12.1-inch screen.

Of course , Steve is in on the action too. Apple upgraded their MacBook Pro to Santa Rosa (800MHz FSB) and they also graced the 15-inch model with LED-backlit displays coming standard. The highlights of their LED announcement include:

• - lower display weight
• - more power efficient (than CCFLs)
  • - 30 min to 1 hour additional battery life
• - provides full brightness immediately after the system is turned on.
• - same brightness level as the old CCFL option

The cost? Same price as the old MacBook Pro, good job Apple!

Here is a handy little chart to summarize the LED vs CCFL battle for you, all pretty like: