We often get e-mails that ask us about the criteria we use when reviewing a product. In some cases we are able to use empirical objective results. This would encompass reviews such as processors, graphics cards or hard drive performance. In performance-based testing and review, the comparison of benchmarks will often provide the majority of information for your result. In other words, if the objective is speed a simple speed test determines the winner and/or potentially best product.

The vast majority of the reviews and testing we conduct, however, are not that simple and objective. How well something works for a given task or in a given environment is often a subjective matter. Consider ergonomic mice. In testing them, we'll certainly look to see if they perform properly, accurately and have the buttons and controls the user is looking for. However when we get to that sticky "it's comfortable in your hand" section, you no longer can use empirical testing to get your answer. Simply put, it's going to boil down to someone saying "yes, this one feels best".

So in an effort to shed some light on that sticky, subjective area we have developed a set of criteria that we use to help illuminate those qualitative traits.

LED lighting technology opens the door to the first truly "super-efficient, cost-effective" lighting solutions for commercial, institutional, and residential applications.  The newest generation of LED bulbs have been designed to use the same lighting fixtures as incandescent and compact fluorescent bulbs.  In the case of standard fluorescent bulbs the installer needs to cut the ballast wire as it is not utilized with the LED replacement bulbs.  An added bonus to this generation of LED bulbs is that, in most cases, they are dimmable, unlike many of the bulbs they are designed to replace.

CES 2009 was a bit smaller than in previous years. The economy played a big part in that both attendance in general plus the size and scope of the presence of various manufacturers was diminished. With a slightly lighter crowd of about 120,000, it was easier to get around although still much too big to be able to see everything within the allotted time.

That CES was an incremental show this year was not a big surprise. Given the pervasive gloomy economic atmosphere we did not expect to see huge new developments in technology. There were a number of incremental improvements in the areas of large flat screens and refresh rates, as well as other refinements in the video and audio sectors overlapping both entertainment and computing devices.

So all the hype aside, three items caught our attention in very different categories.