The MacBook Air has become the best advertisement for why companies should use LED (light-emitting diode) backlights in notebook screens, and is driving adoption, according to market researcher DisplaySearch.
LED backlights in display screens are an improvement over old CCFL (cold-cathode florescent lamps) technology for several reasons, including a stunning picture due to more vibrant contrasts, better power savings, and they"re easier on the environment because they contain no mercury and last longer. They also helped make the MacBook Air a marvel of thinness because they take up less space inside a screen. LED backlights are about half as thick as CCFL backlights, according to Luke Yao, an analyst at DisplaySearch.