For no reason I can discern, other than that the designers at PalmOne thought it was "cool", my Palm Tungsten E2 desktop charger/sync cable continuously glows, brighter than a half-moon. I have a small bowl up-ended over it when it's not in use.
Also for no particular reason, except again for the "cool" factor, a small USB hub attached to my laptop has a brilliant blue LED that is continuously lit. I have no need for hallway night lights; just keep my laptop on and placed in the dining room, and that entire section of the house is bright enough to keep you from stumbling over dog toys at night.
First, visit this Doonesbury strip.
Now consider this:
The Gadget Bill of Lights
Gadget and PC makers: If you want happy users and more repeat business, heed our call and stop torturing us with bad decisions about the lights on your products. Here is our Gadget Bill of Lights:
I. The right of the people to get a good night's sleep shall not be infringed. Gadget makers shall make no device that lights up any dark room with flashing nag lights.
II. Excessive LED brightness, deemed cruel and unusual punishment, shall not be inflicted when dimmer lights will do.
III. Gadget makers shall make no device that nags the people for unknown reasons. If a phone flashes at us, we have the right to know why.
IV. No indicator light shall illuminate our houses or places of business without the consent of the owner. We seek the option to turn lights off.
V. An aesthetically pleasing industrial design, being necessary for the placement of electronics in various locations in our homes, shall not include inextinguishable decorative lighting. (We're talking to YOU, Dell.)
VI. In all scenarios in which products may be used in partial or total darkness, the people shall enjoy the right to optional lighting that enables users to locate various controls, keys and buttons.
I'm with you on this one.
A related thing - My last truck had a high-beam indicator light that inexplicably was not connected to the dimmer rheostat. On a dark night the damned thing would burn a hole in your retina if you didn't put something over it to block it. Damned annoying.
My living room looks like a Christmas tree. I see little blue and green and red lights everywhere, from the DVD to the computer to the heater. My Nokia phone has a very bright blue flashing light. It's a very bright "here I am" light, meant to help me find my phone in complete darkness. Which is why I never take it into my bedroom at night.