Well well well, Sony is stepping up and starting to really get into green technology. They started with the sugar battery back in August, and now comes the Twirl-N-Take, and as cheap as it looks, it’s a pretty cool idea.

The twirl-n-take is a green-powered camera. That is, it doesn’t use batteries for power. That strange looking circle on the top is actually how you generate the camera’s power.  Spinning it for 10-15 seconds is enough for one picture, then spin it again and snap away.

No word on the quality of the pictures yet, or how many pictures it can hold… or when/if you’ll be able to get it or how much it will cost, but this is one of those super-cool Japanese products us North Americaners are sorely missing out on.

Anyway, it’s great to see a tech giant getting more into green technology, and while spinning a wheel for 15 seconds might not be the most convenient, at least they’re thinking. It’s a pretty innovative design.

Keep it up Sony!

via GreenDaily, Product-Reviews.net

Popularity: 37% [?]

Hippyshopper is giving away a 16gb iPod touch on their website. All you have to do is take a short survey, and you’ll be entered. Pretty easy, why not?

Head on over and take their survey, and if you do win, be sure to get a green-power charger to go along with it!

Popularity: 31% [?]

Computers and circuit boards aren’t that great for landfills, as they actually contain a whole bunch of harmful chemicals.

So why not keep all your precious family memories in them instead?

This photo album is made from recycled circuit boards for the front and back covers. It’s like some wonderful invention from the future!

This photo album will keep your photos from getting lost and damaged, and it’ll show both your geeky side and your green side at the same time.

You can also buy individual frames made from recycled circuit boards , you know, just so they match.

Photo Album is $16.95 from Acorn Studios.

Photo Frames are:

£4.49 (about $10 CAD) for small.

£5.99 (about $12 CAD) for medium.

and £7.99 (about 17 CAD) for large.

all from Revolve.

via GreatGreenGoods (photo album,  photo frames)

Popularity: 98% [?]

This has got to be the ultimate in portability. The Trevor Baylis Eco Media Player does everything your iPod does, and much more.

This media player does the basic functions: plays music, videos, and FM radio  (which is nice).

It also has something many people have come to use their iPod for: a flashlight. It has a high intensity LED light that will illuminate a fairly large area, fast and easy.

It can also record sounds and songs with a digital line-in jack. It records to MP3 with 64k,128k, or 192k bitrates.

It also functions as an ebook reader, mobile phone charger, photo viewer, and a data storage device. Just to start.

But here’s the kicker,  you can run it off the built-in battery, or charge it with a built in crank! So wherever you go, this MP3 player will have power.

While I know Apple claims ridiculous battery life on their iPods, mine still always seems to run out of juice. Having a crank would come in quite handy I imagine!

You can buy the Trevor Baylis Eco Media Player for £134.99 (about $280 CAD) from ethicalsuperstore

 via EcoStreet

Popularity: 20% [?]

What do you do when you need a tiny device, but the batteries  you’d need to charge it are too big? Use solar power!

Not only will James Bond be able to snap secret spy pictures, but he’ll never have to worry about stopping to replace the batteries in the middle of a secret mission.

But really… this is a pretty cool product. The pen has a small camera in it that can wirelessly transmit photos to a nearby device (like this digital media player).

So if you’re planning any top secret missions in the near future, or you’re just a sucker for a super-cool gadget, this might be for you.

You’ll have to bust out the big bucks though, this spy-cam will cost you $332, but just think of all the money you’ll save in tiny spy batteries!

via EcoGeek

Popularity: 23% [?]

If you think solar power is the new high-tech method of generating power, it’s been around for a while.

Back in 1956 General Electric developed a solar powered radio that uses only 4 transitions, 7 solar cells, and weighs only 10 ounces. Did I mention is can last a whopping 8 months in total darkness? This radio will also charge from a 100 watt lightbulb. Is it just me or does this beat almost all of the current solar-power solutions?

Okay, so we have more energy-sucking devices today, but it’s hard not to be amazed by such an elegant device.  Quite impressive. It’s a shame you can’t still buy these, it would be a great addition to emergency kits, providing reliable access to information without having to worry about expired or dead batteries.

via EcoFriendlyInfo

Popularity: 20% [?]

So your running late, havn’t eaten breakfast, and you’re incredible jealous at the (usually awkward) way drivers get to eat in their car while you’re off saving the environment on a bicycle. It happens, but it shouldn’t deter you from biking to wherever you have to go.

Well never be jealous of your emissions-emitting friends and their space for breakfast again! Meet the  BikeFast Tray. It’s a tray that snaps onto the front of your bike, giving you convenient space for your breakfast while you’re on your bike.

It has a spot for food, and a cup-holder for your fair-trade coffee. Bike Design mentions the obvious problem here though: wouldn’t wind blow your breakfast away? It would seem likely, and I would agree a shield on some-kind would be a great addition, but this is only a concept anyway.

Still, some great creative thinking went into this design, and something like this would be a pretty cool addition for those time-deprived environmentalists on their way to work. It sure beats one of those girly baskets!

via Bicycle Design

Popularity: 20% [?]

Toshiba has announced it’s next-generation rechargeable battery, the Super Charge Ion  Battery, or SCiB.

Intended for use in electric vehicles, the SCiB can chage to 90 minutes in a blazing fast 5 minutes! It can handle plenty of recharging as well, losing only about 10% of it’s capacity after 3,000 recharges.  NiMH batteries, by comparison, only last about 500-1000 charges¹.

Toshiba is positioning these batteries for use in electric vehicles, mentioning electric bikes, electric motorcycles, construction machinery, and fork lifts specifically. They do plan to reach electric cars eventually as well.

The extra capacity for these batteries is fantastic, but the fast recharge rate is really the key here. A big concern for electric vehicles is charging time, with a traditional gas-powered car you can simply fuel up in 5 minutes and you’re ready to go. With the SCiB charging in 5 minutes, a stop at an electric “gas” station would be almost the same experience as what we have today, of course, it would be a lot more environmentally friendly!

We should see the SCiB hitting the market next year.

via AutoBlogGreen

Popularity: 20% [?]

These 6 backpacks are a bit different than you average backpack; they all contain solar panels!

I have tons on electronic gadgets I like to carry around, but keeping them all charged is a pain. Not only will these bags give you plenty of room for you gadgets, but the sun will charge them. They also all have internal batteries to store unused power, so you can even charge at night.

They range quite a bit in features and in price, and I recommend going for a cheaper one unless you want enough power for something like a laptop. If you do want to compute everywhere though, some of the higher-end bags can be a lifesaver!

Our roundup of the best 6 solar backpacks available after the jump.

Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 35% [?]

How freakin’ cool is this: a portable digital pocket scale powered by SOLAR! Why would you need to carry around a tiny scale that can measure grams and ounces? Well… I’ll leave that up to your imagination, heh.

This tiny scale weighs only 1 pound, and measures 3.8″L x 3.8″W x 1″H. It can measure up to 250g, in increments of 0.1g, perrrfect. And yes, it’s 100% solar powered!

So whatever you’re measuring this Solar Powered Digital Pocket scale will do it without the need to ever replace the batteries! That sure comes in handy when you really really need to measure something.

The ultimate hippy piece of technology? Possibly.

You can buy this from amazon for under $25

Popularity: 20% [?]