Recently in Gadgets Category

Today, Solar Components debuted a personal solar charger that, to put it bluntly, sounds too good to be true.

Called the Joos Orange (yes, as in orange juice), the 8.58 inch by 5.77 inch slab contains a 5,400mAh replaceable lithium-ion battery pack. Also nestled into its 0.79 inch-thick enclosure is energy management circuitry that promises to help eke out precious energy from less-than-direct sunlight. According to the company, the charger produces 20 times more energy than other chargers on the market, and with an optional reflector kit, that figure jumps to 30 times. And all for $100 when it starts shipping this June.

Perhaps anticipating that BS meters would blare in alarm, Jamie Bullen, CEO and co-founder of Solar Components said in a statement:

"Solar Components makes the best solar charger in the world. We recognize that we're throwing down the gauntlet by making this claim, but the fact of the matter is that most of the personal solar power devices on the market today are woefully inadequate. The fact that someone can have a personal solar device in direct sunlight for an hour and only power 5 to 20 minutes of talk time for a standard cell phone just isn't acceptable."

Normally I'd roll my eyes and move on, but this line in the press release indicates that they might be onto something are aren't afraid to let others kick the tires on their tech:

Solar Components has a limited supply of final pre-production units of the Joos Orange available today for editorial testing and evaluation.

Will it live up to those claims? Looks like we'll soon find out.

Image Credit: Technology Review

Annoyed by the lack of visually stunning, energy efficient and razor thin OLED displays for your home theater? Me too. But that may soon change if the large format OLED printing technology from a Menlo Park, CA startup founded by MIT researchers takes off.

The startup, called Kateeva is testing a prototype "printer" that, according to the company, can create OLED displays at 60 percent of the cost of an LCD screen. Here's the key to the cost-cutting manufacturing technique:

All the OLED displays on the market are manufactured using an expensive, small-scale technique called shadow-mask evaporation to lay down the light-emitting organic molecules that make up the pixels. Companies have looked into alternatives that are compatible with large-area manufacturing, such as ink-jet printing, but all the processes entail compromises on the performance and lifetime of the display. Kateeva's technique combines features of shadow-mask printing and ink-jet printing to make high-quality OLED pixels over a large area. The company plans to sell printing equipment and OLED inks made of light-emitting small molecules.

Currenly, Kateeva's prototype can generate OLEDs that are 0.6 x 0.7 meters in size and is aiming for production units that can pump out 1.8 x 1.5 meter displays. Not quite as big as LCDs, but way better than the relatively tiny (and expensive) OLEDs currently on the market. Be sure to catch the accompanying video at Technology Review to see Kateeva's operation.

Source: Technology Review
Related Companies: Kateeva (formerly TJet Technologies)

Solar bags are nothing new, but Soular Powers' strappy Capsoul takes gadget-charging backpacks to new levels. Unlike most solar bags that de-emphasize their ability to convert the suns rays into gadget-charging goodness, Capsoul has a massive solar panel affixed to it. The company also offers a smaller Piggy Back model that generates just over 11 volts in direct sunlight.

No word yet on availability or price, but they'll be hard to miss when (and if) they start showing up on the backs of dedicated green geeks.

via Gizmodo

Last year around this time, I bemoaned the lack of availability in these parts. Soon after, Philips PR told me to wait until Q3 2009, but the summer came and went without the color-changing goodness. It may have taken a little longer than expected, but Philips LivingColors has finally hit the good old U.S.A.

Amazon.com is carrying both models. The full-sized Philips 818566 LivingColors Translucent Changing LED Lamp with Remote retails for a cool $190, but as of this writing, order fulfillment takes one to three weeks. Disappointing (and a bit spendy) but hopefully the delay is a result of crushing demand.

For instant gratification with some trade-offs, there's the Philips 818565 LivingColors Mini Changing LED Lamp, which ships immediately and sells for $102 in white or $107 for the stylish black model.

Here's a link to a good review posted on Amazon, not because of the score -- though it's encouraging -- but because it highlights the differences between the U.S. and European/Asian models. Here are two:

1) the faceplate with the bulbs is a bit sturdier and has a few plastic dimples
2) the function which continuously cycles the colors is very gradual v. the rapid-fire changes in the Asian-market lamps

Like the woman in the promotional image above, I too am pleased. Now, which one to buy?

Nestled among LG's impressive array of HDTVs, Wired.com spotted the cutest little OLED display. And that's the problem, it's little and cute. A bank-breaking $2,600 price tag for 15 inches of real estate isn't helping matters either.

Truth be told, it's not all LG's fault. OLEDs, apart from tiny mobile screens, are proving to be a tough, long and expensive road for electronics makers. Just ask Kodak. Judging by the glacial pace it's taking the energy efficient display tech to grow in screen size, it may take a couple more CESes before it can sit side by side its LCD brethren.

It's not all disappointing news, however. Wired.com also spotted one neat sci-fi twist to come out this year's CES: a transparent OLED display from Samsung that produces some neat, HUD-like visuals that could really help redefine augmented reality. Catch a video of it in action here.

Back in October, I wrote about how underwhelming and un-green wireless charging products can be, specifically Powermat. I'm happy to report that the company is on the right track this CES.

In a move that I hope takes off, Powermat is ditching sleeves and adapters for $40 compatible battery packs called Powerpacks (except for iPhones and other devices with non-user-replaceable batteries). Smart!

Engadget has the details.

Cubicle dwellers, your dirt-cheap iPhone mount has arrived. And all you have to do is raid the office supply closet for a handful of tacks.

This Lifehacker gallery shows a clever iPhone hack (click on number 2) that you can use to keep your iPhone at eye level and at arm's length without investing in an overpriced accessory that will end up getting recycled in a year or two. From the description:

The tacks are actually just the right size and shape to wrap around the edges of the phone without trouble or fear of it falling out. I use it along with a fullscreen clock app to keep track of the time, but it's also at just the right height to watch a Youtube video or see the album art while working.

Way to help out our landfills, Bill!

I maintain that digital distribution is the ultimate way to go green, but most console game releases (not counting stuff like Xbox Live Arcade games) still ships on discs. So if you must gift a game this holiday season, at least take comfort in the fact that the video game industry is reducing game packaging thanks to the Eco-box from Viva Group.

The new Xbox 360 game box standard, the Eco-box is thinner and lighter, with much of the savings due to the pie wedge cutouts behind the disc. According to Kotaku, Nintendo is also jumping on the reduced packaging bandwagon for Wii games, starting with first-party titles. Although it's undisclosed whether they'll be using Viva's design, the new packaging will weigh 25 percent less than current packaging.

Source: Kotaku

I don't know about you, but apart from financing my holiday gift-giving, finding the perfect green gift has always posed a challenge. Here are five gifts that are sure to enthrall your friends and family members of the geeky persuasion, with an added dash of eco-consciousness.

Bookworm:

Kindle - Amazon.com

Still not cheap, but the device will pay for itself over time if the recipient is a voracious reader (Kindle editions are generally cheaper than paper ones). Also, you vastly reduce the emissions, since logging, bookmaking and shipping are replaced by data centers and wireless networks used to store and transmit e-books instead.

Barnes and Noble's Nook was up for consideration, but it's sold out for the remainder of the year. (What good is it if you can't get your hands on it?) Plus, the effect of the unit's LCD touchpad on battery life has yet to be experienced by consumers.