On the Go? Charge Your Devices with a Solar-Powered Briefcase

jplatt — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0400

Road warriors, are you always looking for a wall outlet to charge your cell phone, GPS, MP3 player or PDA? Well seek no further, my friends, because the outlet you need could soon be hanging from your shoulder.

The new Juice Bag ProFolio from Reware is the latest in a growing line of solar-powered bags that you can use to charge your portable devices. The ProFolio is about the same size as the briefcase you've got now, but it comes with a nice one-foot-square array of solar panels that add just half a pound of weight to what you're already carrying.

That extra weight can take some pressure off of you and make it easier to charge your devices on the go. Just plug your devices into the bag when you're in the car, on the plane, or in a meeting, and they'll be fully charged in 2-4 hours.

Sadly, the ProFolio doesn't pack enough juice (pun intended) to charge a laptop, although it is big enough to carry one. Maybe the next generation of bags will do better.

But until then, the ProFolio could be a flexible and affordable alternative for charging your devices. It's just $299 right now, although that introductory price will soon jump to $399.99.

Oh, BTW, the ProFolio is made out of recycled materials. Just in case that little bit of green information helps you make your buying decision.

The World's Greenest Garbage Can

jplatt — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 11:00:00 -0400

Did you know that the average garbage truck gets just 2.8 miles to the gallon of diesel fuel? It's true. In fact, garbage trucks get the worst fuel economy of any type of commercial vehicle.

Why such bad gas mileage? Well, garbage trucks are big, fleets tend to be pretty old, and their drivers have to make stops every few hundred feet while keeping engines running the whole time.

With this in mind, and with fuel prices soaring, it makes sense for municipalities, universities and businesses with large campuses to find ways to cut their garbage collection costs. The BigBelly Solar Compactor can help.

No bigger than any other outdoor garbage receptacle, the BigBelly uses the sun's rays to power an internal compactor which crushes its content, allowing it to hold five times as much as your average garbage can. This means it doesn't need to be emptied as often, which saves fuel costs, cuts labor costs, and reduces a whole lot of greenhouses gases in the process.

The BigBelly Solar Compactor costs $4,000 -- but BigBelly says the device can pay for itself in just a year and a half. And that's not trash-talk.

eco ideas

On the Go? Charge Your Devices with a Solar-Powered Briefcase

The World's Greenest Garbage Can