Written by: Adrienne Brookbanks
When it comes to energy-efficient, sustainable gadgets, there are more impressive options and technological advancements than ever before. From solar powered mosquito zapper lanterns to clocks that run on water, we’ve found some of the coolest eco gadgets on the market:
The Dell Studio Hybrid Desktop
This power-efficient consumer desktop has an ultra-compact design. The desktop uses Intel® Core™2 Duo Mobile Processors, which use about 70% less power than a normal desktop. The packaging of the desktop is also made from 95% recyclable materials and the smallest design is approximately 80% smaller than standard desktops.
It also offers all the right features, including the following:
- Interchangeable colours or premium sleeves
- Intel mobile technology performance
- High-definition multimedia interface (HDMI)
- Optional Blu-ray
- Slot-load DVD
- Optional digital/analog TV tuner so that you can watch television, pause and record live TV
- Up to 4GB memory
- Five USB 2.0 compliant ports
The Bedol water-powered clock
Bedol’s water-powered clock doesn’t need any type of batteries – this green clock runs on water and the built-in electrodes just use the water to power itself. The only drawback of the clock is that you have to fill it with tap water every 12 to 14 weeks (but the clock won’t lose time while you are changing the water thanks to the built-in memory chip).
While the normal clocks don’t have an alarm function, Bedol has launched a separate water clock alarm called Wink that features daily or hourly alarms and an easy to set 12 hour or 24 hour clock.
Solar powered mosquito zapper lantern
Now you can enjoy a meal on your stoop, a braai outside or a camping trip without irritating mosquitos and bugs – and the best part is that you don’t even need electricity or disposable batteries to power this mosquito zapper.
The lantern has an LED light that attracts bugs and, as the name implies, it has solar panels that charge the battery within the lantern. The solar powered mosquito zapper lantern needs to be placed outside in the sun during the day and if it is fully charged it will zap bugs and mozzies for five hours.
Moonputty
Why replace things when they can be fixed? For small repairs in and around your home, you can use Moonputty epoxy putty to make repairs and minimise your waste.
What makes Moonputty such a great handyman accessory is the fact that it is super strong and can repair practically everything such as ceramics, plastic, wood, steel and more.
To use the Moonputty, you will need to cut a piece off and knead it with your fingers to activate the adhesives. You won’t need any extra equipment and the putty will dry within a few minutes – quick and simple.
Solar powered rain sensors
These solar powered rain sensors from Orbit make sure that your sprinkling system goes off once it starts raining. So not only will you be using renewable energy, but this gadget makes ensures you aren’t wasting water on your lawn when it’s already raining outside.
The Shakenergy Mint Mattery
MintPass’s Shakenergy Mint Battery takes rechargeable batteries to the next level – all you have to do to recharge these batteries is shake them. Instead of buying rechargeable batteries (that need to be plugged into an electricity outlet to get recharged), you can simply shake these batteries for power.
The Office Pod
If you work from home – this is the ultimate eco gadget for you. The OfficePOD is a 2.1m x 2.1m customisable pod that is built from recycled materials and it was designed to reduce your carbon footprint by 46% to 67% per annum.
“The building of bigger and taller air conditioned office buildings do not feature in OfficePOD’s vision of the future. Indeed, further large scale office developments are fundamentally unsustainable in light of the long term targets to cut emissions,” says the manufacturers of OfficePOD on their website (www.officepod.co.uk).
The people at OfficePOD recon that average commute time per week is about eight hours (an entire extra working day) and that working from home is rarely effective if you are working at the kitchen table or in the spare bedroom. These modular pods can be set up in your garden – giving you a great place to work in your own, eco-friendly office.
The liveeco team
