My very first green gadget was a SavaPlug that I wired to an old freezer that was used to store my allotment produce. The old freezer saw its demise a few years ago and has been replaced with a super-efficient model, but it was the start of my love affair with green gadgetry. Wow, haven’t things moved on? Be warned, I’m no ecogeek, so don’t go expecting technical specifications and other techno-bafflement. This is my pick of green gadgets for the masses.
1. Freeplay Energy compact DAB wind up radio & flashlight
I’ll admit a bit of a penchant for wind-up stuff, so this one’s first on the list. The latest radio offering from Freeplay is a lot smaller than previous wind-up radios, and as the lovely Richard from Freeplay puts it in this video, the radio gives you more reward for your wind with an improved cranking mechanism.
2. Philips Eco TV
This sexy looking high-definition LCD television won the “Best in Show” award at CES2008. It’s the perfect telly for your off-grid home with several power saving features meaning it uses less electricity than a 100W lightbulb to run. These will be available from March in the States, with a price tag of just under $1400. Philips UK say they’ll be out here in March or April too, priced at £999.
3. Everex Cloudbook P40
A super-compact laptop with a battery that keeps going for five hours thanks to it’s low-voltage processor from Via. It comes with plenty of pre-installed open source software and is available from the end of January from Walmart stores in the US at $399. Sadly it seems these are going to be hard to get hold of in the UK, but things may change. Doesn’t ASDA belong to Walmart? Mmm, somehow I don’t see these lining the shelves of ASDA. Click here to read more…
Newsflash! There’s a UK mobile service provider who cares more about the environment than making massive profits.
Green Mobile has some great packages that give something back to the environment. Firstly, they encourage you to keep your current phone rather than upgrade when you switch to them. They offer refurbished phones with contracts as well as new “greener” phones, and plant trees or support an environmental charity for every new customer. And to top it all off, their line rental is cheaper than that of Orange, Vodafone, T-mobile and O2.
What are greener phones?
Green Mobile are set to be the first to introduce the new “Sunflower Phone” to the UK. It’s a totally biodegradable phone that has a built-in seed that will grow once the phone is planted in the ground.
Find out more and switch at the Green Mobile website.
Like it or not, xmas means shopping to lots of people. In an effort to minimise the damage caused by excess consumerism, we can choose to give gifts that have a lesser impact on the environment, aren’t made in sweatshops or even better, go for something handmade. Of course, the most eco-friendly thing you can do it not go shopping this holiday season, but if you’re not going to go that route, here are some suggestion for gifts that are a lesser evil.
Electronics & Gadgets
This is a good gadget. In Stephen Fry’s recent review of it he declared: “Eat Trevor’s dust, Apple!” The Trevor Baylis Eco Media Player plays music, video and fm radio, and also functions as a torch, sound recorder, photo viewer, mobile phone charger, ebook viewer and data storage device. You can even record your old LPs onto it. It has a dual power system, so if you’re away from your power source (in this case your PC/laptop USB port) for a while, who cares, just wind it up. You get 40 minutes audio play time for each 1 minute of winding. The Eco Media Player features a 1.8″ screen, and 2 gigabytes of internal memory, which holds around 500 songs, and can be expanded by adding an SD Memory Card. £169.99 £134.99. Free shipping with promo code FSCS25 until 21st December 2007. I’m getting one of these babies for my birthday in a couple of weeks time, can’t wait!
Here’s a little something for boys of all ages. The H-Racer is the world’s smallest hydrogen powered fuel-cell car, a futuristic toy car containing one of the most exciting and advanced technologies of the 21st century. With new advances in technology, hydrogen is on its way to becoming the world’s next fuel. The H-racer is the working miniature version of what is being developed in real-size cars of the future, which are also called “zero emissions vehicles”. I can just see boys and their dads falling head over heels for one of these. £74.99 including delivery.
The Eton FR200 Wind Up Radio with Flashlight is ideal for camping, gardening and even in emergencies. The radio has a heavy-duty, splash-proof ABS plastic case, a long-lasting rechargeable battery pack and gives you access to AM, FM, and 11 International Shortwave bands, so you can stay informed where ever you are, even in emergency conditions. Just one minute of winding will give you approximately an hour of radio operation. A gift that will appeal to geeks, hunks or grandpas.£23.99.
Fashion Handbags and gladrags tend to make an appearance at this time of year. This gorgeous bag wouldn’t be out of place now or at any other time of the year for that matter. The Fairtrade felt Flower Bag is handmade in Nepal by local village women. It’s fully lined and zips up, keeping keys and purses safe. Buying Fairtrade gifts is a wonderful way to give back something at Christmas time to people who work hard for wages that are much lower than ours. £18.50 including delivery.
Food & Drink
Food is such a great gift not only because it brings pleasure to the recipient, but also because it’s something that can be all used up, there’s nothing leftover to go to landfill. And what’s more of a luxury than beautiful and delicious cake and deserts. Tom and Ant’s organic cakes are a feast for the eyes, the taste buds and the stomach. This Christmas Celebration package contains a 10″ cake of your choice and a large mixed desert box, including brownies, chocolates and fudge. £55 including delivery.
Gifts for the Home
This is such a cool gift that it won the Gift Association’s Eco-friendly Gift of the Year Award this year. The Sun Jar is a traditional Mason jar containing a highly efficient solar cell, rechargeable battery and three low energy LED lamps. During the day, put the jar in a sunny location where the solar cell creates an electrical current that charges the battery over a few hours. At night, this energy powers the warm coloured LEDs in the jar, the light of which is diffused by the frosted jar. The jar is watertight so the jar can be put outside to benefit from maximum sunlight. Makes an excellent garden light, mood lighting or night light for children. £19.95.
I hummed and hawed about putting this item on the gift list. It is a piece of furniture, and I’ve never bought anyone a piece of furniture for Christmas, but if you’re one of those couples who buys something together for your home instead of a gift each, or if you have a son or daughter (or friend) who’s just bought their first home, this may be just the thing you’ve been after. They’re called Rock’n'roll shelves, a unique shelving system made in Sweden from unbleached high density paperboard. They are paintable, washable, not inflammable and fully recyclable. I think you’ll agree that they’re also beautiful. £189.99 for a pack of 5 rolls. To make the pictured configuration you’d need two packs.
Kids Stuff
“He thought he could fly up in his spaceship and just grab the star. But his spaceship had run out of petrol last Tuesday when he flew to the moon.” A quote from How to Catch a Star, one of my daughter’s favourite story books. Rockets and spaceships play a big part in children’s fantasies, and this really cool Paperpod Rocket is eco-friendly too. It’s not just a toy rocket, small astronauts can actually fit inside it for planetary exploration missions. It’s made from recycled cardboard, is a blank canvas for budding artists to decorate and personalise, and can be folded away at the end of play. This really appeals to my motherly side, and to the side of me that likes a tidy living room once the kids have gone to bed. £29.99.
The Lorax is a classic in every way. Who doesn’t love Dr Seuss? And this is no ordinary Dr Seuss book, in this book Dr Seuss gets serious and spells out an ecological warning that is as relevant today as it ever was. A great book to get children into the ideas of environmentalism and earth stewardship (although sometimes I think it’s the kids that get it, and it’s the grown-ups who should be reading books like these). By buying a child a copy of this book, you’re passing along an important message in a most enjoyable way. £3.99.
This is the best value wooden kitchen that I’ve come across. I bought one for my daughter 18 months ago and it’s stood up extremely well to being played with on a daily basis. I heartily recommend this all-in-one kitchen for its durability, for being fantastic value for money and for being compact enough to be wheeled into a corner at the end of the day. The kitched includes cooker, hob, washing machine and sink. £79.95.
Book Recommendation
This great read has been the top-seller in our bookshop since I reviewed it back in June. In “How to live off-grid“, Nick Rosen goes into every detail of off-grid living. He provides not only the inspiration to get off the beaten track and find your own space, he also provides countless resources to help you do just what he suggests. To gather the information to write this book, Nick took to the road with his wife and baby daughter in a converted care bus fuelled by vegetable oil and sun. They toured the UK meeting with off-gridders of all sorts. Yurt-dwellers, communards, utopians and rural squatters were all on Nick’s path, all living happy and comfortable lives completely off-grid. Their stories are fascinating, inspiring and sometimes quite far-out. But they all have some lessons to pass on to those of us who until now have only dream about being self-sufficient. £9.09.
Swedish Firesteel - For outdoors enthusiasts, these are really cool little gadgets. No need for lighters or matches. With one of these you can pretend you’re Ray Mears. £14.95 £11.95
Cool eco-friendly bag carriers 4U 2ReUSE
USA hand-made, eco-friendly bag carriers, made out of reused materials -broken or defective kite sails, parachutes...- hemp or organic cotton. You won't forget your bags ever again.
We are committed to reducing the waste of polyethylene-based bags and upholding sustainable business standards as well as fair labor practices.
A Cooler Planet
An eco lifestyle store that carries unique items to live more sustainably from morning to night. From beautiful organic mattresses and linens for baby to adult. Fun and unique gifts. Great options to free yourself from plastic. Purest organic skincare
4U2ReUSE cool eco-friendly bag carriers
USA hand-made, eco-friendly bag carriers, made out of reused materials -broken or defective kite sails, parachutes...- and organic fabrics. You won't forget your bags ever again.
We are committed to reducing the waste of polyethylene-based bags and upholding sustainable business standards as well as fair labor practices.
Organic Revolution
We are an organic veg box delivery service based in Kington, serving Herefordshire and Powys. We try to use our own produce or source locally as far as possible.
This is a good gadget. In Stephen Fry’s recent review of it he declared: “Eat Trevor’s dust, Apple!” The 
Here’s a little something for boys of all ages. The 
The 
Handbags and gladrags tend to make an appearance at this time of year. This gorgeous bag wouldn’t be out of place now or at any other time of the year for that matter. The 
Food is such a great gift not only because it brings pleasure to the recipient, but also because it’s something that can be all used up, there’s nothing leftover to go to landfill. And what’s more of a luxury than beautiful and delicious cake and deserts. Tom and Ant’s organic cakes are a feast for the eyes, the taste buds and the stomach. This 
This is such a cool gift that it won the Gift Association’s Eco-friendly Gift of the Year Award this year. The 
I hummed and hawed about putting this item on the gift list. It is a piece of furniture, and I’ve never bought anyone a piece of furniture for Christmas, but if you’re one of those couples who buys something together for your home instead of a gift each, or if you have a son or daughter (or friend) who’s just bought their first home, this may be just the thing you’ve been after. They’re called 
“He thought he could fly up in his spaceship and just grab the star. But his spaceship had run out of petrol last Tuesday when he flew to the moon.” A quote from 
This is the best value wooden kitchen that I’ve come across. I bought one for my daughter 18 months ago and it’s stood up extremely well to being played with on a daily basis. I heartily recommend this 
This great read has been the top-seller in our bookshop 
