Eco-friendly gadgets 2

Thu, 27 Mar 2008
Comment on this article

Not all electronic devices guzzle energy and waste precious natural resources. Robert Irvine presents 5 more eco-friendly gadgets that won’t cost the Earth

Not all electronic devices guzzle energy and waste precious natural resources. Robert Irvine presents 5 more eco-friendly gadgets that won’t cost the Earth

Lili and Oscar
Bring colour and character to your desktop with the funky and eco-friendly PC peripherals Lili and Oscar. This quirky 1.3-megapixel webcam (with microphone) and four-port USB hub are constructed from 70 per cent Fairtrade material – cotton, paperboard and kapok (a naturally-occurring tree fibre), housed in 100 per cent recyclable packaging.
Shaped like an octopus and a starfish, these United Pepper products are available in red, blue or green.
Buy Lili Webcam at Amazon for £25.30 and buy Oscar USB Hub at Amazon for £18.09.

Eco Media Player
Trevor Baylis has expanded the concept behind his revolutionary wind-up radio with the hand-powered Eco Media Player.
This lets you enjoy photos, music and video on the move without worrying about running out of juice or wasting environmentally-harmful batteries. One minute of winding gives up to 40 minutes of play time (it can also be charged via USB), while extra features include a voice recorder, 2GB of on-board storage (expandable with a memory card), and the ability to charge your mobile phone.
Buy Eco Friendly Media Player at Amazon for £139.99

Citizen Eco-Drive watch
Many people simply choose to upgrade when the battery of their current watch dies. Opt for a battery-free Citizen Eco-Drive model and you have a watch for life.
These ultra-snazzy timepieces use solar panels and energy cells to source and store power, remaining charged even when exposed only to artificial light. Eco-Drives are available in a variety of styles for both men and women, at prices ranging from £80 to more than £500.
Buy a Citizen Eco-Drive Watch at Amazon for £108.95.

Plextor PlexEraser PX-OE100E
Using a disc shredder or your bare hands to destroy old CDs and DVDs may be good for confidentiality but isn’t so great for the environment.
To prevent toxic dye particles from the coating leaking into the air, you can erase sensitive data from discs using the Plextor PlexEraser.

This takes just a few minutes to wipe your recordable or rewritable media clean so you can recycle it securely, and features a distinctive orange tray to deter accidental deletions.
Buy Plextor PlexEraser PX-OE100E at Amazon for £105.04.

Water-powered alarm clock
Eau dear, is that the time? Yes, it’s an alarm clock powered entirely by water, eliminating the need for batteries and offering a literal means of making a drink last for hours.
Just add water to the device’s reservoir and the digital clock and alarm will be fully functional within three minutes.
If the display starts fading, simply add more liquid to recharge the thirsty timekeeper, though it’s probably best to keep it away from alcohol.
Buy the H2O Water Powered Digi Alarm Clock for £8.99 at Amazon.