Energy-saving Handhelds

Since handheld gadgets like cell phones, iPods and
BlackBerrys run on batteries, sometimes we forget that
charging and recharging adds to the electric bill. Thankfully
some forward-looking companies are developing innovative ways
to power the gadgets that run our lives.

The Eco Media Player is an iPod-like handheld device that can
be loaded with music and video files via a standard SD memory
card. What's not standard about this media player is that you
can power up the battery with a hand crank that unfolds from
of the back of the unit. One minute of cranking gets you 40
minutes of audio playing power. The technology is based on
the famous hand-crank emergency radios that inventor Trevor
Baylis developed for aid workers and villagers in rural
Africa.

Alternative fuels are another way to get electronics off the
power grid. A company called Angstrom Power recently
presented a prototype cell phone at the 2008 Consumer
Electronics Show that runs on a tiny hydrogen fuel cell. The
company claims that its Micro Hydrogen fuel cell platform
fits right into existing cell phones with no modifications
and promises twice the talk time of a lithium-ion battery.
The device can be fully charged in less than 10 minutes.

A simpler way to recharge a cell phone is to rig up
a standard cell phone with a small, wearable solar panel.
Several companies are selling small arrays of solar panels
that can plug directly into cell phones or other mobile
devices. A Japanese company called Strapyanext is selling
a 12-cm (5-inch) solar cell phone charger that can produce
and store roughly 40 minutes worth of talk time during 6 to
10 hours in the sun.

Solar technology isn't limited to cell phones. The Nokia Eco
Sensor Concept is a futuristic personal digital assistant
(PDA) prototype that comes with a separate wrist sensor unit.
The wrist sensor is made out of solar cells which provide
energy for the PDA. This wrist sensor can also generate
electricity by capturing kinetic energy from natural arm
movements, like some watches already do today. The screen of
the Nokia PDA will use a highly efficient technology called
electrowetting. In place of pixels on a screen, it uses tiny
drops of oil that expand and contract with electrical charges.