Last December, Andy reviewed the K750 and loved it. The only problems with it were the lack of a Mac specific version that could take advantage of the special apps required to view charging info and the special function keys didn’t work. Those problems are now history because Logitech has just announced a Mac version of the K750 that’s available today for $59.99. Now Apple fans can fully enjoy the K750 wireless keyboard which uses light to keep it powered (even indoors).

Filed in categories: Desktop Computer Gear, News

Tagged: Keyboard, OS X, Solar, Wireless

Logitech’s K750 Wireless Solar Keyboard is now available for the Mac originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on October 26, 2011 at 5:04 pm.

Everyone knows that electricity bills are getting higher and higher, and often we’re burning up precious fossil fuels to create this power.  Now Solar Panels are becoming a viable solution even for the average consumer these days but tend to be expensive, delicate, require specialised installation and look pretty ugly up there on the roof,

Well at CEATAC, 3M demonstrated it’s new special film developed to coat ordinary, existing windows and convert them into solar panels. Made from an organic photovoltaic material the film not only  generates energy from sunlight but also absorbs over 90% of infrared light, resulting in a cooling effect as well.

The film’s narrow, translucent green strips have gaps between them and are glued onto the window in large patches.  Unlike solar paneling, the film is easy to install and according to 3M senior manager Ashuiro Aoyagi can be installed by the average person.  It’s worth noting though that the film only generates about 20 percent of the power generated by a regular solar panel so a 1m square only generates roughly enough power to charge a smartphone under direct  sunlight.

Pricing and availability are not yet available.

See 3M’s Solar Energy Site for more information on their currently available solutions.

Filed in categories: Do-It-Yourself, Miscellaneous, News

Tagged: Solar

3M Solar Panel Window Film originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on October 12, 2011 at 3:05 pm.

The wireless power consortium is trying to drive a standard for wireless charging, called QI wireless charging. The goal is to enable a future where there is no need to connect your gadget to any cable for charging. Panasonic took advantage of the security show in Japan to show a solar power table with QI wireless charging capability. You can put your cellphone, camera or any other gadget with QI enable battery on one of the four charging pads, and the table will convert the sun light to electricity and charge your device. Panasonic is planning to offer this table for sale by the end of 2011/early 2012. Expect to see more products with QI wireless charging capabilities in the coming months. I wouldn’t mind to have wireless charging using solar panels capability in my car.

More details on QI wireless charging technology can found in the wireless power consortium site.

Filed in categories: News, Outdoor Gear

Tagged: charging, Solar

Panasonic demonstrates solar-power table with QI wireless charging technology originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on March 25, 2011 at 10:00 am.

With the proliferation of electronic gadgets it gets difficult to keep your tools charged. Most electronic devices have moved to a standard USB port for charging. This is a welcome change. Now I can use my AC USB port at home, the USB port in my laptop at work, my USB car adapter on the road, and finally, my USB portable charger anywhere.

The Arctic C1 is cleverly designed to enable me to recharge any device with a USB adapter (or one of the included adapters) with what is essentially, a spare battery. The twist with this device is the inclusion of a solar cell. I can recharge this battery using the sun (or indoor light) as well as the more conventional USB port.

What’s in the Clamshell

First off, it comes in a plastic clamshell. So things did not start off well. I am not a fan of this packaging, it is an unfortunate choice. I wish I could wrestle this gadget from Julie.

Once you manage to free the charger from its plastic tomb you discover a number of items:

• Charger
• Manual
• Cable with multiple tips

Here is a look at the back of the charger:

The specs for the Charger:

• 4.3″ by 1.7″ by .47″
• 4440 mWh Li-ion battery
• 5.5 V, 80 mA Solar Panel
• 5.5 V, 300 mA USB input
• 5.5 V, 500 mA USB output

The cable includes adapters for:

• Nokia
• Sony Ericsson
• Samsung
• Mini-USB

However, if you have a USB charging cable for your device, you do not need the included cable or tips.

Charging the Charger

Before you can use the charger, it needs to be charged. There are two ways to charge it. You can let the solar panel charge it, or plug it into a 5V USB power source. The solar option is nice, but can take awhile. To charge it using USB you plug the power source (for example, your computer’s USB port) into the Mini USB port of the charger.

The Mini-USB port on the left is used to charge the charger, the regular USB port on the right is used to plug in the device you want charged. A very simple, and straightforward approach.

The C1 has 3 unlabeled LEDs on the front. These indicate if the battery is charging.

The LEDs are the three dots in the above picture. The manual labels them A, B, and C. In this picture, A is the top LED, and C is the bottom.

When the battery is charging via the Solar Panel, LED C lights up. When you are connected via USB to charge, LED A lights up. So, if you are not sure there is enough light, you can check the third LED. If it is not lit, you either have insufficient light, or the battery is full. I found charging via USB to be a better option. Simply plug it in, and when the first light goes out, your battery is full.

Charging Your Device

The included cables and tips cover a wide variety of devices. Fortunately, most of the devices I use today charge via USB, therefore I just use one for the cables I already have. Plug the cable into the regular USB port (it is clearly marked as OUT on the back of the charger) and attach your device. Now the three LEDs indicate how much charge the Charger’s battery has:

• 1 LED 10-30%
• 2 LEDs 30-70%
• 3 LEDs 70-100%

I have used this to successfully charge multiple Android phones, an iPod Touch and an iPod Nano. I have had no issue with it, and it is quite handy. Besides packaging, my only complaint is the battery size. I would definitely be interested in a version with a larger battery. Even fully charged, it will not fully recharge my Droid X, but it is a great way to keep my phone going in a pinch. This has earned a permanent spot in my laptop case.

Filed in categories: Gear, Reviews

Tagged: Battery, Charger, Solar

Arctic C1 Mobile Portable Universal Charger Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on February 10, 2011 at 12:00 pm.

The Noisehush N650 from WirelessGround is a bluetooth carkit that enables hands-free operation of your cellphone while you are driving.  It attaches to the car window, it charges by solar power, and it has control buttons on its face.  So would I replace my bluetooth headset for this baby?  Let’s find out.

I have been a long-time bluetooth headset user.  Therefore I have looked like a total dork for many years.  But hey, I look at it like I am saving lives my friend because I can pay more attention while I am driving and I don’t run over anyone’s toes with the shopping cart in Wal-Mart.  Bluetooth is a beautiful thing and I have embraced my geekness.  So I love testing bluetooth devices that can make my life easier.

I reviewed the Plantronics Voyager Pro UC bluetooth headset back in February 2010 and loved it.  I still use it every day, and I knew the Noisehush had its work cut out if it was going to replace the Voyager Pro.  I use my Voyager Pro with my PC as well as my cellphone, so it gets alot of use.  But the Noisehush was specifically designed for use in the car, so I can’t say that they compete with each other.   However, the reality is that I have my Voyager Pro on my head for a large portion of the day, so when I get in my car it is already on my head.  From that perspective the Noisehush has to find a place in my life where the Voyager Pro already has a strong foothold.

Let me start with the features of this device:

• Uses Bluetooth 2.1
• Talk time of 10 hours
• Standby time of 160 hours
• Charging time of 2 hours
• Solar panel is 5.5V, 50 mA
• Stores history of last 20 calls
• Comes with a USB cable and cigarette lighter adapter
• USB cable can be used to connect to PC

As you can see, it has a USB charging port on the right side, which doubles as the USB connection to your pc if you wanted to connect it.  It has a button above that called the ‘A/B’ button, which I’ll explain in a minute.  On the left side of the device is the on/off button.  There is nothing on the top or bottom of the device.  You can see a comparison of the size compared to my Droid Incredible, so the Noisehush is pretty small.  And I can’t explain just how light this thing is…. incredibly light.  The bottom 2/3 of the front of the device is a speaker, which is very loud.  I found myself turning the volume down when in a call because it was just so loud, which is not a complaint by the way.  That is better than not being able to hear.  Below the LCD screen at the top are 3 buttons… the larger call answer/hangup button in the middle and the volume up and down to either side.

The solar panel takes up about half of the back, and the clear plastic cradle that it snaps into (by way of small magnets at the corners) has a hole so that the solar panel is unobstructed for maximum charging ability.  The plastic cradle also has suction cups that enable you to attach it to the window of your car.  Here are some pictures of the Noisehush in my car window.

You get a graphic on the LCD panel when it is charging, and as you can see the LCD screen folds out so that you can see it when it is mounted at an angle on the windshield.  My only complaint with the Noisehush is the location of the microphone.  Here is a picture with a red arrow pointing to where the mic is located.

The mic is located right in the middle of that place where the LCD screen bends outward.  In fact, when the LCD screen is folded back into the device the mic hole is almost covered up.  It is good that it is located on the right side of the device, but I wish it had been placed in a different location.  It seems really odd to me that they didn’t put the mic hole on the front somewhere, or better yet on the fold out screen itself.  That would have made much more sense from a usability standpoint, but perhaps there is a technical reason why.  The problem with this is that I found that when there was alot of road noise (or in one case heavy rain) I had to lean into the device for the other person to hear me better.  The sound wasn’t as clear as expected, and I honestly don’t know of any other possible reason except for the location of the mic.

The LCD screen is a very bright blue and was clearly visible to me even during a bright day.  And of course it displays caller ID information so it’s easy to see who is calling.  And as you can see the buttons also light up blue for a few seconds when you press one of them.  A nice touch with those buttons is that you can use the buttons on the Noisehush to answer calls, reject calls, hang up, redial last number, voice dial, and switch the call back to the phone.  So the buttons are multi-function and are very responsive.  I could even press the middle button twice quickly and it would allow me to voice dial over bluetooth on my phone.  I use that all the time.

You can also transfer your phone’s contacts to the Noisehush without connecting it to your phone or computer.  Simply press and hold the A/T button on the right side and it automatically transfer your phone’s contacts into the address book on the unit.  It took about 10 min. to transfer all my contacts (about 300) from my phone.  The on-board address book on the unit can hold up to 400 contacts, but using it wasn’t useful to me.  Selecting phone numbers using the address book on the Noisehush wasn’t that easy for me because of the vast number of contacts I have, plus the angle of my windshield made it awkward.

It pairs as you would expect.  Hold the power button down and after 6 seconds are so, the unit turns on in pairing mode.  It paired up right away with both cellphones that I tested it with (my Droid Incredible and the Verizon Envy 3).  The manual says it can remember up to 8 devices to pair with, but I didn’t test that.  I should also mention that if my Voyager Pro was already paired with my cellphone, the Noisehush wouldn’t connect until I turned off the Voyager Pro.  The unit will turn off automatically if it can’t connect with any devices for 10 minutes.  It goes into standby mode if it can’t connect with any devices, like when I get out of the car and walk into work for example.  So you have to press the on/off button to turn it back on when you get back in the car.

Conclusions

If I had to give the Noisehush a rating out of 10 stars, I would probably give it 8.5, maybe 9 stars.  It isn’t perfect, but it is really an excellent device and I can recommend it.  The solar battery holds a charge well and after 2 long trips in the car of over 5 hours each, it never died on me and was able to charge constantly in the sun.  So I didn’t need the cigarette lighter charger.  Because it is held into the cradle with small magnets, it easily pops right in and out without having to remove the cradle and suction cups.

Because of my heavy use of the Voyager Pro, I won’t be relying on the Noisehush for 100% of my bluetooth needs in the car.  But I will be using it for sure.  It is always charging in my windshield, and occasionally I do forget to bring my headset so it’s nice having it there.  It is really nice for letting everyone in the car hear the caller, and because of its ease of use and the fact that it automatically pairs every time with my phone, I will continue to use it.  Also, when my wife drives my car it will automatically pair with her phone and she can use it as well.

Filed in categories: Bluetooth Gear, Car Gear, Reviews

Tagged: Bluetooth Gear, Cellphone, Solar

Noisehush N650 Solar Bluetooth Carkit Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on December 12, 2010 at 5:59 pm.

The SoliLight SoliCharger is a solar powered battery charging pack for your iPhone. In addition to keeping your phone charged, with the included USB adapter kit, it will also charge most other brands of MP3 players, cell phones, digital cameras, GPS units, etc. But what intrigues me most about this solar charger is the fact that they say it will work with incandescent light as well as the sun. I’ve tried a few solar chargers over the years and have had problems placing them in a location with enough direct sunlight to charge the solar cell. If this one really does work indoors, it sounds like a great free power sourc. Price $59.95.

Filed in categories: iPhone, iPad, iPod related, News

Tagged: Charger, iPhone, Solar, Spotlight Gadgets

Solar iPhone charger that even works indoors originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on September 15, 2010 at 1:00 pm.

LEDs aren’t just for flashlights in your pocket or lightbulbs in your home. They can also be an easy way to add some flare to your garden without having to run wires or even use electricity to power them. Today we are going to take a look at 3 different solar powered LED garden lights from Britta Products.

Hanging Solar Garden Light

We’ve all seen outdoor LED accent lights that are designed to stick in the ground, but here’s one that you can hang from a tree, deck railing, etc.

These frosted plastic cone shaped lights come in a set of 3. Don’t they remind you of a Christmas ornament?

This light is made of two parts. The opaque cone and the solar cell / battery / LED housing. As you can see, there’s also a plastic coated cord that is used to hang the light.

The battery / solar cell housing pulls out of the cone so that you can turn the light on and off for storage. You can see the LED bulb in the center of the housing.

Because these lights are solar powered, you have to charge the internal batteries with the sun. The instructions that are included with the lights suggest at least 5 hrs of direct sunlight. So that’s what I did.

After the charging time was complete, I hung the lights from the roof of my covered porch and waited for night to fall. All of these lights have circuitry that only turns on the LEDs when it’s dark outside.

Once night fell, the lights started glowing. Sorry for the crummy image. It’s difficult to take pictures in the dark.

These lights don’t put out a lot of light, so don’t expect to be able to read with them. They are just accent lights.

I was able to get 3 nights of enjoyment from them before the internal batteries were completely drained. Since the lights were hanging under the roof line, they did not get any direct sunlight during the day to keep the batteries charged. That’s something to consider before buying them. Hanging lights are very unique, but the fact that you have to make sure they get a few hours of direct sunlight, might make them more trouble than they are worth if you have to take them down every few days to recharge them.

They are available from Amazon in a set of 3 for $39.95.

Solar Ray Garden Path Light

These light are more traditional as far as how they are located in your garden. They stick into the ground. That’s were the traditional design ends, because they look very futuristic.

The lights have two parts. The light itself and then metal and plastic stake that sticks in the ground.

I call this the cobra light because it looks like the head of the poisonous snake. Their design / style probably isn’t for everyone. The person I live with says they are hideous

The light head is made of Black plastic, with the large solar cell on top.

These lights are larger than most that I’ve seen before, but they are light weight.

Behind the stake post, there is an on / off switch.

Like the cone shaped light, this one also needs to be charged before it can be used. These lights are easier to manage as long as you locate them in an area where they can get a few hours of direct sunlight each day. You can click the image above to see how I arranged them next to my side walk.

Here they are in the dark along with the multi-colored lights that I’ll talk about next.

I haven’t had any issues with these lights and I do like that they turn on at dusk instead of when it’s pitch black out.  That said, I’m not really a fan of the way they look. They look too modern for my rustic setting / style. But that’s just me.

They are available from Amazon in a set of 4 for $39.95.

Solar Multi-Colored Garden Path Light

I saved the best for last… These lights are my favorites because they don’t just glow white (you can switch them to white only though), they have a cool color cycling feature.

They are one piece with a metal wrapped stake and a snowflake glass light housing. These lights feel much more robust than the other two.

There’s a switch on the underside of the solar cell that controls power and the white vs. color cycling feature.

After you charge the solar cell in the sunlight for several hours, you can enjoy the unique color feature of these lights, that cycles red, blue, green and all the colors in between.

See it in Action

Like I mentioned above, these are my favorite of the 3 lights reviewed here. The only thing I don’t like about them is that they don’t come on till it’s very dark outside. Other than that, they are unique and add a cool touch to your garden.

They are available from Amazon in a set of 2 for $19.95.

Filed in categories: Outdoor Gear, Reviews

Tagged: Outdoor, Solar

Britta LED Solar Garden Lights Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 9, 2010 at 11:39 am.

Two weeks ago Janet reviewed the Etón SolarLink FR360 Emergency Preparedness Digital Radio and today Etón has announced a new product for the iPhone / iPod touch. It’s the Soulra Sound System, a splash proof speaker system with a flip up high efficiency solar panel and a rechargeable lithium-ion battery that delivers power to charge and play your iPod or iPhone. It also has a battery indicator that lets you know when it’s time to charge via AC or sunlight. Available now in Black for retail $199. Full press release after the jump.

(Palo Alto, CA – June 2, 2010) – Etón, a leading emergency preparedness company and creator of green-powered electronics for everyday adventures, announces Soulra – the new portable, solar-powered sound system for iPod and iPhone. Featuring a large solar panel and a rubberized exterior, the Soulra provides a portable sound solution that you may never have to plug in – providing hours of sound powered by the sun.

POWER

As a new self-sustaining sound system on the market, the Soulra provides portability for an on-the-go lifestyle. The Soulra contains a large, high-efficiency solar panel and a rechargeable lithium-ion battery that delivers power to charge and play your iPod or iPhone. In addition, the battery charge indicator alerts you when you need to recharge the Soulra in direct sunlight or via an AC outlet.

PROTECT

To provide a solution for all-weather use outdoors, the Soulra has an aluminum and rubberized body providing ultimate durability, while maintaining a modern, sleek design.  Its rugged case is IPX-4 splash proof and the speakers are sealed on the inside – providing protection from sand, water and other outdoor elements.

PLAY

Soulra’s full-range speaker drivers provide crisp highs, balanced mids and bass-boosted lows.  The Soulra also contains an audio line input for added flexibility.

“There has been a void in the consumer market for a quality, green-powered digital music player and we are excited to make this never-been-seen introduction with the Soulra,” said Esmail Amid-Hozour, CEO of Etón Corporation. “Not only does Soulra offer an unmatched level of performance and technology, but it also comes to market with rugged good looks. Whether you are camping, spending a day at the beach or tailgating – the Soulra will be a mainstay at any outdoors event.”

Available now in black for retail $199, Soulra comes packaged with an AC adapter, remote control and user manual. For more information or to purchase the system, visit www.etonsoulra.com.

About Etón Corporation

Headquartered in Palo Alto, CA, Etón Corporation is an established leader in providing trusted emergency preparedness and outdoor products for more than 25 years. A brand that is constantly evolving, Etón has a history in providing products that harness the power of the sun and provide people with essentials like Light, Information and Energy in times of emergency. Etón is a proud supporter of the American Red Cross and American Park Network, making annual donations to each organization, in part through the sale of its emergency preparedness and outdoor products. For more information on Etón Corporation, please visit www.etoncorp.com.

Filed in categories: iPhone, iPad, iPod related, News

Tagged: iPhone, Solar, Speaker, Spotlight Gadgets

Etón Harnesses the Sun to Play Tunes from your iPhone originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on June 2, 2010 at 9:28 am.

I live in the piedmont region of North Carolina.  In exchange for our usually mild winters, we have hot, humid summers that are ripe for thunderstorms and even tornados.  (We’ve already had tornados in the area this year, and it’s not even summer yet.)  We often also find ourselves in the path of hurricanes.  About 6-7 years ago, we had one especially bad summer that resulted in a series of very bad storms, one of which left 4.5 FEET of water in our basement.  When we do have a bad winter, we often get ice storms.  Winter or summer, this inclement weather often finds us without power, sometimes for days.  Just after our first tornados of the season a few weeks ago, Julie offered me the chance to try out the Etón SolarLink FR360 Emergency Preparedness Digital Radio.  I was very happy to give it a try.

I received the American Red Cross version of the Etón SolarLink FR360 radio.  When you buy an American Red Cross branded radio from Etón, they make a donation to the ARC of $0.49 to $1.00.  Etón donates $0.73 to the ARC for each SolarLink FR360.

The FR360 I received is bright red and dark gray.  The red areas have a slightly rubbery feel and a slight golden metallic sheen – very pretty!  It is 6.25” X 6.5” X 2.75” and weighs one pound.  There is a wrist strap included with the radio.  (Most of the pictures in this review – including the top picture – are clickable for an enlarged view.)

The Ni-MH battery (green) and space for three AAA batteries can be seen in the open battery compartment.

The FR360 comes with a Ni-MH battery.  The batteries are charged by the solar panel on top of the unit; it takes 10 hours of direct sunlight to fully charge the battery.  You can also power the unit and recharge the battery with an AC adapter (not included, but can be ordered from Etón for $9.95).  I was not sent the AC adapter.  You can  run the unit using three standard AAA batteries, but these will not be charged by the FR360 nor will they charge the Ni-MH battery.   There’s a hand-cranked dynamo, but this is for a short burst of power – a few minutes of radio time or a small charge to a cell phone for an emergency call.  I’m not sure you could crank it long enough to fully charge the Ni-MH battery.

I’ve been keeping the FR360 in my south-facing kitchen window so my Ni-MH battery should be charged if I need it.  After trying the hand crank, I know I’d much rather use solar power if I can!  It takes about 10 hours to charge the battery with solar power, and about 6 hours to charge with AC power.  You get about 10 hours of radio use with a full charge.  You get about 15 minutes of radio time with 90 seconds of hand-cranking.  It takes some effort to crank the dynamo, and you have to turn it at about 2 revolutions per second to produce power.  There’s a little green LED just under the DYN/SOL power selection button to let you know if you’re turning it fast enough.

The SolarLink FR360 has a lot of functions in a small package. It has AM (520-1710 kHz) & FM (87-108 MHz) radio.  There’s a telescoping antenna on the back that should be extended for FM and weather band radio, but AM reception doesn’t require it to be extended.  The FR360 receives all seven NOAA weather band stations.  You should try all seven bands and choose the one with the strongest signal. 

With AM radio, there is static between stations, but the sound is clear when a station is tuned in and the radio is oriented correctly for best reception.  FM is much quieter overall, and my local stations came in nice and clear when I extended the antenna.  I tried all the weather band stations and found that WB1 worked best for me.  With the antenna extended, WB1 was clear and easy to understand.  Naturally, with only one speaker, I didn’t get stereo reception for the FM stations.  The FR360 works well as a radio.

If you’ve listened to weather band radio before, you’ll know that they continually broadcast the forecast and other information about the weather in your area.  The FR360 has an “Alert” feature; enable it by pressing the Alert button on the right side of the clock controls.  When this is selected, the radio turns off but continues to monitor the selected weather band for emergency information.  When an emergency alert is detected, the radio turns back on and plays the information.  There is a blinking “Alert” notification on the LCD display notifying you that the radio is in the alert monitoring mode.  You won’t be able to listen to any other radio broadcasts while in the alert mode.  I like this feature.  You don’t get used to hearing the broadcast and tune it out; if you hear something from the radio, you know it’s information that you must hear.

If you find yourself without power for several days, you’ll probably need the alarm clock function.  The LCD displays the time in 12 or 24 hour mode, and there’s even a backlight for the display.  Press the DISP button to the left of the LCD panel for five seconds of light.  You can set a single alarm; there is no snooze for this alarm clock.  The alarm turns the radio on; there’s no buzzer.  The alarm will still work even if you have the weather radio set to alert mode; the weather band station will turn on at wake-up time.

The radio also has a sleep timer when you aren’t using the weather band alert mode.  The radio can be set to play for 90, 60, 30, or 10 minutes, then it will turn itself off.

The FR360 has a built-in flashlight with four white LEDs.  It gives sufficient light to find your way around in the dark.  It also has a single red LED flashing emergency light located in the center of the circular flashlight area.  I’m not sure the red signal would be strong enough to use as an emergency flare on the highway if your car breaks down, but it should attract attention to your location if someone is looking for you.

(l to r) AC in, USB jack, headphone jack, audio-in jack.

The feature that most interested me was the cell phone charging function.  The manual instructs you to purchase a connector cable and a phone-specific tip from iGo.com.  I want to make this radio a permanent part of my emergency kit, so I went to iGo to buy a phone cable.  I realized that the recommended iGo cable was simply a USB cable for which you bought device-specific tips.  My LG enV3 phone came with its own USB to micro-USB cable, so I didn’t need the iGo cable.  You connect the phone cable to the USB jack on the back of the radio.

You can charge a cell phone only using the dynamo – not from the Ni-MH battery or from the solar panel.  You have to crank for about 3 minutes (at two revolutions per second) to make a short emergency call.  It’s tough cranking for three minutes, but you can easily reach the two revolutions per second needed to charge the phone.  I could see the “charging” indicator on my phone when I plugged it into the FR360 and started cranking the dynamo.  Let’s just say I won’t decide to call friends to chat or to order pizza using this method for charging my phone, but it’s wonderful to know that I’ll be able to call for emergency help if we need it.

There are two audio jacks on the back of the FR360.  One is a headphone jack so you can listen to the radio without disturbing others.  The second is an audio input jack.  You can actually plug in an mp3 player and use the FR360 as a speaker to share your music.

I really like the Etón SolarLink FR360 radio, and it is joining my emergency preparedness kit.  I’ll be very happy to have a flashlight, a radio, and a cell phone charger in such a compact little unit when we have our next bad storm.

Filed in categories: Home Tech, Reviews

Tagged: Emergency radio, NOAA weather band radio, Solar

Etón SolarLink FR360 Emergency Preparedness Digital Radio Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on May 19, 2010 at 8:58 am.

Your days of  needing to use a flashlight only to find out the batteries are dead will be over if you buy the Solar Rechargeable Flashlight from EFO. It has 7 super bright LEDs that will shine for 8hrs on a 6hr charge. Just place it in an area that receives direct sunlight and it will always be ready for use. You can buy one for $17 directly from EFO.

Filed in categories: Gear, News

Tagged: Flashlight, Solar, Spotlight Gadgets

Dead Flashlights May be a Thing of the Past originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on April 11, 2010 at 4:00 pm.

This is a cool idea- a solar panel charging ‘handle’ with interchangeable heads. The ‘mini kit’ includes a flashlight, book light, fan, radio/speaker, and a USB charger head. Let’s take a closer look…

The P23000 Mini-Solar Set, Summer Series is not packaged with anything that helps identify the maker. The manual is listed at Sunsei’s site, and their logo and website appears on a .PDF of the instructions that are otherwise identical to those in the package, but the actual item is not listed there, although it is available at Amazon and other sites.

This is an interesting little package of gadgets!

Everything that comes in the box

Main Handle Unit

Main handle, showing the solar panel

The handle is a lightweight but sturdy black plastic ‘box’ with heavy ridges and a slightly rubbery feeling. One front side is a solar cell, the ‘head’ is a slide-on coupling. One side has a sliding on/off switch, the back has a fold-out wire stand (that pops off easily), and the ‘tail’ has a lanyard loop, charging port, and a charge indicating LED.  One bit of clever design is that when the unit is on, the attachments cannot be slid on or off.

It offers 5VDC at 40 milli-amps, which is between three and four AA or AAA batteries, but it is much lighter than that (I suspect that it runs on watch-type batteries.) It claims that it will power the flashlight unit for up to 10 hours.

It comes with a USB cable to charge the handle from any powered USB port in addition to charging from the sun. It takes 4-6 hours from USB or 10-15 hours from the sun.

Flashlight Head

A rather simple 3 LED head makes a very round, moderately focused beam that is very workmanlike, but not very noteworthy.  Its main strength is that it is rather light for its strength. The biggest weakness is that it makes the unit thicker- I really wish the LEDs were arranged in a line rather than a circle.

Book Light Head

The handle and this head makes a rather bulky unit, but the three flat LEDs make a nice reading light. It is almost bright enough to act as a ‘lantern’ in a tent- not bright enough to read by, but brighter than a night light.

Fan

The motor in this head makes it the heaviest single part of this kit. Two thin plastic blades make a nice breeze, and ‘click’ back to lie flat against the head for transport. This sucks the most juice and makes the best use of the wire stand. It also hangs well so would be great to hang in a tent on a hot night.

FM Radio/Speaker

This may be the weakest part of the system. The internal antenna seems week- it is tough to pick up even some of the strong local stations in my city- a task made tougher by the fact that the only tuning controls are a scan and reset button. It also has a volume control and jacks for any input and headphones (both are standard mini- or 3.5mm jacks.)

Speaker quality is frankly mediocre to poor- music on my Blackberry is louder and clearer with its own speaker than through this. On the other hand, this unit does not add a lot of weight and may be helpful in an emergency- although a weather band would be useful.

USB Charger

This handy accessory lets you charge a PDA, cell phone, or MP3 with a proper USB cable- not included. At 40 milliamps, it can take a while- my Blackberry wall charger puts out 5vdc at 700 milliamps. I would not count on it to do a full charge, but it would sure help in a pinch!

Other

The set also includes a rather cheap satin-like pouch, a page of simple but helpful instructions, and the earlier mentioned charging USB charging cable.

Overall, this is a nice set of tools. I could wish that there were a few tweaks (weather band on the radio, some sort of lantern mode, a flatter flashlight, and better packaging (the included pouch just makes a lumpy package.) I think the handle is empty enough to have some of these elements built in- the USB port, LEDs, and charger cable seem like they could fit in there.

There is also a certain sense of cheapness overall. It is most noticeable in the radio, but is visible in every part.

This will become a part of my ‘car gear kit’- the charger will be the most helpful item, but I’ll keep the other parts with it for those odd situations that always crop up, and I am sure it will come in handy occasionally on a camp out.

Filed in categories: Gear, Outdoor Gear, Reviews

Tagged: booklight, fan, Flashlight, Radio, Solar, USB charger

Mini Solar Set Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on March 28, 2010 at 1:36 pm.

The Novothink Solar Surge is the first solar charging case for the iPhone and iPod Touch to be certified by Apple. This product has a built in lithium-ion polymer battery (1500mAH for iPodTouch and 1320mAH for iPhone) and claims to double battery life by using cutting-edge solar panel technology to power up directly from the sun. It has 4 LEDs that let you know if you have a sufficiently powerful light source in addition to how much charge remains in the battery. There’s even a free Solar Planner App that provides an estimate of how much sun exposure is necessary to maintain the battery level of your iPod Touch or iPhone based on your everyday usage and the current weather forecast. The Novothink Solar Surge is available now in Black and White from Novothink.com at an MSRP of $79.95 for iPhone 3G/3G S and $69.95 for iPod Touch(2nd Gen).

Filed in categories: iPhone, iPad, iPod related, News

Tagged: Charge, iPhone, Solar, Spotlight Gadgets

Novothink Solar Surge charges your iPhone and Touch originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on March 11, 2010 at 3:27 pm.

Click to enlarge

If you are the outdoor type who likes to take along your iPod or iPhone, you’ll need a way to keep your device charged.  The Brunton Solaris i6 is a foldable solar charger that comes with an iPod charging cable.  It opens up to 29 X 9 inches and weighs 7.1 ounces.  It has four CIGS solar panels with a maximum output of 6 watts (15.4 volts/430 mA).  Order directly from Brunton for $208.40.  Dick’s Sporting Goods is offering it for $102.99.

Filed in categories: iPhone, iPad, iPod related, News, Travel Gear

Tagged: iPhone, iPod, Power, Solar, Spotlight Gadgets

Brunton Solaris i6 Foldable Solar iPod Charger originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on December 13, 2009 at 3:01 pm.

The iTech Dynamic SolarVoice 908 Bluetooth headset has all the typical features one would expect from a headset. It has A2DP, multipoint, and noise reduction features. But, it has one feature that no other headsets have (yet)… It has a built in solar panel that will allow you to recharge its batteries via sunlight. Pretty nifty if it actually works. I’ve not had the best of luck getting solar chargers to work – especially though a car windowshield.

Filed in categories: News, Wireless

Tagged: Bluetooth Gear, Headset, Solar, Spotlight Gadgets

Let Mr. Sun recharge your Bluetooth headset – i.Tech SolarVoice originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on October 12, 2009 at 8:15 am.

If you don’t like using Bluetooth headsets, but want a handsfree alternative for your mobile phone while driving, you might want to check out the new solCHAT speakerphone from Scosche. All the typical speakerphone features are accessed by an easy 3 button interface, but the main difference with this Bluetooth device is the integrated solar panel that keeps the solCHAT’s battery charged and ready for use. It can be mounted it on the windshield or visor so that the sun’s rays constantly top off the battery. It’s available now for $99.99.

Filed in categories: Car Gear

Tagged: Bluetooth Gear, Solar, speakerphone, Spotlight Gadgets

Green speakerphone – Scosche solCHAT originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 27, 2009 at 5:30 pm.

ThinkGeek’s UV Monkey is a small keyring gadget that will assist you by checking UV levels so that you know when to charge solar devices and and when to go indoors to protect your skin. Once exposed to sunlight, the center will change to different shades of purple to indicate increasing levels of UV light (darker means a higher level of UV).

Filed in categories: Gear, Travel Gear

Tagged: Solar, Spotlight Gadgets

Crispy critter protection gadget originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 8, 2009 at 9:20 pm.

Fellow gadgeteer Martin Niklasson sent in a link to this nifty $19.99 solar lamp from IKEA. The solar cell / battery pops out of the base so that you can set it in a windowsill during the day for charging, then at night, pop it back in for free illumination. It uses LEDs and according to Martin, it does a decent job. This might make a gift for Earth Day next week

Filed in categories: Uncategorized

Tagged: Solar, Spotlight Gadgets

Go Solar with the IKEA Sunnan Desk Lamp originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on April 14, 2009 at 10:24 am.

Go Green with this 1500mAh solar charger from epogo. Comes with 12 connectors covering all popular mobile phones, handheld games consoles such as Nintendo DS and Sony PSP and MP3 players including iPods.

Filed in categories: Gear

Tagged: Charger, Green, Power, Solar, Spotlight Gadgets

Spotlight Gadget – Juicebar Pocket Solar Charger originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on February 23, 2009 at 11:26 am.

I saw this on Gizmodo and TreeHugger this morning and couldn’t resist re-posting about it. This is the new Boiler solar powered watch from Freestyle. The interesting thing about this watch is the claim that one charge will power it for 12 months! I also like the fact that it has a battery indicator on the face. Maybe I can get them to send me one to review if there is interest in learning more about it.

Filed in categories: Watches and Clocks

Tagged: Solar, Spotlight Gadgets, Watch

Spotlight Gadget – Freestyle Boiler Solar Watch originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on February 19, 2009 at 11:58 am.

Have any of you considered solar power for charging your devices? If you have, the Portable Multi-Purpose Solar Charger from Brando looks like it might be a pretty good (although somewhat bulky and expensive) way to accomplish that task. It can output 24V, 22V, 16V@4A and 5V@500mA power. High power capacity is provided by a 20,000mAh ~ 3.7V batteries array. I tried the Solio Hybrid charger this past Spring without a lot of success, but I’m always open to trying other alternative power source options.

Filed in categories: Uncategorized

Tagged: Charger, Power, Solar, Spotlight Gadgets

Spotlight Gadget – Brando Multi-purpose Solar Charger originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on January 9, 2009 at 7:17 am.

Citizen has now gone high-tech with a new line of solar powered wristwatches. These new Eco-Drive watches will never need to have the battery replaced. And they come in a wide variety of styles for both men and women.

My brother first introduced me to these cool watches, and after researching them, I just had to have one! I chose the Solar-Tech 180 TITANIUM, (model AP0410-58H). It happens to be a divers watch, and is water-resistant to 200 meters. This quartz watch has a one-way rotating elapsed-time bezel, a screw-down crown, and date. (Although the only time that I have taken a dive is in a hockey game, I wanted a water-resistant watch.)

The main selling feature of these watches is the solar construction. It’s best described by this diagram that I downloaded from the Citizen web site. (See below)

Sunlight and any artificial light are absorbed through the crystal and dial. CITIZEN uses special filters which allow a wide range of dial colors and styles. A solar cell beneath the dial converts any form of light into electrical energy to power the watch. With regular exposure to light, ECO-Drive continuously recharges itself. ECO-Drive’s revolutionary lithium-ion rechargeable battery stores enough energy to power the watch up to sixteen months (depending on model)

Ok, so much for the canned science lesson, now let’s review the features. The lithium-ion battery will probably run this watch forever. My watch, a Solar-Tech 180 is designed to run on a full charge for 180 days, (or 6 months). It takes 3.5 hours to charge fully, in sunlight; and 1 minute to charge for one day’s worth of power.

Although I’m not fond of bracelet watches, this watch, being mostly titanium is extremely lightweight and very durable. The finish on the band is very comfortable. I also like the safety clasp they selected.

There is a fluorescent coating on the dial face for the tick marks and the hands. The marks are easy to see in the dark as well as in daylight. There are 27 different men’s styles and 9 different women’s styles. Out of those styles, there are 9 men’s/women’s matched sets.

I’m a bit surprised that it has taken this long for someone to develop a solar watch. I guess that the Lithium-ion battery has made it possible for them to run longer, and recharge to full capacity better. The older technology rechargeable batteries, (ni-cad), had kind of a “memory”, they needed to be almost fully drained to recharge fully. These lithium-ion batteries recharge better when not fully drained.

If you like gadgets and also like watches, you have to check out the ECO-Drive watches from Citizen. As for where to purchase it, you can check web sites like www.wristwatch.com for price comparisons, but be sure to go to a reputable watch dealer. You will need to have the band professionally adjusted, most people will not have the tools to do it themselves.

Price: $395 (retail)

Pros:
Never needs a battery replaced.
Titanium case and band is extremely lightweight.
Resists water to 200 meters.

Cons:
Need to have the band professionally adjusted.

Filed in categories: Watches and Clocks

Tagged: Solar, Watch

Citizen Eco-Drive Watch Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on January 8, 1999 at 12:00 am.