energy

Move over, "Power Purse." There's a new bag in town.

Alternative energy continues to make inroads in the fashion world with the "Solar" series from Picard. Like other accessories with built-in solar panels, this line of leather computer bags, backpacks and luggage uses the sun's rays to charge all manner of electronic gadgets, including mobile phones, media players and laptops.

Of course, it wouldn't be a designer item without a designer price: Slashphone says the "Solar Bag" will go for about $670. What did you expect, a DIY backpack?

China isn't exactly known for its environmental sensitivities, so we were somewhat surprised to hear that it could be the source of one of the first mass-market solar phones. Then again, if there's a chance for a successful new industry, Chinese entrepreneurs are likely to be somewhere nearby.

Shenzhen-based HTW Electronics says it will introduce a mobile phone in China next month that's essentially covered with solar cells that charge its battery, according to Mobility Site and Unwired View. The handset needs to be exposed to direct sunlight to absorb the solar energy effectively--not ideal for phones … Read more

ZAP is giving four-wheeling enthusiasts a proverbial peek under the hood. The electric car maker just released some conceptual drawings of its ZAP-X Crossover SUV.

The ZAP-X Crossover SUV will feature all-wheel drive, with in-hub electric motors, a design that aims to deliver 644 horsepower and a top speed of 155 mph. But most electrical vehicle buyers have one thing in mind: "How far can I go, before I need to juice up?" The ZAP-X Crossover aims to reach a 350-mile range before it needs another 10-minute charge.

The price? $60,000. That's roughly the cost of two Honda Pilots. … Read more

We didn't know that there enough of these to create competition, but the "SolarShuttle" claims to be the "UK's largest and most advanced solar boat," according to Gizmag. Plying the waters of the "ecologically fragile" Serpentine Lake at Hyde Park in London, the boat reportedly runs silently and without pollution while ferrying up to 42 passengers. It even stores more than enough power to operate at night, sending surplus solar energy back to national utility plants. That's especially comforting because it means the boat won't get stranded while rented out … Read more

Three aircraft in the Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) pipeline promise to change some assumptions we have about air travel--the assumption that there's a pilot in the cockpit, for instance.

In the works is an unmanned cargo plane with a 30-ton payload capacity. IAI could have gone for an unmanned passenger jet--the technology does exists--but "the world is not yet ready to be flown without a pilot at the stick," Shlomo Tsach, IAI director of flight sciences, told the Jerusalem Post. "A psychological obstacle needs to be overcome before people are willing to fly in unmanned planes.&… Read more

Regardless of what you think of its design, this is no ordinary handbag. The "Power Purse's" name refers not just to its importance as a fashion accessory but also to its functionality--as a portable source of solar energy.

The bag is covered with small solar panels that can power cell phones or any other gadgets through a USB port built into its interior. MobileWhack says the ingenius purse was designed by a student at Iowa State University and marketed through Solarjo, "a company that produces unlikely items from something that looks quite ordinary."

The price … Read more

With so much talk about solar energy these days, you'd think we'd have all manner of sun-powered gadgetry in our midst. But we don't. So we're pleased to see that someone has taken the enviro-speak from theory to reality with an everyday product.

The SlimStar 820 from Taiwan-based Genius is a keyboard that absorbs its energy through an unobtrusive solar panel, Newlaunches says. But in case you're not much into outdoor computing (or live in sun-challenged cities like London or San Francisco), the keyboard can also be powered by a standard USB charger.

Genius, by … Read more

File this in the "not there yet" folder. A bunch of blogs have covered a new, solar-powered system for NEC monitors, yet none show how it looks. My mind's eye pictured a tidy, laptop-size solar panel. But when I received this photo from NEC, I couldn't stifle a chuckle. Who wants to claw their way to a corporate window seat only to have mammoth solar panels block the view? Oh, and try not to kick that battery pack.

The equipment is designed for big businesses that aim to cut costs with clean, off-the-grid energy sources, but … Read more

During his Macworld keynote speech, Steve Jobs played a congratulatory voice message from friend Al Gore on the droolworthy new iPhone, then used that device to locate the DVD of An Inconvenient Truth at the top of Amazon's bestseller list.

Outside the convention center's doors, however, Greenpeace activists handed out flyers painting Apple as less than hip to ecological problems, urging the company to remove toxicants from its products and set up free hardware recycling. Several blocks away, members of the environmental group also projected pictures of Asian electronics waste scrap yards onto a wall of the downtown … Read more