Photos: How green is my gadget
There's a growing number of eco-friendly options out there, whether in the gadgets themselves or in the accessories and services that go along with them.
- 30 years experience at tech and consumer publications, print and online. Five years in the US Army as a translator (German and Polish).
Admit it: When you buy a smartphone, laptop, or any of a zillion types of consumer electronics devices, you're usually not thinking about what effect you're going to have on the environment. Maybe it's time you should.
Certainly, there are a growing number of eco-friendly options out there, whether in the gadgets themselves or in the accessories and services that go along with them. Some of that was on display last week at the Greener Gadgets conference in New York.
Solar energy was a recurrent theme amid the gadgetry. Nokia, for instance, showed off a concept for a solar-powered phone, and SunNight Solar offered up its flashlight designs. For the gear you've already got, there were solar chargers such as the Solio Magnesium and the 14-watt panel in the laptop bag from Voltaic Systems. Even HYmini's pocket wind power generator comes with a solar option.
En route soon from Nokia, meanwhile, is a cell phone model whose casing makes use of bioplastics--and 80 percent of the device is recyclable.
Herman Miller, best known for its dot-com-era chair design, showed off its Leaf Lamp, which features recyclable aluminum and energy-efficient LED bulbs.
To see those items and more, and to read details on the products and services from News.com's Martin LaMonica, see this photo gallery: "Gadgets go green at Greener Gadgets."
And when you're ready to move on to your next phone or PC, be sure to consider recycling or refurbishing the old one.