Gizmodo: cellphone charger

The Power Pump Charges Your Cellphone With Air Pressure

Sean Fallon — Thu, 21 May 2009 17:40:00 EDT

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for green technology—so long as physical effort is not required. That's where the Power Pump cellphone charger from Orange falls a bit short.

Should you find yourself with a dead battery when you need to make a call, the Power Pump can provide emergency power via a turbine driven by a foot pump. Apparently, you can generate around 5-minutes of juice in the same time it would take to inflate a standard-sized pillow.

The device is set to be presented at the upcoming Glastonbury Festival (a proving ground of sorts for new technologies in the UK), so it would have to make a big impression there before any real world product would be considered. The way I see it, there are already eco-friendly products in the pipeline that provide a more efficient, less physically taxing form of alternative power. [Orange via Red Ferret via OhGizmo]

DIY Wooden Cellphone Charger Used By Chechen Soldiers

Erica Ho — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 21:00:00 EDT

Some of you were wondering how the homeless charge their cellphones—maybe they do it Chechen-soldier style and create wooden, dynamo-powered cellphone chargers out in the untamed wilderness.

The chargers, developed by Chechen soldiers work by generator turned by crank and pulley. Electricity stores up in the capacitor (the blue thing), which charges the phone. You'd probably have to put in a bit of a workout to see any results, but hey no more flabby arms. [CNET Crave, Photo from English Russia]

Brando Emergency Charger Lights Your Way To Extra Power

Elaine Chow — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 03:00:00 EST

This pocket-sized mobile charger from Brando not only juices the most common mobile devices on the market—including all iPhone and iPods, any cellphone by a major company, and handheld gaming consoles—it also acts as an emergency torch if you suddenly find yourself in the dark. The light will last about 5 hours and is charged via USB. If you think you're headed toward a blackout of some sort in the future, pick one up from Brando's store for $32 (with free shipping this holiday season). [Brando]

Bizarre USB Charger For the Man With 8 Cellphones

Sean Fallon — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 12:20:00 EDT

Sometimes one cellphone isn't enough for a real man. Why not two, or three...or eight? If you collect cellphones like Imelda Marcos collects shoes this USB multi-cellular phone charger is for you. It features 8 different connectors for Motorola, Nokia, Samsung , Siemens and Sony Ericsson phones—and it is guaranteed to poke and stab you and anything you put in your luggage unless you remember to pack it in the handy travel bag. Available for $18. [Brando]

Ballpoint Pen Doubles as an Emergency Cellphone Charger

Sean Fallon — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 15:15:00 EDT

Brando is known for quirky and offbeat gadgets, but they deliver their fair share of useful devices as well. Case in point, this ballpoint pen that can also be used as an emergency cellphone charger. According to the description, it averages a 100 minute charge time, 20 hour standby time and 2 hours of talk time on one AA battery. It also features five connectors (Sony Ericsson Fast Port, Nokia 2.5mm, 3.5mm, mini USB and Samsung). It makes sense because many of us already carry around a pen, and it's not a bad deal at $18. [Brando]

M2E Developing Kinetic Cellphone Charger That is Up to 700 Percent More Effective

Sean Fallon — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 21:00:00 EDT

This isn't the first time we have seen a cellphone charger that is powered by kinetic energy, but the difference is that M2E is working on a charger that can produce 300 to 700% more juice than current technologies. They hope this will translate into a full-on replacement for cellphone batteries somewhere down the line. According to earth2tech, M2E's short term goal is to develop a charger that will produce an hour of talk time for around six hours of normal movement. Currently, M2E is in talks with major accessories manufacturers about bringing a device to market as early as 2009. [earth2tech via Inhabitat]

Juicebar: A Super-Thin Disposable Cellphone Charger

Sean Fallon — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 17:20:00 EDT

The British company behind the Juicebar are billing it as "the world's slimmest emergency phone charger." The device looks about as big as a cardboard coaster, but apparently it is capable of powering up a phone for up to 480 minutes of standby, or around 60 minutes of talk time depending on the device. Full charge is reached in about an hour, but you are free to talk anytime during that period.

It also has a 5-year shelf life which the company has backed with a guarantee. Obviously, it makes more sense in the long term to have a rechargeable backup solution, but if you are caught in an emergency situation, dropping around $6 on a Juicebar seems like a decent option. Juicebar is compatible with Nokia, Sony, Samsung, Motorola and Blackberry phones with an LG version coming soon—but, unfortunately, it is available in the UK only. [Juicebar via Gizmag]

Wind, Solar Recharge Tent Keeps Phones Juiced at Glastonbury Festival

Elaine Chow — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 16:00:00 EDT

Glastonbury festivalgoers won't have to worry about not having enough juice in their cellphones, thanks to U.K. mobile company Orange's green cellphone charging stations. The freestanding tentpods draw their electricity from a wind generator and solar panels. With a peak power of 1Kw, the pod can charge up to 100 mobile phones per hour and stores unused energy in a battery bank. The tent also contains a fully functional weather station and a nifty panel that keeps track of power generated and consumed throughout the festival.

The new pod, an evolution from the Orange portable wind charger that debuted at Glastonbury 2007, will act as a trial in using renewable energy sources on a larger scale. If everything goes well, the technology will become a staple at “Chill n' Charge tents” in future festivals. The pod can be found within the Pennard Hill camping grounds at Worthy Farm in Somerset. [Slashphone]

Survival Kit Charges Your Gear with Solar-Powered Naffness

Kit Eaton — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 05:17:34 EST

The designers of this naff gadget followed an interesting recipe: take one 3800mAh rechargeable battery, a solar cell, digital watch, analog thermometer, compass and LED torch light and jam them haphazardly into the nearest scratchy plastic box. Add in 12 connectors for mobile phones and USB gadgets, and serve up for around $33. Yuckity-yuck yuck. Ok, we know: we'll be laughing on the other side of our faces when this actually saves someone's life. [Technabob]

Cellphone Strap Cellphone Charger in the Shape of an Eraser

Jason Chen — Wed, 16 May 2007 21:00:02 EDT

Only Japan could have come up with this item: a cellphone strap that's not only shaped like an eraser, but houses two AA batteries and is actually a phone charger.

Unfortunately, the only phones that can be charged with this thing are from FOMA and SoftBank—both only available in Japan—but we're sure somebody can come up with something similar for US phones. Get to work, crazies! – Jason Chen

Product Page [Rakuten via Plastic Bamboo]