W+W is a new sink+toilet combo that could fit in any contemporary bathroom, and it's a real product.

The premise is simple if you haven't heard it before: The "grey water" from sink-based activities like hand washing is captured, filtered (for bacteria and odor) and stored within the toilet cistern. Whenever you flush the toilet, this gently used water (that need not be completely pure) washes your worst offenses away.

If there's not enough grey water to go around, no worries. The toilet is also connected to the main water line.

However, in W+W's case, all this eco style comes with a price. This toilet+sink runs over $4000 in the UK. For that much, one can plant a lot equally nice-looking trees or convince themselves to eat less fiber. [Dezeen]

Selling Like Hotcakes: Battery Suppliers for Mitsubishi's i-MiEV to Boost Production by 50%
It looks like Mitsubishi doesn't want to miss its chance of becoming a bigger player in the automotive market. After all, electric cars represent a kind of fresh start for the industry, and companies with a head-start in battery technology, power electronics, charging infrastructure and management software, etc, have a chance to grab market share from bigger companies that are dragging their feet (you reading this, Toyota?).In 2009, Mitsubishi announced that thanks to demand being higher-than-expected, its suppliers would build a second li-ion battery factory for the i MiEV electric car. Now they're increasing battery production again because of still higher-than-expected demand:

Six Sidewalks That Work While You Walk
Sidewalks - we use 'em everyday. Which is why there's no end to the innovative ideas for making sidewalks work for us. Using piezoelectric, (also called kinetic energy) has been mostly confined to the novelty of the dance floor. That's mainly for cost and efficiency reasons. A new spate of projects coming this year, however, both with piezo technology as well as other innovations may make it worth a look at cities that are harnessing public human energy and heat for useable power.

Cool Solar Powered Desk Lamp Suctions to Window To Charge
Here's a great idea for a desk lamp that minimizes materials and maximizes the use of renewable energy. The super simple concept design is the Saint Clair Lamp byStephane Maupin and it features solar panels installed on its base, along with suction cups, so you can just stick it to your office window to charge up during the day, and plop it on your desk for evening illumination.

An Energy-Sipping Cellular Network To Be Deployed in Africa
A cell phone base station that uses as little as 50 watts of solar generated power has been developed by VNL, a telecom company based in Haryana, India. The base stations - which can range from requiring 50 to 150 watts of power - are easy to assemble, requiring only two people to assemble and mount on a rooftop in just six hours. That makes these ideal for use in rural villages, and the units will soon be sold in Africa, where sunshine is plentiful.

Yay or Meh? Bloom Box Fuel Cell on 60 Minute (Video)
Bloom Energy is a well-funded startup that is starting to come out of stealth mode (with a big launch planned for Wednesday). Its first major media exposure was a 60 Minutes segment on Sunday (you can see the video below) that made some big claims about how this is going to "replace the grid" and produce lots of clean energy. Let's see if this passes the smell test...

Need Some Weekend Entertainment? DIY Solar Robots for Backyard Battles (Video)
A greener way to enjoy a crafty and entertaining weekend revolving around electronics is to make your own solar robots to compete in competitions, like tiny offspring of BattleBots. These cool, tiny, spinning robots are fast and easy to whip up, and you can challenge your friends to duals. Check out a video of two "BEAM Solar Symets" battling it out.

HP Opens World's First 100% Air-Cooled Data Center
Data centers are, thankfully, getting a lot of attention when it comes to making them more efficient. Considering that roughly 60% of the electricity used at a data center goes to keeping the servers cool, focusing on smart cooling tactics is essential. HP has taken this to heart and has opened the world's first wind-cooled data center, and it's the company's most efficient data center to date.

GreenMap's New iPhone App Helps You Find The Green Hotspots Nearby
We love GreenMap. It's a crowd-sourced map of all the great green stuff in cities all over the world. GreenMap allows users to chart and search green events, businesses, sights, travel and anything else green and cool. The information is plotted on a Google map so that wherever you go, you'll be able to find your way around as greenly as possible. . Launched last year, the online resource now is available as an iPhone app.

E-Waste in India To Rise 500% by 2020
Last May, Pike Research estimated that e-waste going to our landfills would plateau by 2015 and begin to decline. That's great news since landfill is the last place we want our e-waste going. However, it has to go somewhere and the mountain of used gadgets, computers, televisions and other electronics just keeps growing. So where is it likely to end up? According to a new report from the United Nations, it'll end up in developing countries. The report estimates a 500% growth over the next 10 years in computer waste in India alone. Now that is some frightening news.

Energy Efficient All-Terrain Robot Walkers to be Built for Military
We should have just assumed by the rate technology was advancing that we'd live to see the day when those robot walkers from Star Wars were actually developed for the military. After all, we've got drones flying over Afghanistan piloted by men in New Mexico with X-box controllers. So why not an all-terrain robotic mule that can carry 400 lbs, provide a power source, and aid in combat operations? Boston Dynamics was just awarded $32 million to develop exactly that. And CleanTechnica reports that it may have some green uses to boot.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

Living with Joey Roth's Ceramic Speakers
After whining about about Mocoloco getting a set of Joey Roth's ceramic speakers to review before I did, I stomped my little feet and he sent me a set to review. And I have to say, from the moment you open the box, you know this is a very different product.

e-Reader Chart Compares iPad, Kindle, Nook and More, Makes Shopping A Little Easier
With all the e-readers hitting the market, it's getting more difficult to know which is the best product to buy. Here's a new comparison chart that will make sizing up your possibilities for the next big thing in going digital. And yes, it includes the iPad.

Fake Trees Art Installation is a Home for Migrating Birds in Chile
These 'fake trees' were designed by Chilean architects Claudio Magrini and Emilio Marin to improve the visuals on a road leading to Santiago, while inviting migrating birds to feel less interrupted by the route and more at home in their way. More photos inside.

More on Solar Panels Boosting Haiti Relief Efforts
Sol Inc. is making good on its commitment to help power Haiti relief efforts with solar energy. The company said in January that it planned to send about $400,000 worth of photovoltaics to the earthquake-ravaged country to help with round-the-clock relief efforts. Check out photos of the installation projects, and catch a glimpse of what the conditions are like in Haiti.

New Rubber Film Could Harvest Energy from Breathing, Walking to Power Gadgets
Princeton University engineers have come up with a rubber film that harvests kinetic energy. But it's not just another piezoelectric film. And it could end up everywhere from inside your chest to the soles of your shoes.

Consumers In Emerging Markets Outpace Americans in Buying Electronics...Especially Greener Gadgets
According to a new report, developing economies are more likely than ever to outpace Americans in their gadget consumption. However, they're also far more likely than Americans to purchase environmentally friendly devices, and use those devices to their fullest

OLEDs: Where We'll See Them, and What Will Beat Them
So, where are we seeing OLEDs turn up, why aren't they common yet, and what technology will beat out this purportedly ultra energy efficient technology that is moving forward at a snail's pace?

Rotating Houses Put A Whole New Spin on Green Design
There are more houses that can turn on a dime than one might think! Check out these houses that will have your head spinning.

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

Take Rethink's extremely clever clothing hangers. They save manufacturing plastic by allowing you to beef up their structure by screwing in always-plentiful used water bottles—plus, these small hangers are portable to boot.

Simple, right? Kinda awkward in practice, sure, but A for eco-Utopian effort.

Each Rethink hanger costs $7.99.

10% goes to some sort of charity, but really, that donation is pretty much blood money. $7.99. For more plastic. Even from a small manufacturer, that pricing is ludicrous. [Rethink via stilsucht via OhGizmo!]

So I just played around with the Vaio W, and it's disappointingly low-end. It does have the new Pine Trail Atoms, but they have no plans to add video acceleration (like the Ion or Broadcom) which means it pretty much can't handle much heavy work. It's also running exclusively Windows 7 Starter. The environmental stuff is kind of cool; the lid, palm-rest and bottom panel are all made from 80% recycled material, and 20% of that is from recycled CDs and DVDs. But on the other hand, it's available only at Sony Style stores and it's going to cost a totally unreasonable $530. For that kind of money you can get a very respectable ultrathin or at least a netbook with Ion graphics.

MEDIA ALERT: Sony Launches Eco-Friendly VAIO Mini PC Comprised OF ENVIROMENTALLY RESPONSIBLE MATERIALS

SUBJECT: Media Alert: Perfect for Casual Computing, VAIO W Series Mini Notebook is Now Eco-Friendly

WHO: Great for environmentalists and families alike, the VAIO W® Series Eco Edition 212AX mini notebook features a reprocessed plastic chassis comprised of approximately 20 percent recycled CDs. It also comes in a stylish reusable carrying-case made from recycled PET bottles-no wasted cardboard packaging.

Committed to the environment, Sony also features trade-in and recycling programs. For more on Sony's proactive approach to creating products that grow out of greener thinking please visit: www.sony.com/green.

WHAT: An ideal secondary PC, the VAIO W Series is ideal for anyone who wants casual computing, web browsing and social networking at their fingertips.

It also comes with parental controls built-in so you can create a safe on-line experience for kids. Featuring Kidzui and Online Family Norton software, kids have the freedom to learn, play, search and discover sites on the Internet while it gives parents the tools to manage the sites they visit.

The W Series has a HD (1366x768) 10.1-inch LED backlit widescreen display that lets you view an entire web page side-to-side on a single screen.

Its roomy 250GB hard drive for all your on-screen media – movies, photos and videos – just like that of a full-size PC. And with a long battery life, users can get up to seven hours of use on a single charge.

The VAIO W Series Eco Edition comes in sugar white with a translucent green interior. It is equipped with Microsoft® Windows® 7 Starter operating system.

WHERE: The VAIO W Series Eco Edition mini notebook starts at $480 and is available starting today for pre-sales, at Sony Style stores around the country. To find the closest Sony Style store, please visit: www.sony.com/pr/wseries.

When a child begins washing their hands, the sink calmly advises them to, "HURRY UP YOU LITTLE FUCKER OR I WILL BITE YOUR FUCKING HANDS OFF AND CHEW YOUR BONES RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU! YOUR LITTLE ARMS WILL BLEED ALL OVER THE PLACE, SPILLING OUT MY MOUTH AND ONTO THE FLOOR. YOUR DEATH WILL COME SLOWLY AS YOUR PERCEPTION PAINFULLY FADES TO GREY AND THEN BLACK—BY THE WAY, YOU WON'T BE GOING TO HEAVEN BECAUSE THERE'S NO GOD, SO YOUR BODY WILL JUST ROT IN THE GROUND AS EXISTENCE AS YOU KNOW IT CEASES FOR AN ETERNITY YOU'LL NEVER SEE. AND DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON WHAT DAD WILL SAY WHEN HE SEES THE MESS YOU MADE! WHAT A FUCK UP! NO WONDER YOUR PARENTS ARE GETTING A DIVORCE! WHAT? THEY DIDN'T TELL YOU? WELL STOP YOUR GODDAMN CRYING ABOUT IT, TEARS ARE A WASTE OF PRECIOUS WATER!"

(Or the sink uses an IR sensor, like you find in public rest rooms.) [Design Boom via inhabitots via inhabitat]

The design is a rough map of the city's neighborhood as distinguished by "air boundaries".
The data is collected from 27 air monitoring stations; every 15 minutes the map lights up in order of highest to lowest air quality. [Living Light via bldgblog]

So even on cloudy days and when placed outside of the sun's direct gaze, these panels can still draw low levels of current—too low for commercial release at this time, but something scientists are working on now.

Because of their unique design that requires less silicon, the colorful panels would cost less to produce that traditional solar tech...meaning that the stained glass industry could be due for a big boon. [GreenSun via Neatorama via DVICE]

So if you notice that you use a lot of energy around 7pm, maybe it's time to turn off the TV, lower the thermostat or eat that steak raw rather than using the Earth's dwindling natural resources to char it all fancy-like.

The only real design flaw with the Energy Aware Clock is that the face only looks more interesting by displaying your corpulent energy spikes. So while your data could be handy, the end product positively reinforces wastefulness. A better idea, and I'm just spit-balling here, would be a clock that kicked you in the nuts every time you left a room without turning off all the lights while running a hairdryer, or something. [designboom via DVICE via geek via BBG]

While most of us dump coffee grounds into the garbage (OK, some of us might use them for compost or fertilizer), eco fashion company Singtex has taken three years to patent a process that converts used coffee grounds into yarn. And this yarn can weave shirts that aren't just Starbucks-approved, but that feature fast-drying, anti-odor properties. (S Cafe shirts look like any typical performance sportswear.)

Now if only they managed to infuse the fabric with a little of the coffee's caffeine we'd be onto something. [Singtex via Taiwan News via Greenlaunches]

(The magnetic fields, of course, do eventually drive the wheels forward when the energy is transferred from over superconducting fluid that touches the rims.)

The result is, theoretically, a very smooth and quiet ride with a low environmental impact. We just like the design for its neat, rear-entry cockpit and all of the potential we see in jousting of the future. [ecofriend]

Still, this Toyota Prius Hearse plans to unleash its green yuppie fury on Japan's funeral circuit. For just $80,000 a pop, you too can ride around (rotting) in the finest of posthumous eco luxury. According to a rough translation and some metric conversion, it looks like this supersized Prius gets 52 miles per gallon. That's really pretty good for a dead person mobile. It's just too bad you won't be around to appreciate the fuel savings while giving smug looks to truck drivers at the pump. [Press Release via Japan Probe]

Old TVs left out in the cold after the switch to digital might make for an awful e-waste mess. But they don't have to. We talk about how to upgrade greenly.

Have you ever thought to yourself, "Gee, it'd be awesome to make my own verticle axis wind turbine!"? Turns out, there are some great step-by-step instructions for you to follow to make your own renewable energy source.

Gadgets are, let's face it, awesome. But it's also tough to keep them under control, and keep ourselves under control every time a new device hits the market. There are ways we can take the burden off the environment, and even make gadget consumption a thing of the past.

We've heard of smart grids, smart meters, even smart buildings and smart power strips. But what about smart outlets? Turns out they can save not only energy, but lives!

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every week on Gizmodo.

Every gadget lover needs to know how to send a device off to a happy hunting ground. Find out the best buy-back programs, take-back programs, and recycling resources in TreeHugger's e-cycling guide.

A great solar powered bench concept , complete with wifi, has us excited about the potential of easily blogging from park benches someday soon.

High Gain Solar power takes a front seat in San Jose where a shiny new demonstration project has just opened up.

With virtual gaming being quite the energy sucker, is it really a great idea to use it for home energy monitoring?

TreeHugger's EcoModo column appears every Tuesday on Gizmodo.

Both the stick and dome lights work on the same principle—they're LEDs and store solar power in replaceable/rechargeable batteries. No external wiring is required, just place them on the ground and let them soak up the energy.

They're listed on the Ikea site quite cheaply (5 for $15, 5 for $20) as you'd expect from Ikea, but you can't buy them just yet. [Ikea via Inhabitat]

While the Blue Earth features a gorgeously rendered touch screen front, the entire back is covered with a solar panel. Samsung claims this panel produces enough electricity to place a call any time you want—which is a little tough to believe, given the battery draw of a touchscreen. (To counter these energy shortages, the phone includes an Eco Mode, which attenuates screen brightness while deactivating Bluetooth.)

Even if solar power isn't your thing (you Hummer driving, baby suffocating, evil doer), most of the phone is constructed from PCM, a plastic extracted from recycled water bottles. And there's a built-in pedometer that tells you how many trees you are saving by walking instead of driving (that part may sound made up but it is not).

We have no more specifics at this time, but the Blue Earth should be available in the UK during the second half of '09. [Pocket-lint]

Built by Systematica, the PRT system will help keep Masdar (a planned city in Abu Dhabi) completely car-free. The vehicles travel at speeds of roughly 7 meters per second, with the longest routes planned for about 2.5km, and will be located two stories beneath street level. Riders will pay about the same price they'd normally drop on an equivalent taxi ride.

Morgantown, West Virginia has the the only PRT system in place right now, built in 1975 when the cost of the technology was many times higher. An equivalent system to the Masdar one (though to a much smaller degree) is currently under construction at Heathrow airport in London. [Treehugger via Dvice]

The Solvatten looks like a standard jerrycan sliced in half and divided into two 5 liter compartments, each of which has a clear face. The two chambers are exposed to sunlight, which naturally heats the water to a pathogen-killing temperature of roughly 130° F. An indicator changes from red to green when the water is safe to drink.

The whole process takes about 3 to 4 hours when its sunny, and 5 to 6 when it's cloudy. While that's not perhaps the fastest way to cure water, the amount of resources it saves compared to boiling over gas stoves makes it ideal for making sure some clean H2O will be on hand later. [Treehugger]