An Eco ATM That Takes Your Old Electronics

Sort of a reverse cash machine, the Eco ATM takes your old electronics off you and then credits you what it’s worth.

Available only in America at the moment, the Eco ATM is an automated reuse-and-recycle machine that helps people get rid of old gadgets while making it financially rewarding for them to do so as well. A bit like when you put your old mobile phone in the post and then get either cash or reward points, instead of posting you feed it into the Eco ATM.

The device then analyses the phone and gives it a value – which could be store credit (depending on where it’s situated), you could choose to donate it to charity, or if it’s not worth anything then it will be recycled.

The Eco ATM will soon take MP3 players, digital cameras, computers etc as well as mobile phones. The easier they make it to recycle, the more people will do it, and this sounds pretty easy.

Spotted via Springwise.

Oscar USB Hub Eco Product Review

The United Pepper Oscar USB Hub is another device that attempts to take an eco-friendly approach to electronics in addition to their Lili webcam we’ve previously reviewed.

Designed in Belgium, and made in Vietnam the Oscar USB hub is made from 70% Fair Trade components. Removing as much of the plastic as possible, the usb hub is made from paperboard, cotton and kapok, and comes in red, blue or green (we got a green one of course!).

There’s not much to say about it, it looks cute, came in 100% PET recycled packaging, is only just over 6cm (about 2.5″), and has four USB sockets. It connects to your computer via a USB lead that connects to the hub via a mini-USB socket, so if you need a longer lead they’re easy to find.

Available for $30 or €25 from United Pepper it’s a nice sustainable approach to electronics.

Lili Webcam Eco Product Review

The United Pepper Lili Webcam is one of the first sustainable design electronics, and certainly the first sustainable webcam I’ve come across.

Made from sand, cotton and kapok, the Belgian designers (it’s manufactured in Vietnam) have tried to remove as much plastic as possible. 70% of the material is Fair Trade, and it comes in recycled (PET) packaging.

As a webcam itself it’s not bad. A 1.3 megapixel camera does the job as a webcam but don’t expect to be producing quality recordings with it. It has a built in microphone and when communicating with family it works great, though the colors can be a little washed out. The sand filled legs are flexible that makes it easier to position on difficult surfaces.

The test version I’ve got strangely has a seperate plug for the microphone socket, as well as the USB connector, though I’m not sure if it’s like that in the final product. Installation was on a minin-CD and was pretty simple though novices might find the lack of clear English and full instructions a little tricky. It has a manual focus lens too which actually made some things easier to see than my much more expensive webcam.

Overall, for a simple webcam with a built in microphone you can do worse, and for a sustainable webcam, you can’t do better. Available for $45 or €40 from United Pepper.

Phrasebooks On Your iPod

Rather than shelling out to buy a paper phrasebook for your next foreign vacation, why not download one to your iPod instead?

Intelligent Travel reports that Collins have now released their popular phrasebooks in iPod versions. “They’ve taken the phrasebooks from the back of their Collins Gem dictionaries (about 500 different phrases) in French, German, Italian, Mandarin, Polish, Portuguese, and Spanish. The phrasebooks are split up into sections (food, accomodation, emergencies, etc.), and iPod users can both listen to how the phrase is pronounced and see its spelling on the screen.”

Each book is a bargain at $10 / £4.99 however they’re only compatible with iPod originals and Nanos and not those fancy Touch or iPhones.

Turn Off Your Gadgets Easily

Having moved to the US I am still surprised by the lack of power switches on wall sockets. When the wall sockets have power strips attached, the strips usually have a power switch, but often they’re located on the floor or behind a set of drawers.

This Energy Saver Bar has a handy foot switch for turning off the power strip without that awkward bending down or hunting around. For around $30 (€19.95) it’s available from Proidee.

[Via: OhGizmo]

Green Link Love – Other Great Green Sites 2

After my first Green Link Love post I received a few emails, two of which stood out. One asking “What is link love?” – it’s simply linking out to other sites that might be of interest to your readers. The “love” part is because it helps the other website as you provide a link and, if done correctly, can help them in their search engine rankings. This isn’t the reason for doing it of course, but it can help.

The second interesting email was asking whether it was a good idea to link out to competing websites. The way I see it is other green sites are not competition for us. If one person can make a difference by recycling or making an effort to be environmentally responsible and sustainable then they are part of a wider community that are helping make the world a better place. A website is the same, no matter how large or small, that site can make a difference and is part of a community. One that we’re proud to be part of. That said, let’s move on….

As before, for more fun green things on the web, see Adam’s increasingly popular Fun Green Roundups.

First up is the wonderfully named WEEE Man that is a depiction of a human made up of the average amount of electronic waste a UK citizen would use in their lifetime. The WEEE refers to European legislation called the Waste Electrical & Electronic Equipment directive. Full of tips, it’s worth taking a look at.

The ever expanding Green Options has turned one year old. To celebrate, the excellent Sustainablog will be featuring one of our posts every week from now on.

David runs The Good Human, a site that encourages people to be better humans, whether through working to clean up the environment, being active in political issues that mean a lot to you or just being more aware of your life and surroundings. Some great stuff on there, such as 30 uses for a dead tree, and I like the 10% discount on Simple Shoes he currently has at the moment until March 31st.

The National Geographic Intelligent Travel blog is always good value, like the world’s first solar city. Actually Marilyn sent me a link to a stunning article about how your electronic trash is sometimes shipped out to places like Ghana where adults and children melt them down to sell the often toxic metals inside. Fascinating and frightening.

There are a few websites for “green” jobs, though the market is still relatively new and there is yet a definition of what a green job actually is. If you want a job that matters, one place to look is Jobs That Matter. If you’ve tried them, let me know.

G2bgreen has a green to-do list. The tips are pretty unorganized and it is a long list, but there is some gold in there. And while on the subject, they have a list of places to go for green jobs.

Fancy some eco art? Eco Artware creates gifts from recycled , reused and natural materials. If coasters made from re-used metal traffic signs, or a bottle opener made from an old bike chain sound good to you, then take a look. Life Goggles will be reviewing some of their products over the next few months (i.e. when I buy something from there for my wife’s birthday!).

Cool Green Gadgets does exactly what it says on the tin, looks at cool green gadgets.

Finally a question for you – http://www.localcooling.com/ – Has anyone tried it or heard of it?

Well that’s it for this time. Any comments, please post them below – was this too long, too short? Needs more pictures? Would be better as an audio or video post? Just let me know!

If you want to be featured here, drop me a line and we’ll take a look.

Composting In Your Kitchen

The problem I found when having a small kitchen is that it’s almost impossible to compost due to space. It’s also a smelly job, though a company believes they’ve come up with a compact, non-smelly kitchen composter that doesn’t include worms or attract flies.

NatureMill, from San Francisco have come up with an indoor composter that is small enough to fit in regular kitchen cabinets, can process up to 120 lbs (55 kg) of organic waste per month, and uses just 10 watts of energy. Composting takes place inside a sealed inner chamber. Air is drawn into the chamber by a small fan, and a mixbar and heater keep the process moving along at the correct temperature. A red light indicates when the cure tray needs to be emptied – about once every two weeks – and the end-product is rich compost fertilizer. You can see a diagram of exactly how it works.

The units sell for $299–399. An outdoor version ($399) takes care of pet droppings, too: “for up to 2 large dogs, or 4 cats, rabbits, hamsters, snakes or other small animals.” NatureMills ships worldwide, but international shipping is expensive at the moment.

If you have a composter, please let us know your thoughts by leaving a comment or drop us a line.

[Via: Springwise]

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