When we think of tech we picture a cold metal or plastic in silver or black usually. It’s the material that can be cold and impersonal. Some users would like a more organic natural alternative. Maybe something from nature. Something so simple can affect your mood dramatically, like having a well meaning but cold friend to dinner. The Chute Smartphone is natural, organic, and moody all in one.

The Chute is like any other Smartphone inside, but it’s the shell, designed with bamboo, that makes all the difference. Bamboo is actually lighter and stronger than plastic. Better yet, it’s completely biodegradable and far more eco friendly than plastics and metals.

Stores and malls in England have been using an ultrasonic device known as the Mosquito Alarm to keep kids from loitering. Because everyone knows that kids are just large insects with ipods and skateboards. It emits a high-frequency noise which is audible and unfriendly to young ears, but people over 20 usually can’t hear it. (I know there’s a Logan’s Run joke there somewhere.)

This is the same frequency that kids have been using for their cellphone rings, so older people don’t know when they have incoming calls. Anyway, there is now an uproar from the children’s commission for England and groups like civil liberties group Liberty. Their campaign is called “Buzz Off”. The device effects everyone under 25, and guess what? That includes babies. Then they site that it discriminates against all kids, whether they’re bad seeds or not. Obviously, they have some valid points. I propose that anyone who turns 30 needs to be introduced to carousel and euthanized. Should they run, a sandman needs to be dispatched who can shout, “We’ve got a runner.” and go for their blaster. Ah…There’s the joke.

First there was the pocket guitar app that turned your iPhone into a guitar, now the iAno iPhone app that turns your cellphone into a piano. It won’t be long before iPhone users will be able to meet up in their mother’s basements and play an actual gig. Check out the video after the jump..

iAno will install on Jailbroken iPhones and basically gives you a fully functioning multitouch piano in the form of a four-octave keyboard. The arrow keys at the top are used to navigate. It was developed by one Mr Aardvark, who gave it polyphonic sound that allows five key presses to be heard simultaneously. He plans on updating iAno with a complete 88-key keyboard, and other cool features. So whether you want to be the next Elton John or Barry Manillow, carry your piano with you.

Here’s a pretty cool conceptual idea for a cell phone powered by kinetic energy. The Atlas Kiinetic Cell Phone has a mechanism in the center behind some glass that you can actually see work. As you move the phone around, a weighted piece rotates around to wind up a spring which powers the phone.

According to the designer, only a few times of turning the phone upside down and back will power it up. This same kinetic type of mechanism works great to power watches and is actually not that uncommon. The only difference is that watches for the most part need very little power to run compared to a phone.

Here’s another great gadget for those who are environmentally conscious. The Strapya mini solar cell phone charger is smaller than an iPod, and when it has 6-10 hours of sunlight it becomes a dependable backup power source for your cell phone.

It hooks up to your phone using an adapter and you can get 3 hours of energy. Not only is it useful and environmentally friendly, but the price is not outrageous at about $17.54. So it wont “Strapya” for cash. And hey, sunlight is free.

Even though we don’t see them in most devices, AAA batteries can be pretty darn useful, aside from powering remote controls and toys. Philips thinks so too, that’s why the Philips Xenium 9@9j has a AAA battery slot at the base. This is very likely the first cellphone that supports a AAA battery. It supposedly gives it up to three hours of talk time. It still has the standard lithium ion rechargeable battery, but the AAA is a backup.

It does add some bulk, but what is a backup worth to you? The 9@9j should be around in April. The technology is from the Israeli firm Techtium, and they are calling it Backupower. If your main battery goes dead, the backup battery takes over.

LG Electronics showed off their Watch Phone concept during the Mobile World Congress 2008. Apparently, they want us all to communicate Get Smart style in the future.

Not much is known about these at the moment, except that it supports voice recognition function by using Bluetooth, enabling users to make calls or send text messages without using a keypad. Check out the video after the jump. These are nice looking watches as far as the face goes and since they are from LG, I’m sure the quality would be better then others on the market. Unfortunately, these will likely never come to market. At least, not as they are. But we can hope.

LG Electronics is showing off this week a number of interest cell phones for consumers. One which seems to be getting a lot of attention in particular is the upcoming LG-KF700, which will be available perhaps sometime this year in the United States after first hitting Europe.

The LG-KF700 offers up three separate input methods – three-inch touchscreen display, alpha-numeric keypad and a scroll dial. The latter is interesting in that it lets you scroll through six user-selected features by controlling a virtual dial on screen. It is also a media strong horse, offering MP3/MP4 playback and a three-megapixel camera, among other features.

Get the full scoope on the LG-KF700 after the jump.

Motorola is showing off this week a number of new mobile handsets for consumers, including one which is compatible with both cellular and Wi-Fi networks. This latter model is known as the Motorola MOTO Z6w and it should be available in the second quarter of this year.

Motorola, besides showcasing the MOTO Z6w, was also announcing two new W series phones which the company says focus on “value and quality.” This is in addition to further previews of some more recently announced models such as the ROKR E8 and MOTO 10.

Want to know more? Check the full details after the jump.

In honor of our current contest, Otterbox sent me their Defender case for review. Keep the funny comments coming guys(and gals), you have until midnight on Valentine’s day to enter. I have to say, you people are really surprising me with your creativity. Now, on with the review.

The Otterbox is probably the most rugged iPhone case I’ve seen. Comprised of plastic and rubber, it couldn’t be easier to install. It will protect not only the body, but the screen as well. It’s water resistant NOT water proof.(Don’t go swimming with it, ye of withered braincells) I found it interesting that the Defender actually protects the headphone jack, serial jack, speakers and mic, helping keep any debris safely outside.

If you’re looking to get your sweetie something shiny and red this Valentine’s Day AT&T and mobile phone developer Pantech Wireless may have a phone for you to check out. The company’s Pantech duo is being made available in a new red color and will price at around $200.

The Pantech Duo in red is a Windows Mobile smartphone which boasts a dual-slide, double-keyboard design. A QWERTY keyboard slides out horizontally, while a numeric keypad is popped out vertically. This phone is UMTS/HSDPA-enabled and measures 4.02 inches tall, 1.97 inches wide and .83 inches thick.

Some scientists from the U.S. and Canada have teamed up to create a new knee brace that generates electricity from your steps. The brace takes advantage of the stop energy that occurs after swinging the knee forward which would otherwise dissipate as heat, much like braking on an electric or hybrid car.

According to the initial studies on the 3.5 pound prototype, a person walking at 2.2 mph was able to create around 5 watts of electricity while wearing a brace on each leg. The researchers state that this device can generate enough electricity to power as many as 10 cell phones, or possibly a small laptop. Some practical future applications include using the knee-mounted generator for campers or soldiers who are not near electricity to power up GPS devices or satellite phones.

ZTE USA is bringing to the United States what it says is its first handset, which will be available through MetroPCS. It’s called the ZTE C88 and MetroPCS is pricing it at around $140.

The ZTE C88 is very much your garden variety flip phone and won’t excite you much if you seek advanced features. It does have a rather sleek look to it, which is nice, and operates at the PCS and Cellular bands (1900 and 850 MHz), according to ZTE. You’ll also find a two-inch screen and Bluetooth as part of the offering.

Cricket Communications is unveiling as part of its line up of consumer mobiles a new entry level model. It is called quite simply the Cricket EZ and prices at around $50.

The Cricket EZ is a typical candy-bar style cell phone developed by CalComp and equipped with VIA Telecom’s cdma2000 1xRTT baseband processor. It measures 4- x 1.7- x 0.5-inches and sports a 128×128 color LCD display. It comes with polyphonic ringtones and wallpapers.

We told you about the possibility of a Wii phone awhile back, but now thanks to one clever fellow, we may be one step closer. It’s a combination of a Wiimote and a DoCoMo cellphone all slapped together with geek love.

Maybe this will make Nintendo rush one to market sometime soon, but I doubt it. The wrist strap is a nice touch. Just in case you get a call that requires you to want to throw the thing. This is one phone that would give the iPhone some competition. Needless to say we love this phone and want one yesterday.