TerraCycle wraps speakers in delicious junk food wrappers

Posted in Speakers by Conner Flynn on October 25th, 2009

TerraCycle wraps speakers in delicious junk food wrappersTerraCycle does something useful for the environment. They recycle the world’s garbage into nifty electronics, bags and other things and they sell them for a cheap price.

These Cheeto speakers sell at Radio Shack for $20 and the company’s online store. They won’t blow out your ear-drums, but they make an interesting statement. That statement is probably about how you like snacking to music.

The economy is bad: So recycle your candles

Posted in Home by Conner Flynn on August 3rd, 2009

The economy is bad: So recycle your candlesYou know things are bad when gadgets encourage you to recycle candles. Screw electricity. That costs money. Time to go back to candles. Candles will never send you a bill, and candles can not be shut off by the electric company. Plus they can be recycled. Take that electric company.

After you’ve used up your old candles, just pop them into the Candle Quick, let it melt the wax down and then form a brand new candle. The Candle Quick will cost you $25, but if you buy lots of candles, maybe it will pay for itself while you stiff the electric company and put out fires.

Envirobank’s reverse vending machine

Posted in News by Conner Flynn on May 4th, 2009

Envirobank’s reverse vending machine Envirobank’s “cash for cans” reverse vending machines hold up to 3000 containers and accept PET (#1),HDPE (#2) and PVC (#3) plastic, brown, clear and green glass and aluminum cans. Deposit your recyclables in these and you’ll get credits for discount shopping.

Pretty nice incentive to recycle your goods huh? It may not give out snacks, but Envirobank claims that their machines cut CO2 emissions, reduce waste disposal and collection costs, and even provide advertising and fund raising opportunities for those who need it.

T-Mobile gets green W233 Renew handset

Posted in T-Mobile by Shane McGlaun on February 4th, 2009

Moto W233 RenewMobile phones and other electronics devices are the subject of recycling efforts all around the country. The goal is to keep the devices and their batteries out of landfills. Some companies out there recycle the internal components from discarded electronics to build new products or simply for the raw materials.

T-Mobile has the first handset that is actually made from recycled materials itself. The plastic case of the Moto W233 Renew is made from recycled water bottles. The packaging that the phone ships in uses 22% less material than other handsets and all of the packing materials are made from recycled materials as well.

Wine bottle’s package turns into a beautiful lamp

Posted in Lamps by Conner Flynn on December 10th, 2008

Wine bottle’s package turns into a beautiful lampWhat if, every time we bought something, that item’s packaging could be re-used as another product? That way, we give the landfills a bit of a break. That’s the idea behind this Cava wine bottle packaging by Spanish design firm Ciclus.

Just drink up all of your wine from the bottle contained inside, and the outer layer of the packaging turns into this cool looking lamp. It’s a win win. In the package, you also get the fixture and bulb that you’ll need to complete your new cool lamp.

Dead iPod becomes a mouse

Posted in iPod by Conner Flynn on July 7th, 2008

Dead iPod becomes a mouse
Dead iPod? Why not give it new life as a mouse by reincarnating it into an iMouse. This iPod had been run over by a car, so the modder took the Gentlemen we can rebuild it route, by doing just that.

It’s a fully-functioning mouse, with the buttons screen was too messed up so he just has paper in place of it. Imagine what else you could do here. Your mouse could pump out tunes or provide an extra screen for your computer if you kept the screen working.

Barcode Trashcan seperates recyclables electronically

Posted in Concepts by Darrin Olson on February 14th, 2008

Barcode trashcan identifies recyclables by barcodeI have to admit that I mostly like this concept just because it looks cool. Those neatly stacked-together containers would be interesting whether this was a conceptual array of hard drives or recycle bins. In this case they are recycle bins but with some nifty added technology to keep things seperated.

The Barcode Trashcan concept uses the little barcode on your recyclable containers to identify which bin the item goes in. Swiping it across the top will open just the correct bin. This keeps your items seperated appropriately by plastic, glass and metals for those with the combination of being geeky and green. I guess if it doesn’t match or the bar code is worn off it goes in the other bin?





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