The Mini Power Minder is an eco-friendly device that can actually make your life easier. You plug your computer in the primary outlet, along with a USB. When you turn off your computer, the second plug turns off automatically.

This is the perfect solution for those running printers, desk lamps, and all sorts of other stuff we might generally be too lazy to turn off. Sure, the $14.95 device only has one automatic plug, but there’s no reason you couldn’t stick a power strip into the socket*.

Now if we just weren’t too lazy to order it. – Mark Wilson

Order Page [via treehugger]
from gizmodo

If you’ve got a broken DVD-burner laying around, then why not use it to make your own “high-powered laser”? Full instructions here.

The laser pictured above has a peak output measured at 225 mW (average output 200 mW). It’s a visible red at about 650nm. It can light matches, pop balloons, cut electrical tape, and so forth. It can do pretty much anything a Pulsar 150 from Wicked Lasers can do, because it’s basically the same thing. The only differences? This laser was home-made, and cost about 1/3 the price

[via HackedGadgets - Make]
from techeblog

Nearly a year after NEC rolled out its paper-thin ORB batteries, Korean battery manufacturer Rocket is launching (ahem) its own uber-thin battery. While juicy, scientific details aren’t readily available, we do know that the “paper battery” won’t include any toxic chemicals, is “flexible and thin,” and molds together the companies “thin film technologies” with its battery knowledge. The company hopes to entice heavy RFID users, smart card manufacturers, and “cosmetic / drug delivery system” providers to utilize the paper battery in powering the already-miniscule devices. Oddly, Rocket also envisions its new creation being used in “teeth whitening, anti-aging, and wrinkle care,” though we’re not exactly sure how electrifying a tooth will brighten your smile. Nevertheless, the company hopes to have its newfangled power source attached to crates and body parts real soon, and confidently assures us that it “doesn’t cause explosions or fires.” Phew. [Warning: Read link requires subscription]

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from engadget

Check it Sony, ’cause if necessity is the mother of invention then you’re about to be calling the ETRI daddy. Coming a bit too late for some, ETRI (Telecommunications Research Institute of Korea) have developed what they call a Critical Temperature Switch to prevent exploding batteries in mobile devices. Smaller, but more reliable than ceramic sensors, the new switches use a Mott Metal-Insulator Transistor or MIT, to prevent batteries from swelling and exploding in a violent discharge triggered by overheating. Ultimately, ETRI expects to integrate over 16,000 of the Critical Temperature Switches or 5,000 explosion-proof systems into a film just 2-inches in diameter. For the time being, they are looking for partners to develop their commercially ready technologies into product. Hey Sony, you paying attention?

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from engadget

Thanks to MIT’s Paul D. Sclavounos, we might get a reprieve from the eyesore problem of windmills, while still sticking with their clean-and-cheap energy benefits. Unfortunately, hapless birds aren’t going to get much of a respite. The plan is to plant these things offshore, far enough out into the water for the skinny white turbines to disappear on the horizon, but we’re sure a few seagulls will be able to find those “invisible” blades all the same. The turbines can be anchored in water up to 650 deep, and can withstand even hurricane-generated waves. Another benefit of the system is the strong and steady wind out at sea, so the 90-meter turbines should be able to generate twice as much electricity in comparison to their near-shore counterparts. Count us in, we never liked seagulls too much anyways.

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from engadget

After busting out those floating windmills earlier today, you’d think the MIT types would take a little break, maybe relax for a nice evening of D&D, but instead they’re still hard at work, bringing power to the people. This time they’re thinking small, with a new gas-turbine engine the size of a quarter designed to supplement or replace the battery in consumer electronics. The new “engine on a chip” technology builds all the traditional parts of a gas-turbine engine using silicon, allowing for utterly tiny, reliable and efficient components. The turbine blades spin at 20,000 revolutions per second, and the mini-generator produces 10 watts of power once up and running. Unfortunately, the MIT wiz-kids haven’t quite got a working model yet. Each component has been successfully built and tested, but they haven’t squeezed them all together, though they should have it all up and running simultaneously by the end of the year. The tech could be a boon to the Army (which is funding the project), since troops are often required to carry up to three days worth of laptop batteries for a field mission, but we’re totally stoked to start smogging it up in Starbucks with our little turbine a-whirring and spreadsheet a-crunching. Other than that spreadsheet part. Those suck.

[Via Slashdot]
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from engadget