10 Green Gadgets

Eco-conscious gizmos for the enviro to lust after 14

Dedicated enviros shun consumption, and for good reason. But some consumer items aren't all bad, and might even (gasp!) be good, particularly if they replace more harmful products or encourage greener living. We've rounded up 10 gadgets that a loyal greenie can covet in good conscience.

10 Bike Friday
This kick-ass bicycle doesn't just fold up for easy storage and transport; it's also a respectable touring bike. Use it for everything from multi-sport adventures (think bike-kayak-bike trips) to business travel. The only downside: Bike Fridays, like other foldables, are significantly pricier than your average commuter bike -- but they're also significantly cooler.

(Read a first-hand account from a Bike Friday tester.)

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  1. karenc Posted 4:08 am
    15 Apr 2008

    Folding bikesI just got an IZIP EZGO which can be used as a regular bike or electric/rechargeable.  I am hoping this will enable me to go almost car-free.  I tried biking here (SW VA) but the hills were killing me, so I am hoping this will be the answer!

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  2. carfree Posted 6:06 am
    15 Apr 2008

    No thanks. The private automobileshould never be promoted as an environmental gadget.
    Just the amount of toxic waste the production of this vehicle creates far outweighs any fuel savings.
    Grist should write about cool new vehicles being used for public transportation. (Admittedly, the Bike Friday is pretty cool.)
    The Tesla Roadster strikes me as a very expensive green viagra pill. Kind of like a hybrid SUV.
    We can do better.
    If you really want to go green, consider going carfree! A movement to liberate ourselves from car ownership growing in the USA and around the world.

    http://carfreeusa.blogspot.com
    Carfree advocates, urban planners, and architects will gather in Portland this summer. Join us!

    http://carfreeportland.org/index.php

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  3. racc Posted 8:11 am
    15 Apr 2008

    AgreedEven further, the ideal of an electric roadster is just silly. Electric cars are more efficient than gas cars at low speed in stop and go traffic. As speed increases, this advantage decreases. Due to the weight associated with batteries, they may even be worse depending on how the electricity was produced.
    So...
    A roadster which is designed to travel at high speeds on the open road with a technology that is best for stop and go traffic around town. It does't make any sense.
    It does seem like a fun toy but just don't pretend it is green.

    Let them pay for advertising assuming they are actually wanting to sell a product and not just stock.

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  4. naught101 Posted 12:11 pm
    15 Apr 2008

    lightingThe collective conscious thinks you are wrong about the efficiency of LEDs vs. CFLs.
    Low-pressure sodium seems to be the way to go, if you don't mid everything being yellow.

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  5. toddjanderson Posted 2:44 pm
    15 Apr 2008

    Bike FridayBike Friday is truly a remarkable thing and I applaud your inclusion of it in your 10 Green Gadgets. I am troubled by some details that may at first seem trivial, but reflect an obstacle to the overall goal of green transportation.
    According to wikipedia, a "gadget" is defined as a small technological object (such as a device or an appliance) that has a particular function, but is often thought of as a novelty.
    The idea that Bike Friday, or any other cycle that is used for travel, is merely a "gadget" and often thought of as a novelty touches on a much deeper and systemic challenge. As long as our society relates to products such as this as something novel rather than a legitimate movement toward effective sustainable and enviro friendly travel, we will be inadvertently branding these attempts as fringe.
    The real core issues at stake reside in reframing the entire discussion about eco friendly transport so that policy makers see a legitimate and substantial link between the infrastructure that we build (e.g. roads, airport terminals, traffic safety systems) and the vehicles we use to get around on it.
    Let's not even for a moment slip into thinking that Bike Friday is anything less than a movement. I believe that Bike Friday is a reflection of the deep commitment that the founders and their followers share in creating a new possibility in travel and transportation. Let's be careful not to dumb down our collective efforts by calling this a gadget. Words can be very powerful. I believe that unless and until we can upgrade the conversation from what is "kick ass" and "cool" into what is "inspiring" and "transformational", we as green thought leaders run the risk of being made irrelevant.

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  6. Delay And Deny's avatar

    Delay And Deny Posted 12:22 am
    16 Apr 2008

    Back To Basics

    Bikes are great...and the people of Washington State are crying out for the builders to put the majority of tax dollars to bicycle and pedestrian facilities.
    http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/News/2008/04/01_WashingtonStateBi ...
    I have to agree with some of the other posters about "gizmos".   What we really need is "infrastructure" -- yet, that big, noisy, public word -- for bicycles.
    I have a perfectly great bicycle, a Trek 7000, that I bought for $220.   What I need, however, is a multimillion dollar bicycle network to drive it on.
    The voters have already said they would rather we build that than more automobile infrastructure.
    So what's the hold up?

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  7. AndieG Posted 1:30 am
    16 Apr 2008

    Reply: J. Bailo"So what's the hold up?"
    Bicyclists, that are willing to pay an annual FEE, to pay for them!
    Roads were and are built, to carry cars & trucks, the bulk of the funding for them comes from Gasoline Taxes, Registration Taxes, and other fees.
    Since vast segments of the population CAN'T (physically, monitarily, or practically) use bicycle paths, which would be basically Recreational, there should be a FEE, to register your bike, and an Excise Tax to use it, to help pay to build the paths, and pay for the enforcement officers to keep it safe!
    No bicyclist, should be allowed to use the road way, without being licensed, after passing a test, on the rules of the road. There are way too many arrogant, and ignorant, bike riders! Riding three abreast, not staying to the side of the road, or turning in front of cars! I'm sure the problem goes both ways, but right now, it's always the auto driver that's blamed!
    Every time I see an article in my local paper about 'Bike Paths', it's always sponsered by someone selling expensive bikes, not for transportation to work, but Yuppie Recreation! So he can benefit, from tax dollars spent, to increase his sales of over-priced bicycles!

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  8. piojin Posted 2:26 am
    16 Apr 2008

    Lighten up peopleThis feature had me drooling. Way to go Grist on bringing some cool "gadgets" to my attention.

    Now if I only had a bit more money...

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  9. toddjanderson Posted 3:53 am
    16 Apr 2008

    BikewaysDon't forget that almost all cyclists are a subset of auto drivers. That said, I/we are already contributing extensively to the tax and use fees necessary to build infrastructure. I think the debate needs to tend away from recreational bike paths and towards cyclist friendly structure. For example, it's difficult and dangerous to commute to most downtown areas of many cities in the country. I would like to see the attitude of what is acceptable alternative transport to evolve into something that is useful to the subset of auto drivers knows as cyclists.

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  10. DannyGirl Posted 3:08 am
    22 Apr 2008

    CFL, LED, IncandescentBad, bad old incandescents, right?  Good, good CFLs, right?  Hmmm... The problem with incandescents is the same problem with internal combustion engines: old technology that stagnated with improvements as long as the cost of energy was low.  Problem with CFLs (and my house is full of them, mind) is they contain mercury.  And silly people all over the country who are adopting CFLs (thanks to various incentives) aren't really 'qualified' to properly handle and *dispose of* CFLs.  GE (remember them, heh) I've heard is developing a more efficient incandescent.  LEDs (we also have at our house) have a long way to go on price, unless the gov is just going to give them away.  A more efficient incandescent might be a heavy-metal-free, cheap alternative.

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  11. DannyGirl Posted 3:15 am
    22 Apr 2008

    mellow yellowLow pressure sodium may have uses in specific applications but, last I checked, no one wanted everything in their homes and offices illuminated yellow.  Maybe it could be used for "rise and shine" lighting, however.

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  12. kayakchik Posted 2:20 pm
    22 Apr 2008

    Folding BikesDon't Fret over the expense, people! A little research yields this at REI.com:
    http://www.rei.com/product/775717?ext_cat=undefined
    They also make a bike called the Buzz Fly By...but it looks like it's back ordered right now.
    In any case, both are considerably less than a thousand smackers like the tikit is.....
    Go Bike Fridays!!!

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  13. green8659 Posted 2:31 am
    25 May 2008

    Electric BikesThey have a $350 electric bike you can pick up at Walmart now.  It will go 20-25 miles with the assist on.  If you use the assist sparingly for hills and such it can go quite a long ways.

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  14. cbergen Posted 3:14 am
    16 Sep 2008

    Smart Strip - available in CanadaDoes anyone know if this product is available in Canada and if so, where can I find it?
    Thanx,

    Carrie

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