Restoring the Green to Where We Live

Going 'green' these days is like the hottest topic on everyone's mind, not just for individuals but for multinational companies as well. It definitely isn't a bad thing as the once beautiful earth we live in has been abused due to humans wasting electrical power, polluting, hunting, poaching and so on and so forth. With all this abuse inflicted on Mother Nature, it isn't surprising that she's been angry and thus showing us her wrath with wave after wave of natural disasters (which will hopefully end soon). So it is imperative that we all do our parts and not just leave it up to the big conglomerates to save the only home we have by starting to recycle, reuse and be more aware of our age-old habits that have been sapping not just natural resources, but our money as well.

As a gadget and gizmo lover, here I have a compiled list of eco-friendly products that are already on the market, while others may hit the market in the near future. These products may seem small and insignificant now, but I'm pretty sure every little thing we do will definitely help. So here are some of the coolest ‘green' products (in my opinion):

1)Voltaic Solar Backpack
For those who enjoy going on trips or even hopping on a train just for fun, this solar-powered backpack is just what you need as it produces 4W of solar power to charge any gadget quickly. With its ability to store electricity, it can even charge devices when the sun heads to the other side of the equator. And with all the running around that’s bound to happen, the solar panels are also able to protect my fragile devices inside.

2)Recyclable EarthDrive USB Drive
Made entirely out of bio-recycled materials and available from 1GB to 8GB storage capacities, this cool-looking USB drive is also waterproof, dustproof and shockproof. And if users don't want it anymore, they can simply recycle it. Also every EarthDrive sale goes to planting a new tree around the world.

3)Devices Made Out of Wood
As we all know, plastic may be one of the most versatile materials, but it is also a pain to recycle. With the amount of gadgets disposed every year, landfills are now filled to the brim with plastics and will probably continue to escalate till the next millennium. Renowned computer maker ASUS has found a way to remedy this by creating a laptop out of bamboo, which is a sturdy, biodegradable material that can easily be harvest by fast-growing bamboo plants, so now users can easily recycle the inside and outside of their laptops.

4)Kindle, E-book readers
Although I'm still a big fan of buying hard copy books, I may just invest in a Kindle or other e-book readers, as not only does this minimize the use of paper, but also allows me to carry it anywhere without much added weight of that of a real book. And with the ability to store up to 200 titles from Amazon.com, it definitely beats carrying around 200 paperback novels. Plus, with the Voltaic Solar Backpack, I can even read my favorite books while I'm out camping.

5)MOIXA USB Cell
Whether you like them or not, batteries continue to become a large part of our digital repertoire. If it isn't for our cameras, it'll be for our remote controls. Rechargeable batteries have been around for a long time, but they always require a charger, so with this USB cell, we can just plug it into a USB port to start charging our batteries. No need for extra power usage and bulky chargers and cables.

6)EcoTap
For those who’ve never heard of the ‘vampire power’ phenomenon, it is usually known as standby power, which means that even when you power off a device but leave it plugged in to a socket, it still consumes electricity. With the EcoTap, users just have to twist the power socket off, so it physically cuts power to devices by separating the electrical contacts in a socket.

7)Youlet
With so many things happening around the house or office, we tend to forget to turn off and unplug devices that are connected to a wall socket. So how cool would it be if the wall outlet actually glows to remind us that we've forgot to turn something off?

8)Aperture
I know we all love our long hot shower after a long day at work, or even a cool one on a scorching hot day, but it would definitely be cool to see a showerhead that is able to detect how long an individual has been in the loo and automatically turns it off to conserve precious water.

With the way technology is evolving, our gadgets and gizmos are also getting greener by the day, and with the help of everyone, we may just be able to see Mother Nature restored to her former glory.