You know the drill when it comes to powering up gadgets: You use up electricity, it leads to your hard-earned cash ending up in the pocket of energy companies, and the environment gets hurt. The arrival of new self-generating energy gadgets such as Potenco's Pull-Cord Generator intends to curb (and eventually eliminate) this parasitic energy model for millions of people– we just wished there were more of them available already.
The PCG resembles a plastic yo-yo in appearance, but its ergonomic function will be familiar to anyone who revved up the family lawnmower: You simply pull the cord and (voila!) energy is created. The 14 oz. PCG generates a peak average power of 20W, where only one minute of pulling creates enough power for one hour of LED flashlight use, or enough to take 35 pictures on an average SLR camera. It's also durable enough for consistent use, and is resistant to dust and constant dropping, which is important because its most lasting value could be its use in developing nations who don't have access to stable energy resources.
However, in order to make it compatible for the third world, it needs to be affordable, which explains Potenco's alliance with the One Laptop
Per Child project (OLPC). As most know, the OLPC intends to provide their XO laptop to children in developing countries, through deals with governments and individual contributions for the now- $180-estimated laptop. The PCG will come with every XO laptop purchase, but the company also wants to make it separately available in order to make an even bigger impact. At the moment, there is no estimate about its separate cost.
The PCG is supposed to powers everything from rechargeable batteries, to house lighting, cell phones, radios, GPS, and of course, notebooks.
Suddenly, the tired truism that ‘if you're willing to put your energy into something substantial, the more you'll be able to get out it,’ has been taken literally and become positively relevant. The
Pull-Cord-Generator was recently featured at Wired’s NextFestevent in
Los Angeles, Ca.
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