iThink Green

Oh, the great — and getting increasingly warmer — outdoors. If you’re anything like me, a nice stroll at a park is not complete without your iPod, your camera, possibly your laptop, and your iPhone or Blackberry. How Earth-friendly is that? I’m not entirely sure, but I am sure that I’d like to be “greener” about carrying all of the electronics that are necessary for my day-to-day life.

There are rechargeable batteries available almost everywhere, so that you never have to buy your AA batteries in bulk anymore, and of course, there are now some great, power-save options on a lot of electronic devices. One particular product even allows you to go ahead and soak up the rays while giving your iPhone a boost.

NOVOTHINK, a solar energy solution company, has paired solar energy with one of the hottest electronic devices on the market right now. Their innovative design, better known as the Surge, works for both the iPhone and iPod touch. It’s a solar charger case that allows you to power up your iPhone anywhere the sunlight is, which — this season — will hopefully be everywhere.

The surge comes in six different colours to suit your personal tastes, and it’s a great source for green energy. However, I think the coolest thing about it is that users can download an app onto their iPhone that allows them to estimate how much power they’re going to need, depending on how much, and for what, you are using your device.

Now all I need is an iPhone.

— Kate Aenlle