For those of you who buy fresh herbs constantly, you'll be happy with this device by Prepera. The Herb Savor prolongs the life of fresh herbs for up to 3 weeks. Beats buying dry herbs on the spice isle of the grocery store.

Found at Amazon.

We've never held one of these in our hands, so we can't attest to how these iPhone/iPod touch cases might feel in your pocket. What we can say is that each of these real wood iPhone and iPod touch cases are beautiful. Each iPhone case weighs in at 1.07oz and if you are worried about scratching your iPhone's soulful body, worry not, on the inside of the case there is a soft, scratch-resistant lining.

Now there is going to be a whole new generation of people with wood in their pants. Come on, you knew they'd be a punch line in there somewhere.

Found at Vers.

If you have kids you likely go through dozens of batteries on toys. My wife and I have a 16 month old who loves her toys. We were throwing our money down the drain by buying batteries every time we went to the supermarket. Not having a good experience in the past with rechargeable batteries, we were skeptical about purchasing the Energizer 15-Minute Battery Charger.

The charger pictured here is also available with an AC adapter which is the one that we used for the review. It really does take less than 15 minutes to charge and gets you up and going in no time. Even the Energizer bunny himself couldn't catch up with the speed of this charger. The charger typically sells for about $30.00 and comes with 4 X AA batteries, but is also compatible with AAA batteries (great for remote controls). Currently the highest ma rating available is 2500mAh and a pack of four AA will run you about $13.00. We found a good deal on amazon of 2 X 4 AA packs for under $20.00.

The included AA Energizer rechargeable batteries are not as long lasting as the regular Duracel or Energizer batteries you find on the shelf, but they do save you a lot of money in the long run. These batteries can be charged hundreds of times and although the battery life decreases as time passes, the effects are not noticeable until the end of a long life cycle.

A few hints when buying the batteries, make sure that you purchase the highest mAh (milli Amp Hour) rating you can find. The batteries will be more expensive, but will have more power and last longer per charge. Also label and charge the batteries in sets. They tend to last longer when charged as a set. I use a sharpie to label which helps me see which batteries are older and have degraded life. Finally, remember to check with the toy or appliance you are going to put them in to make sure it allows you to use these type of batteries. I have been able to use them on toys, cameras, and remotes without a problem.

If I had to buy this kit again I wouldn't hesitate. It has saved us a ton of money. The instant gratification of having fresh batteries in 15 minutes is also a plus. One last thing to note is that you are reusing these batteries so it is great for the environment.


IN THE BOX
- Energizer 15-Minute Battery Charger.
- 4 X AA Energizer rechargeable batteries
- AC Adapter

THE GOOD
- Saves you money over the long run
- Charges four batteries in under 15 minutes
- Batteries can be charged hundreds of times

THE BAD
- Initialialy expensive
- Batteries tend to degrade after many uses

WHERE TO BUY
Amazon

MANUFACTURER
Energizer

Not that you'd have a need to spice up your garbage bags, but it is good to know you could if you wanted to. The Pet Goldfish Trash Bags (also known as Happy Sacks) come in a box of 12 and unlike plastic garbage bags, these are 100% biodegradable.

Found at Baron Bob for $14.95.

The fact that Cat Bishop makes sculptures out of recycled materials is nothing entirely unique. What blows our mind is how good she is at it. Take for example Leo, the suave camera robot. Built out of a bakelite Kodak Brownie 127 body with domino and dice legs and a #6 bakelite poolball, this retro-matic robot conquers our heart.

Check out Cat Bishop's Etsy shop for a ton of other crazy recycled sculptures.

Nissan introduced the Leaf a couple of days ago and while it is causing up a storm, it looks like you will have to wait until late 2010 to get your own -- at least those are the rumors right now.

The Nissan Leaf, a zero emission vehicle, is powered by advanced technology lithium ion batteries -- the same batteries that power your cell phone. The batteries are said to give you enough power to travel at speeds of up to 90 miles per hour and cover up to 100 miles in one charge. According to Answers.com, Americans travel about 33.4 miles per day, so you could technically go about 3 days without charging your car. No detail specifications on how many trips you can make to the pizza parlor with you and four of your best buds however.



The current electric car revolution reminds me of the documentary "Who Killed the Electric Car?" If you haven't seen it, make sure you do. It is an interesting view on GM's EV1, the American version of the electric vehicle, that seems to have come before its time.

Looking for an inexpensive car to get you from point A to B? Tata Motors an Indian company has developed the NANO just for you. The car is 10ft long, seats four and will sell for roughly $2,500, so pretty much anyone on an allowance can get one. Why is this car so cheap? Well in order to offer the car this cheap they had to make some cut backs on what regular people want on their cars. Don't expect to have Bluetooth on this little guy, in fact lots of the features you have on a regular car are extras on this guy. For instance air conditioning, power brakes, radios, etc. are all missing from the entry-level model.

What did you expect for a car that costs about as much as a high end refrigerator? The engine in the car is made from an aluminum block just like the old generation Volkswagen beetle was. Actually the Indian company dubbed the car "The people's car" just like Volkswagen had done with the beetle. Instead of welding you will find adhesive which is not so great but that's how they keep the cost down. Don?t expect to find any air bags on this guy either.

The vehicle can climb up until about 65 MPH where it will top off, It does however get about 50 miles to the gallon though with its 2 cylinder 623cc engine. Can you say lawn mower? Actually its about twice as powerfull as a conventional lawnmower you would have at home.

The Nano has a modular design. Tata Motors takes advantage of this and sells these as kits, this way regular people can purchase one of these and build it in their own garage if they enjoy that sort of stuff. Kind of crazy but cool at the same time.

The car is available in India currently but is destined to hit the US within the next three years. Because the US has stringent safety standards, it will have to go through a few redesigns before it starts being sold here.

Check this out all you green people. So you haven't bought a calendar since Al Gore invented the internet and announced global warming huh? After the month is over instead of throwing away the page, PLANT IT! Simply grab the page and plant it to have some wildflowers growing in your garden.

The 2009 edition of Botanical PaperWorks' Signature Plantable Eco Calendar is made with 100% post-consumer waste and 100% recyclable into wildflowers. The calendar is 5" x 5" and is handmade. The calendar also comes in a fancy tin can that is also reusable.

Looking for a new water dispenser for your home or office? Take a look at the Island Sky Water-Making Machines. The Skywater 14 machine works without bottles, so your back won't be hurting the next day after lugging around a heavy 5 gallon jug. The concept is actually fairly simple: The Skywater 14 transforms air humidity into water. It does so by using a technology that filters air, then it condenses it and collects it in a large reservoir. The entire system is purified with OZONE, which is EPA and FDA approved. After the water is purified, it passes through a carbon filter, which enhances the taste.

It is a cool alternative to provide low cost, high-quality drinking water for your home or office. Another thing to note is that the Skywater 14 needs no plumbing. You simply plug this bad boy into a standard 110 or 220 volt outlet and wait for the water to be sucked from the air. The unit has an LCD display which shows current indoor temperature and humidity conditions, and features a full tank gauge so you know when your water is ready.

If you don't have a green thumb (like me), you'll find that these gorgeous IV Plant Pots will give you a chuckle. The fibreglass plant pot has an adjustable metal rod that has an I.V. bag attached that can be refilled and regulated to give your plant a daily dose of water.

Found at Vitamin.