This is one patch of grass you'll definitely need to keep off of. Despite what it may look like this isn't a computer/allotment with a real patch of grass sprouting out the top. The idea of the Lawn PC is so seriously far-fetched that it's obviously a concept - a futuristic solar powered concept. It's a completely wireless PC that gets rid of the need for an electrical outlet. This is where that peculiar patch of lawn comes in. As long as it's catching some rays, the grass will collect and store its own power from the solar cells embedded in it. Now the grass isn't the same stuff you'd find in your back garden, it's made form natural cotton fabric (so they're biodegradable) which carries inkjet printed solar cells.

We're used to MP3 players that come in multiple colours by now (thanks Apple) have an interesting interface (the Spinn comes to mind) and double up as PMP's (where do I even start with this one?) but one that also integrates a CAMERA and video camera is a new idea. That's what the E-matic EM324CAMP promises to do, as within its sleek shell it hold a 2 megapixel camera and video option that can record up to 70 hours of video, in 7 different modes. You can choose from Sepia, Black/White, Solaris and more for those 'real' film like effects and then you can view your masterpiece on the 2.4 inch screen.

It may get dark an entire hour earlier than it did last week, but that doesn't mean solar chargers should be put in the back of the cupboard with the cobwebs till next summer. The Freeloader Solar Charger is a power station designed to be taken anywhere. The affixed solar panels will charge its insides in around eight hours or three hours when done via USB (yes, they understand solar power isn't the most efficient and readily available source of energy). Fully charged, it'll keep your iPod going for 18 hours, a mobile for 44 hours, PSP 2.5 hours and a PDA for 22 hours.

Available in silver or this Barbie-esque pink with an impact resistant aluminium body and a range of adapters for your gadgets - £22.99 from IWOOT.

Like this? Take a look at more eco-friendly devices here

The icicles are starting to form (or at least it feels that way), we're greeted with breath fog in the mornings and the credit crunch is still evidently present in all our lives - what better reason to write about energy efficient kettles from Philips? We're all concerned with how much money is in our pockets, but this shouldn't affect our cup of tea in the mornings (especially as we'll be drinking loads more now) and that's where these eco-friendly kettles come in.

One gives you the option to heat up between 40°C and 100°C for a lovely cuppa or a perfectly brewed cup of green tea which I hear tastes its best at 80°C. It also keeps your water at the desired temperature while you fiddle with mugs and teabags (how many sugars?). It's not bad on the eye either and goes by the name Philips HD4686 Energy Saver (above).

Now this is an electric car I can work with. It looks like a proper car, not one you'd be ashamed to be seen in, like one of those geriatric mobiles we've been seeing driving past or sitting stationary while charging up at power stations. This car is actually cool. The Mini's come a long way from being a 60s icon to the super BMW Mini it is today. And now it can add an all electric version to its list of achievements too.

The Mini E is a zero emission, two seater version of the famous 3 door hatchback, swapping a gas guzzling internal combustion engine for a lithium-ion battery powered motor.

The new generation of sub-notebooks (netbooks or just super-tiny PCs depending on what you want to call them) is a great step forward in green computing. Most models on the market today run on a fraction of the electricity guzzled by standard PCs - even those claiming to be green.

Asus has recently been given a pat on the back for their work in the eco-friendly area by scooping a gold star from green tech body EPEAT. Read on to find out why.

This is 52 inches of sheer dedication to saving energy and being green. Sharp's solar powered LCD not only takes the environment into consideration, but its design is very *very* nice as well (a feature which often goes unnoticed by manufacturers of eco-friendly gadgets). This mammoth sized TV has an LED back light and is almost completely powered by solar energy. The winter months and dark nights might let you down a bit, which probably explains why it's only partly powered by solar energy.

Sony Ericsson is getting environmentally friendly on us with their new super green concept handset. We love a good concept. It may very well just be someone's far fetched idea, but a concept gives us hope that one day in the distant future we may see that same concept again, but as an official product on the shelves of our local Dixons or Carphone Warehouse.

The GreenHeart phone is an eco-friendly gadget personified. It has bio-plastic casing, a recycled plastic keypad and a charger with 3.5mW standby power (The milliwatt is equal to one thousandth (10-3) of a watt).

Its eco-friendliness continues after the jump...

Hippyshopper has news of the latest Trevor Baylis eco-product coming out, in the form of this second generation wind-up media player. Whilst the first had a decidedly 'Hi, I'm an eco product!' look to it, the design of this one puts it amongst the big boys. Crank for just one minute, and you'll get 45 minutes of music playback.

And the specs are completely comparable to other less friendly players. There's music playback of MP3, AAC, WMA, WAV and OGG files, video playback of AVI, WMV and MP4 files, photo and e-book viewing, an internal memory and an SD slot for memory expansion.

The convergence of green and gadgets in the PC world has been a long time coming, but now it's here I think we're going to see a shift in how computers are powered. There's been a lot of talk lately about Google's plan to host their super-computers offshore (water and wave energy= green and cheap) so the fact that home PC's are now being equipped with energy saving devices is no surprise.

Shiny Shiny, Hippyshopper and Tech Digest are going green for the week, courtesy of Ethical Superstore. Never one's to back away from a challenge, we've accepted Hippyshopper's energy monitoring quest. This pretty much involves finding out whether we live in green friendly households that don't guzzle energy like it's going out of fashion, or whether our houses of residence are more the guzzling kind that appear not to give a hoot about the environment and would much prefer to make use of every electrical outlet around the house/flat.

Yes, that's right, four enthusiastic energy monitors - Me, Tech Digest's Duncan, Hippyshopper's Abi and Katie - will be finding out the horrible truth about our daily energy consuming habits. We've each been equipped with energy monitors to find out just how greedy or green our households really are.

See after the jump to find out who's testing what.

The clue is definitely not in the name with this corkscrew contraption - it has nothing to do with fire, despite what the name implies. It does however, have something to do with winding... and lighting and being eco-friendly for that matter. The "lava lamp of the 21st century" (dubbed by its creator) uses wind to power up, but rather than building up enough juice to give it a power boost, Firewinder utilises the wind to generate a pretty lightshow for plenty of oohing and ahhing... oh, and providing a light source on a cold and dark wintry night too. This is also the first time you'll probably appreciate blustery winds, because no wind = no lightshow. The faster the wind blows, the faster Firewinder spins and illuminates all 14 of its LED lights.

See what it looks like in action after the jump

Although the summer is more or less officially over, there are still a few sunny days coming our way over the next few weeks (fingers crossed). That's when you might just need a solar powered phone charger to give your phone the juice it lacks because you've been on it all day or forgot to charge it the night before. You may as well inject some fun and cuteness into it too, by purchasing this disposable Hello Kitty solar charger.

Its solar charging powers gives a firm salute to the green team, although it is a disposable charger, and with no mention of it being made from earth friendly materials, its eco-friendly status doesn't seem so eco-friendly after all.

Yes, it's here at last, your wait is over: the LED squeezable vampire bat torch has finally arrived!

OK, so maybe you didn't actually realise what was missing from your life, but now you've seen this eco-friendly glowing rodent*, you're all going to sleep easier at night knowing it exists in the universe. According to Abi over on Hippyshopper, it's eco-friendly, using LEDs and the power of squeeze technology to set the bat aglow. Just the thing for Hallowe'en.

Yours for £4.99 from Ethical Superstore.

*Yes, I know it's not really a rodent, but "glowing Megachiroptera" didn't have quite the same ring to it.

We like LED lighting around here, but it's even better when it comes stylishly packaged and has extra gadgety bits to get excited about too.

The Spark Lamp is not only a cool, contemporary low energy lamp, but it also comes with a wireless device that monitors the overall energy usage in your home. Oh, and it doesn't need any electricity for itself (it's eco-friendly, hello?), as it stores up sunlight during the day to get its juice. Just like a plant! Which is why it kinda looks like one.

[Via Hippyshopper]

More eco-friendly gadgets here

Mini notebooks, netbooks, sub-notebooks, ULPC's (whatever you want to call them) are great aren't they? But as far as design goes, they tend to be a bit run-of-the-mill - i.e. plain. That's what makes the Tokidoki mini laptop from Fujitsu such great eye candy, not to mention being a nice break away from the norm. Completely covered in Tokidoki characters, this Fujitsu laptop is incredibly lightweight and uses a super low amount of power when compared to your average laptop, giving a firm salute to eco-friendliness too.

Help the environment and look cool at the same time? Well you're not going to complain now are you? These funky looking laptop bags are created from recycled movie billboards. Every one is a little bit different, meaning you get a unique hand-made bag, which will keep your laptop snug all day long.

They're created in fair trade co-operatives abroad, and the proceeds from the bag go to helping underprivileged communities. I love the retro feel of the bag, and hope they'll have a movie poster that fits my personality. I think I'm an Ocean's Eleven kind of girl, don't you?

£60 from John Lewis

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We've oohed and ahhed over Mimobots at Shiny, craving their cute chunky bodies and colourful casing, but now we can help the environment at the same time. Seriously.

They've decided to team up their Treeson bot with their Mimoco's GreenBot USB Flash Drive Recycling Program. They'll collect old or defective USB drives, Mimobots or otherwise, and give you a Mimobot discount in exchange. The Treeson bots have a capacity of up to 8GB and come preloaded with exclusive digital content, from wallpapers to music.

Check it out here.

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Yes, I know it's not really necessary that the lid of my jewellery box be covered by a gossamer light butterfly which flutters its wings, but isn't it pretty? And if we're talking functionality, well I probably don't need that home planetarium, disco ball or oddly shaped lamp either. The wings are powered by the natural light in the room, so I'm guessing they use a very low level of solar energy to keep them flapping (more details aren't provided), and it will keep your treasures safe.

$15 from Brando

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So, Surya, the world's first ecological nightclub has just opened, complete with its own wind turbine, solar energy system and electricity generating dance floor. It only opened recently and is already getting a lot of flak for not being as eco-friendly as it claims. Obviously, its creators are going to stand up tall and say it's completely ecological. However, that's all rubbish according to Friends of the Earth, who say the club's activities "are not compatible with their work to promote low-carbon living", and are more than a little peed off the club has decided to use their logo.

See how eco-friendly the club really is after the jump.