Generally speaking, I don’t wait with baited breath for the annual Consumer Electronics Show. This year, however, I did find a gadget that made my eco-heart go pitter-patter: The nPower PEG (Personal Energy Generator) Kinetic Energy Charger by Tremont Electric. Using kinetic energy to charge up, the nPower PEG is a handheld battery rod designed to power portable electronic devices. It’s compatible with more than 3,000 of them, including cell phones, MP3 players, gaming units and GPS devices. When thrown into a purse or backpack, the PEG juices up as you traverse the grocery aisles, play at the playground or run after the school bus with the lunch you just packed. The kinetic energy generated varies widely by user, activity and the device being charged. For example:

• 1 minute of walking provides approximately 1 minute of listening time on an iPod Nano.
• 11 minutes of walking provides approximately 1 minute of talk time on a 2G phone call.
• 26 minutes of walking provides approximately 1 minute of talk time on a 3G phone call.

Environmentally friendly components

• Recyclable internal components and reusable titanium casing
• 90% of the PEG components are sourced from local suppliers, thus reducing the carbon emissions associated with material transportation.
• Connectors on PEG are made of recycled acrylonitrile butadiene styrene.

Sustainability

• Tremont Electric is committed to instilling sustainability as a corporate value.
• They design the PEG using the least amount of resources necessary to manufacture, market and distribute it.
• They are dedicated to educating employees, shareholders and customers regarding environmental concerns and efforts.

Tremont Electric designed the PEG first for functionality as a renewable-energy lifestyle product. Beyond that, the company looked for ways to streamline components by taking away materials that did not add to the functionality or durability of the final product. To add to the sustainability of the product, a PEG buy-back program is currently under development as Tremont Electric explores the most effective way to place PEGs into its resource stream and provide meaningful repurposing or recycling. After checking out the nPower PEG, when next year’s Consumer Electronics Show rolls around, I may need to do a little more product scrutinizing. There may well be an nPower PEG 2 that demands my attention.