The camping trip always looms large as a battery-sucking deterrent. I’ve personally had friends running parked cars for hours just to keep their phones alive and stay on the connected Facebook grid.

A responsible human being will no doubt already have jumped on board with eco-friendly products and companies, like Apple – which went from being notoriously bad to one of the greenest and conscientious producers of electronics in the twenty-first century, and all of their batteries last a heck of a lot longer than anyone’s.

What else can the consumer do to enjoy the perks of reading the next Neil Gaiman page-turner on their Nook tablet, no matter the circumstance and lack of a wall outlet?

Buy a Solar Charger kit from Changers.com, and change your luck!

It is true that the price tag – just shy of a hundred and fifty bones – is steep, but Changers makes it well worth your money.

Their starter kit includes everything one needs to revel in the power of the sun and keep the smartphone, iPod, tablet, and laptop alive. The Kindle-look-alike solar panel (complete with suction cups for window hanging), portable solar battery, and USB (and micro-USB) connection complete with eight adapters to fit thousands of devices are all in the Starter Kit.

The software that accompanies the solar charger even measures how much carbon is saved with each charging attempt. While the online marketplace lets your chart your savings, share your stats, and compete against your friends.

Reports suggest that at least a few hours are needed to really power up a smartphone, but the sky – even when cloudy – offers us the sun for many hours throughout each day.

Save electricity and save the environment and save the dying batteries of all things gadgetry!

Sphero is a ball, about the size of a Magic 8-ball, that moves around through a (one time only) Bluetooth connection with a smartphone or tablet that serves as its remote control. The “Sphero” App is the brain of the device and can program it to adhere to the user’s voice commands that will get it to move, or even play dead.

There are many ways to drive the Sphero, and the “Sphero Golf” application allows an iPhone to act as a putter and club the ball, without actually touching it, toward any office garbage can or hole. There is also a Space Invaders-like game where the player holds and turns the Sphero ball to fight off the spaceships on the iPad screen’s starry backdrop.

The ball itself looks like an enormous eye with its white exterior (but the color is changeable in the “Sphero” App) and a pupil-like circle that serves as a camera for pictures and video through the use of the “SpheroCam” App, which is one of six Apps that are available for it for free.

Sphero might be a cat’s dream, but it also seems like a pricey way to have fun with friends, or spy on neighbors. Sphero is one hundred and twenty-nine bucks and specifically runs on just iOS Apple devices or Androids for the time being.

Robots have been around for quite some time, but it isn’t until now that many people are beginning to really invest money and time into worthwhile causes. Steve Cousins, former Xerox veteran, believes that the usage of robots will become as prolific as the use of the home computer in the near future, and has created some of his own personal robots at  his startup firm Willow Garage.

Currently the star of the show is PR2, a robot that can be programmed to pretty much do anything. Bosch has turned around and programmed the robot to do everything from simple tasks like delivering mail to more complex jobs like woodworking and of course the all-important beer-fetching.

The robot, like the many others that Willows Garage has created, can “learn” different things if it is inputted with an app that tells it what to do. Another neat robot is the TurtleBot which utilizes the Microsoft Kinect and enables the little bot the ability to drive, build 3D pictures, take panoramas and even bring you food.

One of the greatest things about all the robots made by Willow Garage is that they come with the open source robotic operating system (ROS), allowing anyone proficient in Linux to create their own programs, select some from the ROS, or buy them at the Robot App Store.

The dream of having your own personal robot do the household chores is not far off. Which probably means the day of their uprising isn’t far off either. Still, I for one welcome our new robot overlords.

Microsoft’s Xbox 360 has become a champion of the next generation video game consoles, but avid and amateur gamers alike have always harped on one major flaw with the powerful system: the D-pad is horrendous.

Since the Nintendo 64 and the PlayStation One consoles, the controllers arrived with not only a D-pad, but with mini joysticks as well. Players marveled at the relative ease that avatars could be moved on the bright screen via these ‘sticks.

But many games, such as fighting games like those in the Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, and Marvel Vs. Capcom series have long required a directional D-pad to perform moves (when a full size arcade machine’s mega-joystick was not around). The micro joysticks cannot begin to replicate the steady up, down, left, right accuracy of the D-pad.

PlayStation maintained one of the best D-pads throughout its three consoles, but the Xbox 360 – for all of its luster and amazing graphic spinning – fell utterly short of functionality. To rectify this, the accessory maker Mad Catz worked with Capcom to release officially licensed Xbox 360 Street Fighter IV Round 2 Fightpads.

For just shy of thirty-five bucks at Amazon (or forty at Gamestop), a Street Fighter controller allows for a tremendous upgrade in gaming on the 360. The Fightpad is similar in shape to the 360’s standard controller, but it contains a grip-like surface on the back, a shiny and gorgeous picture of many of Street Fighter’s most interesting and infamous characters, and a reformatted button layout.

The 360’s standard clunky two top button on either side has been scrapped and the RB and RT buttons have been relocated to form an ergonomic six-button layout that helps greatly with any game that requires fast button mashing. The Xbox 360’s mini joysticks are gone, and a HUGE (and I mean HUGE) 8-way floating D-pad rests in their place, ensuring the most accurate movement imaginable.

There are no batteries required, as this controller is wired in with ten feet of cord, and there is a button capable of invoking the D-pad to act as a joystick in a game that requires more than the amazing arcade experience!

You have to play with this to see just how infinitely improved and adept this controller is at gaming.

Daniel Craig, also known as James Bond in certain diplomatic spy circles, wants his prototype ASAP!

The sexy and shiny oval cufflinks split open to reveal USB thumb drives that are compatible with any sort of computer, tablet, or even iPhone.

It is only in the rarest of cases that fashion and technical gadgetry can be one and the same (for an exception to the rule, see the late Steve Job’s turtleneck for a way to keep the neck warm and the head primed for genius thoughts and technical dreams). Too often the wearer’s look is sacrificed for function, but this is far from the case with Brookstone’s newest release: the Polished Silver Oval Wi-Fi and 2GB USB Cufflinks.

Go to the board meeting or gold bullion exchange looking lean and mean, not to mention badass, with the USB Cufflinks helping to not only take care of the shirt sleeves, but also the Wi-Fi needs of the iPad in hand and the computer on the table through the ‘links’ secretly stowed wireless hot spot.

Goldfinger will not understand how, having stripped Bond of all of his gadgets, he could still tap into the database with only the use of an inept guard’s iPod Touch and escape his death ray device.

These cufflinks come with software to commandeer any wireless device and utilize an Internet connection, while still keeping the wearer looking dressed to kill at an upper-class ball, office party, or political inauguration.

Two hundred and fifty dollars is expensive but worth the cost for the polished silver cufflinks on their own, and now they provide the hardware for anyone to complete Mission Impossible.

A shining example of a bargain Bluetooth keyboard is the Rii Mini Bluetooth Wireless Keyboard which will set you back about $30.00 and set you up with everything you need to command your home theatre PC, iPad, and Playstation 3.  Combining a standard QWERTY keyboard (complete with function keys!) along with a responsive touchpad, mouse click buttons, and a laser pointer into a sleek-yet-sturdy 6” x 2 ¼” form factor is no easy task, but the Rii Mini accomplishes it handily.

Speaking of hands, those with larger mitts need not worry about their ability to navigate the Rii Mini.  At 6’5” with gigantic hands to match, I have no problems gliding my large, stubby fingers over the keyboard which is- as an added bonus- nicely backlit with the press of a single button on the top left of the unit. This optional backlighting is clear enough to make the keyboard visible in a dark room, but isn’t bright enough to distract your eyes during a movie, meeting, or lecture.

Those considering the Rii Mini for home usage may find the laser pointer superfluous, but I found it quite useful in entertaining my energetic puppy from the comfort of my couch.  Although it depletes the battery life rather quickly, the laser pointer is a nice feature to have on the keyboard even if you only use it once.  Although, if you are reading this site, you’re probably the type of person who will actively find uses for a laser pointer once they know it’s built in their keyboard and we love you for that.

Less capricious users will find a host of other well thought out features added to the Rii Mini’s layout, such as the built-in dock for its tiny USB dongle or the ability to send a CTRL+ALT+DELETE command with a two-button keystroke (FN + Enter).  Whether you intend to use the Rii Mini at home, in front of classroom full of students, or to help managers navigate the tech setup in your conference room, you will not find yourself wanting more out of this little, versatile wonder.

Meet the Manifold Clock. Created by a team in Tel Aviv, Israel, this gadget aims to encapsulate the ever-changing concept of time.

The silent hands, powered by a single AA battery, are connected to a clock by a piece of Tyvek fabric. As they tick, they cause the fabric to twist and bend in space, changing the clock’s appearance every 60 seconds and turning the concept of time into a three-dimensional reality.

Based on a combination of modern design, simple mechanics and the principle of the Riemann surface, the clock is a fascinating spin on the traditional timepiece. It’s all about perspective, and how we visualize time and space as it changes.

The clock took almost a year to bring from concept to reality. The team decided to post the project on Kickstarter to help fund the expensive injection mold, meet the manufacturer’s minimum order quantity and set up the production line.

At the time of writing, the project is $5,300 away from being funded and becoming a reality sooner rather than later. By pledging $45, you can pre-order a Manifold Clock, which will retail at a suggested price of $69, if the project reaches its funding goal. There’s also a 30″ diameter version available if you pledge $100.

Nothing is static. The Manifold Clock embodies that in an aesthetically pleasing way.

Whether you’re a fan of Dr. Who, or not (and you all should enjoy the time traveling Brit, as his comedy and courage are unparalleled), this coffee mug is the gift that keeps giving.

With every pouring of a liquid hot brew, the Tardis sitting on a typical English street begins to smoke and disappear . . .

This particular English police box is not a place for citizens to run for cover to phone Scotland Yard, but rather the age-old vessel of the Time Lord Dr. Who and is in reality a living – and often arguable as far as the doctor is concerned – time machine.

As the aroma of coffee erupts in the air, the previously empty side of the mug – containing only stars and space – will magically host the Time Lord’s Tardis speeding through the tunnel of time and space; the police box will be completely gone on the suburban street and backdrop of the other side.

Does this mug really showcase the disappearing of the time machine from earth to an unknown time in space? Yes, it does!

For less than thirteen bucks, the wide rimmed mug provides ample room for delicious brews in a sturdy porcelain setting and as the coffee within disappears and reappears, so too will the Tardis leave and show up in England or the wide reaches of space.

The sculptures bring together tossed items that most of us might not glance at twice and creates something entirely new and entertaining. While much of Gould’s sculptures don’t move, there are some that incorporate the use of motors to create a very cool diorama.

It’s interesting to see the combination of technology and art together in such a seamless way that they are one and the same. While simpler than many of the steampunk laptops, Gould’s work looks as though it could really belong in a steam-themed Victorian era.

One of my favorite examples of techno-art is his Firefly sculpture. The mashup of piano parts, violin neck, flicker bulb, furniture parts, an old radio, brass, gears, motor, lamp hardware and knobs really give this a distinctive look that still hearkens back to an actual firefly, while the clever use of motors and gears make this little animatronic creation even more whimsical.

While still on the low-tech side, these pieces of art just go to show how you can take the mundane (or even trash) and transform them into something larger than the sum of its parts.

The Nokia Lumia 900 is a great example of an exciting new version of a phone almost up to the current Apple and Droid standards, so let’s take a close look at it.

Nokia is still hush-hush on the price tag of this sexy phone for AT&T customers – it looks and feels like the previous generation iPod Nano, with its sleek polycarbonate shell and shape. Their previous model, the Lumia 710, has gone down to less than fifty bucks, or free in some cases, so the Lumia 900 is expected to range from a buck fifty to two hundred samolians with a two year service contract.

Put plainly, if the Nokia 900 is less than two hundred dollars, then it will be a more affordable alternative to Apple and the Android’s champion Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket phone (currently $199 with a new two-year contract), and if it is not . . . well, it probably will not sell well.

Make no mistake the Nokia Lumia 900 is an impressive step forward for all of the other guys in the cell phone market battleground, but does it come up to snuff with the Android and Apple revolution?

Firstly, be prepared to take a bite out of the Mango operating system, because the newest smartphone from Nokia is running on Windows (yes, the same that bricked thousands of phones with a mere software update last year).

The 4.3-inch AMOLED screen is gorgeous to see, and HUGE, but it only tops out at a resolution of 800 x 480. Though Apple has yet to go with a more shiny OLED display or go over 3.5-inches, the Nokia’s pixel resolution pales in comparison to the iPhone 4S’s of 960 x 640.

The big upside that Nokia showed off is the Lumia 900’s LTE 4G setup, which is extremely fast. But the processor – though much improved over even Apple with a 1.4 GHZ processor (compare to the iPhone 4S’s 1 GHZ) – is reliant on shoddy Windows software that does not yet come close to being as intuitive as Android, let alone Apple. The Lumia 900 cannot even record video at 1080P HD (Nokia’s is 720P), but wait . . . it does include . . . a Zune player?

Should we spit this Mango-phone back?