Sick and tired of walking under a brutal sun, only to have your portable electronic devices die out on you when you finally reach your destination?

OK, all melodramatics aside, if you wish to harness the power of the sun wherever you go, the Solar Backpack By Eclipse Solar Gear is just the thing to bag it.

Featuring an integrated solar panel that provides up to 4 Watts of power through a single 12V charging outlet, the Solar Backpack can keep your cell phone, iPod, PDA, MP3 player, and many other portable electronics charged with a standard 12V power adapter — just like the one you use in your car (not included).

Constructed from recycled materials, the Solar Backpack’s main compartment fits laptops up to 15 inches, and includes a padded and contoured waist strap, back panel, and shoulder straps for comfortable all-day wear. Plus, its extra pockets securely hold water bottles, accessories, and other small items — making this sack of sunshine extremely functional for everyday use.

Perfect for keeping navigation devices or walkie-talkies charged when hiking, to charge your iGadgets at the beach, or simply keep your e-reader powered while commuting, the Solar Backpack By Eclipse Solar Gear is available at SmartHome.com in three different colors: Black/Orange or Black/Gray for $179.96 and Camo for $199.96.

With these hot summer days, there’s nothing better to cool yourself down than taking a swim — especially if you have your own pool! However, keeping the water in your pool clean takes large amounts of chlorine and other chemicals — that’s why your eyes are so itchy and look all red, and why your bathing suit lasts only a couple of months before it loses its color completely.

If you’re tired of spending hundreds of dollars on expensive chemicals that damage your eyes and skin, you should take a good look at the Floatron Solar Powered Pool Purifier.

The Floatron is a water purifying system that requires only a few minutes of maintenance a week, and reduces chlorine use by as much as 80% in pools of up to 30,000 gallons.

No batteries are required since it uses solar energy and a NASA-developed mineral electrode to release mineral ions in the water. These ions prevent algae and other microorganisms from growing in your pool, spa, outdoor fish pond, or fountain.

The ionized water is so safe it meets EPA drinking water standards, and the mineral ions released by the Floatron are effective for weeks (unlike chlorine, which loses its potency in a matter of hours).

The Floatron Solar Powered Pool Purifier is built to last (made in the USA from weather, water, sunlight and chemical resistant space-age polymers), is rated 4.5 out of 5 stars from 85 customer reviews, and you can get yours now over at SmartHome with FREE shipping for $299.99.

For decades, we’ve been polluting the planet with used-up batteries, punching holes in the Earth’s ozone layer by burning fossil fuels, and causing the polar ice caps to melt faster and faster.

It’s time we started doing something to help the planet — but that doesn’t mean we need to give up singing in the shower!

If you love gadgets, singing in the shower AND caring for the environment, the H2O Water Powered Shower Radio is perfect for you!

Unlike other water-proof electronics, the H2O Water Powered Shower Radio is the world’s first radio to use hydro-power to produce music for your eco-friendly ears!

It’s easily attached to your shower hose and, when you turn the water on, the flow spins the radio’s patented hydro-dynamic turbine generator. The energy generated charges an internal battery, letting you listen to your favorite FM station even after you’re out of the shower — no more disposable batteries!

With one-touch seek buttons, you can easily scan the shower radio’s full-spectrum FM tuner and listen to anything from your local radio talk shows to punk rock classics from the late 70’s.

The H2O Water Powered Shower Radio is an extremely innovative and eco-friendly gadget, and it’s available now at LatestBuy.com for $54.95.

There are different ways to get rid of flying insects. For example, you could run around chasing them with fly swatters — you’d get quite a workout, but would probably manage to kill just a few of these annoying insects. You could also try spraying them with insecticides — but you’d probably be doing more harm to yourself and the environment due to the large concentrations of harmful chemicals they contain.

Well, the Solar Insect Zappers are here to efficiently rid your yard of these flying pests WITHOUT putting your own health at risk!

This set of four insect lights are staked into the ground in your yard to harness the sun’s energy through integrated solar panels — which require just eight hours of moderate sunlight to charge the internal batteries.

At dusk, the lights’ UV bulbs are automatically turned on to lure flies, mosquitoes, and over 100 varieties of flying insects — instantly zapping them with a 300-volt electric charge, and providing you with up to eight hours of chemical-free bug protection.

The housing is made from 100% stainless steel to resist any possible damage from sun and rain, and the bulbs are surrounded by a grate to protect pets and discourage any curious hands. You can also switch from bug zappers to yard accent lights anytime, with the touch of a single button.

The Solar Insect Zappers are a great way to get rid of flying insects without putting your family’s health (or the environment) at risk, and they’re available at Hammacher Schlemmer for $99.95.

A hundred years ago, nobody thought that harnessing the power of the sun was even possible. These days, it’s all about how you can take sunlight and use it to power something else.

However, the Sun Jar can do more than just store sunlight to provide illumination — it can warm up the coldest hearts and bring smiles to the saddest faces.

Its highly efficient solar cell soaks up the sun’s energy into its rechargeable battery during the day. In just a few hours, the Sun Jar will have enough juice to light up its three low energy, warm-colored LED lamps to shine through the frosted glass and provide a nice, heart-warming orange glow.

The Sun Jar features a built-in light sensor that automatically releases the jar’s “sunlight” when it gets dark. This sensor also has an override switch to conserve power, so you don’t have to worry about wasting sunlight when there’s nobody around to actually enjoy it.

Use it as romantic lighting, as a nightlight for your child’s bedroom, or give it away to a friend as a “get well soon” gift.

The Sun Jar is a simple, yet effective way to brighten up your nights, and it’s available at LatestBuy.com for $44.95 | £28.90.

Check this out for crazy fun: you can make your own entertainment with DIY Solar-Powered Bobbleheads!

You know your favorite decorations are home-made, and the DIY Solar-Powered Bobbleheads make it easy to fill your room with fun. Each kit comes with pre-cut paper pieces that fold and fit to create a sturdy, 3-dimensional character – plus detailed instructions to help you put together one of four fun characters: Skeleton, Ninja, Tiger Face, and Vampire.

Not only are these little guys made from recyclable paper, they’re also powered by an eco-friendly solar panel. Hidden inside your bobble’s head is a solar rocker, which only needs minimal light (natural or artificial) to keep moving. The Solar-Powered Bobbleheads require no tools to put together, and only take 20-25 minutes to assemble, leaving you plenty of time to sit back and watch.

Log on to Vat19.com and snag any or all of these adorable collectibles for $15.95 each.

Everyone’s getting excited about the coming warm weather. It means sun, fun, cook outs and long evenings. Unfortunately, it also means bothersome bugs and creepy crawlers. Using harmful sprays and creams to keep them at bay is no fun, and scented candles frequently don’t work at all. The solution to this problem is here with Hammacher Schlemmer’s 120 Hour Personal Mosquito Repeller which deters annoying bugs and insects within a 15 ft radius for up to 120 hours.

The small device clips to your belt or trousers, and with its silent fan, constantly surrounds you with an invisible shield of the plant-derived essential oil geraniol – which has been proven in tests by a University of Florida entomologist to be more effective than DEET (the chemical in most bug repellents) at warding off flying insects.

The 120 Hour Personal Mosquito Repeller includes two geraniol cartridges to naturally repel mosquitoes, ticks, and no see-ums (hey, midge!), runs on 2 x AA batteries, and best of all – it’s so small you won’t even notice it (about the size of a PDA). In fact, the only thing you’ll notice is the lack of bugs around you! $24.95 is a small price to pay for the comfort and ease of a bug-free summer.

Additional geraniol cartridges are also available in a 2-pack for $9.95.

The Logitech Wireless Solar Keyboard K750 is a great keyboard…that’s great for the environment. Thanks to two solar panels, the keyboard is able to collect all the power it’ll ever need from ambient light. After a few short hours under any light (even your desk lamp), the keyboard will stay charged in complete darkness for up to three months – so you’ll never have to worry about batteries, wires or plugs again.

The keyboard connects wirelessly through Logitech’s reliably strong and secure 2.4 GHz Unifying receiver, that is tiny enough to be left plugged into a spare USB port on your Windows-based laptop or PC. With concave key caps for faster, quieter and more comfortable typing, and its truly wireless power solution that requires no batteries or charging cables – the Logitech Wireless Solar K750 is a keyboard that not only looks good, but one you’ll feel good about using.

Measuring in at just a third of an inch thick, this is one smooth and sexy looking keyboard that won’t take up a lot of room on your desk and is available now from Amazon.com (rated 5 out of 5 stars from 12 customer reviews) for just $64.26.

Water filters are a great way to get delicious tasting water when you’re at home, without the financial or ecological cost of bottled water. But taking that experience with you on-the-go has always been a hassle…until now. Thanks to the Bobble Bottle, you can enjoy the clean taste of filtered water – without planning or forethought – wherever you go.

The Bobble Bottle is a portable water bottle that filters water as you drink. Just fill up your water wherever you are to improve the taste of your tap water. Each built-in filter is able to process up to 150 liters of water before needing to be replaced (that’s two and a half months worth for health-nuts guzzling 2 liters a day), and can even be tossed into a recycling bin to be re-recycled afterwards.

With each bottle made of BPA-free recycled PET to further reduce your ecological footprint, the Bobble Bottle holds 1 liter of water, comes in four exciting colors (pink, green, blue, black) and is available now from Firebox.com for $21 | £13 | €15.

How many times have you been out on a bike ride and suddenly felt the urge for a strong shot of hot espresso? None? Well never mind, because you probably don’t tend to bring a kettle along when out mountain biking either. That aside, it would be really cool to have a portable means to make espresso using pressure, like it’s supposed to be made, right? Well Mycuppa have provided just such a cool thing: the Airspresso Bike Pump Powered Coffee Maker.

Just put some coffee grounds in the red section, screw it in, fill another compartment with hot water, screw on a lid, attach your bike pump, sit the whole set-up on your cup, and start pumping. The result? A whole 120ml quadruple shot of delicious, hot espresso. Enough to keep you awake for three days solid. To top it all off, there’s also the authentic crema you’ll get, courtesy of the bike pump pressure.

All you’ll need to make this espresso maker brew is a bike pump, and probably a thermos flask to take the hot water with you…

$180.91 (Australian) will also come in handy.

Via: Wired [Gadget Lab].