Review: Griffin PowerJolt Reserve iPhone Charger and Battery

I’m not sure what other people think about the Griffin 9785-PJLTRSV PowerJolt Reserve for iPhone & iPod, but I for one love it. This is a little cigarette lighter adapter for your car which allows you to plug in your standard iPhone USB charging cord to power-up your phone while on the road. But it also happens to have a built in rechargeable battery attached to it which you can either use in the car for wireless convenience – or take in your pocket for backup power when you go!

A few things you should know:

  • It’s about $40. I got mine at a local WalMart.
  • The battery connects to the charger magnetically. Yeah, it’s cool. You just grab it and pull it off. When you are done just get it near where it needs to be and the magnets pull it together.
  • You can be charging one phone with the USB while another is charging off the battery.
  • It charges an iPhone MUCH faster than other chargers in my opinion.
  • The battery will bring an iPhone 3Gs up to about 50% charge.

Here are a few closeup photos from mine. I go nowhere without it.

A Collection of Homemade Electric Project Motorcycles

Electric MotorcyclePeople who are really wanting to go all electric in terms of their personal transportation haven’t had a lot of options. Sure, you could get a Vectrix electric scooter, or if you had a boatload of cash you could buy the Wrightspeed X1 Supercar.

But of course, there is one other option. You could always build your own electric motorcycle! That’s exactly what these people have done! And you can even find the specs and parts on some of the associated web sites. Of course, even if you don’t build one, its totally cool to take a look at what these other folks are doing. Pretty soon I’m hoping we can pick up full electrics from Honda, Yamaha, and other manufacturers.
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One Man’s Weekly Links – November 2, 2007

News that shouldn’t be missed:
Feed the Homeless!

Have a great weekend!

Hack a 6 or 9 Volt Battery to Save Bucks

Hack a BatteryBatteries are like crack. You just can’t live without them! However, some very industrious (and possibly crazy) folks have destroyed a few batteries to bring us tips on how to save a ton of cash by hacking into, and re-purposing the guts of, 6 and 9 volt batteries.

For example, inside one of those giant 6 volt lantern batteries actually reside 32 standard AA batteries! And here is how you get them out:
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USB Port Rechargeable Batteries

USB Rechargeable BatteryFinally! Rechargeable Batteries that don’t require a specialized recharging station! These new batteries from Moixa Energy plug directly into a USB port to recharge.

They come in all the standard sizes, and the company is working on additional batteries for specialized devices such as cell phones, PDAs, etc.
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