The solar powered lighter flings sparks without fuel

Considering that the smokers in the house have probably already set up an import to get one of Golden Dragon's e-cigarettes shipped over, why not do yet another good deed and rid yourself of that fossil fuel-wasting lighter? All jesting aside, it seems that a Portuguese webstore is stocking a rather vivid new way to start fires (and open bottles, too) using the sun, and thankfully, it doesn't involve a magnifying glass and days of patience. The device is equipped with a built-in solar panel that reportedly utilizes sunlight or artificial light to charge up internal Li-ions, and with the presumed flick of a switch, the device flings out a "continuous series of sparks" that should get that pilot light going. Apparently, this thing isn't meant to be a flamethrower of any sort, but if you're out of matches and have tons of dry lint, you can snag one of these uber-green fire starters for €13.90 ($19).

[Via UberReview]

[tekdroid @ May 11th 2007 6:22AM]

if anything, the fact that it's larger (using more fossil fuels in the plastic and parts/battery, and considering the battery will die out after a certain number of charges, this lighter is actually more damaging to the environment than the other kind by the time it reaches the end of its useful life.

And who knows how much fossil fuel-powered electricity was used to manufacture tha solar cell and other parts. I'd say far more than the regular kind.

[Ayle @ May 11th 2007 11:16AM]

You know that most of the plastic we use is recycled right? And the same goes for the batteries....

[Tonicboy @ May 12th 2007 3:07AM]

Wow, you've managed to do a full environmental impact analysis within seconds of reading a blog article. Amazing... we should get you working on cold fusion. You'd have all the world's problems figured out by 2pm tomorrow.

[grahamb @ May 12th 2007 5:55AM]

great gadget so who cares about the earth anyway its beyond repair the goverments of the world have seen to that im going to mars.

[Cutie @ May 11th 2007 6:25AM]

That's great item! I agree that we have to save our oil and thinking a revolution that environment friendly. Sadly, the price is too high (that's cute design.. But when I see Zippo's design, I prefer that altough I don't smoke). That's the first step for a better future!

http://www.cutiegadget.com
Cute and funny gadgets blog

[Craig @ May 11th 2007 6:38AM]

Surely it still has fuel? It just uses sparks made by sunlight to light the fuel... so all you have really saved is a tiny tiny stick of flint. Great.

[Urza @ May 11th 2007 6:51AM]

Craig:
"with the presumed flick of a switch, the device flings out a "continuous series of sparks" that should get that pilot light going."

It puts out sparks, nothing more. No fuel required...though I bet it'd be a bit hard to light a smoke with that.

Price ain't too bad though....I mean, $20. Question is how long will it last? I would guess you'd probably lose it first.

[Richard @ May 11th 2007 7:07AM]

This is exactly the device I would want if I were suddenly flung back to cave man days and had no means to get back

[Stokes @ May 11th 2007 7:11AM]

I think most of you are not getting the point here... this lighter is not meant to light cigarettes… it’s designed to light up gas appliances, like burners, stoves, ovens, etc… looks like a nice idea!

[Anonymous @ May 11th 2007 7:11AM]

This thing wouldn't light charcoal. Basically all you can do with this is ignite a stream of gas, which should already have an ignition anyway. This thing is useless.

[Angus @ May 11th 2007 8:07AM]

Things like this have been around for YEARS! The solar pannel is just a hoax! http://www.amazon.co.uk/Criterion-8411-Piezo-Gas-Lighter/dp/B000GCFPHK/ref=sr_1_40/202-7472348-3809408?ie=UTF8&s=kitchen&qid=1178884979&sr=1-40
Note it states "no battery required"

[DakStaka @ May 11th 2007 8:20AM]

The solar cell is a gimmick... the plain old piezoelectric effect is ancient news and require no solar cell, battery etc!

[alex @ May 11th 2007 10:09AM]

For a moment there I thought it was a solar powered nose hair clipper. My bad.

[Brandon @ May 11th 2007 10:49AM]

Read first...Think second...Then comment! I understand some you just want to be jerks to converse but not every time. Good ideal, would have been really catchy late 90's.

[tekdroid @ May 11th 2007 7:35PM]

I'm sure they'll be recycled when they reach the end of their useful life, too. And still doesn't address manufacturing cost on the environment...

[Brett Kelley @ May 11th 2007 11:47AM]

"you can snag one of these uber-green fire starters"

What makes it "over green"??? Ich nicht unterrichtet.

[Chuckles McGee @ May 11th 2007 11:58AM]

Thought it was a solar-powered toothbrush at first. Ouch. That would hurt.

[James @ May 11th 2007 3:22PM]

I think this would be just the thing for a frequent camper -- rather than packing matches that can get wet or a lighter than can run out of fuel, just bring this thing (I would hope it's at least water resistant, if not water proof) and maybe a baggie of dryer lint. I've been watching a lot of Man Vs. Wild lately (Bear kicks ass) and it occurs to me that this is probably one of the top 5 things I'd like to have if I were stuck in the woods.

And to address a few comments: no, it doesn't make a flame, but a spark is plenty enough to start a camp fire going if you know what you're doing. It's better than a piezoelectric lighter (like you use to start a propane grill) because it puts out a stream of sparks, not just one piddly spark at a time -- we used to tear the electric starter out of fancy cigarette lighters for shits and giggles back in high school, and while they were fun to shock each other with, they were no kind of good for actually setting things on fire. And while it might make more sense to use disposable batteries than to use a solar charger for many applications, the last thing you want to do is be 100 miles from civilization when you realize you didn't pack any spare AA's. If all you're doing with it is re-starting your pilot light, it's overkill and one of the piezo units from the Amazon.uk link above would be enough, but for camping this thing looks awesome.

[James @ May 11th 2007 11:25PM]

** A PRICE **

It's about $18.80 in US Dollars, by the way. Anyone know if they ship to the USA?

- James
http://www.captaincontext.com

[tekdroid @ May 12th 2007 7:16AM]

fortunately, you don't need to be a genius to figure out that hideous superfluous waste in a simple device versus another much simpler device with less to throw out at the end of the day ... well it doesn't take a genius to figure out which has less environmental impact, or does it?

[kyle allen @ May 13th 2007 1:56AM]

"hey, u got a light?. yah just let me set it in the sun for a while first."

[v_roger @ May 14th 2007 10:50AM]

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[Lilly Diamond @ Jul 12th 2007 10:52AM]

I had a piezo electric lighter that worked with just a finger trigger to light my propane stove when camping. It worked great for 20 years, until I lost it! I wish I knew where to find another one. I can't remember the name of the manufacturere but it had a plastic yellow handle.