Greenhouse -- Engadget

Researchers tout plans for moon greenhouse, Silent Running sequel

by Donald Melanson, posted Apr 27th 2009 at 6:04PM

The Google Lunar X Prize obviously hasn't drawn quite the same number of competitors as some of the more Earthbound X Prizes, but it looks like things are starting to heat up a little bit, with Paragon Space Development recently teaming up with Odyssey Moon in an effort to deploy the first greenhouse on the surface of moon. Specifically, the team is hoping to grow a Brassica plant (a member of the mustard family) in a pressurized greenhouse like the one picture above, and possibly even see the plant re-seed itself within a single Lunar day (or 14 Earth days), which just so happens to coincide with the average growth period for the plant on Earth. Of course, that would only be one small part of the X Prize mission, which first and foremost requires teams to safely land a craft, send some live video back to Earth, travel at least 500 meters, send some more video, and carry a payload. So, still a little ways off, but don't let that stop you from checking out the (autoplaying) video after the break, in which Paragon's Taber MacCallum (a Biosphere veteran himself) explains the project to the folks at Engineering TV.

Continue reading Researchers tout plans for moon greenhouse, Silent Running sequel

Green House rolls out Kana Micro digital audio player

by Donald Melanson, posted Jan 19th 2009 at 9:34PM

It looks like anyone that wished their digital audio player looked more like a nondescript USB drive is now in luck, as Green House has just introduced its new Kana Micro player, which is far more likely to get lost than stolen. True to its barebones nature, it seems you'll also have to supply your own microSD card for storage with this one (up to 2GB is support), and you can apparently expect to get a whopping two hours of battery life before it needs to be recharged via the built-in USB connector. No word on a release 'round here just yet, as you might have guessed, but those in Japan can pick one up right now in their choice of seven different colors for a mere ¥1,480, or about $16.

[Via Akihabara News]

Angel and Devil earbuds may be a little too cute for Swedish death metal fans

by Joseph L. Flatley, posted Oct 20th 2008 at 10:19AM

Something about the image above makes it seem that the folks over at Greenhouse are up to more than manufacturing electronics. The Angel & Devil earbuds (1,279 yen or $12.65) follow on the heels of the company's Pigbuds (which now that we mention it, may also have some sort of occult significance). What can we say about these things? They fit in your ear, they're available in one of five colors (the angel is always white, just like the Tom & Jerry cartoons -- the devil can be summoned in red, purple, pink, magenta or death-dealing black), they ship with a display stand and they're only available in Japan. And the struggle for your immortal soul continues...

[Via Impress]

Pigbuds: 'cause your ears are purty too

by Thomas Ricker, posted Jun 23rd 2008 at 3:44AM

Sound quality? Who cares. Thanks to Green House, pigs can finally stuff themselves into human orifices like a reverse-Appalachia. Just be prepared to kiss your ¥1,280 (about $12) goodbye with that pretty mouth of yours after the novelty of this quaint little adventure turns vile.

[Via Impress]

Greenhouse claims its DH-SSDGD SSD drive is 'industry's fastest'

by Joshua Fruhlinger, posted May 13th 2008 at 11:48AM

When it comes to drives, it's all about space and speed. That's why we were happy to see that Greenhouse is boasting that the DH-SSDGS series is the "industry's fastest" -- sure, we can't verify that claim, but at least they're trying to get our attention. Regardless, the new drives read at up to 130MB/s with write speeds of 67MB/s, with capacities that range from 16GB up to 128GB. Drive size is a standard 2.5-inches, with a 9.5mm height. Greenhouse says the SATA-compatible boxes will be available in late May (in Japan at least), no word on pricing.

[Via Impress]

Green House USB table fan totally blows

by Ryan Block, posted May 12th 2008 at 7:14AM

Sorry folks, it looks like Green House's USB table fan is strictly Japanese for the time being, so you'll have to settle for something a little smaller. Not that we're terribly confident a 500mA current is really all that capable of moving a lot of air in a table fan anyway.

Greenhouse's absurd 8x optical zoom kit for cameraphones

by Thomas Ricker, posted Apr 1st 2008 at 4:04AM

Guess what's going to happen when you bolt Greenhouse's 8x optical zoom onto your pathetic little cameraphone lens? Right, 8 times the slop. Nevertheless, we're curious to try the kit -- which includes the tripod and universal lens mount -- ourselves. Just not ¥8,800 (about $88) curious.

Gallery: Greenhouse's 8x optical zoom kit for cameraphones

[Via Akihabara News]

Greenhouse's 22-inch GH-JEF223SH-LB LCD monitor picks HDMI over DVI

by Darren Murph, posted Mar 3rd 2008 at 9:20PM

Nothing too spectacular here, but Greenhouse has introduced an all new 22-inch LCD monitor over in Japan. Aside from the perfectly average WSXGA+ (1,680 x 1,050) resolution, 300 cd/m2 brightness, 1,000: contrast ratio and two-millisecond response time, the GH-JEF223SH-LB actually does away with DVI in favor of HDMI. Granted, there's still a VGA port in case you're in a pinch, but we would've preferred all three considering the somewhat steep ¥45,799 ($438) price tag.

[Via AkihabaraNews]

Green House's Gaudi cam is nothing special

by Paul Miller, posted Nov 15th 2007 at 10:16AM

Nothing standout here, but that doesn't mean this little flash-based camera from Green House isn't right for someone. The Gaudi sports an SD card slot for capturing your VGA video, QVGA video and 5 megapixel stills, with a 1.7-inch screen to preview it all. Gaudi maxes out on 2GB SD cards, and there's nothing fancy happening in codec land: video is recorded in AVI. That said, this thing goes for a mere 13,800 Yen ($125 US), so if you're in Japan and need a nice "disposable" tourist-cam... well, you could probably just use your phone and save on the bulk, so forget the whole deal.

The USB Greenhouse makes Al Gore cry

by Thomas Ricker, posted Sep 14th 2007 at 6:57AM

The USB Greenhouse grows plants which is good for the environment right? Oh sure, 'cept you have to keep your PC running 24/7 in order to provide the fake USB sunlight to the artificial soil. It's what life will be like when robots farm, only with Marigolds not the wee babies harvested of their electrical properties. $43 for you without a soul.

Greenhouse offers up 22-inch widescreen LCD in Japan

by Darren Murph, posted Aug 22nd 2007 at 10:02PM

Though you may be apt to link Greenhouse's name with incredibly small DAPs, the firm's TIG223SDB-L proves that it understands a thing or two about displays, too. Rockin' a 22-inch widescreen format, this sleek, all-black monitor touts a 1,680 x 1,050 resolution display, HDCP-compliant DVI port, VGA connector, an anti-glare coating, five-millisecond response time, 1,000:1 contrast ratio, 300 cd/m2 brightness, integrated power supply, dual one-watt stereo speakers, and VESA mount support as well. All yours for ¥44,800, or just about $391.

[Via AkihabaraNews]

Greenhouse's KanaSD gets makeover, adds SDHC support

by Darren Murph, posted Jul 25th 2007 at 3:51AM

Oh, KanaSD, how you've matured over the years in front of our very eyes. The diminutive DAP from Greenhouse has evolved from a simplistic, lackluster player to one that supported flash memory, and now provides a new level of adorableness to go along with the SDHC compatibility. The device plays nice with both MP3 and WMA formats, handles flash cards up to 8GB in size, lasts about five hours on a full charge, syncs up via USB 2.0, and comes in your choice of black or silver. As if you couldn't already guess, we've no idea how much this wee unit will cost when it hits the Japanese streets later this month, but it ought not be (too) much.

[Via AkihabaraNews]

Greenbox converts carbon emissions into biofuel

by Darren Murph, posted Jul 22nd 2007 at 8:30AM

A breakthrough technology developed by three engineering lads in Wales could hold the key to converting carbon emissions into beneficial substances such as biodiesel, methane gas, and fertilizer. The cleverly-dubbed Greenbox was designed to be fixed underneath one's vehicle where it could gobble up carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide until the next fill up, at which point the box would be switched out for a new one while the filled canister headed to a bioreactor for processing. Sounds complicated, we know, but strapping these bad boys beneath every gasoline-powered vehicle in a given nation could boost its biofuel production exponentially -- all without spending another penny (or pence) on research. Unsurprisingly, the trio of inventors are staying mum until they (hopefully) convince the government or a private company to grab ahold, but unless these boxes learn to swap themselves, we can't imagine too many individuals bustin' out the creeper for underbody work at each fuel stop.

[Thanks, Jamie]

Big timers join up to launch Climate Savers Computing Initiative

by Darren Murph, posted Jun 14th 2007 at 6:25AM

Although a number of household name computer vendors have already inked their name on some sort of green agenda, now it looks like things are getting a bit more aspiring as Intel and Google have joined the likes of Dell, EDS, EPA, HP, IBM, Lenovo, Microsoft, PG&E, and the World Wildlife Fund (among others) to launch the Climate Savers Computing Initiative. The lofty goal is to"save $5.5 billion in energy costs and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 54 million tons per year," which translates into an amount equal to removing "more than 11 million cars from the road" by 2010. Supposedly, vendors in agreement with the initiative will abide by the new 90-percent efficiency target for power supplies, which looks to be the main player in garnering such massive reductions. Feeling guilty about pulling the trigger on that 2,000-watt PSU yet?

[Via ArsTechnica]

Greenhouse Kana GT DAP sports voice recorder, FM transmitter

by Darren Murph, posted May 29th 2007 at 9:58AM

We've watched Greenhouse's wee Kana grow up from its early Kana-SD stages and evolve into the entirely more mature Kana D, and now the next logical growth spurt is in order as the device makes the leap to include a voice recorder and FM transmitting capabilities. The Kana GT packs the same 1GB of internal memory that was seen in its predecessor, still lasts just seven hours on a full charge, handles MP3 and WMA files, and connects to your PC via USB 2.0. This iteration, however, also includes an OLED display, up to 140 hours of voice recording potential, a built-in FM tuner and FM transmitter, a dedicated antenna, and even a car cigarette USB charger to keep the music flowin' on lengthy road trips. The newest Kana will come in black, red, and silver motifs, and should land in mid-June for an estimated ¥7,980 ($66).

[Via Impress]