recompute
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Recompute cardboard PC in the flesh: it's real, it boots, it's made of cardboard
We took delivery of a Recompute recently. This doesn't sound like a stunning statement: we get fancy new tech to play with all of the time, some of it stamped with the "green" moniker for better or worse. But the Recompute is just so far fetched: an entire desktop PC... built with cardboard! Sure, the internals are standard off-the-shelf PC components, but from the outside Recompute looks like nothing we've ever seen, and that's really saying something for a desktop industry that's tried just about every look twice. Check out our impressions of the green machine after the break. %Gallery-104047%
Recompute: a closer look at the sustainable, cardboard PC
We just recently saw some of the entries in the Greener Gadgets Design Competition that's happening in New York on February 27th. The designer of one of those entries, the cardboard-housed Recompute, was kind enough to contact us with some more detail about his computer, including a few specs. The fully functional PC houses all off-the-shelf components, including an Intel Core 2 Duo CPU, and 2GB of RAM. The designer, Brenden Macaluso, also mentioned that there's been some concern over the safety of using cardboard -- but his reasoning with regards to the materials is that cardboard is more heat-resistant than many plastics, with a much higher fire and ignition point -- 258°C and 427°C, respectively -- where plastics begin to melt at about 120°C. The designer also stressed that the material that Recompute is made out is just one facet of its sustainability: just as important in this design is the idea that less time, labor and parts go into the production of the unit, and that there will ultimately be far less to dispose of when the computer has reached the end of its life cycle. Check some more photos of Recompute after the break.
The best of the Greener Gadgets Design Competition, so far
The Greener Gadgets Conference is coming up in a few weeks here, so we thought we'd bring you some highlights of the design competition it's sponsoring. First up, Recompute is a fully sustainable design for a desktop computer -- meaning that it makes use of low-impact manufacturing, uses fully recycled materials, and is easily dismantled at the end of its life for... you guessed it: more recycling. We don't have full specs on this puppy right now, but we know it's got 8 USB ports, and that we're getting one if it ever makes it to production. Also in the running is the RITI eco-friendly printer, which uses coffee and / or tea dregs in place of costly, old, boring and non-eco-friendly ink. The printer is also manually operated, and does not use electricity -- which may not make it the speediest device in the world -- but we don't print that much, anyway. Next up, there's Harddrive -- which is a simple USB flash drive encased in concrete to stave off harmful leaching into landfills once disposed of -- though the concrete obviously makes the drive a bit nastier to haul around town. Finally, the Inlet Outlet is a whole-home concept that combines a standard outlet -- which eats up the juice -- with an inlet right next to it, which returns some electricity to the grid. The design is for adapter kits which could easily be used to green up your home. Votes are being tabulated online for the Greener Gadgets Competition, whose winners will be announced on February 27, 2009, at the Greener Gadgets Conference in New York. Check the gallery for more photos of the submissions.[Via Inhabitat]%Gallery-43721%
