Can you drive 1,000 miles in your car and spend less than $60 on fuel? That's the beauty of the Volkswagen Sportwagen TDI diesel, which averaged 43 mpg. It runs forever on a gallon of fuel, entertains you while under way, cruises comfortably at speed, and holds tons of gear. The wagon, which I tested, and the Jetta TDI sedan, belong on your new-car shopping list if you do a lot of highway driving. They'll hold their own against hybrids that do best in city driving.

Students will soon have a more energy-efficient way to play Oregon Trail and Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing with the release of the Tangent VITA LT, an all-in-one "green" PC that costs less than $1,000 and is aimed at the education market. The VITA LT uses Intel's Atom N270 processor, commonly found in netbooks, to draw up to 72 percent less energy than standard Energy Star 4.0-compliant PCs.

For a sub-$1,000 all-in-one, it's loaded with perks for class projects, including a 18.5-inch touchscreen display, a 4-in-1 media card reader, an integrated webcam, and built-in wireless. In addition, the computer is 1.4 inches thick and seems to be taking style tips from Apple (which is never a bad idea).

Tangent's emphasis with the VITA LT is to provide a client for their virtual desktop infrastructure solution, which allows students (or employees) to take their desktop with them over a network, regardless of what computer they're on. This type of application doesn't require the latest and greatest in processing power, so it makes sense to power it with an Atom-based machine. The decrease in energy consumption is a definite plus too.

Many car buyers look at hybrids because those autos are marketed as being better for the environment. "Green" is certainly a selling point--and now, manufacturers are using the same tactics to sell their TVs, highlighting the fact that some models use less energy and have less "bad" stuff like mercury inside. Research firm iSuppli just released the results of its U.S. TV Consumer Preference Analysis survey and found that 27.5 percent of LCD TV buyers listed green factors as an important influence, while an additional 23.1 percent further responded that green features were something they looked for in an LCD-TV.

Furthermore, more than 40 percent of respondents indicated that their TV set incorporated power savings and/or Energy Star features. But only 16 percent of respondents highlight the set's recyclability. So while consumers are considering the power usage, end of life isn't as much of a concern.

This is worth mentioning, because the California Energy Commission's proposed legislation to require large-screen TVs to use 33 percent less power by 2011, and 49 percent less power by 2013 has come under attack since it was announced two weeks ago. The commission has highlighted that the new energy standards for the sets would reduce global warming and save consumers $18 to $30 a year. Yes, you read that right... $30 a year, or the savings you'd get if you just watch an hour less every week. The problem, says the Consumer Electronics Association, is that these regulations could result in a flat-out ban of large-screen sets in California (no pun intended), as most sets made today are simply not compliant.

But the point is that clearly everyone, including state regulators are looking at the small picture (again, no pun intended) of the short-term energy cost and savings. The bigger issue remains that all TVs, even the really big and expensive ones, will eventually have an end of life, And how this is handled is something that consumers aren't thinking about, and companies are only now starting to address.

For company-by-company instructions, check out GoodCleanTech's Electronics Recycling Superguide.

Post by Peter Suciu

The first U.S. cell phone made from recycled plastic, T-Mobile's MOTO W233 Renew (http://tinyurl.com/dactef) lets you go green while you gab.

IANAP. I am not a plumber. Still the idea of the EcoDrain is intriguing. From Canada, the EcoDrain claims to "cut water heater use by 25%-40%." Considering the expense of heating tap water this is no small claim! And the EcoDrain does it in a way so simple you'll wonder why no one thought of it sooner.

"The EcoDrain™ is a small, easy-to-install device with no moving parts. The key to saving you money is the heat-exchange channels. These flattened, sealed channels were developed to maximize the surface area of the heat transfer space and to create optimum flow turbulence in the outgoing waste water and incoming fresh water. The EcoDrain™ is installed directly in the shower drain line and features a double wall of separation between fresh and waste water to eliminate the possibility of mixing, plus an interior non-stick coating to prevent soap, hair or debris collecting inside."

ZAP officials said that the Stimulus Act signed into law by President Barack Obama lets buyers of its electric cars and trucks receive a 10 percent tax credit, up to a maximum of $2,500, CNNMoney.com reports. The credit can be applied to ZAP's Xebra sedan (MSRP $11,700) and truck (MSRP $12,500), as well as its low-speed neighborhood electric vehicles, the ZAP Shuttle (MSRP $14,700) and ZAP XL Truck (MSRP $14,500).

ZAP argued that the tax credit, which wouldn't have taken effect until 2010, should be implemented immediately in the spirit of the Stimulus Act. California congressman Mike Thompson took up the cause and argued for it, according to the report.

Earlier this month, ZAP announced that its Alias electric car would compete for the Progressive Insurance Automotive X PRIZE, along with 35 other teams, in an effort to design and build production-capable 100 MPG-energy-equivalent (MPGe) vehicles that are affordable and meet the needs of the average mainstream car buyer.

Areaware is a design company that makes really cool-looking products--remember that foldable bicycle from earlier today? The company was also showing off this snazzy wooden radio.

Designed by Singih Kartono, the Magno Wooden Radio is made from sustainable wood. I spoke to a rep from the company who explained that the radio is designed to have something of a "timeless" quality.

It also sounds surprisingly good. The company was blasting some music from one, and the result was rich and full. The radio also has an auxiliary input, so you can play songs from your non-wooden iPod.

You traditionally don't really see a lot of plant-related technology at CES. After all, most of us are too busy doting over our shiny new gadgets to be bothered to keep house plants alive. PlantSense is looking to make the job of not killing plants a touch easier with its EasyBloom sensor. After all, the company points out, almost a third of the plants bought in the US every year (about $21 billion worth) die within the first year of their purchase.

Plug the EasyBloom into a pot and it will monitor soil conditions, temperature, and moisture. The device has a built in USB dongle which users plug into their computer after 24 hours worth of data collection. The company's site monitors the conditions and lets you know what plants will thrive in them.

The gadget is available now for $59.95 from Amazon, Brookstone, and other stores. Check out a video of the EasyBloom in action, after the jump.

There were lots of cool new gadgets on display at tonight's CES Unveiled event at the Venetian Hotel, but very few had a green focus. Fuji's new EnviroMax batteries were, of course, the notable exception.

The new disposable batteries boast a number of green features--interesting, considering the fact that the words "green" and "disposable batteries" don't usually go hand-in-hand.

The new EnviroMax batteries feature no cadmium or mercury. And their packaging has no PVC--it's also made entirely from recyclable materials. The batteries require no special disposal.

The batteries will be available this spring--at, Fuji assures us, a reasonable price. For more info on the batteries, check out Fuji's green site.

For PCMag's full CES coverage, go to http://www.pcmag.com/category2/0,2806,2235882,00.asp.

Imagine if finding a wireless hot spot was as simple as shining a bit of light or finding a bright spot in the room. This is the subject of a new study being reported by Cellular News. The program from Boston University College of Engineering, under a National Science Foundation grant, is looking to develop wireless communication that would be sent via visible light rather than traditional radio waves.

The researchers are looking at ways to send communication to low-power light emitting diodes (LED) to create "smart lighting," which has the potential to be more secure and even faster than many current network technologies. The initiative's goal is to create an optical communication technology that would make an LED light the equivalent of a Wi-Fi access point.

Dell is looking to green up its act in the next two years. The PC manufacturer announced plans today to move its entire line of laptops to light-emitting diode backlights by 2010.

The company has already started making good on its promise--the E4200, E4300, E6400, E6400 ATG, E6500, and Dell Precision M2400 and M4400 are already shipping with LEDs as a standard feature. By the end of 2009, 80-percent of the company's new notebooks will ship with the technology.

"Why did we do this?" asked Dell's Michael Murphy. "We have been listening to our customers in order to extract customer value, and LED helps to move that agenda along."

According to Dell, a 15-inch LED consumes about 43-percent less power at maximum energy than previous technologies. The technology also requires no mercury to manufacture and allows for thinner displays than CCFL backlights.

Let's face it: If you're reading this, you probably have at least two surge protectors stuffed with AC adapters and power cables, suckling electricity from the grid like a litter of hungry piglets. And the fact is, even if your PC is powered down, your phone's fully charged, and your TV is turned off--as long as the power cables are plugged in, your devices are still consuming electricity. It's called the standby power, or the phantom load, and it adds up to billions of watts wasted in the United States every year; it raises your electric bill and strains the already thinly stretched electric grid.

Of course, you could go around several times a day plugging and unplugging devices as you use them. But with most cables hidden behind desks, dressers and entertainment stands, that isn't exactly easy. Thankfully, Belkin's $50 Conserve Surge Protector solves the problem with elegant simplicity, thanks to a wireless switch.

Dell today announced that it has met its ambitious carbon neutrality goals ahead of schedule. The self-proclaimed "greenest tech company on the planet" announced its goal in September of last year, hoping to hit the mark by the end of 2008.

"We're driving 'green' into every aspect of our global business," said Michael Dell of the announcement. "This includes setting new standards for energy efficiency and green power, delivering environmental and cost savings for customers and aligning key growth priorities with our focus on preserving our shared Earth. Every company can join Dell and the ReGeneration in this long-term commitment."

The company added to today's litany of green announcements by adding that it would make new investments in wind power in the US, China, and India. Dell is already working to preserve forest in Madagascar, protecting some 591,000 acres from deforestation.

Hong Kong-based Hoshino today announced the release of what it's designated "the world's first bio-degradable USB disk." I'm always a bit hesitant to accept manufacturers' claims of world's first anything, but for the life of me, I can't remember anyone making a similar claim.

The USB keys are corn-based--the corn is fermented into a material called polylactide (PLA), which, unlike the plastics traditionally used for these devices, can be safely broken down (but we wouldn't recommend ingesting, popping, or barbecuing it, however).

The key is also shaped like an ear of corn, so you can acknowledge your own greenness, every time you go to retrieve information.