Alternate (to solar) remote location power source

[mhectorgato]

Insert Coin: The PowerPot portable electric generator (video)

The power-generating pot uses thermoelectric modules to convert temperature differences into a 5-, 10- or 15-watt regulated power stream, sufficient for juicing up USB devices like smartphones, GPS devices and LED lamps. The most traditional method for creating this temperature difference is to put a pot of cold water over an open flame, but the device is adaptable to other configurations – a pot of snow on a thermal spring, for example. Assuming you’ve taken the fire approach, you can also use the pot to boil water or cook food as you charge your gadgets.

[godefroi]

That’s pretty awesome!

[Architect]

Neat! Every camper’s dream.

[ianlee74]

PowerPot, huh? Must come from the Mexican jungles…

[Nicolas3]

This is great !

However, a very, very bad idea for most “developing nations”. Been working arround the world, and what people don’t need there is to have something that needs cutting more trees to make electricity with it… Once the trees are gone, the desert comes… Solar is usualy better there

This is great : combining solar, stirling engines to makes power : http://www.sandia.gov/news-center/news-releases/2004/renew-energy-batt/Stirling.html

[Duke_Nukem]

If your going that way then what you really want is a BioLite Campstove:

http://www.biolitestove.com/CampStove.html