The Etón Corporation has now announced details of pricing for the BoostTurbine and BoostBloc portable power packs that debuted at IFA 2012 back in September.
The first products in a new BoostLine range, the BoostTurbine Series and the BoostBloc Series are currently shown as available on Etón's website.
Encased in lightweight aluminum, the BoostTurbine packs a rechargeable Li-ion battery in two capacities. A black-only 1000-mAh unit, the BoostTurbine1000, should provide most smartphones with a 50 percent charge. The the red, silver, white or black 2000-mAh unit, the BoostTurbine2000, is capable of providing a full charge.
Each features a hand crank to generate power when there's no outlet around, with one minute of winding producing enough juice to power an emergency call on a smartphone or a few texts. There's also an LED charge status indicator, a full-size USB output port and a micro-USB DC input port.
The BoostTurbine1000 is priced at US$49, with the BoostTurbine2000 coming in a little more expensive at $59.
The BoostBloc Series runs to three sizes and battery capacities, all available in red, white and black. The 2000-mAh model, the BoostBloc2000, should be capable of fully charging most smartphone batteries via the single 1A USB output The 4000-mAh BoostBloc4000 has enough for two full charges and the mammoth 6600-mAh BoostBloc6600 can charge a smartphone up to three times before needing a top up itself. The latter features dual USB ports for charging two devices simultaneously.
Unit charge level can be checked by shaking the BoostBloc to reveal LED status indicators. The Li-ion battery is topped up via a micro-USB DC input compatible with most smartphone chargers.
The BoostBloc2000 carries a suggested retail price of $39, the BoostBloc4000 is tagged at $59 and the BoostBloc6600 unit comes in at $99.
More BoostLine products are scheduled to appear next year.
Product pages: BoostTurbine1000/2000, BoostBloc2000/4000/6600
I'm also not impressed with the hand crank on the Turbine. It would seem to me that some kind of lever mechanism that incorporates a flywheel would be more efficient. But what do I know?