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Comment by kalleboo | Hacker News Reader

Last year there was the PowerPot, which is the same principle on the bottom of a cooking pot http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/david-toledo/the-powerpo...

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My buddy is the VP of Web/Marketing there (Power Practical). Their Kickstarter last year went really well. Here's a link to their current product page: http://www.thepowerpot.com/

another similiar project: http://www.biolitestove.com/

I own one of these and it is fantastic, even if you don't use it to charge your phone (which I do) you get to scavenge fuel instead of carrying it and that vortex of flame boils water only slightly slower than most normal portable camp stoves and it is just damn cool to look at.

these are great - also good for starting campfires

I must say the powerpot looks far more sensible design.

Totally agree. One less thing to carry.

There's also the tPOD1 which would be less expensive, it operates off tea candles...

http://www.buytpod.com/

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/tpod1/tpod1-thermoelectr...

$50

The tPOD5 can charge a smartphone, it's a bit more expensive, and doesn't run on tea candles, you put it over a camp stove.

Point is, these things exist, this kickstarter doesn't seem to improve on any of them except perhaps make the designs cheaper, but they cost more. I'm sure they can make a nice profit on these devices if they sell, and if they can handle their manufacturing costs. If not, it would be cheaper to buy one of the alternatives and ship it to people instead of running your factory.

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