The USB Ecostrip, an Eco-Friendly Way of Powering Your Peripherals

Protecting our environment is a very serious issue nowadays, due to the fact that mankind's past (and, to some degree, also current) mistakes have seriously affected the health of our planet. And in order to lend a hand to this global effort, the people over at Centritech released a very useful appliance, the USB Ecostrip, which helps save some energy by controlling the way in which the devices attached to a computer work.

The main advantage of the Ecostrip is that it eliminates the flow of electricity to computer peripherals when the computer is turned off, thereby drastically reducing electricity bills in the home and workplace. With no programming or extra installation requirements, the Ecostrip operates like a normal surge protector/power strip until the computer sends a signal telling the peripherals they are no longer in use.

"We set out to design a product that reduces energy waste, yet, allows distributors and retailers to profit from the new emphasis on this type of product," said Bjarne Waedeled, President of Centritech Limited, Hong Kong, designer and producer of the Ecostrip. "And, because it functions like any other power strip, there is no education of the consumer required."

Apparently (well, at least according to the manufacturer's statement), the Ecostrip has enjoyed quite a high level of success in Asia and especially around Europe, where it arrived back in 2005. With some pretty well-developed partnerships, Centritech Ltd. has enjoyed triple-digit annual growth ever since and this device is the sole reason for this. Why? Well, simply because, as Waedeled puts it, "The Ecostrip is its own best advertisement. This is one of those 'once in a generation' products that actually sells itself."

The USB Ecostrip will hit the US in the following month for around 35 US dollars, which is not that high a price for a device that will help save energy and, perhaps, actually make a contribution to an overall bigger environment-protection movement.

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