Though falling into that tiny category of things exhibited at CES 2012 that don't have an HD screen and aren't an iPhone peripheral, we did want to briefly mention Poldera's Power Bank Energy Holder. A combined LED flashlight and phone-charger, the Power Bank is one of those unassuming devices that may not be a head-turner, but is a good idea nonetheless. After all, if you have need of a portable phone charger, why not have one that can do something else useful too?
Here's the gossip. The device itself is charged via a 500 mA 5V micro USB port. It will charge a phone, or any other USB-chargeable device through its USB 2.0 port. It takes five hours to fully charge the device's 2200 mAh battery - which is effectively overnight or a full day at the office, though it may be that it can be given a useful zap in an hour or so (the battery technology employed isn't clear from the specs).
The aluminum plate cylindrical body is 107.4 mm (4.2 in.) in length and 23.7 mm (0.9 in.) in diameter, with the device 73 grams (2.6 oz.) in weight.
The Power Bank is controlled with a single on/off button. A blue LED lets you know the device is powered on, and flashes when a phone is being charged. Disconnect the phone and the Power Bank switches off in 20 seconds. To power the flashlight up and down, the on/off button is held for two seconds. That sounds like good, thoughtful design.
The flashlight consists of a single 1 W LED, and though no word is given on the lumen output, provided Poldera have selected a good quality LED, and the optics provide a tight enough beam, that should prove plenty for domestic use.
The Power Bank comes in gold and silver finishes, and can be ordered from the Poldera website for US$79.99. It's not the cheapest charger around (renewable energy charges included), but it is compact, robust, and also a flashlight.
Okay. It is sort of an iPhone peripheral.
