BBQ is a delightful activity that’s mostly confined to one’s backyard. Sure, you can BBQ at campsites with portable grill, but it can be more of a hassle than fun and that’s not to mention the fire hazard that comes standard with outdoor grills. Worst, what if the park ranger issued a fire ban? Most people will probably throw up their hands and live with it, but not this bunch of BBQ loving Austrian engineers. They innovate and created a fireless, fuel-free BBQ that harnesses the power of the sun to cook and they are calling it PhotonGrill.
If the product name sounds little to high-tech-ish, well, that’s because it is. The concept behind PhotonGrill is similar to the SolSource sun-powered grill we saw a couple of years ago, but unlike SolSource which uses solid mirrors, it has inflatable mirrors inspired by NASA’s 1996 experiment. These “mirrors” are actually special heat-tempered foils that will remember the perfect reflective shape when inflated. And it is by the way of foils that PhotonGrill is able to achieve the portability. Speaking of portability, it comes with a backpack for easy transportation – complete with specialized air pump for inflating the sun-directing parabolic dish, BBQ tongs, as well as a special solar-optimized pan to get you started. All you need is some raw food to get the party going.
In all, the total package, including the supplied accessories, weighs in at no more than 11 lbs (5 kg). The dish itself opens up to 4.3 feet (1.3 meters) in diameter that can generates up to 1,000 watt of power and is able to get from zero to 500 Fahrenheit (260 celsius) in just 5 mins. Of course, that’s assuming you are getting the necessary sunshine. And in time of communication needs, PhotonGrill can even be converted to support satellite uplink for strong connection to TV or Internet satellites. With the heat it generates, it can also be used with gadgets like the PowerPot, to produce electricity for your mobile devices too.
Before you go gaga over this brilliant, environment-friendly BBQ dream gear, you have to know that PhotonGrill Sun-powered Portable BBQ is not a reality yet; it will only be ready next summer and only if it gets enough support on Kickstarter, where it is seeking to raise 100K euros to fund the production. That said, you can show your support by pre-ordering a kit today. Prices range from €199 to €349, depending on how soon you back the campaign.
submitted via TIP US page.
