Just got one of these as a present: BioLite Camp Stove

It is a small wood burning stove with a battery. When you fire it up the battery runs a fan to make the flame burn hotter and more efficiently in the fire chamber. A thermoelectric device uses heat to keep the battery charged. When it is hot enough, you can use it to charge your iphone or other small electronic device from a USB port.

I just recieved it as a present, and fired it up today for the first time. I charged my iphone and made a cup of coffee. I didn't really do a systematic test, but it all seemed to work as advertised. Seems a bit heavy for backpacking, but could be usefull in a disaster situation. After Sandy, I saw articles about people running generators just to charge phones, this seems to make more sense. Heat some water for coffee, tea or soup, and charge your phone at the same time. They have a larger model under testing which would actually allow one to do some real cooking.

I'm hoping that Hikin Jim will really test one out one of these days.

I'm curious to see what he thinks of it, too. In case you missed it, I posted the results of my initial tests of the Bio-lite stove last fall. Overall I was pretty impressed. I look forward to the spring to get out and use it a bit more.

Sorry, I did miss your review of the BioLite. You have some nice photos of it in action.

Overall I was rather impressed with the little stove. I hope someone puts it through more serious testing than I have done. It is a bit too heavy for backpacking, in my opinion, but being able to charge your smart phone is a nice draw. It should be handy for applications where weight isn't such a huge issue.

I've got one. I'm reviewing it. High cool factor. A bit heavy.

It's late and I'm tired after carrying my daughter for a hike. Time to sleep. More later.

HJ

Can you add a few words about the knock-off BushBuddy while you are at it???

I was curious enough to research a few more links.

There's a long thread about here: http://andrewskurka.com/2012/biolite-campstove-review/ The initial criticism is based on the specs, not on usage, and points out that you can carry a lot of fuel and spare batteries for the weight. The comments include some actual experience, both positive and negative. One chap couldn't get it to work with damp wood, and then its internal battery went flat. I have to wonder how well it will perform when that battery has aged 10 years.

There's a negative review here: http://sectionhiker.com/biolite-campstove-the-substance-beyond-the-hype/ where he found it took 2 hours to get only a 50% charge, and that it needed quite a lot of fuel and attention.

An alternative is the PowerPot, at http://www.thepowerpot.com/powerpot-v. That's not a stove; instead it works with whatever stove (and hence fuel source) you have. It provides a similar charge rate.

I'm interested in this stuff because I'm in the UK, where sunlight for solar panels is often in short supply.

Charging capability aside, I don't see the point of these fan-forced draft stoves. There is a very simple, cheap, powerful and fool-proof device to create a draft from heat - a chimney! A coupla coffee cans stacked end to end and you're done.

A fan forced stove works like a chimney on steroid.

I dunno, I'd be willing to bet a two coffee can chimney could "blow away" any practical fan.

I've never seen any chimney draft and burn like the Bio-Lite.