What makes gadgets "green"? Electronic companies are increasingly designing products that hog less electricity or use off-grid sources of energy. More equipment also feature fewer toxic ingredients, less wasteful packaging, and recycled or easily recyclable materials.

Our picks include a range of prices, from smart power strips and portable fuel-cell chargers to high-end flatscreen TVs and low-toxic laptops. These online gifts are another option. To help fund a shopping spree, some services will pay cash for your old devices.

For more tips, CNET's guide to TV-power consumption and guide to cell phone radiation can offer more shopping guidance. The Energy Star label on store shelves and at online vendors describes more efficient electronics, while EPEAT ratings suggest computers and monitors with green credentials.

Moixa Energy USBCell AA NiMH batteries recharge in USB ports or standard AA chargers, so you don't need to buy disposables or pack a clunky recharger to power your AA devices. These batteries could be an essential for anyone's laptop bag.

Imagine this in the near future: while separating the bottles and cans from paper products in the recycling bin, we may also need to set aside some old flash drives. That, at least, is part of the goal put forth by memory manufacturer ATP, which sells the Earthdrive USB flash drive, touted as "the world's first bio-recyclable USB drive." We're not totally persuaded by the EarthDrive thumbdrive's green credentials, but at least its makers are trying.

Well-designed and high-functioning, the Solio Universal solar charger is great for power in a pinch on a sunny day. It has a compact design and delivers ample charging time, and the internal battery can be charged from the wall or the sun.

While Intel designed it for children between the ages of 6 years to 12 years old, the new, significantly slicker-looking Classmate PC wouldn't look out of place in a coffee shop or airplane. We'd be happy to use one as a secondary or travel computer, although a Windows-powered Asus Eee PC might be even more attractive.

Whether you're stocking your bomb shelter with postapocalyptic tech or just feeling a little guilty about your USB power consumption, the Trevor Baylis Eco Media Player offers a wind-up solution for all your MP3 and portable video needs. A solid minute of cranking can provide as much as 40 minutes of music playback.

Why not give a laptop bag that benefits the environment and the recipient? The Voltaic Solar Backpack doubles as a tiny waterproof mobile generator that can charge just about any device (except, ironically, a laptop) without a power source. A built-in battery back stores the solar energy, and 11 attached standard adapters work with most cell phones and other portable devices. At $229, it's great for hikers and rugged individualists.

Made from bamboo and recycled aluminum, the SimpleTech (Re)Drive is the most environmentally friendly external hard drive we've tested. It works well as a USB 2.0-only storage device and offers a unique ownership experience.

Available up to 750GB of storage, the Kanguru Eco Drive has a Power Saving mode that automatically gauges drive usage to drastically reduce energy consumption and prolong the life of your hard drive.

The Philips 42PFL5603D Eco TV consumes less energy than any flat-panel TV we've tested, along with accurate primary colors, handsome styling, and solid connectivity with four HDMI inputs. Although it has its share of picture-quality problems, the eco-friendliness of this LCD will win the day for consumption-conscious shoppers.

Finally, here are a few tips for reducing power consumption on your own TV: Turn off the TV when it's not being used. Some TVs, notably by Sony, also allow you to turn off just the picture, for times when you're out of the room but still want to listen. Turn down the LCD's backlight and/or the contrast control. Aside from screen size and technology, the brightness of the picture is the biggest influence on power consumption. Turn the power-saver mode, the Movie mode, or otherwise reduce the TV's light output. Watch TV together; if you can agree on a program, sharing TV time is fun and keeps the TV turned off for more time. Oh, and watch less TV.

For more ideas, and to get the low-down on TV power consumption including our testing methodology, check out CNET's quick guide to TV power consumption.