The BioLite BaseCamp Stove
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BioLite made a splash at here at the gear show a few years ago with their portable CampStove, a funky little camp stove that burns wood and, thanks to its onboard thermoelectric generator, also allows you to charge your phone, headlamp, or just about any small gadget with a USB port.
Now they’ve got a super-size version, the BaseCamp, which is ideal for car camping and tailgating—a nifty lever allows you to focus the heat for tasks like boiling water or disperse the flame for grilling. The thermoelectric generator is also a bit bigger, allowing you to store power in an internal battery (so you don’t have to gather more firewood to charge your phone), and has a 5W output, or about the same rate of charge as your laptop.
It’s a cool design based on the company’s HomeStove, which uses 50 percent less wood than cooking over an open fire, reduces smoke by as much as 95 percent, and is only available in developing counties. Buying a CampStove or BaseCamp stove here helps support BioLite’s distribution of the stoves in the developing world. Available in early September.