Nokero, solar-powered light bulb, invented by Denver man

July 19, 2010 · Posted by in Energy 

Nokero's Stephen Katsaros

Colorado native Stephen Katsaros wants his bulb to brighten up places without electricity. (Leah Millis, The Denver Post)

It almost sounds like a joke — a solar-powered light bulb — but it’s not, and the guy who invented the Nokero lives right here in Colorado. The Denver Post has a story about Stephen Katsaros’ invention and the way he intends to get it into the hands of people who need and want it.

As soon as he saw the first molds of the bulb coming out of the factory, Katsaros, 37, quit the legal firm where he worked as a patent agent and devoted himself full-time to Nokero.

His plan is to target countries such as India, Indonesia, Nigeria and Pakistan, where hundreds of millions rely on expensive, carbon-spewing gas lamps but income is high enough to afford a $15 lamp. Demand is higher in places such as Ethiopia, but the population is too poor to afford the lamp, Katsaros says.

“This is not a charity,” he says. “We are using capitalism as a method to improve people’s lives.”

The Nokero made a few waves in the tech blogosphere when it was unveiled a little over a month ago. A big part of the pitch is helping people quit burning kerosene for light, according to a post by SmartPlanet’s Andrew Nusca:

Nokero says no kerosene means saved money that would be used on fuel — five percent of total income, aqccording to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change — and that its light bulb “can pay for itself within months.”

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4 Responses to “Nokero, solar-powered light bulb, invented by Denver man”

  1. Bum Bag : on October 29th, 2010 9:38 am

    light bulbs these days are getting replaced by compact fluorescents and LED based ones, original incandescent bulbs are power h ::

  2. Gastrointestinal Problems on November 16th, 2010 8:53 am

    light bulbs are good for lighting the home but stay away from incandescent lamps because they generate so much heat ‘;:

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