Finally bring home an EV charger for the garage now that this level 2 ChargePoint Home Flex offering is down to $397. It comes joined by the last day to save $699 on one of our favorite cargo e-bikes, as the Aventon Abound e-bike hits $1,500, as well as all of today’s other best new Green Deals – including a batch of new e-bike and so much more.
Amazon is offering the ChargePoint Home Flex Level 2 EV charger for $397. Down from $492, with a regular price tag of $594, this $95 discount – $197 from its MSRP – is the first price cut we’ve seen to kick off the new year. It saw plenty of small discounts trickle in over the second half of 2023, with a few falling to major lows. Today’s deal comes in as a 33% markdown of the going MSRP, beating out our previous mention by $95 and marking a new all-time low.
Wall outlets just don’t always cut it, and this 240V Level 2 EV home charger offers you a charge up to nine times faster than standard outlets, delivering a flexible 16A to 50A of power and up to 37 miles or range per hour of charge. It can easily be installed indoors or outdoors by an electrician, with options for both plug-in or hardwired installations available. Designed to charge any EV you’ll find in North America, it has been tested on leading models like the Chevrolet Bolt EV, Volvo Recharge, Tesla, Polestar, Hyundai Kona and Ioniq, Kira NIRO, Nissan LEAF, Toyota Prius Prime, BMW i3, Honda Clarity, Chrysler Pacifica, Jaguar I-PACE, and more. You can also set convenient charging schedules through the ChargePoint app, along with Alexa, being sure to take advantage of off-peak hours.
Last day to save $699 on one of our favorite cargo e-bikes
If you’re looking to haul some gear around in 2024, be it groceries or your everyday, the Aventon Abound e-bike might be more your speed. Best Buy is bringing back one of the better end-of-the-year deals now that it is the new year by discounting the Aventon Abound to $1,499.99. This is $699 off the usual $2,199 price tag. We last saw it on sale for $1,524, with today’s offer beating that by a little extra to mark a new all-time low. The savings aren’t quite as high as the previous-generation Sinch, but getting a current release for this price is still as notable as it gets.
Aventon’s Abound e-bike comes equipped with a 750W rear-hub motor and 720Wh integrated battery capacity, which ensures it can reach top speeds of 20 MPH with an up to 50-mile range. It features a throttle on-demand with four levels of pedal assistance to minimize the amount of energy you use, while the torque sensor can recognize the output and match it for superior amplification. It comes with a wide array of accessories like the backlit LCD, front and rear fenders to offer protection from the elements, and a rear rack with up to 143 pounds of weight capacity.
Get the Anker SOLIX C1000 portable power station with a 400W solar panel
Amazon is offering the Anker SOLIX C1000 Portable Power Station with a 400W Solar Panel for $1,349.10 shipped. Down from $1,998, this particular combo only saw two major discounts over 2023, with the lowest dropping costs down to $1,499. Today’s deal comes in to start the new year at better prices, amounting to a 32% markdown off the going rate, beating out our previous mention by $150 and marking a new all-time low.
Featuring a compact design that is “15% smaller than the industry average,” this power station offers you a 1,056Wh capacity and a max power output of 2,400W, which also comes surge-protected. It can be fully charged via a wall outlet in up to 58 minutes and can recharge in up to 1.8 hours with a 600W solar panel (so with the included 400W panel it should recharge in two to three hours). Through the Anker app, you’ll be able to get real-time status updates, view your battery level, and set AC charging speeds. It also boasts 11 different ports: one carport, two USB-A ports, two USB-C ports, and six AC outlets – it can power 99% of appliances.
Winter e-bike deals!
Other new Green Deals landing this week
The savings this week are also continuing to a collection of other markdowns. To the same tune as the offers above, these all help you take a more energy-conscious approach to your routine. Winter means you can lock in even better off-season price cuts on electric tools for the lawn while saving on EVs and tons of other gear.
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Ruth Porat, President & Chief Investment Officer of Alphabet & Google, speaks during the Reuters NEXT conference, in New York City, U.S., December 10, 2024.
Mike Segar | Reuters
Alphabet‘s Google will invest $25 billion in data center and artificial intelligence infrastructure over the next two years in states across the biggest electric grid in the U.S., the technology company said Tuesday.
Google will also spend $3 billion to modernize two hydropower plants in Pennsylvania to help meet the growing power demand from data centers and AI in the region, according to the company.
The refurbishment of the Pennsylvania plants is part of broader a framework agreement that Google signed with Brookfield Asset Management to purchase 3,000 megawatts of hydroelectric power across the U.S.
Google’s investments in the region comes as the PJM Interconnection is struggling to keep up with rising electricity demand from data centers and industry. PJM is the biggest electric grid in the nation, covering 13 states across the mid-Atlantic and parts of the Midwest and South. It includes the world’s largest data center market in northern Virginia.
President Donald Trump, White House Cabinet officials, tech and energy executives are meeting at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh on Tuesday to discuss AI investment in Pennsylvania.
Locals call him the “Bicycle hero,” but Texas man Evan Wayne says he’s just doing what he can to help his community after it was cut off due to the recent devastating and deadly flooding tragedy.
When the local Sandy Creek flooded following torrential rains in Texas, it destroyed the only bridge into one community. Residents were cut off from access to supplies, including everything from necessities like food, water, and medicine to basic comforts.
Although the bridge was impassable to cars, volunteers who quickly organized to help the stranded residents found that the damaged bridge could still be traversed on foot. Or in the case of Evan Wayne, it could be covered by an electric bike.
Evan joined hundreds of volunteers who answered the call of grassroots organizers by working together without any official capacity. While many started by hand-pulling garden carts of supplies uphill to reach the stricken community, Evan jury-rigged a trailer to an e-bike and took on as much of the load as he could, helping shuttle much-needed food and gear into the community over hundreds of round-trip journeys.
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“This was a dog trailer 48 hours ago. I had a hacksaw, hacked the top off, grabbed some bungee cords, and here we are,” explained Evan in an interview with CBS Austin, while waiting for the next load of gear to be stacked on his trailer.
In the first two days of the operation, he made around 100 round trips each day, shuttling food and water as well as critical rescue supplies. “Right now, I’m waiting on a couple of chainsaws that I’ll bring in for a crew that’s been going at it with handsaws so far.”
In addition to delivering needed supplies, Evan has often found himself moving something even more important: information. “I’ve flagged down medics. I’ve been the guy that goes between Austin EMT and STAR Flight because I’m quicker than cell phones sometimes, people don’t have signal a lot of the time.”
Evan quickly points out that he isn’t the only one helping. “I’ve got an e-bike, but other people are pulling carts. People are walking, people are carrying things. Everyone is doing what they can.” But there’s no doubt that his ability to carry more gear at higher speeds and make hundreds of round-trip journeys so far in and out of the stricken neighborhood has helped impact countless lives.
“This is all volunteers here. They’re just taking it upon themselves to get people where they need to go. I think there’s an umbrella company coming in, taking over tomorrow, but until they get here, people are just taking care of people, which is what you’ve got to do.”
E-bikes proving their worth in emergencies
While many people consider electric bicycles just another form of recreation, they’ve proven to be potent transportation alternatives after natural disasters worldwide.
Not only do their small and efficient batteries make performing hundreds of rescue trips like Evans’ possible, but recharging can be done simply and easily with a solar panel when electricity is out after a disaster. And when gas stations are out of fuel (or simply can’t pump it with the power grid down), e-bikes can keep running while gasoline-powered motorcycles or ATVs run dry.
Electric bicycle batteries have also proven to be a handy source of emergency power after hurricanes and other disasters, often helping owners keep their phones charged up for days to remain in contact with family or rescue services.
While most hope to never need theirs for emergency purposes, electric bicycles have proven their worth in countless disaster scenarios, adding benefits far beyond just alternative transportation, recreation, or fitness riding.
E-bikes can be kept running nearly indefinitely after natural disasters with access to solar recharging equipment
Image credits: CBS Austin (screenshots), used under fair use
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Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey testifies during a remote video hearing held by subcommittees of the U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee on “Social Media’s Role in Promoting Extremism and Misinformation” in Washington, U.S., March 25, 2021.
Handout | Via Reuters
Block jumped more than 5% on Monday, leading a rally in shares of fintech companies as analysts downplayed the threat of JPMorgan Chase’s reported plan to charge data aggregators for access to customer financial information.
The recovery followed steep declines on Friday, after Bloomberg reported that JPMorgan had circulated pricing sheets outlining potential fees for aggregators like Plaid and Yodlee, which connect fintech platforms to users’ bank data.
In a note to clients on Monday, Evercore ISI analysts said the potential new expenses were “far from a ‘business model-breaking’ cost increase.”
In addition to Block’s rise, PayPal climbed 3.5% on Monday after sliding Friday. Robinhood and Shift4 recorded modest gains.
Broader market momentum helped fuel some of the rebound. The Nasdaq closed at a record, and crypto rallied, with bitcoin climbing past $123,000. Ether, solana, and other altcoins also gained.
Evercore ISI’s analysts said that even if JPMorgan’s changes were implemented, the most immediate effect would be a slight bump in the cost of one-time account setups — perhaps 50 to 60 cents.
Morgan Stanley echoed that view, writing that any impact would be “negligible,” especially for large fintechs that rely more on debit, credit, or stored balances than bank account pulls for transactions.
PayPal doesn’t anticipate much short-term impact, according to a person with knowledge of the issue. The person, who asked not to be named in order to speak about private financial matters, noted that PayPal relies on aggregators primarily for account verification and already has long-term pricing contracts in place.
While smaller fintechs that depend heavily on automated clearing house (ACH) rails or Open Banking frameworks for onboarding and compliance may face real pressure if the fees take effect, analysts said the larger platforms are largely insulated.