Amsterdam is famous for its laissez-faire attitude about extracurricular activities, its beautiful canals and of course, its bicycles. Now, even if you only have a layover at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport, you can get in some pedaling, and power your phone and other devices at the same time.
Schiphol is one of the airport homes for WeBikes — cycling desks that generate power. About 30 minutes of pedaling is enough to charge an iPhone, according to its designer. They seat three to a table, but can be configured for more. Here's more from Fast Company, which introduced us to this exciting creation:
"At the moment, the WeBikes are mostly used in public spaces, such as libraries and hotels, but the company hopes to bring them to more offices. 'In the public domain, the focus has been on green energy,' [developer Katarina] Verhaegensays. 'People like power while they're on the move. But in the office, the focus will be more on the health side — the green energy stuff will be used more as a motivational aspect to get people started on the habit of riding at work.'
"Riding a bike while working — though it might sound distracting — can actually help improve the quality of work. 'People don't believe they can do two things at the same time,' says Verhaegen. 'But there are studies proving that gentle exercise while doing computer work, you're more focused and more creative. Reading and memorizing speed is enhanced. For productivity, and creativity, it's really good to do this."
You can find these at railway stations in France as well as in airports in Belgium and the Netherlands, and soon, an office-specific version. Fast Company reports it's supposed to be released later this year, but each individual bike desk runs $13,000.
If you aren't headed to Europe anytime soon but dig the general concept, we wrote about the Cubiiback in July. The Cubii helps you get moving, while seated at a desk, for about $300.
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