France's Starck designs garden-friendly wind turbine

Relax News
Sunday, 31 January 2010
Italian energy component maker Pramac announced on Wednesday the launch of a mini-wind turbine called "Revolutionair" designed by Frenchman Philippe Starck.
The turbine, intended to be installed in people's gardens, comes in two models, rectangular and whisk-shaped.
The rectangular turbine, which measures 90 centimeters (three feet) without its support stand, will produce 400 watts and will have a price-tag of at least 2,500 euros (3,500 dollars) in Italy.
The whisk-shaped turbine measures 1.45 meters, will yield one kilowatt and will cost 3,500 euros.
Unlike larger turbines, Revolutionair turbines are "independent from the wind direction and can take advantage of turbulence, besides being extremely quiet," Pramac said.
They can be installed in gardens, on street furniture or on a boat, the company said.
Starck, a leader in the New Design style, presented a prototype of the mini-turbine in 2008 in Milan, Italy's northern industrial hub.
"I have always wanted to design an invisible turbine with the goal of making something everyone would want," Starck, 61, said in a statement.