Core77

A New Fire-to-Energy Device—But the UX May Need Some Help

Is there room for a JikoPower Spark when BioLite exists?

By Rain Noe - October 19, 2016

in Social Impact

BioLite's BaseCamp

As far as we're concerned, BioLite has got the best products on the market for turning firewood into energy. That's why we gave their BaseCamp stove a Core77 Design Award last year. BioLite's cooking stoves improve combustion efficiency, reduce smoke and generate electricity—a triple win.

Now a sort of would-be partial competitor has emerged, or is attempting to, on Kickstarter. Have a look at this JikoPower Spark device:

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We can't consider the Spark a true competitor to a BioLite stove, as the former is an add-on device and the latter provides a complete solution. It's possible that they can compete on price: The Spark is going for $115 on Kickstarter and a BioLite CampStove goes for $130. The price difference is negligible in developed nations, but admittedly might prove a dealbreaker in developing nations where $15 is a lot harder to come by. [CORRECTION: As noted by Erica Rosen, BioLite's Marketing Director: "Our HomeStove model is the unit we retail in India, Uganda, and Kenya, and actually is priced at $40-$50 in local markets (so it's in fact $70 cheaper than Jiko)."]

One additional advantage the Spark has is that it can be "retrofit" to any situation where there's already fire.

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But in our eyes, the advantages stop there. The glaring drawback is that the Spark's UX doesn't look all that great. It obviously has to be placed quite close to the heat source, and propping it up on an uneven or elevated surface looks like a jury-rigged affair at best.

This seems precarious, and possibly even dangerous, to us.

I just don't like the idea of placing a lever with a protruding handle under something that gets very hot.

Spark's industrial design, we feel, has a long way to go. While the developers produced a series of iterative prototypes, the final product still doesn't look quite finished to us. We don't mean that in a design-snob aesthetic sense; we mean in a functional, practical sense. The flat bottom and overall form just don't seem like the best solution for being placed near a variety of heat sources.

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Contrast that with the UX for any of BioLite's stoves, where ease-of-use is paramount.

BioLite's CampStove

What do you think? Can a better design for the Spark make it a worthy competitor to BioLite, or do you think BioLite's "whole package" design approach and well-thought-out UX means they've got the market stitched up?

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Erica Rosen

8 years ago

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Hey, thanks for the side-by-side! One thing to note: you mention the CampStove is $130 which might make a difference in emerging markets. Our HomeStove model is the unit we retail in India, Uganda, and Kenya, and actually is priced at $40-$50 in local markets (so it's in fact $70 cheaper than Jiko).

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- Rain Noe
  
  Erica Rosen
  
  8 years ago
  
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  Noted, will edit the post to include this information. Thanks!
  
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Bradley Johnson

8 years ago

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I definitely agree with you on the aesthetics of the device. However, I guess we will need to wait and see how efficiently it charges.

Having used the Basecamp, I can tell you that it is not ideal for backpacking. It is extremely heavy, and it's charging abilities are sub par. You would be much better off with a fueled stove, or creating a traditional fire (if allowed), and then just bring a backup battery for charging. Most people don't really use their phones in the wilderness much anyway since there is typically no signal (unless you are near a peak). I relegated my Basecamp to household emergency status (power outage, natural disasters, etc).

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