Silverback's Starke city bikes charge your gadgets

Bike maker Silverback has finally added something to its new Starke range that nerdy cyclists have wanted for years: a USB port. The four-strong lineup of city bikes all have a dynamo-powered USB port up on top of the head-tube, ready to charge cellphones, MP3 players, GPS units or anything else. When not engaged in recharging your cellphone, the front dynamo hub runs the lighting system.

It’s incredibly practical, and bike commuters will soon be able to enjoy many of the same comforts as their car-bound enemies: cup warmers, USB-powered fans (very useful) and maybe even a USB-powered reading lamp (I put this one is as a joke, but it might make map reading easier at night).

Otherwise, the Starkes are a smart-looking bunch, running from the 31-pound (14-kilo) Starke 1 up to the 25-pound (11.4-kilo) Starke Sub Zero. All have the same “Flow Formed Nickel Alloy” frame, and all have disk brakes front and rear. What differs are the components and drivetrain. The lower end models get chains and derailleurs, while the Sub Zero gets an internal-geared hub and a belt drive.

The Starkes were shown off at last week’s Interbike, and are part of Silverback’s “2012 platform.” As such, we have no prices or launch dates, and the specs may change (which is why I didn’t bother with brands in the spec list, although you can probably guess most of it is Shimano).