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Solar phone seemed like a good idea at the time
From the good-intentions department comes this solar-powered cell phone, something that might seem like a good idea at first but upon investigation seems questionable at best. Sure solar power is great and all, and we love anything that uses renewable energy. And 40 minutes of charging providing 20-25 minutes of talk time is respectable. But let's think about this for a minute.
How much sunlight does your pocket get? Not much? Right. Well, how is your phone supposed to get charged from your pocket? Exactly. Unless you keep your phone in direct sunlight all day, chances are you won't be getting much use out of the solar panels on this guy. It's coming to China next month, so chances are you won't have to deal with deciding whether or not to buy one anyway.
Unwired, via CrunchGear
By vmaiocco at 6:28 AM ON 03/22/07
Even if you wear your phone on your belt, in view of the sun, what happens after dark? What about the parts of the world where "solar" is a bust, like the Northeast US? Yes, it's well-intentioned but from someone who's never been out of their house!
By mahes1 at 11:57 AM ON 03/22/07
Photons are photons, right? Why couldn't you use a alternative light soure to charge it, like incandescent of fluorescent bulbs?
By leeventers at 12:11 PM ON 03/25/07
I agree with the other two statements. It would be much easier to charge up a cell phone using an incandescent lightbulb, considering that I'm hardly outside. Have they even thought about what happens when the day is shorter (like the beginning of autumn), when a storm approaches, or if there is a lot of cloud coverage or overcast, or even when someone rides a subway to get from point A to point B? Besides, 20-25 minutes is not a long time for 40 minutes of charging in direct sunlight. (They probably even thought about theft.) This does not sound very plausible for people that rely on their cell phones for business, since some business calls can easily be longer than 25 minutes. Think of all the dropped calls, especially in mountainous areas or with large buildings that block the rays of the sun. If they are able to overcome these problems, then it could be a good idea, but it isn't plausible for the people that are home-bound without a landline.
By Xenolite at 2:41 PM ON 02/29/08
Great idea in the right location. Areas where electricity may not be easy to find it can give some people access. Exp in an emergancy. Not useful for everyone main stream though
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Xenolite:
Great idea in the right location. Areas where electricity may not be easy to find it can give some people access. ...More »