Would you buy a solar mobile

Davy

Samsung Crest Solar E1107 launching fairly soon.

Apparently, the Crest can generate enough power for 5-10 minutes of talk time with one hour of exposure to the sun. Like I said, practicality flies out the window here. Not surprisingly, the additional features are basic—like an FM radio, MP3 ringers, fake call feature (for avoiding unwanted calls) a flashlight, and a few minor features tailored to specific markets.

citizen_p

5 to 10 minutes for an hour X irish overcast weather = no

Davy

Mousey- wrote: »

5 to 10 minutes for an hour X irish overcast weather = no

Of course it will improve over time though. Something like the new super quick charge batteries would probably be better economic option

Gummy Panda

what is the price?

Maybe its for the African market. I know Motorola were making sub $50 phones for that market. IIRC the phone could hold mutliple CTNs. It was designed for villages were traditional landlines may be a problem implementing.

Now this is me trying to remember an article from MobileNews from about 2 years ago.

Keith186

Probably would be good in the African market where there's limited power supply I'd imagine.

seanybiker

wouldnt buy it meself.

Davy

Its launching in India, Europe, Southeast Asia, Southwest Asia, and Latin America from June for $60

Henne220

Definetly a Great idea for the African market, yet its not being released there. :rolleyes:

Random

I'd like a phone with a battery that recharges from the sun but couldn't make do with just a basis colar powered phone.

Also not a fan of Samsung

Mimikyu

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Rsaeire

Solar technology, in most applications, is still not a viable option due to price and/or circumstance; Irish weather being the most relevant one in all our case. The technology would need to yield better results in order for it to be a viable option. Unfortunately, by the time solar power becomes more efficient, another power source will have probably usurped any previous competition.

Davy

Rsaeire wrote: »

Unfortunately, by the time solar power becomes more efficient, another power source will have probably usurped any previous competition.

Well electromagnetic emitted from Wi-Fi or gsm transmitters could be on the way. Converting into enough electrical current to keep a battery topped up, probably trickle charging over a lengthy period.

towel401

Rsaeire wrote: »

Solar technology, in most applications, is still not a viable option due to price and/or circumstance; Irish weather being the most relevant one in all our case. The technology would need to yield better results in order for it to be a viable option. Unfortunately, by the time solar power becomes more efficient, another power source will have probably usurped any previous competition.

the weather has a surprisingly low impact on the output of solar cells. i know a lad who tested solar panels in college there a few weeks ago and showed me two nearly identical graphs from sunny and overcast days.

solar power would be more useful in a satellite phone, but when i'm doing stuff outside or anything it would be nice to turn it upside down and leave it charge in the sun. of course most city folk don't really go outside or leave it anywhere without it getting robbed so those people will get absolutely no use out of one.

a wind-up phone would be a lot better, but pumping so much power into the battery won't be good for it. they need to make an ultracapacitor-based phone. sure the first one will be a brick. but if you market it as a rugged, versatile product you should get a few buyers

if the average phone was covered in solar panels it would generate slightly more (or slightly less) power than it would use on standby. i would still buy a solar powered phone, if it was rugged and generated enough power to sustain itself on standby

Rsaeire

towel401 wrote: »

the weather has a surprisingly low impact on the output of solar cells. i know a lad who tested solar panels in college there a few weeks ago and showed me two nearly identical graphs from sunny and overcast days.

solar power would be more useful in a satellite phone, but when i'm doing stuff outside or anything it would be nice to turn it upside down and leave it charge in the sun. of course most city folk don't really go outside or leave it anywhere without it getting robbed so those people will get absolutely no use out of one.

a wind-up phone would be a lot better, but pumping so much power into the battery won't be good for it. they need to make an ultracapacitor-based phone. sure the first one will be a brick. but if you market it as a rugged, versatile product you should get a few buyers

if the average phone was covered in solar panels it would generate slightly more (or slightly less) power than it would use on standby. i would still buy a solar powered phone, if it was rugged and generated enough power to sustain itself on standby

As I mentioned, solar technology, at the moment, doesn't yield enough power in order for it to be of much use and produces significantly even less power under lightly overcast conditions; as mentioned on the GE Energy website.

GE Energy wrote:

How well do solar modules withstand, and work in, inclement weather?
In cloudy weather, solar modules work, although they produce less electricity than on a sunny day. Under a light overcast, the modules might produce about half as much as under full sun, ranging down to as little as five to ten percent under a dark overcast day. If the modules become covered with snow, they stop producing power, but snow generally melts quickly when the sun strikes the modules; if you brush the snow off, they resume operation immediately. Our modules can withstand one inch (2.5 cm) hailstones at 50 mph (80.5 kph).

Mimikyu

This post has been deleted.

Davy

Captain Morgan wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

As i posted above:

Davy wrote: »

Well electromagnetic emitted from Wi-Fi or gsm transmitters could be on the way. Converting into enough electrical current to keep a battery topped up, probably trickle charging over a lengthy period.