Solio! Sun Power!

A few things I forgot:

The panels slide together for compact travel usage.

When the charger is dispensing energy to an electronic device the button flickers green every few seconds.

Currently these things are priced at just under a hundred dollars. Just like with all other electronics, price will go down for two reasons: 1) competition 2) mass production. So again I ask, if you own this product or *any* other solar panel technology, PLEASE leave a comment here talking about it. The more solar panels get sold, the more incentive there will be to design them even better in order to compete with other manufacturers.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• solio
• solar
• panels
• energy

[joshjhutton]

I just bought one on e-bay for a grand total of 42.99. I charged it up using the USB cable connection, but haven't charged it up using the sun yet, although I did leave it outside for a few hours. I used it to charge my iphone and it worked, although not at first.

I'm planning on using this on a thru hike, to keep my phone charged.

[pmcrimson]

Awesome. I'm glad the price is already coming down so much. Perhaps that's a good sign for solar panels in general. Hope you have (errr, had) a great hike!

[Merany1]

"No bad sides to solar energy"

What happens to all the outdated and broken panels? They end up piling up in land fills. And how toxic are they?

[pmcrimson]

Those are good points. I admit, I need to look into this issue more. If anybody has info about how long solar panels generally last and what's the best way to dispose of broken ones, I'd be much obliged. :-)

[s1r9a9m9]

They can be melted down for the metals back out of them, or crushed and added to concrete mix for building. Its only sand in a defferent form. Recycle it for building stuff. Maybe add it to the mix for the next pad for the new one you install or a walk way to a better place.

[pmcrimson]

Oooh, excellent. So this adds a "cradle to cradle" element to solar panels as well! (Have you read that book? It's fantastic.)

[Buckincrazy]

I just bought one today can't wait to get it

[pmcrimson]

It's actually a good idea to charge it with the cord the first time, just to make sure it is fully charged. I think it's an issue of "batter memory." In any case, you shouldn't try charging with it the first time until you see the light flash four times. That's when it's full.

Once you do get to test it, feel free to come back here and comment about it!

[SethMethCS]

I have my Solio Classic and I don't know if it will charge from the sun. I will test it when I have the chance.