10 cool solar-powered products
Solar is popping up in the most unlikely of places -- who'd have thought five years ago we'd have lawnmowers and Bluetooth headsets sporting solar photovoltaic panels? To give a flavour of exactly how widespread the carbon-free, electricity-generating technology has become, we've rounded up ten solar PV products.
So far, solar is mostly being used as a supplementary power source in these products, rather than the primary one. For example, there's usually a conventional battery charged by mains electricity too -- see Husqvarna's solar robot lawnmower and IQUA's Bluetooth headset. Thanks to the solar panel on top, for example, the mower cuts its energy use by a quarter compared to its non-solar peers.
There a few questions you should ask before you buy a solar product. How much electricity or battery life do the makers claim the panels will generate? What's the peak power output in watts for the solar panel? Manufacturers and shops should be happy to answer these questions; if they're not, look elsewhere.
Here are those ten sun-lovin' products in full.
Citizen Eco Drive Perpetual Calendar Watch
Freeplay Summit Wind-up Radio
Husqvarna Automower Solar Hybrid
Iqua 603 SUN Bluetooth Headset
LG HFB-500
Solar Shaver
Solar Technology Supercharger
Solio Magnesium Edition
SUCK UK Sun Jar
Voltaic Systems Converter
