Communication is important to everyone, just as the sun is important to everyone, which outlines the reason for the SOL Laptop, a solar power laptop built for wherever you happen to be.
Indeed, you are reading this article, perhaps in North America or Australia, maybe Africa, who knows? Your dear writer, on the other hand, is in the highlands of Peru, South America. In fact, many freelancers find themselves all over the world, in some places where there may not even be roads or electricity. Still, in order to communicate with the outside world, they have to get back to civilization from time to time (• – see note). Doctors, teachers, or relief workers may find themselves in areas with unreliable or nonexistent power, which can seriously hamper their efforts with a laptop. Generators would be out of the question, but what about solar power?
That is the idea behind the SOL solar power laptop, equipped with a 2.4 GHz CPU, 8GB DDR3 RAM, a 500 GB HDD, and a 13.3” 1080p HD monitor, as well as WiFi, BT, HDMI, Webcam, and audio, just like many laptops on the market. Reducing the field of competition for this particular laptop is the fact that it is ruggedized, built for the trials of a mobile life. Finally, eliminating the rest of the market, is SOL’s addition of solar panels, some 282 in2, which eliminates the need for a charging cable, which would most likely be attached to a fossil fuel powered grid. Even when sun goes down, the SOL solar power laptop is efficient enough to run for hours on battery alone. Available extension cables can even remotely locate the solar panels, in case being inside a building or shade is a problem.
What is cool is the price, just about the same as a decently-equipped standard laptop. The Super SOL, for example, at least for the introductory period, is selling for just about $700, including the RAM and OS upgrade. Add in a solar power smart phone and tether connection, and you could theoretically eliminate your communications carbon footprint!
- You can ship mine to Carhuaz, Peru, just tell them it is for “the gringo” and they will know who I am. J
