Ermenegildo Zegna's iSolarX jacket juices up gadgetry

While Ermenegildo Zegna made the plunge into high-end, electronic savvy outerwear last Fall, its newest piece ups the ante by allowing gadgetry that you keep on your person to be charged up whilst out and about -- sans batteries. The Solar JKT is based around Interactive Wear AG's iSolarX technology, and sports a number of solar modules around the neoprene collar that can pass energy through conducting textile leads for storage in a buffer battery or to charge a connected device directly. The jacket can even be switched from 5V to 6V in order to handle a more diverse group of gizmos, and integrated LEDs enable you to quickly view the state of the charge. Sadly, there's no mention of an expected pricetag for this uber-useful garb, but it will likely cater specifically to the affluent set when it hits the market as part of the 2008 Spring / Summer collection.

[jakespeed @ Jun 22nd 2007 5:21PM]

"I'm looking for this boy. Have you seen him" (Holds up picture of John Connor)

[tekdroid @ Jun 22nd 2007 7:16PM]

unless the cells are modular, to be put on any clothing you want, toys like this will always be overpriced designer items rather than practical accessories.

[JoeBob @ Jun 23rd 2007 8:09PM]

That would be really cool if they'd add epaulets. It'd be the Members Only jacket for the 21st century!

Show of hands: Who still has one in their closet?

I'm proud to say I was (barely) cool enough to skip that fashion statement.