Sharp shows off 52-inch solar-powered LCD TV at CEATEC

We've seen some fairly fascinating things at CEATEC this year, but this one could be the biggest game-changer of 'em all, if you'll allow us just one buzzword. The LED-backlit 52-incher you see above comes attached to a not-at-all convenient solar floor panel which presumably provides at least some of the energy required to power this thing. We've no clue how close the design is to being viable for the commercial realm, but we'd say Sharp's definitely headed in the right direction here.

[jeffhtg @ Oct 6th 2008 10:13PM]

Solar floor panel? since when does the sun shine on my living room floor

[eduardo fuentes @ Oct 6th 2008 10:16PM]

where you expecting them to put it outside where nobody can see it?

[Rubicon @ Oct 7th 2008 12:36AM]

who said it had to be on the floor, im slapping this baby on to the trunk of hummer, hopefully it will offset my emissions

[Thi mam(kris120890) @ Oct 6th 2008 10:14PM]

I can see the miniprint now. Solar provides 0.0003 of the power. For optimised conditions and perfect picture buy a small country and and cover every inch in solar panels.

[Thi mam(kris120890) @ Oct 6th 2008 10:26PM]

How much power does it actually need to us.

[nDee @ Oct 6th 2008 10:14PM]

On outdoor events, you can barely read the screen.

[Link2877 @ Oct 6th 2008 10:43PM]

Yea somes a pretty general term, it could provide 90% of the power or it could be .0001% some actually numbers would be nice here Sharp.

[lunigma @ Oct 6th 2008 11:22PM]

It looks like it needs 220kW/h of power and the panel provides 220kW/h.

I guess the lighting in that demo is enough to power it?

[david @ Oct 7th 2008 1:55AM]

220kW/h?

Really? I saw the picture, but, really? Am I crazy or does that not sound correct?

[Steve A. @ Oct 7th 2008 11:18AM]

The average US home consumes 27 kWh *a day,* so I highly doubt this TV consumes nearly 10 times that. More likely that the panel produces 200 watts and the TV consumes the same amount.

[Ian @ Oct 6th 2008 11:29PM]

Absolutely useless. Put those solar panels behind the screen, baby!

[Salsa Shark @ Oct 7th 2008 12:00AM]

Duh, you obviously don't understand that the solar panels pick up the illumination from the screen, thus perpetually powering the TV.

Oh, wait, I thought it said "Steorn", not "Sharp"...sorry.

[blahblah @ Oct 7th 2008 12:24AM]

This is just "green" hype - why not make a solar-powered toaster. Better yet just throw that panel on the roof and connect it to the grid. I'm all for solar energy use but it has nothing to do with a TV per se.

[peacefulpony @ Oct 7th 2008 1:53AM]

Some people apparently fail to realize that the cable attaching the solar panel to the screen can be over a couple feet in length...

[KyleK @ Oct 7th 2008 5:08AM]

Sharp actually showed this at the IFA in Berlin already. I though you guys were there as well?

[Yoshi @ Oct 7th 2008 6:44AM]

How funny. To get 200W power which needed to run the TV, you need to put 5000W of halogen light in the room.
( or 2500W if energy saving light or LED light was used ) ------is it energy saving ? or anything green ?

[joec0p @ Oct 7th 2008 9:45AM]

Its for LCD windows where there isn't a window. The solar panel goes outside...

[CJ Guest @ Oct 7th 2008 12:33PM]

Great idea Sharp! I'd like to see how long the cable will be between the solar panel and the LCD. Is it detachable? Will you offer different lengths for custom installations?

[Joel @ Oct 7th 2008 1:43PM]

This would be a great idea if current solar cells were more than %25 efficient. If they were %75 or better, i could see the tv bezel or panel itself being made of solar cell that then could power the whole tv. Until then, this is a good idea only for outdoor lcd tvs.

[interspectrum @ Oct 7th 2008 1:44PM]

Since most prime-time viewing occurs after 7:00pm, how is this going to be effective. During winter prime-time will be dark. Solar panels need light. hmmmm. So i guess I can't watch TV after sun down. No more Heroes for you!

[camelbill @ Oct 8th 2008 4:50AM]

That solar looks like it probably has just enough power output (based on its size alone) to power that TV. I am guessing that this TV will be pulling 200 watts (based on other Sharp TV power usage figures) and the solar panel looks about the right size to produce that much power (solar power output has a direct ratio to the size of the panel). That means in the bright sunlight at high noon it might be able to power the TV. And then along comes a cloud. So you need batteries to filter and store the power during the day to run the TV at night. Or you pay to connect to the power grid and hope that the electricity you sell to the power company during the day is enough to offset the power you buy back from them at night when you run the TV. All in all a lot of effort and a lot of ifs, maybes and hope. I call it a token gesture on Sharps behalf. If nothing else it provides an excellent example of just how much (little) power can be provided by a solar panel to run a household device. Imagine trying to power the stereo, computer, kitchen appliances, etc and how many panels you would need.

[Total Solar Energy @ Nov 4th 2008 7:49PM]

yeah, this definitely has the WOW factor