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UM students make cheap and portable solar charger / light source for developing nations
Solar power is the most egalitarian of all energy sources, yet residents in many parts of the world still lack access to electricity. Three University of Michigan engineering students have created an affordable solution to this problem -- to the delight of camping geeks everywhere -- with the Emerald, a portable solar panel that does double duty as both a cellphone charger and personal light source. We've seen the personal solar panel idea before, but the price of entry made it an untenable solution for developing nations. Solar-powered light bulbs have been around for a while too, but the Emerald's light lasts for eight hours on a charge (as opposed to the bulbs' two to six hours), and it's able to fully charge a phone in the same time it takes an outlet to do the job. They aim to sell the device for the low, low, price of under twenty bucks for customers in the developing world, which is 90 percent cheaper than other solutions and 100 percent more awesome.
PiSAT Solar's K-Light boasts a one-to-one charging ratio
It's pretty rare that a portable solar-based device offers much more utility than impressing your friends, but PiSAT Solar's K-Light won't only make you the coolest kid on your block: it might actually prove useful the next time you take a hike or find yourself hanging out in a developing country. In 10 hours of daylight charging the unit gathers up to 20 hours worth of battery power for use in the low-power 8 LED mode, or 10 hours of life if used in 16 LED mode. It's also switchable between flashlight and lantern modes. That should be great for campers, but where the K-Light really "shines" (so to speak) is in places like Africa, where villagers without electricity often use makeshift kerosene lanterns for light at night. K-Light is designed for up to 10 years of full daily use in such a scenario, and PiSAT is working on an adapter to let the lantern's battery also charge a cellphone. At $50 a pop, the barrier to entry isn't incredibly high, and PiSAT is working with the Koinonia Foundation to provide start-up grants of K-Lights to groups of African women to create local businesses selling the lights. One-off purchases are also available now online for us non-entrepreneurial types.
IKEA starts selling totally hip SOLIG solar lighting devices
We've heard the excuse a gazillion times: "Yo, I want to go solar, but like, where do you even buy this stuff? Oh snap, 0 percent financing on a Hummer H2!" Finally, you can have a solid answer to that very quip (the first part, at least), as household megastore IKEA has begun stocking (in store; online is coming soon) a new series of solar-powered lighting supplies. The SOLIG series contains a handful of solar light sticks, orbs, garden lights, chain globes and even posts, all of which will surely brighten your outdoor patio, flower bed or Earth-friendly RV. Now, if only it were simple to relocate your life to southern Arizona in order to enjoy these more effectively...[Via Inhabitat]
