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Solar panels on the back of iPhone

bbotte

bbotte

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Wouldn't it be cool since there is glass on the back of the iPhone if Apple had the back of the device be Solar Panels? That way it could charge some of the battery during the day or in the windshield of your car without plugging it in. Just a thought.
 
The solar panels would have to be huge for them to generate enough power to make them worth implementing, which would go against Apple's goal of making the phone smaller every revision.
 
bbotte said:
Wouldn't it be cool since there is glass on the back of the iPhone if Apple had the back of the device be Solar Panels? That way it could charge some of the battery during the day or in the windshield of your car without plugging it in. Just a thought.
Click to expand...

do you have any idea how many people would fry their iPhone if they did that. The dash of a car (even with the AC on) often will go over the operating temp of a phone. It gets hot right under the windshield.

People are stupid and would set it there and just completing cook their phone and then wonder why their warranty is voided.
 
So leave your iPhone on the dash of the car all day so someone can steal it?😕 Also while it's on the dash of your parked car recharging how do you use it?😀
 
Julien said:
So leave your iPhone on the dash of the car all day so someone can steal it?😕 Also while it's on the dash of your parked car recharging how do you use it?😀
Click to expand...

Why is in-car usage the only application you can think of?

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Years ago I had the solar Sony walkman and I really liked it. With bright sunlight I could listen to the radio and tapes. Tech has advanced to where there would be a usable charge from direct sunlight, but this would make the phone thicker, but not necessarily wider and deeper, which won't happen. You're better served y getting one of the external solar packs.

On an aside, this kind of thing would be great in emergency situations where there is no juice. Examples would be everything from brownouts to full blackaouts or even a really bad situation like natural disasters where you have no genny.
 
bbotte said:
Wouldn't it be cool since there is glass on the back of the iPhone if Apple had the back of the device be Solar Panels? That way it could charge some of the battery during the day or in the windshield of your car without plugging it in. Just a thought.
Click to expand...

Yes, it would be cool. There are solar chargers available now but it would be nice if it was part of the phone.
 
Nice thought, bad idea.

The better alternative would be putting solar panels on the roofs of cars and then just charging your phone in the car. I think Toyota has a Prius model with panels on the roof that help ventilate the car so it's not as hot sitting in the sun all day.

Anyway, the charge you got from solar panels on such a small area wouldn't be worth the cost involved. Those little solar lights you put in the yard probably use 2 or 3 watts for the actual light. I don't know how many watts an iPhone uses, but it's way more than that.
 
Michael CM1 said:
Nice thought, bad idea.

The better alternative would be putting solar panels on the roofs of cars and then just charging your phone in the car. I think Toyota has a Prius model with panels on the roof that help ventilate the car so it's not as hot sitting in the sun all day.

Anyway, the charge you got from solar panels on such a small area wouldn't be worth the cost involved. Those little solar lights you put in the yard probably use 2 or 3 watts for the actual light. I don't know how many watts an iPhone uses, but it's way more than that.
Click to expand...

This sums it up nicely. Either that or a portable external solar panel device for those who don't mind dealing with it.
 
Michael CM1 said:
Nice thought, bad idea.

The better alternative would be putting solar panels on the roofs of cars and then just charging your phone in the car. I think Toyota has a Prius model with panels on the roof that help ventilate the car so it's not as hot sitting in the sun all day.

Anyway, the charge you got from solar panels on such a small area wouldn't be worth the cost involved. Those little solar lights you put in the yard probably use 2 or 3 watts for the actual light. I don't know how many watts an iPhone uses, but it's way more than that.
Click to expand...

Well said. You're correct about the new Prius, and that would be an awesome way to utilize the panels.

Looked into SP in our home. The thrill going of Green came to loggerheads with the green needed to get us into it, even with 30% subsidies factored in. The rate of return was also pretty far into the future as well. They've got to get more cells onto those panels if SP is going to catch on in the mainstream.
 
Rodimus Prime said:
do you have any idea how many people would fry their iPhone if they did that. The dash of a car (even with the AC on) often will go over the operating temp of a phone. It gets hot right under the windshield.

People are stupid and would set it there and just completing cook their phone and then wonder why their warranty is voided.
Click to expand...

People would be stupid to assume that a phone with a solar panel could actually be put under the sun?

It's like saying that people are stupid because they actually touch the antenna that the manufacturer decided to wrap around the phone, on the outside. 🙄
 
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