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Samsung Releases Solar-Powered Phone
Mike writes to tell us that Samsung has released their latest green gadget, a solar-powered mobile phone. The "Blue Earth" phone has the entire reverse side covered with a solar panel, and the body of the phone is made from recycled water bottles. "The device is set to be energy efficient, with a new user interface making it easy to activate the phone's energy saving mode. It also includes a pedometer, and CO2 emissions calculator, and Samsung is aiming for minimal packaging made entirely from recycled paper. Samsung is clearly throwing the gauntlet to all phone manufacturers, and we hope to see solar cells integrated throughout the rest of their line. The phone will be unveiled on February 16th at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona."
But I live in my parent's basement you insensitive clod!
Mother, do you think they'll like this sig?
So this is a mobile phone, but I can't just leave it in my pocket? Or in my car unless I put it on the dash and park in the sun? OK..... and this is an improvement how?
So the first question that comes to my mind when someone says "solar powered cellphone" isn't "does it have a pedometer", but rater "how long does it take to recharge and how long does the battery last". For some reason TFA answered my first question, but not the second.
Right now I tend to recharge my phone at night because I use it during the day. This could be a problem with a solar powered cell phone. If it's power efficient enough that I can leave it on my desk at work (under standard fluorescent lighting) and keep it fully charged then this could be great. If I have to leave it on a windowsill in direct sunlight for half of the day every day, it's far less practical.
I read the internet for the articles.
Most mobile phones stay in your pocket until you're ready to use them. When they're out, your hand is generally wrapped around the back. That kinda screws up the whole solar powered angle. The only time it might be useful is if you leave it sitting out in the sun when the battery dies. That's assuming you can set it down without getting it stolen. It sounds a lot more like a marketing gimmick than a useful feature.
I have been kicking around the idea of doing the Appalachian trail and although I obviously want to get off grid, it would be nice to have a phone in case of life or death emergency. I wonder if this thing is small small and light... in that case, the built-in solar would be just the ticket.
But how much will this thing cost? Or is there some other cost in practicality?
I must compliment them for not compromising size and looks for the latest fads. That way it's not a gimmick and you won't just sell it to the treehuggers, you can sell it to the masses.
What doesn't kill you only delays the inevitable
The back of the phone doesn't seem the most reasonable place for them. Most people after all use their hand to hold on to the phone while talking - hence covering up the back of the phone while using it. And those who use bluetooth are often carrying the phone in their pocket, where one generally doesn't find much sun light, either.
It looks like someone didn't do all their homework on this one...
Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
Do phones generally get a lot of sunlight?
Kudos to them if the solar panel actually generates more energy than the energy cost of producing the panel. My cell phone is on my hip and I barely get enough light to keep from turning a pastey shade of grey. My wife's phone is generally in her pocketbook.
Help! I'm a slashdot refugee.
(checks image)
So...... beautiful,glossy front screen.... which will be face-down 90% of the time on all sorts of unforgiving surfaces.
The production version had better have a slightly raised edge all around that screen, otherwise it's going to be scratched in record time.
You are in a twisty maze of processor lines, all alike.
There is a lot of hype here.
With this new phone, I'd have to leave it laying around during the daytime instead of letting it spend the day in my pocket. Which lowers the convenience of a cellphone considerably - normally mine is in my pocket until bedtime.
In other words, not a terribly useful modification to the basic cellphone.
"I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"
the body of the phone is made from recycled water bottles.
Recycled water bottles, huh? How many calls can you make with it before it becomes toxic?
Oh wait, that was an urban legend.
Oh, say does that Star-Spangled Banner entwine / The myrtle of Venus with Bacchus's vine?
meh, i'd rather have one that was powered by the heat of my thigh.
The body of the phone is made out of recycled water bottles and has no brominated flame retardants, beryllium and phthalates - all incredibly toxic substances.
This could be a real improvement, at the rate that people change cellphones now, the amount of the old tech trash is outrageous, so this could help to minimize the impact if it become a standard
It sounded cool at first, I was thinking they'd have a solar panel charging device. Plug your phone into it while you're at work if you work in the day time by a window, and have it charge like that.
This phone is far from that. Putting a solar panel on a phone seems rather useless, unless you intend to leave it out in the sun all the time. When you're walking around outside your phone will be in your pocket, when you're using it, your hand will cover the panel. Plus most people charge their phones at night, when there is no sun out to charge the phone. They've got the right idea but they're doing it all wrong.
Please place your phone in a dark place to reset.
Or,
(walks under tree) Can you hear me now?
So do I need to keep this phone on a clip on my belt so it can get some sun? I mean when I call people my hand will be pretty much all over those panels and they won't get any light. Does it recharge in the seconds it takes me to put the phone back in my pocket? And when will the panels be facing the sun? Do I need to hold the phone up when i use it for texting. This idea is retarded.
Eat sleep die
"Samsung is clearly throwing the gauntlet to all phone manufacturers"
I believe there should be a "down" in there. As in "Samsung is clearly throwing the gauntlet down to all phone manufacturers." "Throwing the gauntlet to all phone manufacturers" makes it sound like they're just having a nice relaxing game of gauntlet catch.
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nice thinking, covering a device that stays the whole day in our pockets with solar panels. i guess you guys aren't being green at all, coz it's just a waste of perfectly usable solar panels....
and don't get me started on putting it in the car near the winshield, do that in the $REALWORLD and you know what happens :)
just my 2 yen.
is a measuring device that can sense how much child pornography you have stored in your phone. It accomplishes this by detecting the amount of twist the radio waves picks up as they pass through the digital photographic film. In short, you can see how twisted you are.
So if you're on one of those plans that gives cheap or free minutes at night/evening, it's not a great deal of use?
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
... and they will be on a winner!
Must buy green phone ... chuck out old gas-guzzling phone ... save planet ... feel warm and fuzzy ...
Er, how much energy does it take to make the solar cells?
http://press.nokia.com/PR/199703/775637_5.html
The actual phone (1610)looked pretty much the same than this Samsung here.
Wouldn't it be a better idea to generate power by walking instead of putting it into a lousy pedometer? The sun doesn't _usually_ shine too brightly into the pockets of my pants. Besides, what do I need a pedometer for anyway? That's what GPS is for.
I remember being in a position once where I was stranded(had my wallet stolen) and the only way out of the situation was to make a phone call, only my phone battery was almost dead. I made the call, but got cut-off right after I explained my situation, but before I could relay my location. I ended up having to hunt for someone to borrow a phone from(easier said then done).
With this phone, it wouldn't have been a problem. I could simply have sat down in the sun, and waited to be able to make a call.
I can also think of situations in the back-country, where a tower is accessible for a signal, but no place to charge a battery.
Could actually save a life.
http://www.inhabitat.com/wp-content/uploads/samsungblueearth2.jpg
I don't get it. How are you saving trees with this phone? Has Samsung employed a gang of vigilante loggers to cut them down if you do not walk a certain distance per day using the phone as a pedometer in "Eco walk" mode? Has there been a new scientific discovery that CO2 may in fact kill trees, negating the previous data that it is neutral or possibly even beneficial toward plant growth?
What has *science* done?!? -- Dr. Weird (ATHF)
If you carry your cell phone on your persons as most do, then a kinetic system is better than solar. Most of the time, my cell is in my pocket, and so there is no light.
This would work great if your job was outdoors and you had it clipped to your belt. Seems like it'd work well for construction?
But does it give a report on the rare metals mined in deep Africa needed to build it?
The geek-factor on one of these is huge and I'd be all over it like a prussian woodpecker over a Louis XIII Antique Chair, but all this greenness only makes sense to those willing to ignore the un-greenness of the whole manufacturing process.
Bah. Why don't they just strap a mini gas turbine?
"If I have been able to see so far, It is because I went out and bought a damn binoculars" - Ze da Esquina
How long will you be waiting - and what is the range?
It looks vaguely android-esque. The clock looks the same, but there isn't a little tabby thing on the bottom of the screen - except there is a little tabby thing on one side.
Is it Android? Or is cloned from the Android UI? Or is it just parallel evolution?
Samsung has announced using Android for other phones.
I like the idea of this. A solar powered phone would be great (provided solar charging isn't the ONLY) option when I'm on the road or on a camping trip, or burn up all by battery life playing Tetris on the bus. Flip it over, leave it next to a window, forget about.
What I'm not altogether keen on is the contrivance of bundling this with the "green" fad. I don't give two shits about how many trees the manufacturer hugged with designing the packaging, and I, for one, think that moulding phones out of recycled water bottles is more than a bit daft. Even if the phone doesn't wind up clear and crinkly, I don't think water bottle plastic of questionable origin and quality is a great idea for the casing of an expensive gizmo with a big fragile solar panel on the back.
This is old news, there are a BUNCH of Chinese made cell phones being sold on infomercials in China with solar charging capabilities. They've been selling these for years....Here's a nicer looking example I quickly found just searching...not a fair representation of the lot because there are quite a few very repulsive looking ones.
How good are they? I'm not sure as I've never used one but as far as I can tell from the ultra-cheesy infomercials, these phones are light years ahead of what the big cellphone makers are offering (heavy sarcasm). In fact, one ad I've seen mentioned 1 month standby time plus solar charging = no need for conventional wall charger!
Actually, for kicks please read the link I just posted, there's a claim of purporting 40 minutes of talk time when charged by candlelight!
For an example of how outlandish their infomercials are, check out this miracle vaginal cream. Contains English voice-over. I love China!
You people who shit all over every single new product need hobbies or something. Just because it doesn't work for you or isn't exactly what you need or can't play Ogg Vorbis files and doesn't run Ubuntu 8.08.12-a build 2108-c doesn't mean that it lacks value. If it isn't your perfect product ... don't buy it.
New features are steps toward better features. Every idea has to start with a single product, usually one with an imperfect implementation.
I applaud Samsung for doing something interesting and different and giving their customers more options.
I wonder how fast it will recharge in my pocket? I really don't want to wear my cell phone on top of head...
Oh no, this phone will cause users to get skin cancer, since they will have to be outside all the time.
Excuse me, but please get off my Pennisetum Clandestinum, eh!
One way I can see this backfire in terms of energy use.
You get home late at night. You put your phone in your home office. Instead of plugging in the charger, you keep 240 W of lighting on overnight to charge the phone.
I would find this useful. At home or at work, I put my phone on the desk anyway, so it can recharge easily then. I'd probably still charge it from the grid some of the time, but for travel or if it runs down, I'm not completely cut off.
I had a solar-cell battery on my first Nokia - 1610/freestyle. Not sure how long ago, but the SIM was credit-card sized, and the battery was about 5x13cm (2"x5") so plenty of room for a big solar panel on the back :)
rather than on the cell phone?
I prefer hand cranked phones rather than solar ones. At lease I do not have to carry the SUN during trekking nights in forests
Besides that they are too pricey for most applications, aren't those iridium satellites now playing bumpercars 300 miles up and creating a nice collision debris cascade? hard to phone to a satellite that is in 2000 pieces. (unless it is that cricket computer from the hitchhikers guide)
This space is intentionally staring blankly at you
At last, a _truly_ wireless phone.
I just cut down the tree in my front yard because of your thoughtless post. Man is my wife going to be mad at you.
This could never work for me. I live in an apartment that I choose to avoid sunlight and my office is no where near a window. If I left my phone in the sun, I know it would not be there when I get back. If I locked it in my car but where it could get sun, not only would I lose the phone, but I would have a broken window. You don't really expect me to sit in the hot Texas summer sun for hours to guard my cell phone to recharge it?