Solar Cells on Portable Devices - New Apple Patent Promises Green Gadgets

Imagine your iPhone or iPod automatically charging by the sun as you use it. A new Apple patent promises exactly that, by exploring the use of solar power in various versions of their mobile devices: iPhone, iPods and portable computers. The mechanism augments the devices, including the transparent screens, with layers of solar cells,.

According to the patent, “Solar cells are typically stacked with other layers made of transparent or semi-transparent materials… Some of these layers may be used for display or input purposes, and some layers may be coated with various materials or they may be etched with product logos or other patterns.”

I like where this is heading, and with solar technology improving rapidly, I hope we will soon see all gadgets coming with such solar cell layers.