Solar power energy sources are the most egalitarian of all, 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 autonomous energy sources problem -to the delight of camping geeks everywhere- with the Emerald, a portable solar panel that converts solar power and does double duty as both a energy sources, cellphone charger or other and personal light source.
The personal solar panel and solar power energy sources idea was well known before, but the price of this entry made it an untenable solution for developing nations.
The light bulbs with solar power and solar panel energy sources have been around for a while too, but the Emerald’s light source lasts for eight hours on a full charge from solar power (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.
The students 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.
