Tag Archive
A Solar-Powered PC for 2010.
I’d love to get out an do another Solar Computing Tour in 2010 but I’ll have to plan it carefully. Our new baby is due in March so maybe I can pull a long weekend together in late August but we’ll have to see how things go. It doesn’t stop me thinking about solar computing [...]
Mobile Solar Computing with the Viliv X70 UMPC
I just wanted to give you solar computing fans a quick heads-up on a new solution that you should consider. The Viliv X70 EX. I’ve been testing it for the last week and as a standalone UMPC its a really flexible solution. SSD and 3G options, high quality build and very long battery life. In [...]
The Cheap, All-In-One Solar PC. iUnika Solar Announced.
Does this mean goodbye to my solar panel, my 1KG lead-acid battery and the box full of cables I have? Does these mean that you won’t have to spend over $1000 on a Solar UMPC kit now? iUnika have announced a range of very low end, low-cost netbooks which include one with a solar-panel on [...]
How to improve solar charging PC efficiency for consumer devices.
Last Thursday I spent a lot of time analyzing exactly how efficient my charging solution was with a real-life test. What dropped out was a rather poor picture of how inefficient the whole solar charging setup was. From over 1.2KW hitting the area of my solar panel I managed to use about 19W. That’s a [...]
We need more dylithium crystals captain.
Location: SürthDistance since last post:15kmWeather: warm but cloudy and wet.Notes: Always wear tight underwear when cycling! A business issue this morning cost me 25% of my battery power and with the current weather situation, cloudy and wet, that could cost me dearly. There was a brief bright period at around noon where i slammed on [...]
Day 6. No Sun. Lots of Biking.
Distance since last post: 75kmWeather: Cloudy, rainy.Forecast: Bad for the next 3-days. Looks like I’ll have to be careful!Notes: Crashed into a lamppost while I was trying to mount my bike. No damage. Phew! View towards Remagen (two bridge towsers can be seen at base of hill) in terrible weather. No sun, no energy although [...]
Berta the Blue Bakers Bike
Distance since lost post: 15kmWeather: Clouds thinningNotes: I don’t have much faith in the lead-acid battery. The Li-Ion battery seems to be charging much more reliably. Another day completed and I feel like I’m getting into a better rhythm. Checking emails and RSS on the mobile phone and creating rich journal updates with the Q1b. [...]
Winter is coming.
Distance since last post: 40kmWeather: Mixed, cloudy. Hazy. Warm 20-22 degreesNotes: Feeling really good. No aches. Pushing harder today. Cant stop eating sultanas! The hills on each side of the Rhein are getting bigger! Winter is coming…If you take notice of the geese that is. I saw a flock flying south (following the River perhaps) [...]
A grape day
Location: OppenheimDistance since last post: 68KmWeather: Hot with 50% cloud coverForecast: Heavier cloud tomorrow. Clearing toward Thursday.Notes: Problem with the Lead-acid battery today. It didn’t seem to charge. Will concentrate on loading the Li-Ion battery tomorrow. Due to the cloudy weather I decided to cycle all the way through to the campsite in one stage [...]
Xantrec 300 / Sunlinq portable solar solution
Here’s a solution based on the Sunlinq 25w panel and a Xantrec 300 Plus combo lead-acid battery/inverter. Its very similar to my own solution apart from the fact that this one weighs nearly 10KG!!! A number of blogs seemed to have picked up on this solution today and are quoting 11-12 hours charging time. This figure [...]