At MWC (Mobile World Conference) in Barcelona today, Lenovo revealed a proof of concept for “a PC powered by the sun.” The entire lid of the laptop has been decked out with a top-class solar panel capable of 24% conversion efficiency — which is as high as the best roof-top panels you can buy.
According to Lenovo, 20 minutes in direct sunlight will power up to one hour of video playback on the PC, and even low-light conditions will allow enough power generation to sustain the laptop’s battery charge while idling. The high efficiency is achieved through “Back Contact Cell” technology and an advanced tracking system that constantly adjusts the charger’s settings to maximize energy-saving and stability.
The most exciting part is that, aside from the distinctive solar panel grid pattern on the lid, you can’t even distinguish this from a “normal” laptop. It’s just 15mm thick and weighs 1.22kg, making it the world’s first ultraslim solar-powered PC. Its specs are also nothing to be disappointed about — Lenovo imagines this 12-inch laptop powered by Intel Core Ultra processors with up to 32GB of memory, 1TB of storage, and an OLED display.
Other specs include a 50.2 Wh battery, a 2M IR camera, four speakers and microphones, and three USB-C ports. For customers interested in soaking up as much sun as possible, Lenovo also showed off a proof of concept for a portable solar panel kit and power bank. This little gadget would allow you to charge up a power bank by plugging in the USB-C solar panel and attaching it to a bag, tent, tree, or any other sunny place you spot.
This could come in handy whenever you’re using your Yoga Solar PC and don’t want to go out and sit in direct sunlight yourself. Instead, you can take advantage by setting up your solar kit and collecting some energy for later. It would also make a great accessory for anyone who wants to join in on the solar-powered fun without buying a whole new PC.
It’s impossible to know at this point how much of the power a typical user gets through would be generated by the sun — but does it really matter? Any amount of solar-generated power is better than no solar-generated power, and with this prototype, it seems like Lenovo has managed to create a solar-powered PC without making any sacrifices to size, design, or specs. That makes me think there’s no reason not to have solar panels in our PCs.
That said, we don’t know what the price of such a PC would be yet, and a high price point would definitely affect accessibility — for now. But the sooner we bring designs like this to the market, the sooner people will find ways to bring prices down. Here’s hoping Lenovo makes this one a reality because I think solar-powered PCs would be a great direction for us to head in.