While surfing the net, I came across an article that talked about the world's first solar powered phone launched by Samsung in India. It is launched under the Guru brand and is expected to cost about Rs 2799. The initial promotion says that for an hour of charge in sun will give you 5 to 10 minutes of talk time. It would be prudent to take the middle of the two figures say 7 minutes of talk time. And the full charge will take something around 40 hrs. Well that is indeed a good news for Indians where chronic power shortages are a norm. But I am thrilled by the prospect that so advanced an technology is being used commercially and for the lower income group.
Sun is known to be life giver and has been looked upon as God by the various civilizations. Egyptians worshipped sun, so did the Greeks. And in india we he had suryavanshi kings who derived their lineage from the sun. Karna was Sun's boon to Kunti and everyone in India ( at least those who read the Mahabharata) is aware of his name. Sun is worshipped both as male as well as female in India. Chath puja is performed all over north india and Savitri and Gaytri are also supposed to be forms of sun. The point is Sun is a major life giver and causes all the weather phenomenon. Plants need the sun for photosynthesis and so forth.
It is said that merely by covering 4% of the world's desert area with photovoltaics could supply all of the world's electricity. The Gobi Desert alone could supply almost all of the world's total energy demand. The only thing that keeps us from realizing this dream is the high cost associated with the technology. Currently ( 2008) it supplied only 0.02% of world energy. Now suppose we could develop devices that could charge themselves in the Sun. Everyone knows that solar power is a renewable source of energy and will be there for eternity ( until all the hydrogen runs out…an event out of our purview ). And best of all it is free. And India being a subtropical country stands in a very good position to utilize this form of energy. All that is needed is innovations like the crest guru phone by Samsung to bring it in public domain.
It is still a start and will take a lot of time before all issues are sorted out. But it is a start in the right direction. Suppose other gadgets start coming out at a low price. Imagine such a future and what it would entail for the rural areas. What we can pray for is that these gadgets start keep coming out and reach a tipping point. That looks a few decades away but the potential is tremendous. And it would save our planet too!
