AfterDawn: Tech news

LG releases 'green' phone with solar charging

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 14 Oct 2009 12:59 User comments (12)

LG releases 'green' phone with solar charging LG has launched the GD510 Pop mobile phone this week, the company's "greenest" phone, ever.
The Pop's packaging uses all recycled paper and soy ink printing, and LG says the entire production process is eco-friendly.

Pre-installed on the phone are applications dubbed "Eco-tree" and "Eco-calculator" which lets users see how much they have reduced their C02 emissions by alternatively taking the train or carpooling instead of driving alone, for example.

Most notably however, is the optional solar-powered battery cover allowing you to charge your phone out in the sunlight. LG says 10 minutes of sunlight charging will give users 180 minutes of standby time, or just over 2 minutes of talk time.

Green aside, GSMArena says the phone has a "3" WQVGA resistive TFT display, 3 MP camera with fixed focus and video recording, Bluetooth, microUSB slot, and FM radio - not much different than LG Cookie." Unfortunately, the phone will not have 3G support.



The Pop will be available in the EU beginning next week.

Previous Next  

12 user comments

114.10.2009 13:44

Any idea on the cost? I'd definitely get one if its reasonable with a contract, and available in the states.

214.10.2009 13:46

one of the great things about solar charging i think it portability. second i really hope they don't screw this up by making solar charging the ONLY way to charge the phone.

314.10.2009 14:06

All this Eco Fad junk is starting to piss me off now.

414.10.2009 14:16

2 minuets of talk time? 2 minuets? How can it give 2+ hours of stand by and only 2 minuets of talk time?

514.10.2009 14:27

Originally posted by Xplorer4:
2 minuets of talk time? 2 minuets? How can it give 2+ hours of stand by and only 2 minuets of talk time?
2 Mins per 10 mins charging.

Apparently sending Microwaves uses a lot of power.

614.10.2009 18:42

Originally posted by Lothros:
All this Eco Fad junk is starting to piss me off now.
I agree, this "Going Green" and "Eco-Friendly" is just a business model, much like how Christmas, Halloween, etc is a business model. If there is a problem in society with a profitable solution, then the problem will be solved. Otherwise the problem won't be solved at all.

One problem with this solar power charger is.....don't most people keep their phones in their pockets most of the time, where the sun doesn't shine ? I guess people could start putting their phones on a table and just leave it there to charge....but wouldn't that increase the chances of having your phone stolen or lost? Some people might be in the routine to charge their phone at night, but I guess they could keep the lights on in the room to let the phone charge while they sleep, b/c that is more eco-friendly......LOL

714.10.2009 22:38

Quote:
Originally posted by Xplorer4:
2 minuets of talk time? 2 minuets? How can it give 2+ hours of stand by and only 2 minuets of talk time?
2 Mins per 10 mins charging.

Apparently sending Microwaves uses a lot of power.

Even then, look at the average talk time battery life of cell phones compared to there standby time, and you may get what, a third, a fourth of talk time compared to stand by time. Lets even say you only get an 8th of talk time compared to stand by time. That would give you 22.5 minuets of talk time if your looking at 180 minuets of stand by times. So I just dont see it as that impressive.

815.10.2009 11:25

Originally posted by bullet159:
one of the great things about solar charging i think it portability. second i really hope they don't screw this up by making solar charging the ONLY way to charge the phone.
Most notably however, is the optional solar-powered battery cover allowing you to charge your phone out in the sunlight.

915.10.2009 21:23

fabulous idea with great intentions for the eco system but still in it's teething stages - 2 minutes talk-time????

1016.10.2009 04:23

OMG PEOPLE READ PROPERLY it says

"10 minutes of sunlight charging will give users 180 minutes of standby time, or just over 2 minutes of talk time."

It doesnt say that the battery is fully charged after 10 minutes and ou only get 2 minutes, instead its saying 10 mins of solar charge will give you 2 minutes of talk... PUT UR DAM GLASSES ON !!

Its not bad actally when you consider 10 mins give you 180 mins of standby, which means 1 hour and twenty mins will give you enough standby time for 24 hours

1116.10.2009 09:23

Quote:
Originally posted by Xplorer4:

2 minuets of talk time? 2 minuets? How can it give 2+ hours of stand by and only 2 minuets of talk time?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2 Mins per 10 mins charging.

Apparently sending Microwaves uses a lot of power.
its all good the idea of an solar charging battery but if it takes 10 minutes of charging to get 2 minutes(or just over) then its pretty much useless solar charging your battery.i have a nokia 6070 and i plug it in to charge it and it takes 30minutes and i get about 5hours talk time.

1219.10.2009 10:57

This is not a bad phone for us in hurricane prone areas. My power was out for a month after Ike. Charging my cell phone was a huge pita during this time.

Comments have been disabled for this article.

Latest news

VLC hits milestone: over 5 billion downloads VLC hits milestone: over 5 billion downloads (16 Mar 2024 4:31)
VLC Media Player, the versatile video-software powerhouse, has achieved a remarkable feat: it has been downloaded over 5 billion times.
2 user comments
Sideloading apps to Android gets easier, as Google settles its lawsuit Sideloading apps to Android gets easier, as Google settles its lawsuit (19 Dec 2023 11:09)
Google settled its lawsuit in September 2023, and one of the settlement terms was that the way applications are installed on Android from outside the Google Play Store must become simpler. In the future, installing APK files will be easier.
8 user comments
Roomba Combo j7+ review - Clever trick allows robot vacuum finally to tackle home with rugs and carpets Roomba Combo j7+ review - Clever trick allows robot vacuum finally to tackle home with rugs and carpets (06 Jun 2023 9:19)
Roomba Combo j7+ is the very first Roomba model to combine robot vacuum with mopping features. And Roomba Combo j7+ does all that with a very clever trick, which tackles the problem with mopping and carpets. But is it any good? We found out.
Neato, the robot vacuum company, ends its operations Neato, the robot vacuum company, ends its operations (02 May 2023 3:38)
Neato Robotics has ceased its operations. American robot vacuum pioneer founded in 2005 has finally called it quits and company will cease its operations and sales. Only a skeleton crew will remain who will keep the servers running until 2028.
5 user comments
How to Send Messages to Yourself on WhatsApp How to Send Messages to Yourself on WhatsApp (20 Mar 2023 1:25)
The world's most popular messaging platform, Meta-owned WhatsApp has enabled sending messages to yourself. While at first, this might seem like an odd feature, it can be very useful in a lot of situations. ....
18 user comments

News archive