Want CNET to notify you of price drops and the latest stories?
No, thank you Accept
X
WWDC: Everything Apple AnnouncedCNET CouponsSleep With Socks OnBest Solar CompaniesRemote Working in ParadiseBest Satellite Internet ProvidersCurrent Mortgage RatesMeal Subscription vs. Takeout

Power your Air with the sun

Portable solar-panel kit from an Apple accessories retailer can power and charge MacBook Air simultaneously. But it comes with a price.

headshots_Candace_Lombardi_140x100.jpg
headshots_Candace_Lombardi_140x100.jpg
Candace Lombardi
In a software-driven world, it's easy to forget about the nuts and bolts. Whether it's cars, robots, personal gadgetry or industrial machines, Candace Lombardi examines the moving parts that keep our world rotating. A journalist who divides her time between the United States and the United Kingdom, Lombardi has written about technology for the sites of The New York Times, CNET, USA Today, MSN, ZDNet, Silicon.com, and GameSpot. She is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not a current employee of CNET.
See full bio
Candace Lombardi
2 min read

QuickerTek solar panels for MacBook Air fold up to a rectangle about 10.5 inches. QuickerTek

A new solar panel kit for the MacBook Air will both charge and power the laptop at the same time.

QuickerTek, a Wichita, Kansas-based company that sells accessories for Apple devices, calls its new portable solar power gadget the Apple Juicz MacBook Air Solar Charger.

The Juicz comes in three size and power options and has a one-year warranty, QuickerTek said Tuesday. As usual with solar energy, all that "free" power is going to cost you.

The smallest 19-watt Apple Juicz, which takes 14 hours to recharge the laptop, will sell for $500; the 8-hour, 29-watt model is $600 and the 5-hour, 58-watt model is $1,000.

In addition to laying out the initial money for the solar kit, you'll also need to shell out another $100 for a compatible MagSafe power adapter, or pay QuickerTek $25 to upgrade your existing power adapter. (For $500 to $1,000 you'd think they could throw in the adapter modification for free.)

You'll also need a bit of space to use these.

While each solar panel kit folds up into a rectangle about the size of a piece of paper, unfurling them for use requires room. The 19-watt model unfolds into 30 inches by 30.5 inches and the largest 58-watt model folds out to about 5 feet by 3.5 feet.

That doesn't sound like a big deal when you picture your green, conscientious self sitting outside this summer on a patch of grass, or at a picnic table, with your solar panel spread out beside you and passersby inquiring about your oh-so-ingenious gadget. In reality, how's this going to work when you're jockeying for space around an outdoor table at a coffee shop?