| There are many benefits of portable or flexible solar | | | | 4. Variety of Uses: A flexible solar panel can be used |
| panels.This article will focus on 6 advantages. | | | | in a variety of situations, such as to recharge batteries, |
| 1. Solar Power is a Stable Source of Alternative | | | | charge your cell phone, iPods, etc. These flexible and |
| Energy: These are powered by the sun's energy | | | | portable panels have recently been manufactured |
| through photovoltaics. While it is possible to run out of | | | | inside of jackets and backpacks. For the adventurer, |
| fossil fuels, the sun's energy will be around for a long | | | | the thin-film technology lets you document your travels |
| time to come. | | | | more efficiently now then at any other time. You will |
| 2. Portable: Until recently solar panels have had their | | | | no longer need to carry heavy batteries. |
| limitations. They were too big and bulky. Because of | | | | 5. Durable: Because these rolled panels are an |
| our increased desire to find alternative sources of | | | | amorphous solid, you can depend on it for durability. |
| energy, better designs have been made to create | | | | Because there are not glass parts, they will not break. |
| them portable and flexible. These can be layed out flat | | | | They are temperature and weather tolerant, making |
| on the ground or the top of your boat for power for | | | | them usable almost everywhere. |
| cell phones and walkie talkies and then easily rolled up | | | | 6. Can Be Used Almost Anywhere: Flexible or portable |
| to put inside your boat. | | | | solar panels can be carried and used practically |
| 3. Waterproof: When they were first developed, the | | | | anywhere, even in the middle of the ocean. Many |
| stability of the solar panels were such that they had to | | | | extreme sea kayakers were able to use the thin-film |
| be protected by a special casing which severely | | | | technology to document their journey. For those of us |
| limited their capabilities. A technology called thin-film has | | | | who aren't extreme kayakers, hikers etc, we can take |
| provided solar cells to be used in many different ways. | | | | this thin-film technology and use it in the same way. |
| You can conveniently bring these flexible and portable | | | | Whether you are going camping or heading out for a |
| solar panels on your boat and easily charge items like | | | | day on the lake, you can roll out the flexible and |
| your Ipod. | | | | portable solar panels to power your equipment. |