light powered radio - saves on batteries

light-powered radio... elektor april 1985 light- powered radio 4-24 • • • ...saves on batteries All portable receivers, large and small alike, share a big drawback: their batteries! Those energy sources seem to know when that cricket match is getting really interesting, or when the play you are listening to is coming to its climax. It is then that they give up the ghost. Our tiny receiver works from solar cells and is therefore far less likely to let you down at those exciting moments, at least, as long as it is not too dark... Rising costs and our endeavours to save energy mean that solar energy is in! Large solar panels are already in extensive use for the provision of heat and other energy in domestic and industrial buildings. And, of course, what can be done on a large scale can be done on a small scale, so that in almost every High Street you can find clocks, watches, and calculators that are powered by small solar cells. So, we thought, why not design a little radio th...