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Solar bikini charges up your iPod

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solar_bikini.gifNow that summer's here and we
are all heading off to the beach what do we do to make sure that our
gadgets are topped up with enough power to make sure we can listen to
music all day long and get a good tan. Well one inventive student has devised a special bikini that will let you sunbathe and charge up your mp3 player at the same time.

The
Solar Bikini has one-inch by four-inch photovoltaic film strips sewn
into a normal bikini with the cells terminating in a five volt
regulator that ends in a female USB
connector, meaning that just about any mp3 play or iPod can be plugged
in and kept topped up with juice. We'd imagine that you could also
charge up your mobile phone with it too. (come to think about what
could you not recharge with this handy garment.

The garment was made by Andrew Schneider
who is a student at the Interactive Telecommunications Program at the
Tisch School of the the Art of New York University. Schneider is also
working on a garment for the boys called the iDrink, which will have a
greater surface area giving out more output voltage. The additional
output can be used to power a 1.5 amp peltier junction which cools a
single beer in a custom coozy.
The swimwear is being showcased at the Siggraph exhibition.

Schneider said that the iDrink solar swimwear line is "perfect for those who want to go the beach, listen to music, and enjoy
a cold and deserved beverage, but who don't want to get wet! You've got
tunes, you've got beer, you've got sun, and you've got each other in
swimwear. The rest is up to you."

solar02.gif

"The specific suit being built is a bikini," he told Cellular News. "I decided to go with a
female suit because of the sleeker form. The demographic I can foresee
actually becoming interested in such a thing are those who enjoy mobile
culture, hanging out, music, and kitsch. A demographic not unlike that
to which the Apple corporation seems to preach."

We reckon that with the amount of gadgets we take down the beach we'd need a solar unitard for all of them!

Wonder if it could power the beer throwing fridge!