Lenovo's solar-powered Yoga concept laptop is such a good idea, I'm frankly shocked nobody's done it already
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission.
What if your laptop could get a full hour's worth of charge simply by leaving it in sunlight for 20 minutes? That's the promise of Lenovo's latest concept laptop, a Yoga model featuring a photovoltaic solar panel on the rear of the screen, converting light into charge for the laptop's battery.
I've seen a lot of great concept devices from Lenovo and other laptop makers at events like MWC 2025, and I'm usually pretty excited about them. So let me be absolutely, unequivocally clear about this one:
THIS RULES.
I'm serious. To be honest, I can't believe it took this long for a tech company to strap a solar panel to the back of an ultrabook. We need more of this. It feels like such a straightforward idea; naturally, the Yoga Solar PC can be charged conventionally via a cable, but just being able to close the lid and let it soak in the solar rays is brilliant - and basically ensures that you'll never be stranded without any charge again (unless it's the middle of the night, I suppose).
I can't be the only one who's gone on a trip or even just off to work, only to find that I've forgotten my laptop charger. Thus begins that stressful game of watching the battery life tick down, turning on efficiency mode, lowering the brightness, and praying.
But with Lenovo's Solar Yoga? I could just leave it on a windowsill for an hour while I have lunch, and come back to a freshly-charged battery.
It's also just a general triumph of eco-friendly engineering. The solar panel on the rear of the display (which, incidentally, doesn't appear to make the laptop noticeably thicker than Lenovo's other Yoga ultrabooks) offers an energy conversion rate of more than 24%, which is among the very best you'll see in any type of photovoltaic solar cells.
Lenovo also designed a 'Dynamic Solar Tracking system', which continually monitors the influx of electricity and adjusts the laptop's battery consumption to prioritize the solar energy to better preserve your battery life.
Solar-powered devices aren't a new thing, of course - fellow laptop manufacturer Acer sells a foldable 200W solar panel that you can hook up to a power bank, ideal for charging your devices when you're out in nature (or in a Mad Max-style apocalypse). But the Yoga Solar PC is the first ultrabook in the world with a fully-integrated solar power solution - and even though it's just a concept right now, it's one that I seriously hope makes it beyond the prototyping phase.
Having handled the device in person at MWC, it certainly looks and feels like it could be retail-ready. I can practically picture myself taking this bad boy camping, or even just down to the cafe.
Alright, okay, as much as I love this, I will admit that there are some potential stumbling blocks to this sort of tech being widely implemented in our laptops. For starters, solar panels aren't exactly the most durable things in the world - and I have to imagine that replacing an integrated panel like this would be a costly and difficult affair. Having a laptop with glass on the outside does feel a little bit like a recipe for disaster. Drop it once, and it might be game over.
Heat buildup also feels like a natural problem here. After all, you generally don't want your laptop to be too hot. But surprisingly, Lenovo had the Yoga Solar PC sitting under a bright lamp on their stand at the expo (presumably for hours at a time), and while the back panel itself was a bit warm to the touch, the rest of the laptop didn't feel hot at all. In fact, I'd be willing to bet that a metal exterior lid would probably cook your laptop more if you left it out in the sun.
Lastly, I suspect that if it were to make it to general production, the Yoga Solar PC would be very expensive. I've looked into getting solar panels installed on my house - and sure, this is just one solar panel, and it's a lot smaller, but it's also part of the laptop chassis rather than a standalone item - oh, and these Yoga laptops aren't exactly bargain-basement hardware to begin with.
Still, as someone who enjoys a good foray into the great outdoors, I think this proof-of-concept is a fantastic idea and I'd gladly throw money at Lenovo to own one. A laptop that's more eco-friendly and can save my bacon if I forget my charger? Sign me up.
The best laptop 2025: top portable picks for all budgets
I love Lenovo's audacious design with the ThinkBook Flip laptop, but I dread how fragile it will be IRL
Lenovo summons spirit of Microsoft Bob with Tiko, its 'compact AI emotional interaction companion'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Entrepreneur
21 minutes ago
- Entrepreneur
The International Yoga Day 2025: Indian Yoga & Meditation Industry to Hit USD 155.2 Billion by 2035
"AI is a tool, not the teacher. But it can be a really, really smart tool. It can help personalise, democratise, and scale access to yoga and wellness in ways we couldn't imagine before. But the soul of yoga is still human," says Sarvesh Shashi, CEO of SARVA Yoga You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media. India is now gearing up to celebrate the 11th International Day of Yoga on Saturday, June 21, 2025. The theme for this year is 'Yoga for One Earth, One Health'. A significant event, Yoga Sangam, will feature mass yoga demonstrations across the nation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lead the celebrations in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. India's yoga and meditation services industry is also growing rapidly. According to Future Market Insights, it is expected to rise from USD 81.7 billion in 2025 to USD 155.2 billion by 2035. This means the industry will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.6 per cent during this period. "Honestly, I think India is just coming back home to itself," says Sarvesh Shashi, CEO of SARVA Yoga. He feels it's a beautiful shift where people are no longer looking at yoga as just something you do on a mat. "They're beginning to see it as a way to breathe better, live lighter, and feel more grounded in a very noisy world." Though he also believes a lot of it is driven by stress, he adds it's also fuelled by curiosity because of people wanting more peace, more meaning. "Thankfully, technology has made it easier to access even the most ancient of practices with just a tap," Shashi says. The Rise of Yoga Startups India's yoga and meditation space is also expanding through startups. People are focusing more on complete well-being, companies are offering wellness programs, and technology is making it easier for users to access yoga. The market is expected to grow 1.8X over the next decade, offering an absolute opportunity of INR 23,800 crore. Shashi also believes there is immense potential for growth when it comes to yoga startups. "There's space for every kind of startup from hardcore tech platforms to beautifully handcrafted retreat spaces. What I love most is that founders are no longer just 'building a business,' they're building a way of life. The growth will be rooted in authenticity, people want real. So the more heart, the better," he says. The Next Five Years When asked about key changes expected in the Indian yoga and meditation services industry over the next five years, Shashi shares, "We're moving from classes to communities. From instructors to experiences. I think the next five years will be less about how flexible you are and more about how connected you feel to yourself, to others, to nature. We'll see more hyper-personalisation, tech-driven solutions, and also a return to deeper practices like pranayama, kriyas, and dhyana not just as buzzwords but lived practices. And, hopefully, a lot more joy along the way." He also hopes that the startup ecosystem will revive the Vedic lifestyle, which goes far beyond just yoga exercises. "I really hope so. Yoga is only one petal in this beautiful flower called the Vedic lifestyle. There's so much wisdom from how we eat, sleep, speak, think. Startups that can respectfully revive these practices without preaching, that can meet people where they are—that's where the magic lies. It's not about going back in time, it's about bringing ancient wisdom into modern life," he notes. AI's Role in Ancient Practices Where does artificial intelligence stand in a practice that is thousands of years old? Shashi says, "AI is a tool, not the teacher. But it can be a really, really smart tool. It can help personalise, democratise, and scale access to yoga and wellness in ways we couldn't imagine before. But the soul of yoga is still human. AI can guide you through a session, sure. But your breath, your journey that's all you. And I think that's beautiful."
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Nvidia RTX 5050 GPU leaks suggest a generational leap at a budget price
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. The RTX 5050 Mobile is Nvidia's upcoming entry-level GPU for laptops. Based on new leaks, this GPU looks far more capable than its 'budget' tier would suggest. Though Nvidia hasn't officially announced its specs, the chip has already appeared in product pages from Acer, HP, and Lenovo, with models like the Acer Nitro 5, HP Victus 16, and Lenovo Legion 5i all slated to include it. The RTX 5050 Mobile is built on the new Blackwell architecture, marking a clean break from the RTX 4050 Mobile's Ada Lovelace foundation. While the RTX 5050 shares the same CUDA ("Compute Unified Device Architecture") core count as its predecessor (2,560), everything else -- from the memory configuration to the clock speeds -- suggests this new chip represents a generational leap in capability. And this generational jump is available for an affordable price. The specs were accidentally leaked by the German IT company Kiebel (via momomo_us). Those specs point to two distinct RTX 5050 Mobile variants. Most laptops will ship with an 8GB GDDR6 configuration running at up to 100W TGP. However, a second version reportedly pairs the same core GPU with 8GB of faster GDDR7 memory. This version appears in a handful of higher-end laptops, including the Asus ROG Strix G16 and Lenovo Legion 5 Pro engineering builds. It may allow for improved bandwidth and power efficiency in demanding workloads, but for now, take all that with a pinch of salt. According to the leaked specs, which surfaced in a retailer listing, the RTX 5050 is expected to include 20 RT cores, 80 Tensor cores, 8GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, and clock speeds up to 2.52GHz. Power draw ranges from 60W to 100W, depending on the chassis. It also gains access to Nvidia's latest Max-Q 4.0 power optimization stack. That's the same efficiency-boosting tech used in the higher-end 5070 and 5090 mobile chips. The 50-class tier has traditionally been where Nvidia cuts corners, often stripping memory, limiting bus widths, and dialing down RT performance. That made previous 'entry-level' GPUs like the RTX 3050 or 4050 tough sells, especially for gamers looking to push modern titles with ray tracing enabled or DLSS turned on. But the RTX 5050 changes that equation. Thanks to Blackwell's improved power management and architectural upgrades, Nvidia is delivering more performance in the same power envelope, or less. It's a smarter GPU, not just a faster one. Thanks to Blackwell's improved power management and architectural upgrades, Nvidia is delivering more performance in the same power envelope, or less. Early analysis suggests the 5050 offers a ~45% uplift over the 4050 in raw FP32 compute power, aided by its wider memory bus (128-bit vs 96-bit), higher clock speeds, and more VRAM. With 8GB of GDDR6, it avoids the memory bottlenecks that hampered the 6GB RTX 4050 in some games and creative apps. More importantly, Blackwell's efficiency translates into real-world advantages. Frame generation, DLSS 4, ray-traced lighting, and AI-assisted game logic all benefit from the updated Tensor cores and 4th-gen RT units, even in a chip this size. While we don't have official benchmarks yet, we know enough to put the RTX 5050 Mobile in context. It's faster than the RTX 4050 Mobile in nearly every metric that matters. It runs cooler, clocks higher, and offers significantly better bandwidth. Thanks to DLSS 4 and increased memory headroom, games that struggled to hold 60 fps at 1080p on the 4050, especially with ray tracing enabled, should fare far better on the 5050. In some cases, it could even approach RTX 4060 Mobile performance levels, especially in thin-and-light laptops where the 4060 is power-constrained. When configured at 100W in larger machines like the Legion 5 or Nitro 18, the 5050 may even outperform a 4060 running at 65W. GPU Architecture Cores Memory Bus TGP RTX 4050 Mobile Ada Lovelace 2560 6GB GDDR6 96-bit 35–65W RTX 5050 G6 Mobile Blackwell 2560 8GB GDDR6 128-bit 60–100W RTX 4060 G7 Mobile Blackwell 2560 8GB GDDR7 128-bit 80–115W RTX 4060 Mobile Ada Lovelace 3072 8GB GDDR6 128-bit 60–115W That's not to say it's a 4060 killer — it isn't. The 4060 still has more CUDA cores (3,072 vs. 2,560) and a higher theoretical ceiling. However, the gap is much smaller than the model numbers imply. And in real-world gaming at 1080p, especially with DLSS and frame generation, the 5050 could close that gap further. This is where the RTX 5050 gets interesting. OEMs aren't treating this like a bargain-bin GPU. Acer, HP, and Lenovo have all listed RTX 5050 configurations in laptops that span midrange to premium territory. That includes gaming-focused machines like the Nitro 5, Legion 5i, and Victus 16, but also prosumer ultrabooks like the LG Gram Pro 16 and IdeaPad Pro 5. These systems will mostly use the standard GDDR6 version, but we expect higher-tier designs to quietly adopt the GDDR7 variant as a performance differentiator. Acer's Nitro line-up confirms multiple RTX 5050 configurations, with some using a 60W TGP and others going as high as 100W. That's a critical detail. The 5050's performance will vary significantly depending on how much power it's allowed to draw. A 60W version will struggle to match a 4060. A 100W version might trade blows with it. Expect pricing in the $1,199 to $1,499 range at launch, though GDDR7-equipped models could push closer to the $1,600–$1,700 mark depending on CPU and chassis pairing. The RTX 5050 Mobile isn't a cut-down afterthought. It's not a recycled 4050. It's a thoughtfully tuned, architecture-first evolution that delivers next-gen features in laptops that won't require a second mortgage. Thanks to Blackwell's efficiency gains and smarter feature integration, Nvidia has finally given the 50-class a reason to exist beyond marketing. The RTX 5050 offers legitimate 1080p gaming chops, full ray tracing and DLSS 4 support, and enough VRAM to future-proof budget laptops. And with the GDDR7 variant waiting in the wings, this might be the most dynamic 50-class release Nvidia has ever shipped. Buyers will still need to shop carefully. Not every RTX 5050 laptop will unlock its full potential, and some may be priced too close to 5060 models for comfort. But in the right system, the RTX 5050 Mobile could be the best value GPU of 2025. The Nvidia GPU you actually want could launch next month AMD's Ryzen Z2 Extreme just brought AI to handhelds — should the competition be worried? I used the Asus ROG Strix G16 for a week, and it may be the best value in gaming laptops right now
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Satellites are polluting Earth's atmosphere with heavy metals. Could refueling them in orbit help?
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. The world at large is working to stop the fast-progressing degradation of Earth's environment. In the space sector, however, one-use-only products still reign supreme. The advent of megaconstellations has, in fact, accelerated the rate at which the space industry burns through resources, shifting from big satellites with decades-long lifespans to cheaper birds designed to expire within a few short years. The disposable approach worries some researchers, as too much aluminum is burning up in the atmosphere these days, threatening to cause a new kind of environmental disaster in the decades to come. But what can we do? Should we roll back the space revolution and put a cap on what we can do in space? Or could a circular economy, life extension, recycling and reuse be the solution to the space industry's dirty side effects? Proponents of in-orbit servicing and refueling laud the technology's potential. But most analysts remain cautious: Without strict environmental regulations, the expected cost of in-orbit servicing may not entice satellite operators to switch to reusable technology en masse. Dave Barnhart, chief executive officer of the California-based aerospace company Arkisys, first began developing concepts of recyclable satellite technology some 15 years ago as part of a project he oversaw at DARPA (the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency). He and his colleagues investigated how to set up a satellite recycling facility in geostationary orbit — the region about 22,000 miles (36,000 kilometers) above Earth's surface where satellites appear fixed above one spot above the equator. "We wanted to know whether we can use parts from old geo satellites to recreate new ones, because the mass is already there," Barnhart told The geostationary ring is home to some of the largest and most expensive satellites. On top of that, the long distance between Earth and this orbit makes geo missions inherently costly, as they require the most powerful rockets with a lot of fuel to reach their destination. Yet, Arkisys, the company Barnhart cofounded in 2015, is focusing on low Earth orbit (LEO) — the buzzing region closest to Earth up to altitudes of about 1,200 miles (2,000 km). Arkisyshopes to set up an in-orbit servicing and refueling depot called the Port in LEO. The main goal is to spearhead a green revolution in this region, which gives rise to thousands of tons of dangerous space debris every year. "To date, everything we have ever designed to go into space has been one mission, one life," Barnhart told "It's sort of crazy. Every other domain on Earth, we maintain, we sustain, we grow. Not in space." In 2023, Arkisys secured a $1.6 million deal from the U.S. Space Force to test satellite assembly in orbit using the Port demo module — a basic building block of a scalable orbiting garage and gas station. The company wants to launch the first component of this orbital depot next year — a last-mile transportation device called the Cutter, which is designed to help satellites to dock with the garage. In 2027, the main Port module, a hexagonal structure about 9 feet (3 meters) wide, will join the Cutter in orbit to test how the mechanical interfaces of the two work together in space. The Port, in addition to serving as a fuel depot, will arrive with a supply of components and payloads that could be attached to worn-out satellites to give them a new lease on life. "Today, everything on a satellite is done on the ground, and the satellite is launched with an end date," Barnhart said. "We want to shift that to allow extensions of both — life and business — post-launch. We want to be able to add new revenue streams post-launch. You can do that if you can add something, change something in orbit, or even sell that satellite to somebody else who could make it part of a larger platform." Cameras or antennas could be replaced with more powerful ones once those get developed, worn-out batteries could be swapped for brand-new ones, and fuel tanks would get refilled. It all makes sense on paper, but Dafni Christodoulopoulou, space industry analyst at the consultancy company Analysis Mason, warns that whether satellite operators would be inclined to ditch their disposable ways will come down to the cost of the in-orbit maintenance services. LEO is currently dominated by small, relatively cheap satellites, she says, which can be replaced more cheaply than they can be serviced and maintained. "Right now, we expect in-orbit services to come at a cost that might be quite high for operators of small satellites," Christodoulopoulou told "The operators might not be interested in those services, because the price of building a new satellite might not be higher than that of a servicing mission." Barnhart agrees that the fledgling in-orbit servicing industry is likely to face resistance not just from operators but also from satellite manufacturers, who might feel threatened by the idea of reusability and life extension. "Every time you want to make a big shift like this, it's going to be a threat," Barnhart said. "Satellite manufacturers make money by building more satellites to throw away. It might take some time for them to see that by fitting satellites with interfaces that allow them to be serviced, they could actually add some cool functionality to them after launch." Related stories: — Kessler Syndrome and the space debris problem — Pollution from rocket launches and burning satellites could cause the next environmental emergency — 2 private satellites undock after pioneering life-extension mission Still, Christodoulopoulou thinks that in-orbit servicing will eventually make a difference to how things are done in space, and also to the state of the orbital environment. "The number of satellite launches is not expected to go down, so there will be a high need for constellation management, flexibility, disposal and life extension," she said. "I think in-orbit services can definitely help prevent the buildup of space debris and maintain long-term sustainability in orbit." The U.S. government certainly appears to think that life extension is the way forward. In addition to funding the Arkisys experiment, the Space Force also funds the Tetra-5 and Tetra-6 missions to test in-orbit refueling technologies in space. The two missions, designed to test hardware developed by Orbit Fab, Astroscale and Northrop Grumman, are set to launch in 2026 and 2027, respectively. In addition, intensifying geopolitical tensions are increasing the need for quick deployment of new systems in space, which, Barnhart says, could be more speedily addressed with servicing systems such as the Port, than by building new spacecraft from scratch on Earth. "If there is a new threat that has been identified, you might need a new type of sensor or a new payload to observe it," Barnhart said. "If we can augment the satellites that the government has already put up and provide them with a new capability, a new sensor, we can address those threats much faster." Christodoulopoulou thinks that new regulations designed to protect the environment and curb the air pollution related to satellite reentries could further help move the needle toward a less throwaway culture in space utilization. "There need to be a few changes," Christodoulopoulou said. "There needs to be more awareness among satellite operators to understand that in-orbit servicing offers a value in the long term. But also on the government side, there need to be more regulations to support the in-orbit servicing providers."
