The new iPhone 4S suffers from the same problem that many smartphones have – the battery life is great for people who are at their desks all day, but if you don’t carry a power source with you, a few phone calls and a few minutes on facebook will leave you searching for power.
If you’ve ever wandered around the race village at a regatta searching for your mates because your phone has died, then Italian company O-range and Swedish sailing apparel company Sail Racing might have the answer. The partnership has developed a state-of-the-art series of technical bags with integrated solar iPhone charger. The solar panels can also charge iPads.
Marcello Buttino, designer and owner of O-range said:
“Sail Racing has extreme demands on materials, durability and design, and we both believe that technology and function are as important as design and looks. We found we were the ideal partners straight away,”
Sailing bag products in the range include a rucksack and a shoulder bag with solar panels and two different covers for iPads or iPhones. The solar panels in the shoulder bag generate energy for charging iPhones and the ones in the rucksack for charging iPads. The bags are light, thin, seamless and made of waterproof materials.
A limited series will be available from the end of October from Sail Racing’s online shop.
If you are looking to buy a solar iPhone charger and sailing bag, then the the shoulder bag with solar panels and covers for the iPhone and iPad in black or grey will be launched first. The rucksack for sailors will be available later in the autumn. More products are planned for the series in 2012.
Sail Racing’s Product Manager Henric Vikestam said:
“We’ll start by selling them from our web shop and later through our distributors and a select number of retailers as well. There’s also the possibility of getting onto other markets with a series of completely unique products, which is really exciting.”
“The bags that we’ve come up with together are the start of a long-term partnership. O-range is very innovative and injects a vast amount of knowledge in terms of technology and materials. We will definitely develop more products together.”
Now – if the bags had a solar charger for Android smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S II, then the folks at Sail Racing will be onto a winner.
Sail Racing is the official clothing partner of the World Match Racing Tour and Team Korea, competing in the America’s Cup World Series. Their ‘test team’ includes Torvar Mirsky and they have around 1200 Facebook likes…
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