In what may strike you as a strange idea, a solar-panel attachment is now available for use with many different devices, the PlayStation Portable included.

In the past, the major problem with something like a solar-panel charger is that if it is permanently hooked up to your system or device, then chances are (if you are a busy, works-everyday sort of person) that nowhere near enough daylight could be absorbed to make it a worthwhile addition to your collection of handy gadgets.

Now, though, a new attempt has been made at creating something that will be of use to everyone. Currently only available in Japan, this new small, practical add-on charger costs a ‘mere’ ¥7,980 (sarcasm implied as this converts to around £33 or 49 Euros!) and can be used with a wide variety of products, with dongles included for the likes of mobile phones, iPods, Nintendo DS systems and, of course, Sony’s PlayStation Portable. With it having a high capacity of 1350mAh and a voltage of 3.7V, the “Solar-Fine” seems to be better than the rest of the competition. However, strangely enough, the time taken to fully charge it in daylight is ten hours, which could clearly prove to be a big sticking point. Factoring this in, though, the manufacturer, Links, has included an option to allow for charging via an AC plug unit or USB adaptor.

Whatever will they think of next? No matter what it is, though, Playstatic will aim to bring you the latest updates from the world of Sony…