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No More Batteries! Guy Hacks His Cheap Earbuds So They Can Charge Themselves From the Sun

Our lives seem to revolve around batteries of all kinds, which can become exhausting. Everything needs to be recharged, which means cables and ports and carrying extra stuff with you. Wireless earbuds make no exception, but this guy has had enough, so he hacked his cheap pair to make sure he never has to worry about batteries again.
Guy integrates tiny solar panel to the case of its earbuds, to charge them directly from the sun 6 photos
Photo: befinitiv/YouTube
Guy integrates tiny solar panel to the case of his earbuds to let them charge themselves from the sunGuy integrates tiny solar panel to the case of his earbuds to let them charge themselves from the sunGuy integrates tiny solar panel to the case of his earbuds to let them charge themselves from the sunGuy integrates tiny solar panel to the case of his earbuds to let them charge themselves from the sunGuy integrates tiny solar panel to the case of his earbuds to let them charge themselves from the sun
Rechargeable batteries can be annoying, as they are almost always empty when you need them, they become useless in a couple of years, and they represent yet another thing your brain has to worry about. Well, no more!
If you own a pair of wireless earbuds, you know they charge by placing them in their little carrying case. But that also has to be charged regularly, which is why it has its own built-in battery that you charge through a cable.

YouTuber “befinitiv” decided to hack his cheap pair of earbuds, integrating a tiny solar panel to their case, so that he can let the sun worry about charging it for a change.

As the YouTuber explains in his video, for an occasional user who uses the buds for a couple of hours per day, a simple solar cell attached to the case should keep the earbuds charged all the time. Once integrated with the charging box of the headphones, all you have to do is leave the case outside to do its thing. No cables and plugs are required. For his hacked charging box, one hour in the sun gives enough juice for 30 minutes of use.

In order for the whole thing to work, the German engineer had to first solder some wires to the terminals of the battery. He also used a converter to boost the voltage of the solar cell, which normally generates just 1 volt, not enough to charge the battery of the case.

The video below walks you through the entire process and there are links for the parts used, in case you feel up for the hacking job.

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About the author: Cristina Mircea
Cristina Mircea profile photo

Cristina’s always found writing more comfortable to do than speaking, which is why she chose print over broadcast media in college. When she’s not typing, she also loves riding non-motorized two-wheelers, going on hikes with her dog, and rocking her electric guitars.
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