Vodafone unveils solar-powered VF 247 phone in India

Published on Jul 28, 2010

VF 247, a boon for rural areas facing electricity shortage, is the first solar-powered handset launched by Vodafone in India

Published on Mar 17, 2011

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Vodafone Essar Ltd. has unveiled a solar-powered handset VF 247 in India. The new phone, which was introduced an year after Samsung's Solar Guru 1107 phone, mainly serves those rural Indian villages where access to electricity is very limited. The new product offering attempts to bridge the infrastructure gap and enables more people in rural India to use the mobile phone. Moreover, it would enable the Indian mobile subscriber base to grow substantially from  existing 20 percent. Vodafone VF 247 mobile phone would eliminate the need for any user to charge their phones near an electrical outlet. But the user would have an option to recharge the phone with a regular electric charger. Vodafone states that the solar phone charges itself by exposure to ambience light. The device has a special inbuilt software and hardware, Sun Boost, which ensures that the phone charges in normal daylight conditions, even in a room. Direct exposure to sunlight is not required. Vodafone VF 247 needs eight hours of direct sunlight for full recharging. Once the phone is completely charged, it offers 4 hours of talk time with standby time of about 200 hours.  The solar phone features a powerful torch light, color screen and an FM radio. It will be available by next month at about Rs. 1,500 in the Indian market. 

 

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