This Jacket Charges Your Phone With Solar Energy and Makes You Look Like a Jedi

Imagine your jacket could do more than just protect you from brisk wind — imagine it could also help power your electronics. And make you look like a Jedi. 

That’s what this poncho-like jacket from Anker Solix, the solar and energy storage tech branch of Anker, aims to do. I saw a prototype of it at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona — and tried it on for size. I’ve never felt simultaneously cooler and weirder. 

The jacket, which Anker Solix calls a cloak, is covered in about two dozen sewn-on solar cells made from perovskite, a mineral that helps the cells feel more fabric-like and somewhat flexible. An attached cable with a 30-watt USB-C output connects to a power bank or directly into your device, so you can charge your electronics as you walk around or relax outdoors. 

Blue light lines the hood to give a cooler, more futuristic feel. I imagine it’s also helpful if you’re out at night and want to make yourself clearly visible for safety.

The cloak resembles a rain jacket, with a slick surface, a lightweight feel and a zipper. Wearing it, the solar cells feel like large iron-on patches, which are thankfully smaller and triangle-shaped on the right arm and shoulder to make it easier to bend your elbow and otherwise move around. Panels on the front left and back are rectangular.  

The solar jacket is still just a concept, so it’s not clear if or when it’ll see the light of day. Anker Solix has been seeking other unique ways to charge devices and gadgets. During CES, it unveiled the EverFrost 2 electric cooler, which is slated to come out this month, as well as a solar umbrella that it said would be available this summer.