The CES tradeshow is a sanctuary for consumer electronics, yet solar innovations are also seen at this year’s exhibition with different angles from “devices.” Solar charger for portable power banks and flexible solar panels are two of the solar displays at CES 2017.

re-fuel displays a waterproof solar charger, RF-PBSLR, at CES 2017. This product features dual USB ports in 10,000 and 15,000 mAh of power providing up to five to seven recharges. It offers convenient charging solution for mobile devices and GoPros.

re-fuel's waterproof solar charger.

Sunflare is another exhibitor that displays solar solution at CES 2017. The company introduced “Inhabitat,” a CIGS solar panel manufactured through its “Capture 4” cell-by-cell process. This process, which has been developed for six years, makes Inhabitant-2 a soft, light, and flexible panel like a wallpaper. Furthermore, this panel can be stuck onto surfaces with different shapes, angles, and materials.

Comparing with traditional solar panels assembled by glass, Inhabitat is applicable to more uses, especially in non-traditional ways.

PV Magazine cited Sunflare’s CEO, Philips Gao, and noted that Inhabitat is very close to mass production, and the company regards it as a very competitive product against traditional modules. Inhabitat’s installation costs could be at US$1.50 per watt, not much from traditional panels’ cost of US$1.51 per watt, in the U.S. market, according to Sunflare.

However, it seems to have more opportunities for Sunflare to work on innovative applications.