The Next Generation of Alternative Energy: Plug and Play Solar Panels

Want solar power on the cheap? Veranda Solar may be able to help. The company’s innovative panel design requires only a screwdriver and a standard home outlet. At $600, the panel is much more affordable than many of its competitors.

Veranda says that its product can be affixed to windows, gutters, and balconies in “plug and play style”– so the panels snap together and can be plugged in directly to an outlet. If you decide that a single panel isn’t enough to fulfill your power needs, springing for additional snap-on panels at $450 a pop isn’t too much of a stretch.

The company’s panels aren’t yet on the market, but a 100,000 Euro prize from the PICNIC Green Challenge has sped up the production process. According to Veranda, panels and flexible inverters should be available by the end of 2009.