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>Search for images of solar shingles and you'll see what I mean about previous attempts. The first 9 images Google returned in the top 2 rows for "solar shingl

>Search for images of solar shingles and you'll see what I mean about previous attempts. The first 9 images Google returned in the top 2 rows for "solar shingles" have 2 pictures from Tesla/SC's presentation. (~22%). The 3 top rows (13 images) contain 3 images from the presentation (~23%). It looks like you're right about the change to come.

Maken 10y ago
I just made the same search, and indeed several of the top images are from the Tesla presentation. However, what have surprised me more is discovering that"solar shingles" have been a thing for so much time, and there are already some quite decent looking models, even curved ones. Of course, I have never heard about it. Tesla marketing is really far ahead of everyone else.
- Jugurtha 10y ago
  I've been interested in solar since I saw a solar powered Casio watch as a kid but haven't kept up with the technology. The panels are ugly and having to add a panel to get solar energy is clunky. I want to believe, looking at all the devices a smartphone has replaced, that one day this won't be the case.. Then I look at trees, devices that had millions of years to improve solar energy conversion but still rely on solar panels and it calms my passions. But maybe, we could evolve and plug the Calvin cycle into the Krebs cycle! Our skin has a surface of about 2m². We could go solar (would have to walk naked) or cover up and eat food. Maybe will come a time where people who rely on food are the pariahs of society. The "Covered Ones". I suppose one great revolution would be finding a way to add the photovoltaic effect to materials (paints, fabrics, plastics, etc) or make these materials with the effect embedded. I think there are flexible panels that are being made, but even those look weird. I want it to be a materials property, similar to the antimicrobial property of copper alloys. The irritating thing with microelectronics is that the die is minuscule and beautiful, but then you have to add pins and pads and a package. Dust is also a problem. It's amazing that a thin film of dust you couldn't even notice without a finger swipe could have such an impact. And then there's the connection between transistors that has to be a certain way. What would be great would be for the transistor to become a molecule or be packaged in a molecule. Water is water and no matter the phase, the molecules adapt to find their place with respect to each other. The layout needs to be independent of humans' will and answer only to the laws of nature (you don't worry about each molecule when you apply a coat of paint).
kayge 10y ago
I had much better luck seeing the "previous attempts" by opening up a private/incognito window, and using this as the full search term: solar shingles -tesla YMMV :)
- Jugurtha 10y ago
  Here's what Google Trends returns for "solar shingles" for the past 5 years. https://www.google.com/trends/explore?q=solar%20shingles https://www.google.com/trends/explore?q=solar%20shingles

Maken 10y ago

I just made the same search, and indeed several of the top images are from the Tesla presentation. However, what have surprised me more is discovering that"solar shingles" have been a thing for so much time, and there are already some quite decent looking models, even curved ones. Of course, I have never heard about it. Tesla marketing is really far ahead of everyone else.

Jugurtha 10y ago
I've been interested in solar since I saw a solar powered Casio watch as a kid but haven't kept up with the technology. The panels are ugly and having to add a panel to get solar energy is clunky. I want to believe, looking at all the devices a smartphone has replaced, that one day this won't be the case.. Then I look at trees, devices that had millions of years to improve solar energy conversion but still rely on solar panels and it calms my passions. But maybe, we could evolve and plug the Calvin cycle into the Krebs cycle! Our skin has a surface of about 2m². We could go solar (would have to walk naked) or cover up and eat food. Maybe will come a time where people who rely on food are the pariahs of society. The "Covered Ones". I suppose one great revolution would be finding a way to add the photovoltaic effect to materials (paints, fabrics, plastics, etc) or make these materials with the effect embedded. I think there are flexible panels that are being made, but even those look weird. I want it to be a materials property, similar to the antimicrobial property of copper alloys. The irritating thing with microelectronics is that the die is minuscule and beautiful, but then you have to add pins and pads and a package. Dust is also a problem. It's amazing that a thin film of dust you couldn't even notice without a finger swipe could have such an impact. And then there's the connection between transistors that has to be a certain way. What would be great would be for the transistor to become a molecule or be packaged in a molecule. Water is water and no matter the phase, the molecules adapt to find their place with respect to each other. The layout needs to be independent of humans' will and answer only to the laws of nature (you don't worry about each molecule when you apply a coat of paint).

kayge 10y ago

I had much better luck seeing the "previous attempts" by opening up a private/incognito window, and using this as the full search term: solar shingles -tesla YMMV :)

Jugurtha 10y ago
Here's what Google Trends returns for "solar shingles" for the past 5 years. https://www.google.com/trends/explore?q=solar%20shingles https://www.google.com/trends/explore?q=solar%20shingles