West Florida Components

Anyone who is trying to sell a house knows that some improvements like adding a new bathroom or a complete kitchen renovation may increase the value of a home however most people might not consider that an investment in solar panels or other renewable energy sources may be another positive investment in their home.

According to a study that was recently published by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), solar photovoltaic (PV) panels added on average between 3 percent and 4 percent to the value of a home. This study, which examined homes in California, suggests that homeowners might fully recover their costs of purchasing and installing solar panels when they sell their home. Since solar panels require very little maintenance and are becoming increasingly more affordable to buy and install, this is another way to increase the resale value and marketability of your home. Some of the most common installations in homes are for water heaters, pool heaters and outdoor lighting. As the technology improves and the cost of solar panels continues to drop, more and more homeowners (and potential buyers!) will be looking for solar energy systems for their homes.

Photo courtesy of http://diy-energysolarpanels.com/

At our electronic components e-commerce business, we love to push the limits with our electronic gadgets. But could we replace our notebook computer with an iPad2? We wouldn’t have thought so, but a writer for PC World did a 30 day challenge where he set out to prove once and for all if it were possible to replace his trusty Windows7 laptop with an iPad2.

There were many computing tasks that he looked at. Most of the criteria he included in his challenge were everyday tasks that most of us could relate to. Some of the tasks that he evaluated during the challenge were interesting.

In the end, he wanted to see if he could:

• Web Surf

• Email

• Office Productivity

• Manage Contacts

• Back Up to Cloud

• VPN to Company Network

• Online Meetings / Video Conference

• Calendar

• Social Network

• Finances

• Printing / Scanning

• Entertainment

The result? A resounding YES to all of the above. Was it a perfect solution? No. Was it even a long term solution? No way. But, other than the physical constraints of the tablet’s small screen and cramped keyboard, the writer had no major operating issues or complaints. In fact, he was even confident that should his notebook computer crash, he’d not have to run out for a replacement that very moment.

Is the next challenge going to be if he could replace his notebook computer with a smart phone? Maybe. That would be a great challenge to see.