Swedish lifestyle brand Urbanista has made a name for itself by integrating solar power into its excellent audio products like its Los Angeles Bluetooth headphones, essentially making it possible to forget about USB charging altogether for most regular users. At IFA 2023, the company is back with the solar-powered Urbanista Malibu, an outdoor Bluetooth speaker that has the potential to never run out of battery.

Like previous solar products in Urbanista’s lineup, the Malibu is equipped with a Powerfoyle solar panel, a flexible and incredibly thin film created by Exeter, another Swedish company that produces the panels domestically. Beyond looking sleek and blending effortlessly into the speaker’s design, this panel also has the advantage of being resistant against water and dust, resulting in an IP67 rating for the whole outdoor-friendly package

Urbanista tells me that the design of the Malibu is picked very deliberately. The way the buttons are arranged at the top, just on the rim of the solar panel, is meant to nudge people to position it with the solar panel facing up. This makes sense, as an omnidirectional design could lead to people accidentally covering up the solar panel, all but killing its benefits.

Like previous solar products from Urbanista, you can monitor just how quickly the speaker charges via solar through its connected app, helping you position it to optimally harvest as much power as possible. Unsurprisingly, there is a limit to how far you can get with the sun alone, and since the box draws exponentially more power at louder volume settings, you might not be able to rely on solar alone if you’re frequently cranking up the volume for long listening sessions. Whether you’re pushing such limits, or just trying to enjoy your music on an overcast day, there’s always a familiar USB-C charging port to fall back on. As for battery life, Urbanista promises a “full day battery reserve.” With the speaker capable of charging whenever the sun’s out, battery anxiety may well become a distant memory.

Of course, this is a speaker first and foremost, and for as cool as this solar-charging action looks, the real question is whether the Urbanista Malibu sounds any good. Thankfully, even in the loud trade show environment, it was impressive how defined and punchy the Malibu’s dual 10W speakers sounded, with it getting loud enough to drown out the noises from other nearby booths.

Urbanista made clear to me that the sound design isn’t finalized, with the company still tweaking and adjusting the final equalizer settings (which you’ll still be free to customize), but it’s definitely at an impressive stage already. However, a full review would still give us a better idea of how it fares against all the other good Bluetooth speakers out there. Extra bonus features include a stereo mode, allowing you to connect two Malibus together.

Talking to Exeger, the company behind the Powerfoyle solar cell technology integrated in the Malibu and Los Angeles, I’ve learned that products like these are only the beginning. The company’s proprietary solar technology is able to function without the signature cross-cross grids or lines you usually see on regular solar panels, and it’s in the process of optimizing its product so that it’s more capable of relying on artificial light to generate power when the sun’s not available

Another product powered by Exeger’s Powerfoyle, a helmet from Poc that doesn’t even have a charging port

Beyond the pretty straightforward panels we see in the Urbanista lineup, Exeger is also working on some more advanced solutions that emulate the look and feel of familiar materials like glass, faux leather, carbon fiber, and more. These are offered to any business customers who are interested in adding discreet solar power to their devices, making it possible to passively charge them without any visible solar panels.

We’re already seeing companies embrace power solutions like this, including Samsung with its solar-powered TV remote controls, which you currently need to flip on its back to charge. Exeger could make it possible to integrate this technology into the front, as well, either squeezing between the buttons themselves or just making use of otherwise unused space.

Different materials Powerfoyle can emulate

If Exeger’s tech can scale, we might soon see a lot more solar-powered accessories. I can imagine that the smart home could be another obvious candidate here, with many sensors and battery-powered security cameras ready to benefit from passive charging technologies that eliminate the need for running wires or swapping batteries — or at least greatly reduces how often you’ll need to.

In the meantime, you can enjoy Urbanista’s new Malibu speaker that may never need a charge. It will start shipping worldwide in late September for $150, and will be available in Midnight Black and Desert Gray.