Why limit yourself to your small screen on the phone? Run Photovoltaic Calculations, an app by Ettore Gallina, best experienced on your PC or Mac with BlueStacks, the world’s #1 Android emulator.
Photovoltaic Calculations feels less like a game and more like a very packed toolbox for anyone curious about solar setups. It is all numbers and clear labels, no fluff, which is kind of the point. The app walks through the stuff people always Google when planning panels, like panel efficiency, air mass, fill factor, and where the sun actually sits in the sky. The sun position and optimal tilt parts stand out, since they show how angles shift and what that means for radiation on a tilted surface. There is even a simple compass and tilt readout so a roof check does not become guesswork. The temperature bits are useful too, with cell temperature and how heat drags performance, and there is a small note on long term panel decay that helps set expectations.
Where it gets more hands on is the design side. It helps pick DC cable size, protection devices, and how to size strings without tripping over short circuit currents. There is a quick helper for choosing an inverter, plus daylight hours and occupied surface so someone can eyeball how much area a project might need. The Resources pages explain basics like series and parallel connections, module to string to array, and the solar angles, so it does not leave a beginner lost. It is still very calculator first, not a course, but the explanations are there when needed. Running it on a PC with BlueStacks makes the tiny charts and long forms nicer to work with, and typing values with a keyboard is faster. The included form is handy for collecting all the project inputs in one place, then jumping back to tweak calcualtions without starting over. The interface is plain and a bit utilitarian, but it loads fast and gets out of the way so the math can do its job.
Eager to take your app experience to the next level? Start right away by downloading BlueStacks on your PC or Mac.
