Flexible and semi-flexible solar panels, for curved surfaces or where weight is the constraint: Solarfam monocrystalline modules of 150W and 180W at 12V and other formats, a few millimetres thick and weighing a few kilograms against the 10-12kg of an equivalent rigid panel.
They are bonded down with structural adhesive and no holes, which makes them the answer on the fibreglass roofs of motorhomes and boats, on awnings and on walk-on surfaces. The trade-off is thermal: with no air gap the module runs hotter and loses a few per cent of yield in summer against a ventilated rigid panel.
What to look at: power in Wp, open-circuit voltage compatible with the charge controller, and maximum permitted bend radius.
