Posted: 6/7/2011 4:25:13 PM EDT
| Has anyone had first hand experience with any of the solar chargers available...ie, Brunton, Solio etc. I would like to use it to recharge a cell phone while on a multi-day hike. Besides the phone capablilities, i will also be using it for the camera and music which will consume the battery very quickly. |
| I have had the solio for about 4 years now. I have the model that is about the size of a deck of cards and spreads out with three wings. It is very portable and light but takes a coons age to acquire a full charge. I strapped it to the outside of my pack on a 7 day hike in Yosemite last year but still struggled getting it to get fully charged. I will not be taking it this year. I would suggest a larger roll out version with more surface area if you feel you really need one. I upgraded the GPS to one that takes AAA's and will be leaving the solio home this year. |
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I got this one the other day, based on a suggestion in another thread http://www.amazon.com/Premium-Solar-Charger-Built––Windshield/dp/B00449U3K0/ref=sr_1_4?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1308110381&sr=1-4 I actually planned to review it today, but got tied up in some other business and didn't get a chance to. I'll try to review it and post a thread during this week sometime. The cons that I've read about are that you can't charge the internal battery to 100% using the solar panel. You can only get it up to 50% that way. If you want it at 100%, you have to plug it into a computer via the supplied USB cable. The pros are that it's compact and super lightweight, as well as the LED snake light that stows into the body of the unit. |
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Quoted: Ty, possibly still leaning for the solio. As long as it gives me even half charge per day. I'm good. I was able to test it slightly with my work phone. It's a non-smart phone (I can't remember the make or model right now). In 10 minutes, this charger brought it from 100% dead to 1/5 battery bars. I had to unplug it after exactly two hours because of time constraints and it was at 4/5 battery bars. The charger still indicated between 20%-50% left. (it only has LEDs for 20, 50, 80 and 100%.) I haven't had a chance to test it with my iPhone 4 yet. I'm headed out to work in a few and I'll try and drain my battery so I can test it in the morning, since my weekend is starting. |