solar cell phone charger. ???

[Woodbutcher]

I have a small solar panel, (about 6" X 9" ) that came with about 6 different cables for all sorts of phones. It was about 20 bucks.

It is sort of like this. http://www.ebay.com/itm/12000mAh-Portab ... 1429159162

[tony.latham]

I've got USB outlets in the 'drop for such stuff... but when way off in the sticks, without the 'drop, I use one of these:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/10W-5V-Por-Fold ... SwzhVWssiV

You might also think about getting one or two of these:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lipstick-3000mA ... VUuTHIwurw

I always carry one of those when flying. But have also used them to suck juice from the folding panels while I was carrying the phone.



Together they work really well when spending time staring out these windows:



Tony

[TheOtherSean]

Is that sunrise/sunset shot from a fire tower?

[tony.latham]

Is that sunrise/sunset shot from a fire tower?

Yes. It's Salmon Mountain Lookout. If there is a middle-of-nowhere, it's nearby.



You can see a hundred miles for about 300º from that spot. At night, the only light you can see is starlight and moonlight. Not one incandescent light.

Tony

[TheOtherSean]

Very cool! Those towers have always seemed impressive to me, even those "short" ones they plopped onto a peak.

[tony.latham]

Very cool! Those towers have always seemed impressive to me, even those "short" ones they plopped onto a peak.

That shot is looking toward Poet Creek and Burnt Knob Lookout.



Tony

[daveesl77]

I can't remember where I got it, probably Amazon, but I got my grandson a small one to mount on the top of his backpack to charge his camera batteries. He used this during a two week hiking trip his scout troop did in Danali during his senior year in HS. It worked great for him. It wasn't a lot of wattage,but it not only charged his batteries, but also another scout's too for the entire time, well,until he accidentally left it somewhere during the final week. I guess a moose or bear is now using it.

dave

[dmb90260]

I recommend any and all of the Goal Zero products. I have a couple different solar batteries and I am never out of power. They can run ac & dc.
When there are big natural disasters they donate many items to the public.
My computer is now always charged along with the phone.

There are cheaper options but the Goal Zero product quality is excellent.

[Cosmo]

There are 2 main types that seem to be popular.
One type has a built in battery that you charge and you can store the power for use charging a device later such as at night, I have experimented with those and they do work. The batteries with a small built in panel will often take many days to charge. May be fine for occasional use but wont charge my stuff day after day, The panel output is way too small. I guess these are targeted for the occasional power outage or infrequent use.

I prefer the simpler solar panel for my needs. Which is just a panel you connect to the device and charge in the sun.

It helps to understand your phones requirements. Open the phone and look at the battery. Note the milliamp capacity written on the battery. Add about 20% to that number for charging losses. So if the phone battery is 3000MA plus 20% the total charging need from a dead battery need is about 3600 MA.

There are many options to choose from including these.
Since this panel puts out about 600ma in DIRECT sunlight it will take about 6 hours to charge the phone
http://www.ebay.com/itm/6V-3-5W-580-600 ... SwHPlWcmQi

If you want spare capacity to charge 2 devices at once or better performance in less than perfect sunlight you might consider something larger like this http://www.amazon.com/Anker-2-Port-Char ... olar+panel

With that information hopefully you can determine what is best for you.
I have AC and a 12 volt battery in the trailer. I can charge the 12V while driving and with a good sized 5 amp solar panel when not driving. Or plug into AC or use a bunch of these small panels to charge devices and AA/AAA batteries if I need that. Its all working fine.

Cosmo