Portable Solar Charger with SunTrack Technology - 12 Watts

I went backpacking in an area that had limited direct sunlight. During the noonish time - wherein I had a coupleOf hours of direct sum, I used this solar charge to charge my iphone 5 - which I'd did fantastically! My low charge was 51% and after almost two hours in direct sun - I did have to keep moving the charger - I was up to 79%. I couldn't be happier with this charger under the conditions.

This product is terrible. It doesn't work with IPhone 5. Do not buy this product. I wish that I never purchased it.

I've been researching a lot of solar chargers over the last few months, and I've discovered that most of them suffer from the same problem, and that's a problem of basic math. The SOLAR:12 is described as a 12 V panel with Output- USB 5V, 1700mAh(max). If we look at the equation we all learned in elementary school, V * A = W, then 5 V * 1.7 A = 8.5 W, not 12 W. For my purposes, I've decided to test the SOLAR:12 because it's the largest panel I'm willing to carry backpacking (461 grams on my scale and about the size of my Nexus 10, shown in photo), and if it achieves close to the 1.7 A output it claims, that is far more important to me than the actual wattage. StrongVolt also produces some of the few panels on the market right now with an auto-restart feature which is important to me, other panels may require you to unplug/re-plug the USB cable if charging gets interrupted.All observations were obtained using a PortaPow USB Power Monitor Version 2 (PortaPow USB Power Monitor Version 2 (Multimeter / DC Ammeter for Solar Panels, Mains Chargers, etc)) in-line. I tested, but did not fully charge, my LG G2 D802: in full sun it consistently pulled ~1.1 A (compared to ~1.4 A on a 2.1 A wall wart).My Nexus 10 tablet charging via the micro-b USB port pulled ~1.2-1.3 A (compared to ~1.5-1.6 A on a 2.1 A wall wart). This fluctuated wildly though, and was at 0.8 A as often as 1.2 A and occasionally below 0.1 A.The most common scenario for my personal use will be to charge my EasyAcc PB10000C (EasyAcc Classic 10000mAh Power Bank Brilliant External Battery Pack for iPhone Samsung HTC LG Smartphones Tablets - Black and Orange). I plan to either leave the panel and powerbank stationary to charge during the day so I have power at night, or chain the SOLAR:12 > EasyAcc > phone while I'm moving to provide steady power to my phone from the powerbank as moving will greatly reduce the solar panel efficiency (wrong angle, moving in and out of shadow, etc). My full test on my EasyAcc PB10000C was performed as follows. The EasyAcc has 4 LED indicator lights that roughly show the remaining battery, but I wanted more detail, so I charged my LG G2 twice from 15% - 100% using the EasyAcc. My LG G2 has a 3000 mAh battery, so 3000 mAh * .85 * 2 charges means I've used 5100 mAh of the 10000 mAh EasyAcc battery: slightly over 50%. Two of the 4 LED lights are lit on the EasyAcc indicating roughly a 50% charge.Testing was stationary at 38.95° N latitude in full view of the sky. After the first hour I checked the charging status approximately every 15 min and include notes where appropriate.- I began charging the EasyAcc at 10:45 AM. The sky appears hazy but not overcast (sky appears white instead of blue) but there is good strong sun with no observable clouds. The PortaPow reads 5.02 V, 1.17 A (compared to ~1.3-1.4 A on a 2.1 A wall wart). Two of four LED lights are lit on the EasyAcc charging indicator.- At 12:00 PM (1:15 elapsed) I adjusted the angle of the charger to realign with the sun. The PortaPow reads 4.98 V, 1.03 A. Three of four LED lights are lit on the EasyAcc charging indicator. Numbers did not change after realignment; the sun was only going to get more out of alignment so it's still important that I moved it, but this also demonstrates great performance slightly off perpendicular.- At 12:45 PM (2:00 elapsed) the PortaPow reads 5.04 V, 1.2 A (this is the highest current I observed during this test, shown in photo). Three of four LED lights are lit on the EasyAcc charging indicator.- At 2:45 PM (4:00 elapsed) a second and final change in alignment was made (the current change was nominal; 1.11 A to 1.15 A). I observed blue skies with cumulus clouds in the vicinity but not obscuring the sun.- At 3:30 (4:45 elapsed) I observed a cloud obscuring the sun for the only time during my testing. This was, not surprisingly, the lowest current reading during the test: 4.73 V, .36 A (shown in photo).- At 4:00 (5:15 elapsed) charging was complete. All four of the LED lights are lit on the EasyAcc charging indicator.The SOLAR:12 performed well. 5100 mAh in 5:00 - 5:15 hours, enough to recharge my phone from 15% to 100% twice. For it's size/weight the SOLAR:12 is a real bargain in my opinion. Using a powerbank will allow you to capture maximum solar energy on sunny days that will get you through a few cloudy days.Additional notes:- The included documentation states "Move selector switch to the device you what to charge" and "Make sure the selector switch is on the proper setting" but makes no mention of the actual differences between the settings or their purpose. In my brief time testing I have not noticed a difference between the "Other" setting and the "iPhone" setting, they both charged my 3 devices at the same rate according to the output displayed by the PortaPow. The 'iPad' setting has never charged any device I've tested, I get a red light every time.- If your phone screen activates when charging starts or stops, using a solar panel with an auto-restart will constantly activate your screen if you are moving in and out of shadows or have heavy clouds, which will drain your battery faster than being unplugged. I demonstrated this with the SOLAR:12 and with another manufacturer's panel I tested. I recommend charging a powerbank and letting the powerbank charge your phone, or leaving your phone/tablet OFF while charging. Overheating may also shut your phone off so try to insulate whatever you are charging from the sun.

super great for vacation I am very happy I purchase this everyone should have one.

Plugged in my iPad with the correct apple cable. After charge ran out my iPad will no longer accept a charge from AC or from solar charger. have contacted the company. Hope they are prepared to buy me a new iPad. This product obviously has very serious problems.

Good design, perfect for travel, festival or camping. It does not store power, rather you set it up in the sun and it charges the electronic in place. There is a pocket to protect your phone or Ipod, and has a standard port, you may need your devices cable. Folds flat, about the same size as a Ipad. Black fabric, velcro and grommets, it comes with hangers, and seems very sturdy, but lightweight and easy to store.

When I went camping with nothing but my phone than I look for a charger I forget to bring the battery pack and I say oh crap than I remember I brought this and it keep me charge up all day long until the sunset it was a blast it charge fast and keep me going