Solar Cell Phone Chargers

[johnsondav]

Since we all walk many hours in the sun each day, does anyone have knowledge of a functional solar charger for phones or cameras?

 

[vicrev]

Used a solar charger as an emergency back up for my phone,worked OK. I don't know about a camera though......probably need a larger capacity solar panel/cell.The unit weighs zilch,certainly worthwhile taking.........Vicrev

 

[StuartM]

I looked into it on another forum and the advice was don't bother. Instead I've invested in a 12000mah external battery which should give my phone 7-8 full charges. As I usually leave it in flight mode when I'm away and just use it as a camera then it should give me a good 10-14 days without needing a mains supply. It was far cheaper than a decent sized solar panel. It means I just need to charge the external battery every now and again which should be fairly manageable.

 

[Bajaracer]

http://www.seaforthmarine.co.uk/store/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=61 Buy one of these from a local ferriteria once you get to Spain, those solar chargers are not worth the extra weight and neither are the external batteries. Others will appreciate it if you use a splitter so they can charge their personal electronics as well.

 

[NicoZ]

The advantage of an extra battery or a solar charger isn't when you're stopped but if your battery dies middle of the day.

How long an extra battery will last depends on the phone. Today even midsized phones are over 2k in battery size. Bigger phones can be over 3K Factor in any inefficiency in the charging process. Then factor in what features you're using. GPS,wifi,etc all use power.

I have a large Anker external battery. It charges via an USB cable so using a double USB charger it's possible to charge it and some thing else when you have a chance. It's also not that hard to leave it in the pack connected to the phone if you need to recharge during the day.

 

[Bajaracer]

Why not charge up your electronics the night before you head out? GPS? On the Camino, a well marked trail system? I used Google maps to determine how far I had to go, it only frustrated me more by using it when I saw how many km's left I had to walk.
All these other gadgets just create unnecessary weight you don't need to carry, Spain is not a third world country, the Albergues have electrical outlets, some of the older Albergues have fewer outlets, just get a 2 or 3 way splitter and/or double USB charging plug and you'll be fine, your fellow pilgrims will appreciate it as well.
I carried an iPhone 5 with a Spanish data SIM card and charged it at end of the day when I got to the Albergue, it never dropped below 50%, I never used a mapping app (which suck down the battery) to track my distance covered, I knew how far I walked that day. If you are using a GPS/mapping app the entire day while you walk, then an external battery would be worth using.
The problem with solar chargers is that you need a lot of real estate for them to be efficient, and the ones that you hang on your pack simply aren't efficient due to their size and not worth carrying.

 

[ztechgeek]

johnsondave asks

does anyone have knowledge of a functional solar charger for phones or cameras

Some replies on other solar charger threads:

Tried out the solar charger on trip down through France. Result???
Rubbish - it does not charge up even in bright sunlight. Waste of weight.

A reply on this forum says:

The problem with solar chargers is that you need a lot of real estate for them to be efficient, and the ones that you hang on your pack simply aren't efficient due to their size and not worth carrying

These comments do not really answer johnsondave's question, and as I have used, and am still using a functional solar charger to charge batteries I will put my experience to assist. See attached picture


I am a keen photographer and carry a Canon DSLR camera with two lenses and a tripod, after seeing the results from my Samsung Galaxy II 8MP camera, which was bought for its phone and Apps, I had no hesitation in leaving the Canon behind for the Camino. I carried and used a Pocket Power 5,000mA/hr battery Pack which happen to have a solar film on the top of the phone sized Pack.

Myth No 1. you need a lot of real estate (the solar panel) for them to be efficient. True, if you are going to plug the output from a solar panel to charge your appliance directly. The small area of solar film on the power pack is an additional means to charge the pack, it is not the primary charger input. The operation is that the powerpack is charged through a USB from a computer or a wall charger until it is fully charged. The 5,000 mA/h powerpak I use has enough juice stored to give 2+ charges to the battery, this allowed me to use my Samsung cameraphone for at least two days of heavy picture and video taking, apart from checking and pasting emails, using the GPS to get back on track if lost (yes I got lost). These powerpacks as confirmed by StuartM are now able to store 120,000mA/h, even larger capacity external battery chargers are available and they are not much heavier.

The solar power pack was tied to the top of my backpack in a clear plastic zip-bag as I walked and took about 8 hours of direct or cloudy sunlight to pump enough juice into the power pack to give a charging boost from this power pack to charge one battery.

Myth No 2. those solar chargers are not worth the extra weight and neither are the external batteries. I append below the actual weights of Samsung batteries I carried which I whipped out to swap depleted batteries on the go with a fully charged battery (you cannot do this with the iPhone ......yet). As these batteries weigh only 34gm each I found two extras was enough, you can carry more, with the power pack in use. You judge for yourself.
iPhone4 3.5” 140gm
iPhone5 4.0” 112gm
Samsung G2 118gm
Samsung spare battery 34gm
Samsung wall charger with USB 46gm
Pocket Power 5,000 mA/h 176gm on box but actual 235gm as weighed

Myth No 3. You need a DSLR camera for pictures on the Camino. I use the following for my more serious picure taking:

Canon D800 DSLR camera 900gm
Canon Telephoto F/2.8L ISUSM 1,470gm
Wideangle Lens EFS 17/55 645gm
Tripod Vista Attaras 2,080gm

The pictures and videos I took with the Samsung was good enough to give a screen presentation to our congregation without putting them to sleep.

Myth No 4.

I don't know about a camera though......probably need a larger capacity solar panel/cell

The power pak will charge a camera battery as it comes with multi-adapter connectors, if you are serious in your photography and willing to carry the extra weight, see above, you can carry spare batteries as the small solar charger are meant to give a boost and not to be the main charger.

In conclusion I found I was over-prepared with 5 days of power, most places in Spain had wall chargers on the Camino, I even had enough spare power to share my power pack to charge a few fellow pilgrim phones who ran out of power on the road. Whilst hooked to a power point I was happier leaving my power pack charging there than leaving my cameraphone charging unattended for 4 hours. I will end by stating that my Samsung was on flight Mode, all APPS dumbed down until needed, but was not switched off because it was used as an extremely efficient point and shoot camera. I therefore call my Samsung Smartphone a cameraphone, the GalaxyIII is now 12MP

 

[alaska99801]

I'm starting El Camino tomorrow. A few notes on solar chargers. You get what you pay for like everything.
A good solar charger in the $100 dollars range will work fine and will charge your phone when you need it. Someone said that his didn't charge even in bright sunlight, well, you got a very cheap one or a defective one.
I bought mine before I left and tried it to make sure it will work. They work. And do the job in an emergency. Plus mine also double as a flashlight. And the thing only weighs ounces.

So go ahead and bring one, don't listen to the negatives, read the capabilities, learn to use at home, keep it outside your rucksack charging all day and attached to your phone also. Charge the phone as it charge itself.

I bought a Waka Waka. But there are dozens. Now, if you buy a cheap Chinese one don't come back crying here. Use common sense and get a good one. It wil have many uses during camping trips, etc.
Enjoy your Camino pilgrim !!

 

[alaska99801]

Another reminder. Solar chargers are great for charging a phone. They are not intended to charge large heavy items like video cameras, etc. it's about weight, right?

As a back up for not finding a plug at night, a great investment. Don't forget to bring plug adapters. If you can find a multi plug, even better, you will need only one outlet to charge multiple devices, your phone and your wife's, a friend....etc.

 

[Pattii]

Why not charge up your electronics the night before you head out? GPS? On the Camino, a well marked trail system? I used Google maps to determine how far I had to go, it only frustrated me more by using it when I saw how many km's left I had to walk.
All these other gadgets just create unnecessary weight you don't need to carry, Spain is not a third world country, the Albergues have electrical outlets, some of the older Albergues have fewer outlets, just get a 2 or 3 way splitter and/or double USB charging plug and you'll be fine, your fellow pilgrims will appreciate it as well.
I carried an iPhone 5 with a Spanish data SIM card and charged it at end of the day when I got to the Albergue, it never dropped below 50%, I never used a mapping app (which suck down the battery) to track my distance covered, I knew how far I walked that day. If you are using a GPS/mapping app the entire day while you walk, then an external battery would be worth using.
The problem with solar chargers is that you need a lot of real estate for them to be efficient, and the ones that you hang on your pack simply aren't efficient due to their size and not worth carrying.

Im still confused as to why someone would need a GPS unless they were travelling in the dead of winter and alone. 99% of what I have read from others who have done the Camino said there were always others around at least SOME point in the day. I understand that the Frances is very well marked so unless you are planning to go very far out of the way or are travelling a very unmarked Camino I personally think its contrary to the whole journey. Are you assuming you will need it or has it become such a huge part of your world to the point of dependance on it? I can't imagine how we ever got around with just maps and roadsigns!
And what does a GPS do anyway...tell you where you are? You know where you are! Tell people how to find you...how can you be lost if you are on the Camino? Find Albergues? Whats not to find? just follow the pilgrims...ask...use your words! Why not trust your inner guides and your instinct to get you there? You are NOT going into the deep endless jungles of the Amazon or into the Rocky mountains or the great white north. You are following a well known path and even if you are not on a road you will always be near one and there are so many little places in between. I personally don't get it...but maybe thats the whole point...its your journey!

 

[Bajaracer]

You are NOT going into the deep endless jungles of the Amazon or into the Rocky mountains or the great white north. [/quote]
My thoughts exactly! The best item would be a 2 or 3 way wall splitter.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

I'm still confused as to why someone would need a GPS

Perhaps for the same reason you are taking a tent; they want to.

 

[jmcorrigan]

Some might want to memorialize their journey. A GPS or a GPS enabled smart phone app can do that, and then it can be shared with loved ones, or just saved to help the pilgrim remember the actual steps they took. Acceptance of others and their ways, though strange, or even completely contrary to our own, is a virtue. Consider this a test if your understanding is tested by someone's desire to do this. Someone else might want to frame their Compostela. Perhaps even you.

 

[StuartM]

I wanted to do the same thing recently purely so I'd have a record of my route across the mountains on the El Salvador. In the end it appeared more hassle than it was worth to keep the battery charged.

The post above sums it up nicely, it's just a means of preserving a memory not for way finding. If someone needed gps to navigate the Frances they probably shouldn't be out on their own. I cant recall a better marked hiking trail that I've been on. It's only a step off having a string between the start and SdC.

 

[JALAN JAUH]

alaska99801 wrote:

I bought a Waka Waka. But there are dozens. Now, if you buy a cheap Chinese one don't come back crying here.

From the Waka Waka website they wrote:

This year we are further advanced with product development. WakaWaka Power is being developed in The Netherlands. Design for hard & software is done there. Engineering as well, in close cooperation with our manufacturing partner in China.

The Waka Waka @$79 has only started production in January 2013 in China and has yet to prove itself from being any better than what alska99801 says are the "cheap Chinese ones....crying etc"

The Waka Waka has a small capacity battery of 2200mAh, perhaps enough to pass on a single half charge to a smartphone battery. Battery packs now hold enough power, for the same weight, to charge at least three full charges to a smartphone battery or camera, some "cheap Chinese ones" hold up to ten full charges with only a small increase in weight.

Maplin UK, as mentioned by David, has a good range of battery packs with solar charging inputs, ebay has tens if not hundreds of similar well proven high capacity products costing much less than $75. I would guess they are all made in China.

The title of this thread has raised many expectations, one would think that once the sun is up the solar panel would connect into the smartphone with a cord and within a couple of hours you would have a fully charged phone. The reality is that with such a small footprint solar film stuck on top of a battery pack the battery pack is designed to receive a small trickle of current from the solar film when the film is exposed to sunlight. It takes a full day of sunlight to charge up this battery pack which can pass on one or two charges to a depleted smartphone battery to bring it to working voltage. It was not designed, nor need to be designed to charge the Smartphone or camera directly from the solar panel. The solar film is to provide an extra input to gently add free juice into the battery pack. The battery pack can also be charged through a USB cable.

With the abundance of power points on the Camino I plugged in the AC power cord to fully top up the charge of the battery pack when the opportunity presented itself. With my double headed outlet power adapter I could simultaneously charge my smartphone at the same time or allow another pilgrim to share the power outlet. Needless to say with my battery pack holding three days of juice (others on this forum have bought units to hold seven days of juice) and my spare batteries, and the ample power outlets I never ran out of power, in fact I had a surplus of power and helped charge fellow pilgrim phones and cameras when they ran out of power on the walk.

It is little wonder that people toying with the wholly inadequate $75 unit and trying to use it as the main source of charging their batteries provides so much disappointment to the whole question of solar chargers when brought up in a forum such as this.

 

[Davroos]

And what does a GPS do anyway...tell you where you are? You know where you are! Tell people how to find you...how can you be lost if you are on the Camino? Find Albergues? Whats not to find? just follow the pilgrims...ask...use your words! Why not trust your inner guides and your instinct to get you there? You are NOT going into the deep endless jungles of the Amazon or into the Rocky mountains or the great white north. You are following a well known path and even if you are not on a road you will always be near one and there are so many little places in between. I personally don't get it...but maybe thats the whole point...its your journey!

I carry a Garmin GPS when I walked and when I rode. We use it to track ourselves and to geotag the photos for when we are home. Maybe on the Frances, you are on a well known track, but on the VDLP, in April, there were not many people, maybe 7 a day we would see, and one morning, the arrows disappeared, so we looked at our GPS, searched for a village on the track, it found us a route there, and within 5ks, the arrows were with us again.

 

[dougfitz]

If someone needed gps to navigate the Frances they probably shouldn't be out on their own. I cant recall a better marked hiking trail that I've been on. It's only a step off having a string between the start and SdC.

Stuart, it would be ungracious of me to wish upon you the misfortune of missing a waymark at some critical junction, at which point you might get a practical appreciation of just how arrogant your comment seems to one of those that have done that.

Good way marking is great while you are on the way so marked - absolutely useless otherwise. I used Brierley's guide book on the CF. The maps don't have sufficient detail to recover from going the wrong way except to track back and try and find the junction where you went wrong. At least with a GPS, and some map-reading skills, I found I was able to identify possible alternatives that got me back on track without back-tracking excessively on those occasions when I did get off the path.

I remember appreciating that when I followed the GR65 off the ridgeline just past Biduerdo descending into Triacastela. There is absolutely no detail in Brierley that lets you know how it is possible to keep going down into the valley on the 'wrong side' of the ridge and follow the tracks along that valley into Triacastela. It was clear from the maps on my GPS that this could be done. I had the most interesting and peaceful afternoon's walk.

 

[vicrev]

If you want to take a GPS, take it !!!! If you want to take a map, take it!!! If you want to take a ball of string,take it !!!! IT IS YOUR CAMINO !!!!!!........Vicrev

 

[jimkaszynski]

I agree, if you want to do it...take it! It's your journey. I took a solar charger with battery back up, did not even use it once. If your camping out, different story. I carried 3 cameras plus other recording devices, (a small hand held recorder) to record everything I was going through. I charged everything when I needed to, in the evening.

 

[Pattii]

With all the gadgets and things one could bring...I get so confused. I am bringing a phone. A good one with apps for maps a GPS (which I absolutely refuse to use unless I am very lost) a recording device and a heavy duty battery and one spare (which can be charged anywhere there is a plug) and a charger of course. And I love to take pictures...so I am making sure the phone has an excellent camera. So its all in one gadget! The only other thing I could think of that I might need is a plastic roll away key board that can be hooked up to my phone to do blogs and such.

Honestly I don't understand why I would need so many gadgets when now a days you can do it all on one. And if it gets too big for the phone memory...take time and upload it when you have the chance either to a memory stick or send stuff home. T0 me this is the logical choice...

Can someone explain to me why I might need something more? I get the feeling that maybe I am not aware of something I should be cause I can't logically think of why one would need more. The Camino is not in the deep dark jungles of the Amazon. I understand emergency contingency plans (which is why I caved and am bringing a phone with a GPS ) and that is fantastic... but realistically ...EVEN if you got lost from what I understand there are busses and cabs and if you have a contingency plan (ie a smart phone) then although it might be a little bit scary I think it would be ok in the end. Its a pilgrimage...an adventure!

Personally...and no offence please as I am meaning none...I like the idea of the adrenaline rush of being able to get out of a jam. I have been in such horrifying situations while travelling 3rd world countries I can not imagine any situation other than an act of God or a hugely unfortunate accident that could be that scary along a very well travelled path. Lets face it. If you had to...you would be ok.

(Now you are all gonna laugh at me) But haven't any of you made a Zombie plan...lol? Or an end of the world plan? I know I can survive most things and perhaps it is worth it to take the time to learn about the land you are going to and how to tie knots and make an emergency fire if you are really that frightened (and the dark in an unknown country can be frightening) But as long as you have water and a fire you will be fine till the next morning when you can get to a highway and flag the nearest car down to ask directions. We have gotten too used to street signs and cities...there was a time people lived miles and miles from each other...

Thats just my take.


"Fear is the mind killer!"
(taken from Dune)

 

[LarryBC]

Since we all walk many hours in the sun each day, does anyone have knowledge of a functional solar charger for phones or cameras?

Hi Dave,
I have a SolarMio solar charger from SolarFocus. It's a great product and I've used it on extended back country canoe trips in Canada, where I live, when we're totally cut off from electricity for days or weeks and weight is not much of an issue.

I didn't bring it with me on the Camino as I didn't think the extra weight was worth it and had read that electrical outlets are available in all albergues. The only challenge I encountered is some albergues don't have many outlets, so I brought a 3 way plug, allowing me to charge my camera and iPad simultaneously (with a spare for another pilgrim).

Good luck with your Camino next year.

Larry

 

[Sraaen]

I've walked 2300km on the Camino this year so far; from Le Puy to Pamplona and from Tours to O'Cebreiro. I brought a solar charger and it was the first thing I got rid of. There are electrical outlets all over Spain.