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Whether you would like to live greener, off the grid, or just take long trips through the outdoors, chances are you'd like to get yourself a solar-powered charger for all those gadgets you can't live without - your cellular phone, your PDA, your PSP or your MP3 player.
This choozza helps you select the portable solar charger that is best for your needs.
What's the perfect choice for you?
Last updated by Nimo, on 27/7/09
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Solar Style SC002 The Solar Style SC002 is a portable and comfortable solar charger that you can use to power your cellular phone, MP3 player, and other handheld devices. The Solar Style charger has an internal battery that can hold power for a while, and can be charged using the solar panels or a wall plug. The Solar Style charger has an impressive list of supported devices, and connectors to match. |
Solio S19 Universal The Solio Universal Hybrid charger uses solar panels to charge an internal battery. The power in this battery can then be used to charge a cellular phone, an MP3 player - and pretty much every portable device you have. The charger is hybrid because it can use the sun, a computer's USB plug, or the wall plug to recharge the internal battery. Solio has multiple connectors - to enable you to charge most devices. |
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Outdoor Operation: The most appealing reason to buy a portable solar charger is for using it outdoors. But how resilient is the charger and how will it fair out there? |
Your first instinct about any solar charger is to use it in the outdoors. The Solar Style charger surprises in this respect as it is not waterproof at all. Being sensitive to rain and humidity is a serious flaw in a solar charger design, but some would argue that you need to treat it like you'd treat your PDA and not leave it outside in the rain at all. While this makes some sense with your PDA and other gadgets, this isn't the case with a solar charger. These chargers may spend a lot of time outside, even in cloudy days, and should get what sun they can to store electricity in their internal battery. Apart from this, some Solar style users also commented that the charger is not as sturdy as they would expect. Being sturdy is desirable with outdoor equipment, as it rolls a lot in your backpack or other cramped places. Finding a broken charger is a very unpleasant surprise for any hiker. |
As you would expect from a solar charger, the Solio Universal Charger is somewhat waterproof. This means that it can take a light drizzle, but the instructions warn against immersion in water. Some users had bad experience in heavy rain, which renders the device useless. This is expected from any electrical device, and the level of waterproofing provided by the S19 is adequate for most uses. The temperature range for using the Solio S19 is -4F to 131F (-20C to 55C) which is sufficient for almost any outdoor activities. |
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Charging Efficiency: Different chargers are built differently. The solar cells technology could be different and therefore more effective, the internal battery can be different and better. But what will the charger do for you in terms of charging your devices? How good and efficient is it? |
The Solar Style SC002 Charger can connect to many handheld devices such as phones, PDAs, MP3 players, etc. It is important to ensure before buying that the charger you get has the right plugs for your gadgets, because the charger doesn't support a wall-plug connector. (That means - you can't plug your normal chargers into it). The Solar Style charger takes some hours to charge fully in direct sun. It takes even longer if you put it behind glass (like on the car's dashboard) because most windscreens manufactured today have some UV filter in them. If you're looking at a solar charger that will let you charge your cell phone for those short calls, the Solar Style will be alright. However, for the more power-hungry devices, the output it provides is just not enough. The Solar panels work well in most weather conditions, even when it's overcast. However, rain will render it useless. |
The Solio Universal Charger can connect to many handheld devices such as phones, PDAs, MP3 players, GPS devices and some cameras. It is important to ensure before buying that the charger you get has the right plugs for your gadgets, because the charger doesn't support a wall-plug connector. (That means - you can't plug your normal chargers into it). The charger takes a long time to charge fully in direct sun. It takes even longer behind glass (like on the car's dashboard) because most windscreens manufactured today have some UV filter in them. If you only need to charge your phone a little bit for an important call, 30 minutes of good sun will be enough - however for anything more than that you'll need longer sun-time for the Solio. The S19 Universal Charger works well for most people under most conditions, even when it is overcast. You can usually use it to charge your iPod or other MP3 players at the beach while you're listening, and a light drizzle will not automatically ruin it. Some hikers even went to the trouble of taking it with them mountain climbing and reported that the charger works better in higher altitudes. |
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Compactness: Most people do not use the solar chargers at home but rather when they are on the go. How compact is the device and will it be easy to carry around when you're travelling? |
The Solar Style SC002 is quite compact and portable measuring only 4.2 x 0.9 x 2.8 inches and 4.6 ounces. This is 10.7 x 2.3 x 7.2 cm, and 131g. The size and weight of this device make it very portable. |
The Solio Universal Charger is easily collapsible to a size of 4.7 x 2.5 x 1.3 inches and 5.6 ounces. This is 12 x 6.3 x 3.3 cm and 156g, and these dimesnsions make it very compact and easy to carry around. |
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Connectors Number: The solar charger needs to be able to connect to your devices in order for it to charge them. How many different connectors does the charger have? |
The Solar Style SC002 charger is sold with a multitude of connector tips to fit most manufacturers. The tips you get out of the box with the Solar Style include Nokia, Samsung, Motorola and Sony Ericsson phones, as well as an iPod, Gameboy and mini-USB connectors. Additional connectors are sold separately. |
Solio Universal Charger comes packaged with several connectors out of the box with no additional cost. The connectors sold with the charger include the female-USB, Motorola Razor, LG Chocolate, Nokia, Samsung and Blackberry. Other connectors are available for separate purchase. These include iPhone 3G, Palm Treo, HTC, Sony Ericsson, PSP etc. |
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Low Cost: Solar chargers will definitely save you money in the long run: main power you don't need to use for charging your phone or mp3 player. But every thing has its cost. How much will the solar charger cost you? |
The purchase price of the bare minimum Solar Style charger (the charger with the set of tips it comes with out of the box) is reasonably low. However, the charger's internal battery is not replaceable, and the charger will stop functioning after about 400 full cycles of the battery (that is - going from empty to full and empty again). This makes the product unsuitable for ongoing everyday use, but it will still work well and for a long time for outdoor holidays. In a sense, this makes the Solar Style less green - as you need to replace the whole unit every 400 cycles. If you plan to use your solar charger a lot, this is definitely a concern. |
The Solio Universal Charger does not come cheap, and you will usually need to buy extra connectors for it, because it doesn't have so many sold with it out of the box. While prices vary from shop to shop, the S19 is usually at least twice as expensive as the competition. |
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Short Initial Charge Time: The solar chargers contain a rechargeable battery. Like all rechargeables, this battery needs to be fully charged before first use if you want it to operate optimally. How long will that initial charge take? |
The Solar Style SC002 requires about 5 hours of wall-plug power charge, or at least 7-8 hours of direct sunlight to fully charge the battery. |
Connecting the Solio Universal Charger overnight to the wall plug will charge the battery fully. Using the solar panels for the initial charge will take some time - depending on the amount of sun the panels receive. Most users reported that a full day in the sun is usually enough, while a few had not been able to fully charge the battery in a whole week. |
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Life Expectancy: When you buy a solar charger, you want it to provide you with free energy for a long time. This is especially true if you are buying it as a sustainable, green power source. How long can you expect the charger to accompany you for? |
The Solar Style charger has a limit on the number of times you can use it. In effect, you can use it for 400 full battery cycles before it becomes useless. While the solar panels may continue to work and produce charge after those 400 full cycles, the battery itself will no longer charge, rendering the device useless - as the battery is not replaceable. Add to that the fact that the Solar Style is not waterproof, and you find that the charger has a relatively short life expectancy compared to some of its competition. |
Cheap portable solar chargers are always a bit fragile, but Solio did a good job on this one. While it is not completely waterproof, it does offer some water resistance, and will not become completely useless after a light rain. Unlike other models, the internal rechargeable battery is not limited in the number of full usage cycles, and with proper care the charger can stay with you for quite a long time. |