While your out camping charging your devices can be alot easier if you do have a portable charger, there are many different types available on the market a good choice is using a solar charger.
The solar charger will use the sunlight to create electricity to charge up your portable devices. The chargers can hold the charge for a long period of time depending on the charger itself and what features allow it to do it.
Have a read below for the different types of solar charges that I recommend for your camping trip:
Big Blue 28w on Amazon.com this is a charger that is inexpensive and user-friendly and when it comes to cloudy conditions it can do well.
Anker 21w Dual USB Charger on Amazon.com this charger is a highly portable device, which is ultra-thin, and light to carry, especially for long treks.
X-Dragon Solar Charger this charger offers a 40watt Sunpower charger, it has a high-efficiency power conversion rate with a solar IQ technology.
Goal Zero Nomad Solar Panel this is a solar charger for mobile/smartphones, GPS, MP3 Players. It is light and easily portable.
Big Blue 28w Solar Charger
I have been looking into a portable solar charger for my own camping trips, and when I came across the Big Blue 28 watts I found that if you want a charger that has some potential then you can certainly look into this solar charger.
When I was looking at the big blue 28-watt charger what appealed to me was the fact that it can charge your devices rather quickly and it is rather reliable. When I say reliable I mean it in terms of it holds it’s charge even if there is not much sun available.
The solar panel is a little bulky in size and a little heavier but what do you expect of it’s going to give you 28 watts of power it is expected a little. But you can easily fold it up and make it smaller and compact but the weight will still be there.
Multiple USB Ports
The big blue 28 watt comes with two USB slots this makes it sound quite interesting and appealing but the truth is unless it’s connected directly to an outlet to get a good charge out of both USB slots together will not be efficient. You will get more efficiency out of using each USB slot one at a time will be more effective and you will get the right amount of charge for your device and Abe able to use the device more effectively.
How Durable Is The Big Blue
The most important thing you want to look out for is durability since you will be using the solar charger for camping it will need to last your trip and last for weeks if not months.
The panels are covered by a canvas type material that certainly does hold it’s own. It is covered by an industrial-strength PET polymer fabric that is IPX4 level waterproof which simply means it is rainproof and fog waterproof. You will have to make sure that you keep the USB slots and the built-in ammeter away any form of water as they are not water-resistant.
The Weight And Portability Factor
Like most things when your camping you want to be carrying less so traveling light is what you want. So carrying a portable charger can be a heavy item only because of the weight of the battery.
The other thing that you will need to compromise is the charging speed and efficiency for the weight and portability factor of your device. Since the big blue has solar panels that are larger you will get faster-charging speeds but it will also have a bit more weight to it, so packing it away might be a little challenging and have a little weight to it. The weight of the big blue solar charger is 21.94oz.
When you do fold up the solar charger it becomes the size of a magazine. So packing it away in your backpack can either be too much or ideal. The good thing is you can always hook it up to your rucksack while your hiking to gather some energy into the solar panels from the sun as you hike around. The foldability is ideal to make it more compact so that you can pack it away for travel purposes.
It comes with a built-in arameter in digital form and 4 hooks that will help you hang it up anywhere in order to gather energy from the sun.
If your looking for a portable solar charger that can charge up your devices without any problems or even if there is not much sun available then this is a good portable solar charger. If your willing to sacrifice the weight of the charger and the portability so that you can charge your devices which is it’s main purpose the big blue is a good charger for that.
Anker 21w Dual USB Charger
This is a brand that has a good solid reputation for producing some quality products for charging your devices. Anker is a brand that has built its reputation up over time and more and more people are catching onto the brand and above all the products themselves. They offer charging devices from the affordable product ranging at about $50 to a high-end product ranging about $250 or more.
Since the Anker 21 watt is known to be a well-manufactured product it gives the option to charge two devices as it supports dual USB slots.
Anker claims to have used Its own IQ technology this is where the technology replicates the original charging for your device and uses that to charge your device faster, so long as you get the sunlight directly to the solar panels.
Portability And Durability For The Anker 21
When it comes to portability the Anker 21 can be easily transported around as it is quite portable. This is a solar charger that can be folded up and packed away into your backpack which makes it alot more convenient when your traveling or camping in general.
The weight of the Anker 21 is quite lightweight and when it is folded up it’s as thin as a slim book or even a thin magazine. The weight of the Anker 21 is 14.07oz and is ultrathin for the design of the solar charger.
The fact that the solar charger has 4 stainless steel holes so you can attach them to hang and collect sunlight to charge up the solar charger. But do understand that walking around with the charger hanging from your backpack won’t necessarily collect as much of the sunlight as it can, do understand that it’s wherever you are walking the charger will be able to collect as much as it can.
The Anker 21 holds three panels that are slim and can fold up into a panel that then covers these panels. The Anker 21 is durable, portable lightweight and good value for money.
X Dragon Solar Charger
This solar charger is alot larger because it has more panels to use to charge up your devices, especially a laptop if you happen to have taken that with you on your camping trip. Your laptop will require more charge then say your phone, or tablet so having more panels and larger panels would give you more power so any device that requires more power the x dragon would be a good choice.
The X dragon outputs 40 watts of power which is quite high for a solar charger using its high-efficiency power conversion rate with the solarIQ technology. The efficiency rate with the x dragon is 23.5% while similar products are less then 15% these are basically the solar panels themselves. The IQ technology like the Anker 21 mentioned above can automatically adjust the current and the voltage to achieve the maximum power so it can deliver the fastest power which is up to 2.8A in a USB output.
The X Dragon solar charger has a dual-port output which is a USB port. One port supports a 5Volt which is a 2Amp for charging your 5Volt powered gadgets such as your phone. The second port 18 Volts DC output this is powerful enough to charge your laptop or any other 18 Volt powered devices.
Durability And Portability
When it comes to the X dragon the durability factors are something that would need to be considered. The X dragon is water resistant meaning that it can handle water but to a point such as water splash, you will not be able to submerge it in the water at all. It is only because the material that is being used is a high rugged oxford fabric that has a weather-resistant.
The X dragon has a durable canvas material that covers the plastic solar panels which are also durable and strong, the panels will need to be so they won’t break as easily. Due to the size of the X dragon solar charger and the number of panels it holds to keep the charger titled towards the sun can be a little difficult, you will need to make sure that it is laid down flat, but do be aware that over time this will cause wear and tear.
With the portability factor, the X dragon is alot larger in size and carries more solar panels, so when it comes to portability it will be alot heavier in weight. The weight of the X dragon is 3.1 pounds which are quite heavy for a solar charger, but you will need to look at your benefits what you will be using the X dragon for, if it helps solve your problem with needing enough power to charge up your laptop then it is recommended.
There are other solar chargers on the market that can charge up your laptop with less weight but have a look.
Goal Zero Nomad Solar Charger
When it comes to solar chargers most people know straight away that a good brand is the goal zero they have a certain build quality about them that makes them pop in someone’s head when you mention solar chargers.
The goal zero is a good solar charger if your charging smaller devices such as a cell phone or GPS or an MP3 player as it can only charge up to 12 volts so simply put it’s more catered for smaller products. If your looking for a solar charger to charge up say a tablet or laptop then I would suggest to not look at the goal zero nomad 7.
The Nomad 7 solar charger will only charge your devices so long as it has exposure to sunlight directly, if there is some form of shading then the charging of the device will be disrupted.
Durability And Portability
Goal zero is one product that definitely does hold it’s value when it comes to durability. It has been designed to be able to handle alot of hard drops they are basically built to last.
The most important factor when it comes to durability is the design of the portable solar charger it will need to be able to handle wear and tear and any forms of scratches since you will be using it outdoors alot. The brand itself has built its reputation on the build quality itself.
The goal zero nomad has a canvas that covers the solar panels it has a strong material that can withstand most outdoor weather conditions and is certainly water-resistant. The canvas material has large pockets where you can place your device while it charges which is something that you will require as you do not want to damage your device while it rests on a rock or some kind of rough grounds.
When it comes to portability the goal zero nomads is good to travel with but the only problem is the fact that it is a little heavy so it will add some weight to your backpack if your hiking. Majority of solar charging panels come with a Velcro strap to keep it closed but the goal zero uses a magnet strip instead this can add to the weight but not enough.
The weight of the goal zero is 16.2 ounces or 635 grams. This can be heavy since you only can charge up a few smaller gadgets.