Does anybody have any experiences with these?

Wondering how effective/durable they are. I'm mostly interested in AA and AAA nimh.

There seem to be some inexpensive ones out there (like $20), but on the other hand, some seem to be well above $100.

I've got one of the older Brunton ones that recharges 4 AA's. Pretty nice, light but does take a while to charge those batteries. if you have 2 sets, use one and recharge one and you should be fine

i have a inexpensive one, put it in the sone with 2 AAA's. A few hours later it's still to weak to drive anything. But that was with the sun in the winter. Might have beter results now.

Does it need to be portable? I'm planning on putting a solar panel on the roof of my house and charging a 12v deep cycle battery from it, then attach my 1 hour AAA/AA charger so the 12v battery gets charged all day long so it can have plenty of power to charge the smaller ones.

Yep, looking for something portable, weatherproof, and rugged... castaway type deal <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Perferably something with a regulator to prevent overcharge, and anti-drain diode