i don't use gps equipment due to it's unrelieable nature. the network requires constant corrections due to the different nature of time on the earths surface and that in orbit. the differance without correction is several hundred Km per day.

call me old fashioned but i use a compass and in the land rover i have a sextant.

falcon5000 pointed out foldable solar panels for which i am very greateful as i had not thought of those. it appears to be the best way to meet my needs and exceed them.

that is unless anyone knows better

His links are much like what I was talking about, separate the panel from the charger so you can get a good charger and have a more modular and flexible system. I'm still learning navigation so the gps is a good way to double check my compass/map work. I also need to get more paper maps and have found that there us some special paper that I can buy and print on and its water proof and foldable so I can print the maps that I have on my gps, thats my long term goal. I'm gathering some of my own data waypoints that I want to be able to print and have on the gps.

I happened to mention GPS due to it being a recent purchase, I also have lights, radios, etc that use the same batteries.

I looked at foldables before getting a rollable marine panel for myself, at about 2 pounds it puts out 20w, 15.4 operating voltage,1.2amps operating current (from the container) and is 1'by 2' and can be rolled into approx. 4" diameter. It's for marine purposes so it's also waterproof (weatherproof,on the box). It fits into my Arctyrex sling bag so its fairly portable, althought not as flat as some foldable types. Runs a gps ,can run a 12v fan/led combo with power to spare and could trickle charge a laptop, probably run a small dvd player, power/charge cell phones etc, and trickle charge a car battery. If the power goes out very handy for myself, and others.

I have a Vector battery pack that can be charged with the panel so if the power goes out long term I shouldn't be without light and ventelation. If your buying panels it would be worth the investment IMHO to go the extra length and get something with similar benefits, unless all you need is a pair of AA.

thanks for the pointer Frostbite do you have a link for the panel.

i like the idea of being able to recharge a laptop, strange as it may seem i regard my laptop as a vital bit of survival gear as i have loaded several thousand ebooks on it on a wide range of subjects. not counting all the scifi/fiction books

this is sort of snowballing now i am thinking of getting afew panels for the roof of my bugout 4x4.

Jackal
rollable panel this is were I bought mine about a year ago, they had the best price then. It was backordered by about 3 months but the manufacturer was increasing production to meet the demand. The staff was helpful, asking if I wanted to keep my name on a waiting list, giving an expected delivery time etc. I was satisfied with the service.

Somewhere on the net I saw a foldable that advertised 60something watts and another site had one at 45 or so, I can't recall where. For military and field use, but I can't see most people needing that much power. Hope this helps.