I love solar panels, the idea of basically having a 2.1 amp charger small enough to fit in a backpack pocket makes a world of things possible. Of course I still have battery banks too.

One huge issue to consider is not all the solar panels will automatically start charging again at a fast rate once their charging rate drops due to clouds moving overhead, and most of them don't have that information available on the specs sheet, so it's good to read reviews. Often, even the 2 amp port in full sun isn't a full 2 amps, especially if there was a brief cloud. It'll simply say charging (or not charging) on your device, and it's difficult to tell what it's actually feeding your phone or electronic device without a USB ammeter. One day out on a boat my phone (S7 Active) was actually slowly discharging despite the panels efforts to charge it up (2A port on the Anker) and this was in full sun, where it should have charged fully in a couple hours.

There is one comprehensive review on Youtube where a guy tested a bunch of commercially available panels and put the info in a spreadsheet, but unfortunately it's a little outdated.

I have a Goal Zero 7 watt, and an Anker 21w. I liked that the Goal Zero one had a lot of torture test videos and it seemed to keep working, but it's a bit anemic by today's standards.


Edited by Burncycle (03/29/19 03:14 AM)