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DaveT.
Big Wall climber
southeast face portaledge
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Topic Author's Original Post - Jul 9, 2009 - 06:55pm PT
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Just lost my Brunton SolarPort 4.4 the other day, so I am in the market to replace it. It was a pretty good unit, it would charge my old 60gb ipod, my AAA and AA batteries; but it did not charge any of the new ipods or nanos that my friends had.
I went to REI today and picked up Brunton's new Sloaris i6 panel, and a new 8gb Nano from Costco. But the Solaris, like the SolarPort 4.4, will not charge the new generations of ipods. I do like the lightweight flexible design though, the Solarport 4.4 is a bit bulky and bigger.
I called Brunton just now and they said that yes, it is true that all the new ipods have proprietary software which refuses most non-apple electricity (super f'ed up system apple has going on here!) and that no Brunton products will charge my new Nano. Shyte!
He said if I route the electricity through the cigarette lighter port, and aquire a cigarette-to-USB cord, this will work. Just another piece to buy and possibly lose in my opinion! I still have the small battery charger unit from the Solarport 4.4, but it has a different size adapter hole than my new Solaris i6 panel, so yet another adapter/cable must be bought or made.
Epic!!!!
What have all you guys been using to charge your ipod, batteries, computer, cameras, headlamps, ect...?
Is there a better system out there that I dont know about yet?I also have they crapppy little solio tri-foil panel, but this thing is pretty low on the production of electricity. But atleast it does have an internal battery that will hold the electricity until you get your ipod or whatever hooked back up to it.
Any suggestions would be appreciated, as I need to figure this out before I head out of the country again.
Luckily I bought the panel @ REI, so any big problem with the panel will just end up easily solved, with my 150 bucks back in my hand!
-dave t
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
sorry, just posting out loud.
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Slobbie, how is the charge time and effectiveness in your experience?
thx,
M
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'Pass the Pitons' Pete
Big Wall climber
like Ontario, Canada, eh?
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Hey! Don't answer Dave's questions on this thread, til he answers ours on his other one! {snicker}
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DaveT.
Big Wall climber
southeast face portaledge
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 9, 2009 - 10:09pm PT
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Pete-
If you are talking about the whole ring seal pic in my TR, I am not sure if I should tell the story behind that one. I am not sure that the more sensitive and/or female side of the 'taco's audience base would like the story. I will just say that it did not end well for that cute little ball of calories!
-D
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corniss chopper
Mountain climber
san jose, ca
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Some of the apple products do some
weird stuff at the beginning of a
recharge cycle.
They do a brief automatic test to see
if they can pull a lot of current
from whatever is trying to charge them.
If that test fails
(i.e. voltage goes lower than expected)
it stops the recharge.
Having a battery pack connected to the solar panel
to provide that brief heavy current load
to fool the device has worked in the past.
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mongrel
Trad climber
Truckee, CA
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Chris, haven't checked those links yet, but here's my 2c about what to include in a review: iPhone of course, iPod I suppose (optional), but definitely also recharging of AAA and AA batteries. Typical recreational grade GPS takes a couple of AA batteries, and unless they're lithium, they don't last long - not even a whole day if you're actually using the device for work (recording numerous points and tracks) rather than just rambling around navigating. And if you could recharge AAA, then you wouldn't need extras for a headlamp while backpacking or wall climbing (in both of which cases you usually only use the batteries for a few hours at most per day). Obviously, this doesn't make sense in terms of weight, but it does if you're trying to reduce the use of non-recyclable batteries.
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Jerry Dodrill
climber
Sebastopol, CA
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How about for charging camera batteries and laptops for the super-rad multi-day photo-shoot epics? The gear list starts snowballing.
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nature
climber
Tucson, AZ
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When i went to the Vampire Spires for 30 days I built a solar powerpack unit.
Of course since it sat at base camp weight wasn't a huge limitation.
I had a 10W rigid panel, a 7A hour battery and a controller. I had a AA/AAA battery charger that took a 12v plug so it ran off the battery.
I had a 4 AA pack that charged the ipod.
Currently I have a little 2 AA unit that charges my iPhone.
My rational was that either things ran off of 12v or they could be charged/powered with AA/AAA I was set.
I bought the Mammut headlamp with the superbright LED that runs for 100 hours on 3 AA batteries. BD also makes one that lasts about as long. That sorta solves your headlamp battery problem.
I took the advice of someone on this forum to get the PowereX rechargables with smart charger. A hefty investement to say the least ($80 for charger and 12 AA batteries).
I now have a little camera that takes it's own special battery. Kinda sucks. It's hard to find a digi that is reasonably priced that still takes AA. So for extend trips away from 120v and the charger I have to carry extra batteries. Not a huge deal as they are light and relatively cheap.
At the end of the day it really depends on how long you will be out. For a few days the headlamp is good and a few extra AA recharges my iPhone/iPod. A couple more and I can power some micro speakers.
After that a solar unit is the way to go. I have no current system that is viable.
Will be curios to see where this thread goes.
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nature
climber
Tucson, AZ
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Jerry... I think that would work. The problem is if you don't have enough watts to reach the short circuit (i think that's the term) point then your charger won't charge. That's why I slipped in a battery to the system (could charge when it was dark).
Of course the battery weighted 7lbs.
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Jerry Dodrill
climber
Sebastopol, CA
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If you charge from the battery, do you need the charge controller? If so, where in the chain?
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nature
climber
Tucson, AZ
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Solar Panel> Charge Controller> 12V Battery> 12V/110V inverter> Nikon Battery Charger
yeah... the panel has no ability to control itself. The control senses battery charge and if full stops charging.
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Jerry Dodrill
climber
Sebastopol, CA
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Whoa, Nature! Lets see your tin-foil hat! Thats a lot of wire and gadgetry. BadAss! I hope it doesn't violate the wilderness act.
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Tom
Big Wall climber
San Luis Obispo CA
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How much money do you have for a solar powered hauling robot, to get you and yours up the Big Stone?
This guy wants a new job. He's tired of ping-pong. He's been doing crunches, legs, and upper body work. Six-foot-two. Call him.
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