This charger does exactly what they say it does. It charges batteries using sunlight, even indirect sunlight. They must have changed their design slightly since the earlier reviews because mine came with a charge indicator to tell you when the charge is complete. It also has overcharge protection built in so you can leave batteries in the holder as long as you want.The whole thing folds up into a package slightly larger than the 4 cell battery compartment. It weighs about as much as the batteries. With 4 x AA batteries installed it weighs about 8 ounces. It has arrangements for hanging it from a pack by lanyards, so you can charge on the go while you hike. This, combined with the light weight and small size make it an ideal source of electricity for back country backpacking.
Be aware that it only charges AA batteries. You can't plug in your laptop or your blackberry...or even AAA batteries, so plan accordingly. Mine charges AA batteries very quickly. They say that 4 hours of fairly bright sunlight will fully charge 2 AA batteries and 8 hours is supposed to charge 4 AA fully. Since I don't ever run my batteries down that low, I can't vouch for these times, but it will top off a partially drained battery in about an hour. Even on a cloudy day, it can top off 2 batteries in less than 2 hours. That is comparable to any AC charger I have ever used.
It uses a thin film photovoltaic array, so it's flexible. This is both good and bad. The thin film is much cheaper, less prone to crush damage and folds up smaller, but it's probably only good for about 5 years use, roughly 1/4 of the life span of more expensive cells. This time limit only applies to the time actually spent in the sun. The clock stops whenever it is stored in darkness, so if used only for camping or other outdoor or emergency use, it should last pretty much forever.
This is not supposed to be an outdoor solar panel to mount on your roof. It's a very tiny charger for emergency power (or camping). If you take it for what it is, this is a great product.
I used this charger on Oct. 24 on a sunny day in central Illinois, on a pair of partially discharged NiMh 2400 maH batteries that read 1.2 volts. The charger brought them up to 1.36 volts quickly and showed them as fully charged. Impressed, I decided to purposely discharge a pair of AAs by running them in an incandescent flashlight. One battery read 0 volts and the other was at 1.0 volts and the filament of the bulb was just barely showing a red glow when I put them in the charger. The charger accurately diagnosed them as very low and started recharging them in a trickle mode. One trip to Walmart later, (1-2 hours total charge time) and both batteries were right at 1.36 V. I also ran a separate 4-pack of partially discharged batteries and they were charged fully in 1 hour.
Based on this small experience sample, I am very happy with this product, as it surpassed the charging times on the box on a sunny day, even in late fall, with the sun very low in the sky at mid-day.
I also feel the build quality of the product is high, based on first impressions only.
This charger is also very small, folding up into a box smaller and thinner than I expected. It also comes with a 4-pack of the excellent low-discharge Sanyo Eneloop batteries, which are a $8-10 dollar value.
It also has grommets to make it easy to use string or cord to affix it to a backpack or tie it down in windy conditions. I am planning on making a set of copper wire supports that can be used like tent stakes to hold this charger in place on flat ground or to prop it up to get true perpendicularity to the sun to maximize the energy capture.
In summary, I love this charger and highly recommend it.
Buy PowerFilm AA Foldable Solar Charger Now
I recently purchased this charger's cousin, the Powerfilm USB / AA Solar Charger, and was so impressed with that one that I decided to get this one, too. I was not disappointed; this one is just as high quality as the USB version, only it trades 2 AAs for a USB charging device. These are without a doubt the best small AA-type chargers I have ever used (I've been though about a half dozen). These are ideal for either power outages of those trips in the wild where you will be without civilization for awhile. Truly wallet-sized, yet can keep your AAs going until they finally die on you.Well worth the money.
Read Best Reviews of PowerFilm AA Foldable Solar Charger Here
Been into Solar Chargers for the past 6 months. Interest in solar charges grew from wanting to be prepared for emergencies. The electronic devices that I have are powered through AA, AAA, and USB sources. Therefore, my focus was on finding a solar charger that can power one or any combination of the three. This is the review of the PowerFilm AA Battery Solar Panel Charger.I was hopeful for this solar charger would be able to charge AA batteries. On the positive side, this charger did appear to have some ability to charge certain AA batteries with a significant charge. The panels and nylon material appear well made. Overall, this is a very lightweight and compact set up. In addition, there are two red LED lights that indicate a full-charge with a constant on, charging with a single blink, and indicates an empty charger or low battery with a quick two-blink sequence.
Unfortunately, the charger did not work with a lot of my Sanyo Eneloop LSD, Energizer NiMH, and Duracell NiMH. I tried troubleshooting by using both newer and older batteries, charging two batteries at a time versus four at a time, using the three different brands mentioned, using the solar charger during peak hours in direct sun and also indirect sunlight, charging for two-days in a row to ensure enough charge time, and switching between any of the four AA slots on the charger. Most of the batteries would result in a quick two-blink (empty charger or low battery) no matter the arrangement or length of time in the charger.
Of the batteries that were accepted by the charger (couple of Eneloops and four of my Energizer NiMH AA batteries), those batteries never fully charged. I tried leaving the batteries in for two days of sunlight, but it made no difference. I compared the charge on the batteries to ones that were charged by my Sanyo Eneloop USB AA/AAA charger and Energizer Charger. The Sanyo Eneloop and Energizer chargers resulted in batteries with a full charge, while this PowerFilm charger left the batteries approximately 70 percent charged at best.
Overall, I rate this PowerFilm AA Battery Solar Panel Charger a 2.0 out of 5.0 stars. It got two stars for what appears to be good build quality built into a compact and lightweight design. It did charge some of the AA batteries, but I could not make any distinctions on what characteristics made it possible to charge the AA batteries that it did. Still, the batteries that could be charged, were not able to charge completely. The lack of overall and dependable function is the reason why I docked 3 stars. I wanted to like this charger, but it was a disappointment. Perhaps I got a defective unit. I will continue to seek a dependable, compact, lightweight, and durable source of solar power.
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Used it yesterday for the first time to charge 4 Eneloop AAs. Put it in the window, came back 6 or so hours later to find them fully charged!Folds up nicely. Has velcro to keep it tightly wrapped when not in use, and several metal grommets for securing with 550 cord.
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