Reddit reviews Instapark 10 Watt Solar Panel Portable Solar Charger with Dual USB Ports for iPhone, iPad & all other USB Compatible Devices

I'm going to be all over the place with this, as I'm trying to cook dinner at the same time....so...sorry.

First thing that I say is no matter what you bring, make sure that you have a way to transport it easily. Use hiking packs, hand trucks, and/or a wagon. You think you can carry stuff....but man, after a mile and a half, that shit gets heavy. I made one trip with my stuff in my hiking pack, set up my tent, threw my stuff inside and headed back to the car. I put 2 cases of beer and a case of water in my backpack. I almost didnt' make it back to camp.

My roommate and I both are pretty decent welders/fabricators and are already working on a sweet wagon design to carry a bunch of shit...and morph into a table/bench of sorts.

Next, bring a tent with a good rain fly, and a tarp to put the tent on. It gets really damp at night, so you'll be glad to have these two things.

I will be bringing a 10x10 EZ up tent this year, for sure. We had one for about 15 people and...well...we needed more. It's awful nice to get out of the sun for a little while during the day.

Bring food that is easy to make...sandwiches, chips, etc. The food there is really expensive...and it's nice to be able to do some things on the cheap.

Well, the security was pretty lax last year. A guy I camped with brought a full coleman stove....we had eggs and bacon one morning and it was wonderful.

Don't forget folding chairs either. You'll need those fo sho.

Consider bringing some ear plugs....as some people like to bump tunes late into the night. I used some shooting earmuffs. I looked like a fool, but I was the only person in the group that didn't have a problem sleeping.

I'm going to be purchasing one of these to keep the group's phones charged. It has 2 USB ports and worked like a champ. Nobody ever had any shortage of battery.

Bring a couple coolers. One to keep stuff in...and one that just has ice. The ice there is pretty damn expensive too...but...it sure beats warm beer.

I'm sure I'll come back to write more....

Fuck....I can't wait.

Panel/ External Battery. Lightest panel that will charge two 2.1a items at the same time. External was ok, but will drop out of charge in shade, and not begin recharging in sunlight without a reconnect of the usb cable.

I have the same version but in a smaller Astro 5200mah size. Works great, stands up to the cold weather very well. These Anker units are great. I charge them via SOLAR to then charge my phone, gps and headlamp.

I use a Mercury 10 portable solar panel with an Anker charger. The charger that I use can fully charge an iPhone 6 5-6 times. I use that to charge my phone overnight. I then use the panel to recharge the battery in the sun during the day. I have links to the items that I use below:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CEZBKTO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006ZRYU9O/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Instapark 10 Watt Solar Panel.

I'm very happy with it. Last year was the first time I used it and even though it was fairly cloudy a good portion of the time, I was still able to use it to charge my phone (Galaxy S3 at the time) and a portable phone charger. In full sunlight it will charge basic devices (phones/chargers/cameras) fairly quickly. It can be used for iPads and other tablets but obviously it takes a bit longer even with good light.

It has loops on each corner, which I used to secure it to whichever corner of our easy up that was getting the most sunlight, and I just let it hang there while we were at camp. There may be better options out there now since I bought this about a year and a half ago, but as I said I'm more than happy with this one.

For 1/3 the price and half the weight you can get a solar panel at the same amperage.

In the Blackrock Desert. In the middle of summer. You're better off with a folding solar panel. Though I will say this does actually have some utility, since the sun doesn't always shine everywhere. Unlike that stupid water turbine power pack someone came up with that requires a source of fast moving water to charge. Damn that thing was 30 pounds of useless in a ten pound sack.

I use this combo portable battery and solar charger. The Anker charger has a 10Ah capacity with a higher efficiency rate (you get more out of the battery vs their older models). However, since it's a 5VDC input, it's slower to charge. The solar panel in full sunlight is capable of 2A on its built in USB ports. This allows you to charge anything USB including the battery pack itself. It's a great combo, but even then I'm unsure if it will last you 4 days of heavy use. You may be better off just getting car chargers.

I've found the best option to be solar usb batteries. They'll only get 50% charged by sunlight so keep that in mind when looking at capacity, but they can be charged fully by USB.

I've heard terrible things about Biolight from anyone who wasn't paid by Biolight.

I'm looking into getting some collapsible solar pads to charge a bigger battery instead of packing multiple batteries.

current battery

desired solar panels

desired battery i might look for a bigger one

10 Watts, USB and iPhone charging outlets,

http://www.amazon.com/Instapark-Portable-Charger-Compatible-Devices/dp/B006ZRYU9O

I believe the RPi is only 3.5-6 watts?

As for direct sunlight issue -- that is true of all solar panels. Additionally, the cells are hooked up in series and the power is actually limited by the weakest cell in the panel. If you have a shadow cast over just one cell it can bring down the whole thing.

http://www.amazon.com/Instapark-Portable-Charger-Compatible-Devices/dp/B006ZRYU9O

Could always try this, not quite what you're looking for but pretty small and effective.

Thinking about a power setup since I'm addicted to the internet and my gadgets, so I always think of how to keep them juiced up. Instead of using multiple phone batteries, one of the external chargers like il0kin mentioned would be great. It could be used if you upgrade or change phones, or even get a tablet or other usb device. Then you could also buy some solar panels like these so you have the option to charge with solar, or the office, home, etc.

http://www.amazon.com/Instapark%C2%AE-Portable-Charger-Compatible-Devices/dp/B006ZRYU9O/

I saw a guy riding his bike with something like but this a little smaller draped over rack. It looked pretty cool. Positioning might be tricky depending on the direction you are going but if its a clear day you should do pretty decent on power.

http://www.amazon.com/Instapark%C2%AE-Portable-Charger-Compatible-Devices/dp/B006ZRYU9O/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1396036350&sr=8-2&keywords=portable+solar+panel

they have charging stations that will cost $ to use.

I ordered one of these though

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006ZRYU9O/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1