I saw a solar charger a while ago in one shop that sells different electronic gadgets. It says in the box that it can be used to charge laptops or cellphones and other electronic gadgets as long as there's solar power. The solar charger costs $35. It's cheap I think but the brand is not that trusted. I don't know if it would last long. Anyway, assuming that the $35 solar charger would last for maybe 5 years, would it be worth the purchase? Would I be able to save on electricity?
Charging electronics doesn't consume a lot of electricity but I'm sure you can save some money depending on how sunny the place you live in is. Assuming that it could cost about $3 bucks to charge your electronics for a month, at the end of the year, you'd have saved $36. So the price of that charger isn't bad. To find out about the charger's performance, you could ask around and find out if anyone has ever used it or look up for negative reviews online. These would give you a good idea about the worst you would expect should you buy the charger.
These devices will work and based on some youtube videos that I have seen, they can be built for under $20. These devices should last a long time as they have few parts to burn out (a solar panel lasts 25-30 years). One of the issues is that some devices (apple) use a different voltage - or so they seem to say. This would mean a separate charger for for an iphone as opposes to another USB charging device. The size of the solar panel will likely determine how long it will take to charge your devices. If you are charging a laptop, it will take forever on most solar chargers that I have seen but a small camera or phone battery would be fine. I happen to be sitting on a medium sized 6V panel which I scavenged a few years ago and am likely going to build a charger for a place where we don't have power.
I don't really know if it will cut your electricity costs dramatically but it can reduce your bills to some extent. As for me, I find using this solar chargers useful only when I'm traveling or going out somewhere where there's no immediate plug in site. But you can find cheaper solar panels out there, I once saw one for just $25.
Interesting. I've never heard of a universal solar charger that can work on all of your electronics. It doesn't seem like a very useful purchase though as you're not using very much electricity in the first place charging your laptop, phone and other accessories. But perhaps if you travel a lot and can make use out of the universal charger for all your electronics, then it might be worth the cost. I know it's pretty annoying to have to bring ALL my chargers when traveling on a trip.
Well, obviously if you are usually charging your phone at night it will not serve. Nor if you live or stay in areas where there is little light throughout the day. If you're a hiker and want a solar charger for Smartphone, and use it for things like memorizing the route you do via GPS, and you tend to be about three days without finding an outlet you will be pretty happy of making a good investment.
A solar charger would be good when you are not close to a plug in spot but your battery is running out of power. I have been in that situation and wished I had a charger with me. I hope they become more poplar and available for purchase.
If it's gonna last that long, 5 years given with the price of $35, then it's really gonna be worth it. But because it's cheap I doubt that it's really gonna last that long. I don't think that it would. But it's cheap and so you can just give it a try. Take the risk! You are not gonna lose that big, so take the chance. After all, you'll never know unless you try it. So go ahead, buy one and give it a try. Who know, it might really be worth it!
