Brightness

As is typical with most solar lights, these lights aren’t bright enough to light up your entire yard, but they give off a pleasing glow.  What sets these lights apart is the fact that the light changes colors.

There are 3 lighting modes:

• Smart: Each night the light will show a different color (not particularly “smart”…)
• Cycle: The light will cycle through the 7 different colors in the following fashion:
  • The light will smoothly transition from one color to the next.
  • The light will then flash through all 7 colors (this is for selecting a “lock” colored described below)
  • The process repeats.
• Lock: You can lock onto a particular color by setting the switch to “Lock” when the color you want appears during the cycle process. It’s a little confusing:
  • If you switch to “lock” while the colors are transitioning smoothly, then the light will stay on the smooth transition cycle (it won’t stop on one color).
  • If you switch to “lock” while the light is cycling through the 7 colors during the flash transition, the light will stay on that one color.

Runtime

These solar lights feature a 200mAh battery that provides enough juice to power these lights for about 10 hours.  To recharge these fully would require a perfectly sunny day, so you will notice these lights last only a few hours on overcast and cloudy days.

Features

As is typical with most solar lights, these have a dusk-to-dawn sensor so power is not wasted unnecessarily during the daylight hours.  The lights are capable of 7 different colors thanks to the built-in multi-color LED.  As mentioned earlier, these lights can either transition through the 7 colors or lock onto one color at night.

The lights don’t necessarily need to be placed in the ground.  They come with a hook attachment so you can hang them up in a sunny spot as well, making them more versatile than many other solar lights.  You could even sit them on a tabletop (with the solar cell facing down) to create some ambient lighting.

Durability

Aglaia states that these lights are “IP65” water-resistant, meaning that it has protections again dust and rain.  So you can leave these lights outside in the elements without worry.  Of course, only time will tell with these lights, but they seem to be holding up well so far.

Aglaia Color Changing Solar Lights Outdoor, Pack of 6, with 7 Colors and 3 Lighting Modes for...

Aglaia Color Changing Solar Lights Outdoor, Pack of 6, with 7 Colors and 3 Lighting Modes for...

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The post Aglaia Color Changing Solar Lights Review appeared first on Technically Well.

PROs

• Solar: No batteries or charging cord to worry about.  Just let this set in the sun during the day and you’ll get up to 6 hours of light in the evening.
• Inflatable: This light is easy to carry with you and to store.  In its deflated state, it takes up minimal space and can easily be carried in a backpack, for example.  When you need the light, you can quickly inflate it with the included hand bump.  The nozzle also prevents air from escaping unless you pinch it.
• Light: Unlike an LED flashlight, this lamp provides a nice ambiance and serves as an area light.  The LEDs are nicely diffused by the frosted plastic exterior, so it is not “blinding”.  Setting the color to “red” serves as a nice nightlight.
• Multi-color: Each press of the power button cycles through 7 colors, including a simple, white light.  The last setting cycles through all of the colors automatically.
• Waterproof: Thanks to the enclosed design, it can be used for light in the rain or to float in a pool.

CONs

• Punctures: You do need to be careful to keep this lamp away from sharp objects to prevent punctures to the material.  You also need to be careful to not step on it.

Overall, this light makes a great light for camping, emergencies, or even for decorations. The included hand pump makes it easy to inflate it when needed without getting winded.

Check out the LEDNut Solar Inflatable Light on Amazon

–Sample provided for review

The post LEDNut Inflatable Solar Light Review appeared first on Technically Well.

PROs

• Design: This Gearbest solar charger has a rubberized exterior that helps absorb shocks from bumps and drops.  It looks like it will hold up to some abuse hanging from my backpack.
• 12,000mAh of power: This unit packs a lot of power.  It should recharge an iPhone and many smartphones between 4 and 6 times.
• Two USB ports: This allows you to charge two devices at the same time. Each port can output 1 amp of power which works well for smartphones.  Most tablets can charge with 1 amp of power, but it will charge at a slower rate compared to its original charger.  The ports also have rubber covers to help protect them from moisture and dust.
• Built-in handle and included clip: Gearbest has a built-in handle and they include a clip that allows you to hang the unit from your backpack.
• Built-in light: Gearbest has also built-in an LED light, which is handy for finding your way while camping or during a power outage. You can turn it on by double-tapping the power button.

CONs

• Solar charging: While the power bank’s capacity is large, the solar panel itself is relatively small. I left it sit out in the sunshine for a full day and it only gained about a 25% charge to the unit (judging by the number of LEDs on the built-in guage). So it would be best to fully charge this unit using a USB charger first, then use the solar panel to keep it “topped off” throughout the day. It would take several days (maybe a week?) of bright sunshine to recharge this unit from 0% if you relied on solar charging alone.

Other thoughts

• Don’t leave this out in your car to charge! Your car’s dashboard will become very hot from the sun and could basically “cook” this unit, ruining the internal battery.

Overall, this is a very well designed unit.  With it’s rugged, water resistant design, it’s a great outdoor companion for wherever your travels may take you.

Check out the Gearbest Solar Energy 12000mAh 2-Port USB Mobile Power Bank with Flashlight on Gearbest’s website.

This review sample was provided by Gearbest, a fast growing online retailer offering high quality gear at great prices. If you love gadgets like I do, check out the wide assortment of products on their site.  Although it may take awhile to get your gear, you can’t beat their prices!

The post Gearbest Review: Solar Energy 12000mAh 2-Port USB Mobile Power Bank with Flashlight appeared first on Technically Well.

PROs

• Design: I really like how this thing looks. It has a rugged design and looks like it will hold up to some abuse hanging from my backpack with its over-sized corners.
• 8,000mAh of power: This will recharge an iPhone about 2-3 times. Please note that due to some energy loss, you’ll get about 5,600mAh of power (calculated using an average of 30% efficiency), but this is standard with virtually all external power banks.
• Two USB ports: This allows you to charge two devices at the same time. The one port can provide a high 2 amp output to charge tablets, although this likely will not fully recharge your iPad from 0%. I tested the output with a USB power meter in my video and it did indeed supply an almost 2 amp output.
• Wrist strap: PowerAdd includes a stretchy wrist strap for this item, which can help prevent dropping the unit and it also allows me to hang it from my backpack.
• Built-in light: Although it is somewhat dim, PowerAdd has incorporated an LED light into the unit. You can turn it on by holding down the power button.

CONs

• Solar charging: PowerAdd does make it clear that the solar panel should only be used for emergency charging. I left it sit out in the sunshine for a full day and it only gained about a 25% charge to the unit (judging by the number of LEDs on the built-in guage). So it would be best to fully charge this unit using a USB charger first, then use the solar panel to keep it “topped off” throughout the day. It would take several days (maybe a week?) of bright sunshine to recharge this unit from 0% if you relied on solar charging alone.

TIPS

• Want to protect the solar panel from scratches? If you have some left over clear screen protectors from your phone (you know, the ones that come 3 in a pack?), you can cut one of them to size to fit the solar panel.
• Don’t leave this out in your car to charge! Your car’s dashboard will become very hot from the sun and could basically “cook” this unit, ruining the internal battery.

Overall, this is a very well designed unit that performs great as a power bank and has the options of (slow) solar recharging or (fast) USB recharging.

Poweradd Apollo 3 Solar External Battery

The post Solar Charger Review: Poweradd Apollo 3 appeared first on Technically Well.

PROs

• Two connectors: it was not apparent which one was for tablets (2A) and which one is for smartphones (1A), so I asked the manufacturer for clarification. They informed me that the solar panel can provide 3A total which is split between the two ports. Therefore, if one device is using 2A, then the other connected device will get 1A. If you are only charging a tablet and nothing else, you can connect it to either port.
• Both ports are “smart” and can adapt to your device’s charging requirements (for example, your phone will only pull 1A even though either port can supply 2A).
• I was able to charge my phone even when it was cloudy outside, although charging was slower than it was when I tested it on a sunny day.
• The unit is well made with high quality solar panels and heavy nylon fabric holding everything together.
• Charging ports are located in a pouch that also allows you to store your device out of direct sunlight.
• Unit has four reinforced holes for hanging the panels with the included carabiners.

CONs

• Providing this much power requires large solar panels, so some people may find the item bulky and too large to hang from a backpack while hiking. However, it does fold up for easy transport.

Overall, I’m impressed with the high quality solar cells used in this RAVPower unit and the heavy nylon fabric used to bring everything together. The second USB port is a nice bonus and you can optionally use an external battery to store the charge for later use (external batteries are not included).

Check out this RAVPower Solar Charger on Amazon

The post RAVPower Solar Panel Review appeared first on Technically Well.

Many people assume that a solar charger can supply the same amount of power as your home outlet by simply basking in the sun.  However, this would require a very large solar cell and wouldn’t be practical for portability.  Many solar chargers available today have a built-in battery reserve and are made to store the sun’s rays over the course of several days.

The smarter our smartphones get, they require more power and larger batteries to keep up with our apps.  I checked out the Opteka BP-SC4000, which boasts a 4,000mAh battery. This sounds like it should be able to power the iPhone 4S’ 1,432mAh battery several times over.  In practice, this fully charged charger was only able to replenish my phone one time, with just a little power leftover to spare.

Charging the Opteka by solar does indeed take a few days of clear skies and sunshine.  Even then, I’m never able to get the Opteka to full capacity: I’m only ever able to reach 3 out of the 4 bars on the built-in battery meter.  Thankfully, the Opteka can also be fully charged by mini-USB in a few hours.

PROs

• Large capacity battery, although the 4,000mAh rating is questionable.
• Built-in LED battery level indicator, which also shows a cool animation effect to let you know you have enough sunlight to charge.
• Provides a standard USB port for charging and includes several different tips for all your gadgets (but you can also use your own USB cable).

CONs

• Requires several days of sunlight, and then only charges to about 75% capacity max via solar.
• The plastic housing doesn’t seem very durable for dangling it off your backpack while hiking.

So does that mean the solar charger is completely useless?  Nope, it just requires a different use.  Charge the Opteka completely with regular AC power before heading out, then use the solar panel to “top-off” your charge throughout the day (or at least slow-down the discharge while powering up your devices).  For example, this can come in handy for a day at the beach where it will get plenty of sunlight, but only plan on one full recharge for your smartphone.

The post Solar Charger Review: Opteka BP-SC4000 appeared first on Technically Well.