Crank charger w/o battery/cranck charger w/battery/Eneloop power pack/Eneloop crank?

[theilluminati]

This is actually 4 questions in one. Or at least, my question consist of 4 parts.

1. I see most crank chargers come with a built-in battery as well. That is, if it were only a crank to directly charge your smart mobile devices, would that damage them, so better to damage and crank the juice into the external battery first?

Any decent cranks without a buil in battery?

2. And decent crank chargers with the built in battery? I have found this: solar and smaller battery (still fully charges a smartphone 3 times), seems OK for me: http://www.coghlans.com/products/1560-portable-power-pack

3. Panasonic now seems to produce only Eneloop AA, AAA batteries, wall chargers and that's it; no power packs. I would like apower pack made of Eneloop AA chargers. Good idea?

4. I would like crank power pack made of Eneloop AA batteries. Good idea?

Ps. I previously posted about the SOS Charger Kickstarter: http://getsoscharger.com/
The project since materialized, the Amazon product page shows a different design, strangely, says it's discontinued as well: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002WRKZZ4/?tag=cpf0b6-20
It was not liked by Amazon reviewers.

 

[WalkIntoTheLight]

Crank chargers are a really bad idea, IMO. It will take you hours of hand-cranking to charge a set of AA cells. By that time, if your hand hasn't fallen off, the crank probably will have.

Solar is a far better option, even a very small setup can charge your cells in a day, with no effort required.

If you absolutely think you might have a need for a hand-crank charger, instead just buy another set of Eneloops and store them charged in case you ever need them. Forget buying a hand-crank. An extra set of batteries are smaller, lighter, and way less effort!

 

[more_vampires]

I hate cranks. I think they're lousy for charging batteries. They're not bad for charging super capacitors though. Unfortunately there is nearly zero market penetration of off-the-shelf supercap lights, most are DIY. There are zero supercap cell phones.

If you must have a crank, check out Freeplay.

Also, military crank gennies.
http://hf-ssb-transceiver.at-commun.../en/at/at_military_hand_crank_generators.html

 

[MidnightDistortions]

This IMO is the best solution, http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DD6B9IK/?tag=cpf0b6-20
a solar power recharging kit is more worth the money. You can always buy an additional pack so you can easily swap them out. The only problem is that the charging unit only charges with a full pack, but there's plenty of lights that use 4 AA/AAA cells so that would remedy that issue, though it seems you can mix cells and toss them in the charger. I however, prefer to make sure the capacities of the cells are similar along with the voltages.

Probably more ideal to get a bike (or one of those fitness gym bikes) and use that for charging. I've had this discussion before and it's probably best to conserve your battery usage and use the Goal Zero solar charging unit to top off your cells as needed. Most of the time you can get buy with using that.

 

[more_vampires]

Probably more ideal to get a bike (or one of those fitness gym bikes) and use that for charging.

That's how the mil gennies work. You can hand crank and when your arms give out, lay back and work with your legs. Charging comes with a free workout.

 

[Kouryu]

Panasonic does still make power packs, but they appear to be Japan only
Older models are rebadged Sanyos, newer ones have more powerful LiIon cells... the latest versions are even more powerful and can charge via USB or Qi charging pad

You should be able to find these off ebay and Amazon

Eneloop C and D cells, and the charger are still available... but they're all Japan only... not worth it for any one of them because of poor performance

 

[TinderBox (UK)]

I have one of those car start/boosters that you clip onto you car battery, it has an 100w invertor and an 1amp usb charger, a flashlight, 12 car socket output, it has an solar input socket, an lcd panel that shows batty level and shows all options, it has an 12amp 12volt SLA battery inside, and a great big hand crank that really does charge the battery.

I bought it a few years ago in the UK, and i cannot see it for sale anymore, anyway the inverter is 240a/c but you most likely can get an 110a/c version in the US.

My one is made by NIKKAI model N22KJ

John.

 

[theilluminati]

Thanks for your tips! Goal Zero seems to be the deal.

 

[TinderBox (UK)]

I have the GoalZero Nomad 7 + Guide10, I have had them for a couple of years and they use old technology, the solar panel is only 7W and the 4AA nimh charger, charged my Samsung S3 20% and i had 2700mah battery in it.

I just bought the panel below it`s 24watt, I only got it yesterday and it never stopped raining so i have yet to try it , also you can get an 20000mah battery box and it will be 100 times better, and you can get an USB charger for charging AA+AAA for $20-30

I don't know if you need this much power, just ask any question.

John.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B013DYWQ88/?tag=cpf0b6-20

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00X5RV14Y/?tag=cpf0b6-20

Thanks for your tips! Goal Zero seems to be the deal.

 

[theilluminati]

@TinderBox (UK)

Thanks for the tips!

Actually, I have 4 things to add:

1. The weather: if it is nut fully sunny, but there are clouds and grayness, in general, say, you have light conditions where you can read without artificial light but the sky is a little gloomy... then, how useful are your solar panels?

2. Anker is a solid brand. Ultimately, I would want that much power to power up a tablet w/ 1 full charge, that will be enough for 2-3 smartphone charges.

3. Besides these Li-Ion/Polymer [Anker and other] battery packs, I thought these Eneloop AA/MiMH batteries might be a better idea. I don't know why, I just like them. For other than flashlights in particular, is it a good idea to use these for more general purposes, say, to charge smartphones and tablets, instead of the Anker-style Li-Ion/Polymer batteries? Maybe Eneloop keeps the charge longer or in general, have a longer useful life? I am honestly not sure, battery technology improves on both sides.

4. How about charging your smartphone/tablet straight from the solar panels, skipping the battery pack? Say, you are in a hurry, or you do not have that many sunny hours (and you are in a hurry), can you do that, and isn't it bad for your devices? (the same way to your battery packs?)

 

[Phlogiston]

4. How about charging your smartphone/tablet straight from the solar panels, skipping the battery pack? Say, you are in a hurry, or you do not have that many sunny hours (and you are in a hurry), can you do that, and isn't it bad for your devices? (the same way to your battery packs?)

I wouldn't connect your phone (or tablet) directly to a solar panel unless the weather is perfectly clear and sunny. Even then, you should keep an eye on it to make sure that charging is continuing as expected.

The reason is that an intermittently rising and falling voltage will cause the phone's internal charging circuitry to cycle on and off as the solar panel's output moves in and out of the USB voltage range. Most phones wake up and turn their screens on when their charging state changes, which consumes power.

If many small clouds are moving across the sun in rapid succession, this constant cycling can easily consume more energy from your battery than the solar panel can supply in those conditions. That's why you sometimes see Amazon reviews for a solar panel that say things like "my phone was connected to the panel all day, but the battery drained even faster than normal!"

In extreme cases, the temporary drop in voltage from one little cloud passing in front of the sun can cause a phone to stop charging and refuse to start charging again until the solar panel has been physically disconnected and reconnected. I've heard that iPhones are prone to that behaviour, for example.

There's also the possibility that frequent cycling between "charging" and "standby" will stress the components of your phone and cause them to fail prematurely.

Unless it really is an emergency, use the solar panel to charge a USB powerbank, then charge the phone from the powerbank.

Some (but not all) powerbanks will even support simultaneous operation: they can charge from a solar panel at the same time as they power a phone. That gives you the best of both worlds.

 

[MidnightDistortions]

Yeah i would have the solar panels hooked into the battery pack if you are charging a phone or tablet. That way at least you will get a steady stream of power.

 

[TinderBox (UK)]

I have an sunshine E4S Power Bank Charger, you need to put 1 or 2 18650 li-ion to make it work, but it has an lcd with all the details, it has an microusb for charging and an standard usb for attaching your device to, the thing is, it says in the manual you can charge the power bank from a solar charger at the same time it is charging your phone/tablet whatever and that solves the cloud problem.

It does say this recommend 6volts into the micro-usb for solar charging, I have not had an chance to try this with my new 24watt solar panel with only 5volts, as it has not stopped raining since i got my new solar panel (would you believe it)

AA nimh battery are not a good idea, I would suggest you look on ebay for an 18650 empty battery box, I found a 8x18650 with an lcd, for only £6 delived but you can get a top quality one if you like, but you can get any multiples of 18650 1x 2x 4x 5x 6x 8x just buy the empty box and put your own 18650 in it, old 18650 out of laptop battery work great.

John.

 

[theilluminati]

I woudn't connect your phone (or tablet) directly to a solar panel unless the weather is perfectly clear and sunny. Even then, you should keep an eye on it to make sure that charging is continuing as expected.

Reputable accessories manufacturer Anker still suggests (or at least, offers) you to plug the devices directly into the solar panel, for example:

Their performance rating is also kind of misleading and all over the place.

For example:

http://www.ianker.com/product/A2422011 2 panel charger (for $50) is rated at DC 5V / 2.1A will charge most of your tablets and smartphones.

http://www.ianker.com/product/A2421011 3 panel charger from the same line for just $10 more is rated at DC 5V / 3A - which is an unknown output for me as it related to smartphones and tablets. Most work best when charged with no more than 2.1A, 12W, as far as I know.

These 2 may be older models:
http://www.ianker.com/product/71ANSCP-B85A
http://www.ianker.com/product/71ANSCPS-B145A
hence the lesser performance.

All have good reviews on Amazon, though.

Bottom line: what about the capabilities of solar chargers on cloudy days, god forbid, indoor? (Let's say a power outage hits and the weather is terrible outside)

 

[theilluminati]

AA nimh battery are not a good idea

Just out of curiosity, why not, for a solar charger rig?

I have an sunshine E4S Power Bank Charger

This is an Anker battery pack, so far it is clear.

However, I do not understand how it connects to 18650 battery packs, let alone empty boxes. Someone could enlighten me? Well, I guess I came to the right forum for that.

 

[Lynx_Arc]

Just out of curiosity, why not, for a solar charger rig?


This is an Anker battery pack, so far it is clear.

However, I do not understand how it connects to 18650 battery packs, let alone empty boxes. Someone could enlighten me? Well, I guess I came to the right forum for that.

Most use USB to connect as most power banks have USB output and most 18650 power banks have USB input also and many solar panel setups support USB output either directly or with adapters but some have 12v output and you can use 12v adapters with them to charge your devices.

 

[Phlogiston]

I wouldn't connect your phone (or tablet) directly to a solar panel unless the weather is perfectly clear and sunny. Even then, you should keep an eye on it to make sure that charging is continuing as expected.

Reputable accessories manufacturer Anker still suggests (or at least, offers) you to plug the devices directly into the solar panel [...]

Certainly. The solar panel is perfectly capable of providing power directly to a device.

The problem is, not all devices are capable of handling fluctuations in power from the solar panel when the light level changes. I covered some of the possible results in my previous post, so I'll spare you a repeat here.

[Anker's solar panel] performance rating is also kind of misleading and all over the place.

They offer a choice of different panels so that potential purchasers can make their own tradeoff between output and panel size. You can have more power, or you can have a smaller panel, but you can't have both. You may find the array of options confusing - many people do - but they're not actually misleading you.

The Anker panel I've tested (see this thread) seems to meet its rating perfectly well.

Bottom line: what about the capabilities of solar chargers on cloudy days, god forbid, indoor? (Let's say a power outage hits and the weather is terrible outside)

Quick summary: you'd be very lucky to get anything worthwhile out of the panel.

My Anker panel experiments (that thread again) included an indoor test under winter sunlight, and it didn't deliver much power. You'd get even less power trying to operate the panel indoors during cloudy weather.

The best way to use a solar panel is to store as much charge as you can in your batteries and powerbanks whenever conditions are good, then use your stored charge when conditions are bad. Of course, this means you need extra storage capacity to hold your reserves, over and above the capacity you use in any one day to keep your devices charged. (More thoughts on that here).

If you desperately need a solar panel to work in unfavourable conditions, the golden rule is always to have the biggest solar panel you can manage. Even then, you must test it under the conditions in which you need it to work before you rely on it.

AA nimh battery are not a good idea, [...]

Just out of curiosity, why not, for a solar charger rig?

See here and here.

[...] I would suggest you look on ebay for an 18650 empty battery box, [...]

However, I do not understand how it connects to 18650 battery packs, let alone empty boxes. Someone could enlighten me?

The "empty box" is a USB powerbank designed to use 18650 cells, but supplied without the cells. The idea is that you can choose the cells you want to use for yourself, which lets you decide what tradeoff you want to make between the cost and capacity of the cells. Some people prefer to do that, others prefer to buy a sealed powerbank that's supplied ready to use.

 

[TinderBox (UK)]

My Sunshine E4S Power Bank Charger works fine being charged by my usb solar panel while it is also charging my phone/tablet as it has an ups mode (a little ups icon shows on the lcd display) when you are charging and discharging at the same time, though i would love an 4x 18650 version for a bit more capacity.

Description and Specifications

http://www.soshine.com.cn/a61.aspx

User Guide

http://www.soshine.com.cn/Down19.aspx

John.