StrongVolt SV-7WFLDBLK Strong Volt Solar 7 Charger

Basically, as long as you know how to plug in the USB cable to charge your phone, you can use this. Super simple. It comes folded up, and folds easily so that it is the size of a large wallet with a checkbook cover, you know about the size I am talking about. Maybe the size of a 7" tablet when all folded up. It comes with some clips so that you can clip it to your backpack while hiking or biking or walking around. Or hang it outside your window or deck, or like I did, put it in my home office, on my cat stand (my cat wasn't too happy about that) and let it soak up the sun's rays. The indicator light immediately went to green, letting me know that I could charge. And so I plugged in my cell phone and later on, my MP3 player, and it charged! No electricity needed, and I was able to charge my phone and my MP3 player. Totally cool.

I spent a lot of time testing out this specific solar charger because it is a very high-end product and I felt that it deserves to be tested thoroughly. As you can see in the pictures below, this charger is of high build quality and is very easy to transport. The only portable product that I use is my iPhone 4S and I found that the StrongVolt solar charger was accurate in the estimated charging time of the device. Since my phone is a bit older and does not run some of the technology that the newer iPhones have, I tend to notice that my phones takes up a bit less energy. After playing around with my phone for a bit, I decided to drain the battery to 1% right before it shut down and then hooked my phone cable to the StrongVolt adapter. I placed the solar charger outside, with all solar cells facing up and began to charge my phone. It was a pretty clear day and the amount of sunshine was perfect! I used my computer to time the time it took to charge from 1% to 100% and it was around 1 hour and 37 minutes. Not bad for my first time using a solar charger of any kind! To use the StrongVolt solar charger, all of the solar cells need to be exposed to the sun (because that's where the energy source is, duh!). The next thing you need to do is to find your charging cord and select the type of device you have. Finally, you plug the charger into the adapter and voila, there it is! Your device will begin charging as the StrongVolt solar charger collects energy from the sun. I go to school in Southern California and I go to the beach, camping, or on a road trip at least once a month. Last year for orientation, I spend nearly a week camping on the beach! It was fun, but I hated having to sit in the bathrooms waiting to charge my phone up. If I had this device, my trip would have been way less stressful, but now that I do, I plan to use it to its fullest capacity! I find the StrongVolt solar charger to be best for frequent backpackers, hikers, and explorers of nature - but it is not only limited to these types of people. If you go on frequent vacations, especially ones where you get lots and lots of sun, this product is perfect for that! I would definitely recommend this product and am thrilled to be using it!