Echarger Mobile Solar Charger Product Review

Solar charging has almost become the method of choice of charging gadgets on the move. With products like the Solio Hybrid, if you live somewhere sunny it’s an easy decision to make. But what about in less sunny climes? Well in the UK, Echarger has launched theMobile Solar Charger.

Unlike the Solio, it doesn’t have an internal battery so you’ll need to put in up to three rechargeable batteries and then unfold the case to reveal the solar panels. Then it’s up to the sun. You can also use it to charge the batteries through your computer using the USB cable, but I went for six hours in the British sun. And it was a lovely day so I hoped for good results.

It was recommended that I use 1600mAh rechargeable batteries for best performance but as I’ve only got 2700mAh ones I had to make do. The charger comes with a few connectors – Nokia, Sony Ericsson, iPod, USB and one for the Nintendo DS so that’s what I decided to try and charge with it afterwards. I left it alone to charge although you can play it while its charging (but I didn’t) and the three batteries gave one and a half hours of charging. This translated to almost an hour and a quarter of game play on the DS before it died – and that was with full sound and the screen brightness at maximum. Which is pretty good really.

The downside is that although the charger is portable in size, you can’t really use it on the move – it doesn’t attach to a backpack like the Solio Hybrid for example. Also as a piece of electronics it’s not made from environmentally friendly materials, but using rechargeable batteries powered by the sun is better than using the mains or normal batteries.

The Mobile Solar Charger costs £30 from Echarger.

Interview With Tony Momoh From Echarger

Solar charging has been getting cheaper and consequently more popular, Echarger.co.uk aims to make solar charging affordable to everyone. Life Goggles spoke to it founder, Tony Momoh.

Tell us about how Echarger got started and your involvement in it?
Echarger started five years ago coming from African roots we have a big issue with power shortage. I started researching of ways to help my people try and find a way they can use alternative energy to charge certain appliances. The idea got so big that it was too much juggling work and doing research at the same time. Then four years ago my mum passed away, God bless her soul, and I had to go home for the funeral which was hard to deal with it. We arrived at the airport and the light was taken off as we arrived we had to wait 10- 15mins before the power generator came on.

Everyone had mobile phones but had to go outside and pay some dude a certain amount e.g 50pence for 30mins to charger their mobile phone – what a joke. I made a effort to get this out no matter what it takes if I had to sacrifice having late nights working and juggling Echarger well so be it. I only have one chance in this life so make most of it and being a martial arts studying (kungfu – ten years, taichi – three years and wingchun – two years) the spirtiual element and discipline gave me the insight to push myself.

Another scenario sometimes at work you will get a colleague coming to you do you have a spare nokia charger . Traveling abroad in cuba sis calls you run out of juice on your mobile, on the bus coming home from work you see school kids especially girls yapping away then the mobile dies off. I mean so many scenarios which happen to everyone everyday from all walks of life .

So really echarger evolved from there sourcing for supplies here and there and thats how we got to were we are now.

Were you a green person before getting involved?
The term green person is more of a trend. I would say being a sensible person that understands use less than waste For example: you tell me who would want to wash their clothes with their hands, they would rather use a washing machine. Having cold baths is actually good for you but people would rather use a hot bath in summer .

Solar power has been around for years, why do you think it’s only becoming popular now?
The oil crisis, increase in utility bills, as human beings feeling bad what we have done to the planet we can use the sun. I mean there are so many factors.

It’s also a complicated technology – how involved are you in solar power technology – do your products change as technology advances?
I do a lot of research on solar power technology finding out how it works and had a few friends that wanted to get it built in South America, Africa and Europe so that keeps me abreast. Yes it does constantly searching for new products

We seem to be gadget obsessed in the UK, is there any way we can make it green?
To obsessed is an understatement Yes there is a way to stop. Keep the gadgets at home and spending time walking with the family/friends/making a difference to the planet on your own at home / surroundings etc. We are a society of sheeps we follow without thinking – if Mr A has the latest iphone, I have got to have it. They forget Mr A can afford to pay for it / he rented it or it was a gift and its paid for, but the individual that wants it can’t afford it but he or she will break the bank just to get it. Basically following the trend.

Is it a problem there are so many different ways of connecting to gadgets?
Not really. I mean at the end of the day technology is so advanced now that everything interlinks now.

What’s the biggest advantage of solar power?
It’s free a God given resource that has being around since the creation of man or the planet, also would like to add you don’t have to pay any corporation nada

And disadvantage?
Corporations muscling in to make money of it

Solar bags and backpacks are getting more popular, why is that?
A trend sometimes but then there are genuine people out there that do want to make a difference to cut the emissons we burn out there all the time. We all carry gadgets and sometimes we do need them to be juiced on the move. So in a way we can cut the cost of our bills using the bags to be part of the solar bag revolution

How has your business changed over time?
Yes it has trying to get products that are customer friendly easy to use and it does the job.

What’s next for Echarger?
Keep on finding ways to get reliable products to our customers from all walks of life be it London, UK / Europe / South America / Africa or the rest of the world. Keep the drive of making a difference saving this planet before it implodes Peace.

Get Solar Electricity For Your Electric Car

An interesting video for you, the first half is about Zap Electric cars, a company with a very tall president with very small cars. The second half is about how they have teamed up with Akeena Solar panels to offer one heck of a consumer solution for around town driving, 100% home powered from solar panels.

The video is from Hippy Gourmet a US PBS and syndicated television series that’s in its ninth season and reaches over 34 million homes each week.

Solar Shaver Eco Product Review

I like the idea of a solar shaver, available from Nigel’s Eco Store. It’s clearly designed for traveling with a nice picture of an airplane on it. Leave it out in the sun for a few hours (or days if you forget about it like me), and it’s fully powered for your, er, shaving needs.

I use a razor usually and found changing to a shaver a little difficult. For a start this one just didn’t get that close, it was an effort to get a clean shave. I could have shaved my whole face by the time I had done one cheek with this. I’m not sure whether it was this shaver or electric ones in general. It is pretty handy, it’s small enough not to be cumbersome, either when carrying around or using. The only problem was when it ran out of juice (it lasts surprisingly long), you then have to put it in the sun for a while to recharge it. With half a shaved face.

With an intergrated cleaning brush in the cap, the solar shaver is available from Nigel’s Eco Store for £29.99.

Solio Solar Charger Product Review

The Solio H1000 is a universal charger for electronic devices that stores power, either from an electrical socket or from solar energy – a “hybrid” charger. I was sent one on loan for a 3 month trial on behalf of the manufacturers, Better Energy Systems.

As you can see I was sent a lovely orange one, but other colours are available. The Solio is dubbed a “hybrid” device because it accepts power from either a standard wall socket or the sun. Unlike standard chargers it uses no energy when plugged into a wall socket and not attached to a device (once charged of course).

It can store this energy within its internal battery for up to one year, and can be used any time for on-the-go charging of most portable electronics devices. It comes with several plug attachments, one for Nokia phones, a mini USB connection, and a female USB connector (see the photo for more details). It also comes with a USB connector to charge the Solio if you have not charged it from the sun. There is no wall socket adaptor when you buy it, this can be purchased for additional cost (probably to encourage you to use the solar panel), as well as an iPod connector, 12V car charger adaptor, Gameboy, Motorola adaptor and so on.

 

My testing with the Solio didn’t get off to a perfect start, I was unable to charge it from the sun, I had to charge it through the USB connection to my PC. I don’t know why, but leaving it in the sun initially had no effect – it did of course later on.

Despite the device being simple and having only one button and two lights (one red and one green) it was at first a little confusing to wonder what all the light flashes meant. The instruction manual is in pictures rather than words which helps transcend the language barrier but doesn’t particularly help with other aspects of its operation. After the first use though it all became clear.

The device itself comes in several colours, and as you can see from the pictures it has a clip for attaching to backpacks etc, which came in handy once on a walk and in a coffee shop when my mp3 player battery died. It’s also a great conversation piece! Talking of mp3 players, I’ve tested it on two, an iRiver S10 and a Creative Zen:M.

The iRiver charged perfectly as you can see from the picture and the video above, I just used the female USB to connect this up. The Zen did not seem to charge up (via the mini USB), however it seemed to accept this as if it was a wall socket connection, and essentially powered the Zen during operation rather than charging the battery. In a way it achieved the same goal – using the device – however in this case I had to have to Solio connected if I wanted to use the device, rather than charging it for a while and using it separately. Maybe it was just me, I’m not sure if this is usual or deliberate, but it wasn’t a problem.

Overall I think it’s a useful product, it survived a trip to Europe and back, the auto show in Detroit and once again proved handy in airports and train stations where all the sockets were taken up by laptop users. Currently you can get 10% off a Solio by visiting the Life Goggles Reviews and Shop page.

If you’ve used the Solio, or a similar device, why not leave a comment below or drop us a line and let us know your thoughts?

Eliza Gilkyson Uses Solar Power For Her Concerts

Just a little video of grammy-nominated singer/songwriter Eliza Gilkyson as the lights and sound at her recent concerts in Austin Texas have been powered by solar power. Just a little step but it’s in the right direction. I haven’t heard it but her latest album, Beautiful World, on Red House Records, has an environmental theme that “forces us to look at the destruction we are causing to the planet, yet offers an underlying optimism that sees hope for the future”.