Voltaic Systems - Arc 10 Watt USB Solar Charger | Powers Phones, Tablets, & More | Charges Your Device as Fast as at Home

The Voltaic Systems 10 Watt solar charger is an affordable option to charge you phone or a battery pack while hiking. Testing at my house, it is zero inside with my low E windows. It snaps into charge mode when I step outside. This is one of the best ultralight charging solutions I have found, and it was under $30. The size of the panels work when hung on your backpack, delivering a good value for your money.

The toughest environment I can imagine for stuff like this is the beach, and my wife basically adopted this to use on the beach to keep her phone going; salt, sand, sunscreen, (margaritas)...you name it. My stepson has taken it camping etc. and I've used it quite a bit and it performs admirably - barely shows the wear though it's a bit grubby. My one concern - which may or may not be justified - is the USB port, which likely won't fare well with extended use in salt water, sand, rain etc. I've added a short "pigtail" extension that I can replace if it gets trashed and have put a little duct tape around the joint to keep the weather out. Cables 2 Go has the extensions for a few dollars.

I travel annually, often out of the country to places where electricity is not as reliable. I bought the Arc Solar Charger to charge my Nook tablet, which I use to keep a journal when traveling. But first, I wanted to make sure that it did the job. The instructions say that you CANNOT charge the Arc Solar Charger through a window. So I tested it by connecting it to my tablet and setting it on my front porch in direct sun. The tablet did not register any incoming charge (charger was not powering the tablet). I read my tablet owner's manual and realized that the output of the Arc Solar Charger is too low for the Nook tablet. I considered sending it back, but then had another thought: could I use the Arc Solar Charger to charge a battery pack? I researched various models and found one that had an input strength equal to that of the Arc Solar Charger's output, the Anker PowerCore. I went with the 10000 model. Back to the porch, with the Arc Solar Charger and the battery pack. Success! The PowerCore immediately began drawing power from the Arc Solar Charger! I left both units out for the afternoon, with the PowerCore charged to about 25% (one of the four indicator lights solid) by sundown. I was able to take both the Arc Solar Charger and the Anker PowerCore on my next trip. When I ran low, I tried charging, but on a day that was a little overcast. The Arc Solar Charger was only able to charge the PowerCore to less than 25% from morning to evening. In conclusion, the Arc Solar Charger works, but I cannot give it the highest marks. It may work better for cell phones than it did for either my Nook tablet or my Anker PowerCore. Perhaps in a locale or on a day with brilliant sun, it would charge faster than it did for me. On the plus side, it makes a handy protective cover for my Nook while traveling!

This works alright. It’s not the strongest and it isn’t the weakest...as long as you’re fully aware of the possible limitations compared to what you want to charge, it is fairly sturdy and it does charge phones and such. It feels like it is made of some pretty good solar cells and covered in a sort of epoxy to keep them durable. The USB (USB-A) port on the back is helpful as you can plug it into a power bank or directly into a cell phone. The advantage of charging a power bank is that power will be available even when its cloudy instead of just sunny (if you use this to directly charge a phone or whatever). This is one of the more portable solar cells that I’ve had as it folds like a sort of heavy paper folder from back in school. This feels like it is water resistant and it should be able to take a fair beating without issue. Overall, I can’t complain; I just wish the value was a bit better. Pros: Seems to be made well Easy to use Puts out a pretty good charge for its size Portable Seemingly water resistant Does a good job charging my phone and power bank Cons: Doesn’t have USB-C port on back Isn’t cheap Takes a bit to charge a phone in full Overall, if you love solar or need one that feels more durable and don’t mind it costing a bit of a premium, this could be ideal. I’d rate it 3.5 stars if I could

A little pricey compared to some of the other top notch brands, however, it appears to be pretty solid. It uses SunPower panels which are simply the best out there. Works really well so far. I am not totally sure as of yet but I do think the quality of your usb cable makes a difference. I use top notch Anker cables and it would indicate it is charging on my iPhone and using another cable in same situation, it would not show a charge. I will update this review if I find any info to indicate otherwise.

Took me 9 hrs just to get 20% of battery in my phone. I attempted to use it multiple times and then I gave it away because it was not useful at all and it was expensive for no reason.

I bought this after a friend brought it to the beach with us one afternoon. My portable speakers were dead (i forgot to charge them before hand), but I plugged them into the Voltaic solar panel and the JamBox came to life. This panel is great because you can charge to a battery pack for later but you do not need to. My speakers ran off the power from the sun all afternoon. Not only was the power enough to produce sound but it also charged my speakers. I returned home with nearly a full charge after playing music for roughly 5 or 6 hours. That was a very sunny day but i was charging my phone last weekend through my apartment window on a cloudy day. The panel is light weight and takes up almost no room. I wont be leaving home with out this next time I'm going to the beach, park, hike, camp etc.

I have tried many different solar panel options for hiking. They were either to heavy, large, unreliable, or the panels just didn't work. I have used this Voltaic mono panel thoroughly. I put it through numerous real world scenarios I might encounter on a multi month hike through. It might not be the fastest charging panel I have tested, but it's definitely the one we will start using for hiking. Its simply reliable, and works under most conditions. We will be purchasing 4 more for our group. Note: I never directly charge any devices off the panel. I only charge a usb power bank with the panel, and then charge lights, batteries, phones, gps , etc off of the power bank. It fully charges our 13000 mah power bank each day hiking in full Sun. We then charge our devices during the night.