Customer Reviews

Solar Charger SC002

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

ok, this is my first review and its because i feel very strongly about this and their aren't any other reviews posted about this,so here we go...sounds like a great product-free your ever-increasing collection of shiny,futuristic wares from dependence on the grid,use solar power. But, this product only lasts 400 cycles,each cycle means draining the battery from full to empty. I learned this from customer support on their website, and they also told me that each full charge will charge approx. 1.5 electrical devices. Now, this means if you tried to charge your ipod&cell phone each day w/ the product, it would die in approximately 400 days from the first day of use, which is conveniently just after their 1 yr warranty runs out. For $50 a year, i don't think this is economically viable, as charging a cell phone&ipod do not cost nearly $50 a year to charge. If you are an environmentalist like me, you should also know that solar cell production is a very energy intensive process that offgasses all sorts of volitile gases. The benefits of this technology over the embodied energy(energy takes to produce the object) only are present if the product is in use for a long time, i.e. 10 yrs or longer. The average solar panel lasts about 15-20 yrs before it begins degrading, and it still produces energy after this. SO that means the solar cells in this product are fine after a year,but get thrown out because the battery dies after a year. The battery is a standard lithium-ion, like ur laptop&cell phones. Now I've had my cell phone for 3 yrs and it still lasts days w/o needing another charge(depending on talk time obviously). So, as of now, the battery is unreplaceable,so the product is useless after a year, and you've spent more money on this product than you would for using standard charging methods,and you've contributed more pollution than you would have,due to embodied energy cost to make solar cells,mercury in li-ion battery,etc. So from an economical&environmental standpoint, this product is horrible. If you just want it for when ur camping or whatever,be warned,if not regularly used the product degrades in battery life 2% each month,like a standard li-ion battery.So its a great idea,but needs more research to make it worthwile to purchase.If you drive a hummer(don't care about environment&have money to blow on frivolous things) than by all means its a great product for having an emergency backup,and i know i'll never convince you to be ecofriendly,but maybe ur beachfront property becoming an underwater dive site will=).Otherwise,DON'T PURCHASE this product,but keep an eye out for a better version from another manufacturer or possibly this company. Great idea,very poorly carried out. I hope this review was helpful.

I snagged a deal on these from the manufacturer, and they are quite nice. The principle behind the product is this: the solar cells will charge a lithium-ion battery, which will then be used to charge or top-off any number of devices.

The myriad number of adapters that come with the product is impressive. I can hook up my Nokia phone, any USB device (so PDAs with USB charging is possible), and a handful of adapter ends for charging stations. The Li-On battery is the intermediate container, allowing you to bring your collected solar power with you. You can also charge the device itself using your car or AC outlet, thereby using the device merely as a container for portable extra power.

The utility of this stands in providing renewable backup power for cellphones and so forth. If you're a little like me and somewhat paranoid about jettisoning your landline for a cellphone because you might run out of power, this will ensure that at least during daylight hours, you can make those calls.

One final note: these come with an LED light that can be used as a flashlight during a power outage. Frankly, this really appeals to the gadget nut in me.

-Fred

I'm a bit dissapointed about the product because in the specifications didn't said that the "Battery On Board" CANNOT BE REPLACED. Either in the webpage... I thought I could...

And what will happened when the battery on board died? Do we need to trash the entire equipment? What will happen with the enviroment?

I sent an email to SolarStyle and they answered me the following:
-The battery in the SC002 cannot be replaced or removed-

So take this into consideration...

Brgds,
Cesar

This model number on the solarstyle website has a connector for an ipod. The one that amazon is selling must be an older model because it does not include this. That must be why it is cheaper. Very disappointing.

This product is yes - "nifty", yes - "versatile", but only if it works. Mine has not worked, although it does charge (proven by the green flashing light), and does "output" apparently (proven by the blinking red light) ... my Ipod has not received a single bit of charge. This could be a multitude of problem with either the connecting cable, the device itself who knows, but either way this review is coming down to Customer Service that has yet to respond to any of my emails, calls, smoke singals, and other forms of communication. Dead silence, means i give this product a dead star.

Good luck with yours though - because if mine does work one day, i'll be happy to have a solar backup for the devices that can be connected to this charger.

Oh and the LED flashlight is very bright and cool, and it does work on mine.

I love the convenience of this product. I can charge my ipod, my treo or any USB based item. Living in the South with tornados and hurricanes knocking out power and phone service for days, it's nice to be able to power up my cell phone anytime. And, when the batteries will no longer hold a charge, you can responsibly replace the batteries, instead of the entire unit. And I am confident that the more we purchase environmentally friendly items, the cheaper and more environmentally friendly the items will be designed and manafactured.

Save your money. Although the Solar Style website sells a connector for the iPod video, It doesn't work. This product won't charge any of the iPods I use. It did charge my old second generation iPod, which I only use as a backup, since it's almost five years old and the battery doesn't stay charged. It's pretty worthless.

I had so much faith in this product. I wanted it to work so badly. Unfortunately, I can't urge anyone to buy one. The Universal USB replicator connector doesn't work with any devices I own. The car adapter does work, but within 30 seconds of my cell phone registering a charge, it said it charging was complete....when it really wasn't. It took 3 hours to charge up my friend's phone with direct sun. It took 4 hours to charge up ONE PIXEL in the battery icon of my Microsoft Zune. I should have read more reviews on this product because I bought 5 of these and in good faith that they'd work like a charm, but now I'm stuck with them.

I purchased this product directly from the manufacturer. So far, it has been quite disappointing. The amount of power transferred to your cell phone or other devices seems to be negligible. Certainly not enough to top it off or keeping it from runnig out of juice. I've been experimenting with different set ups (i.e. full day in the sun, in the sun with the device plugged in, etc.) and no one seems to provide any meaningful charge. I'll keep experimenting, but not having any hopes. If I find the sweet spot, I'll update this review.

I have the product charging my phone as I write this.

The charger is charging in direct sunlight while charging the phone.

The power rating for this product is low, and it can't charge my PDA with it. (it needs 500 ma, and the charger is drained very quickly when connected). I was hoping that it can do more, but I was disappointed.

At least it can charge my phone to the point where I can make a call, but not completely :)