WHAT ARE THEY ?
A couple of months ago , we featured our initial impressions of these units . To recap , the BEAM Outback solar USB chargers are portable , folding solar panels with either single or dual USB outlets . The idea is that you plug your USB-rechargeable device into the USB output port on the panel in much the same way as you would with a regular USB charger . The difference is you put the panel into the sun and recharge your device using free , green energy virtually anywhere you go .
There are three models in the BEAM Outback solar panel range , with outputs from 6W up to an impressive 20W . They are small and lightweight , making them easy to store in a backpack , a drawer in your caravan or the glovebox of your car .
The 6W panel is great for clipping to your backpack or camera case
The Beam Outback 6W panel works well with our UV bug zapper
THE TEST
I was supplied one of each of the BEAM Outback solar panels and was told to give them a good test in real-world conditions . This involved using them to recharge various devices to see how quickly they could recharge those devices . This turned out to be more challenging than it first seemed . You see , it is extremely difficult to get consistent empirical tests with solar panels due to the variable nature of the weather . It is quite rare , verging on impossible , to get consistent sun conditions over several hours , day after day .
While we did manage to test the times to recharge a few popular devices , in reality this data is largely academic . It ’ s one thing to be able to recharge your mobile phone using a solar panel , but is it a practical way to do it ?
So I ended up using a BEAM Outback solar panel each time I had the need to recharge a device as a practical alternative to using a regular USB port . This way I could find out with certainty whether or not these chargers could be useful to the average caravanner . What I found was something of a revelation !
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