Phone powerpacks

[Nurseandy]

My powerpack for my mobile needs replacing (it is about 10 years old so many complain). I'm contemplating getting one that has a solar panel as a secondary charging source. Does anyone have any experience of these? As the solar panel is tiny is it actually effective?
Tia

[Frnc]

I have one, but I don't know if the solar charger works. I was going to test it, but I didn't fancy leaving a lipo battery in the sun for days. The larger ones can be quite heavy. I got a Juice 3 from Argos which is a lot lighter, and smaller, but still has a decent capacity.

Your other option is a portable solar panel and powerbank. These are designed to hang off a rucksack while hiking. The solar panels are much bigger than what you get on a powerbank, and the powerbank can be kept out of the sun.

[Yorkshire Andy]

Look at the anker range

The panels on most are way too small to be useful bar keeping then topped up In storage on a window sill

[ForgeCorvus]

We've had several solar power packs, the panel is enough to stop them going flat (or at least slow them going flat).... Don't expect it to charge up at anything like useful speed though, one of ours went from three of five lights to four of five over a fortnight in August (charging a smartphone drops it two to three lights).
Quite a few of the cheaper PP's have this feature, but they tend to 'overstate' the capacity

An Auker power pack (YA's suggestion) and a hiker's mini solar panel (as Frnc said) is probably a better option.... Plus you can buy them piecemeal.

[Yorkshire Andy]

£20 in bm usbc is in (recharge) only

But 2x smart usb a outputs

Think that's 4x of them I have now

[Nurseandy]

Thanks all, yeah, as suspected, not enough oomph in the tiny solar panels then. Think I'll just get another standalone powerpack.

[PPrep]

The panels on most are way too small to be useful bar keeping then topped up In storage on a window sill

Quite right.

It pays to get the largest power bank you can. As a general rule, the heavier they are, the more capacity they have. Watch out for greatly exaggerated capacity claims from some sellers on Amazon or eBay.

I'm not keen on storing a lithium battery in the sun for any length of time.

[Kier10]

From my experience, the bigger the power bank, the better—especially if you’re planning longer trips or emergency situations. Of course, higher capacity means more weight, but it’s worth considering. Watch out for those “astronomical” capacity claims you see on Amazon or eBay—it’s often more marketing than reality. I personally have a power bank that works great—high capacity, fast charging, and solid build quality. Perfect for outdoor and survival use.

[Bijela]

Never tried using a solar panel to recharge my power bank. But, now I'm thinking could I put a panel on the parcel shelf in the car and attach a mesh pouch to the underside as an idea . Don't know if its normal, but mine has its own charging cable. If you don't use that one and a standard phone cable it takes over a day to recharge. It's own cable will do it overnight.

[Frnc]

Tip. Don't use your phone while it's charging from a powerbank. Or at least do so the bare min. It uses up the powerbank fast, and I don't think it's good for them.