Solar charger
The Brunton Restore Portable Power Device can be a lifesaver if you need a cellphone charge away from a power source. Its solar panel can charge its battery in just a few hours in direct sunlight.
$90, rei.com
Garage addition
The Behm Design company has more than 300 different garage plans available to house your dream car. Packages come with plans, foundation layout, electrical layout and a materials list.
$100-$200, behmdesign.net
-- Wheelbase Communications
1 Comment
By Michael Laurie on December 28, 2010 9:23 AM
Anyone interested in a solar phone charger should check out the REI web site customer reviews of those products. As you will find out, the claim by Brunton that "Its solar panel can charge its battery in just a few hours in direct sunlight."
could be misleading to some.
None of the solar chargers will fully charge a smart cell phone battery in a few hours. Some can partially charge in a few hours but the experience of some users is that after several hours in full sunlight the battery is still only partially charged. Also, as I found out after purchasing a solar charger that the Apple I-Phone will give a warning stating that they do not advise using the solar charger with their phone.
I am a big solar fan and hope that the solar chargers will improve soon so that there will be one that will fully charge a low battery in less than several hours.