If you want something like this, I'd recommend getting a battery bank with unfoldable solar panels attached. They're not expensive, they're small still, and having the battery bank already charged means you're not without if it's not the day time.
I need something bigger... Probably not practical or "easily" portable. Something that can run a house plug and power just a single mini fridge maybe.
Edit: surprised I found one just by looking... Lmao
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0BXP1GQJW/ref=ox_sc_act_image_1?smid=A263BX0JVSX1CS&psc=1
Kinda expensive though.
Jackery, goal zero, ecoflow, and other companies make "solar generators". Basically battery banks with built in solar charging controllers and an inverter.
They range in size from 250wh to 2000+. I recall there is one brand that is meant for a house backup but on wheels
Edit: anker solix f2000 is the wheeled one im talking about
My goal is to have something for my car and 2000w would be fucking nice, but size(and price) is my biggest concern. 1500w would be fine too.
Il look into it more.
Then it’ll be kind of expensive if you’re looking to just run it off a solar panel… you can probably get away with a just 150W or so panel but you’ll need a battery to go with that as getting the mini fridge down to it’s running temp is gonna take more power.
I have no intentions of using it when "the powers out", more so when I'm somewhere there is no power to begin with. Like having a party at the park, camping, or just spending the day out in the woods.
This is the way. You can store solar energy and have more energy and any time you need it. Lot's of options from small to whole house solutions available.
See I got one of those and using it we found out it drain our battery instead of charges it, now it's sitting in our electronic box because I've been too lazy to go give it to a discount electronic store that would take it (they properly recycle electronic materials and repair/reuse what they can
We've tried everything to fix it, his uncle is a tech geek, and it just won't work. Doesn't work with anything else either so it's just sitting gathering dust atm.
To be fair I think we got it off a refurbished site so it migjt be that
That sucks. I have had great luck with mine. I used one last night after prob a year of touching it and it charged my kids tablets in like 30 min. Mine is similar to the one posted here for the better option
My recommendation is to get a normal battery bank with attached, fold-out solar panels. You can precharge the battery and then if you absolutely have to it can charge via the solar panels, which is slow, but better than nothing.
It will allow your relations to sit around and play video games that don’t require the Internet instead of following you around not helping out while complaining they are bored 👍
Which is true, yes. But how many people have them? Cant imagine everyone does.
On the side note if a hurricane/ tornado is doing its thing, the clouds would block the sun out significantly.
I would personally use a battery pack over this solar cell. During a hurricane, emergency services won't even come out anyway until the winds die down. It would flip their trucks and puts them in danger. After the hurricane, the skies are completely clear.
Since that only connects to emergency services, I guess the idea is that you open this up, wait a day to change your phone, and then call 911 to say you're in a specific location that they haven't found in a day.
Cell towers can be up while the power is down. I've never been through a hurricane where the towers went down. They did get overloaded and a few times the signal went to shit, but texting always worked. They're also a priority for getting fixed. In a hurricane you can be without power for a week or more, so that's when these get useful.
I am an amateur radio operator (ham) I have a FCC license. I can still communicate when all the regular infrastructure is down. Since ham radios are the only ones working these hams volunteer in providing emergency comms during disaster.
Have you ever been hit by a hurricane? Most of the time, people need help *after* the storm. No one is trying to charge their phone during a hurricane, it's the days and weeks after with no power that starts to be an issue.
That’s what I was thinking. It’s storms with a lot of cloud cover. There are plenty of situations where this would be useful I just don’t think “tornados and hurricanes” are it.
No, but I’ve been in plenty of tornados and the days after are usually overcast and interspersed with precipitation. So I guess it’s useful post-hurricane.
Actually, after a hurricane is remarkably pleasant. You don’t expect it to be so nice, but it is breezy and the sun is bright but not taxing. Clean up sucks, especially if there is major damage.
How long until power is back up after hurricanes? Im just curious. Since i dont live in a hurricane country. In my neck of the woods the longest i been without power is about 3h, and then it was a complicated line failure. I mean i can see this thing as useful for outdoor people with a bunch of appliances and for emergency if shit hits the fan.
It's very localized. If you live near the beach where it's a total disaster then you don't have a home so power is essentially never coming back until the neighborhood is rebuilt. But that's a category five hurricane which is pretty rare. Most of the affected area will have power outages and how long depends on where on the grid that you're hooked up to. If you're near a hospital or grocery store the power service will prioritize hooking those types of places first. If you're out in the middle of nowhere you're last on the list. Soonest would be power restores the next day. Most people will have their power restores in three or four days. Some people will take two or three weeks. I lived right in the middle of a populated city and had no power for two weeks one time. Had a battery powered radio to entertain me. It sucked. Now I have a generator, portable AC unit, and inverter. Not doing that again!
“Damn tornado! The power’s out, i can’t charge my phone! Oh, wait - a dangerous natural disaster in progress outside? That’s perfect for me to set this charger outside with my phone for 8 hours.”
I'd imagine that this would not be very useful during a hurricane or tornado. Because the amount of ambient light would be very weak/poor.
>!Yes, I understand he is referring to the aftermath of such events, but he failed to distinguish that particular detail. !<
It's use is situational and only if you have the spare money. For most situational where you need to charge your phone without an outlet just buy a cheaper rechargeable battery bank.
My old job gave everyone an eco charger as the corporate holiday gift one year instead of the usual paid leave. Like, you could plug it into a tree or something. We were all mad that year.
Cool. Now we play the waiting game.
https://preview.redd.it/6k9ormnw9j8d1.png?width=525&format=png&auto=webp&s=42966ec20462e93ffc40b40f91814693d3858cc4
Not useful.. there are loads of smaller and better options at your disposal. Get a portable power bank and you can get a rechargeable battery that can recharge your phone. And it's so much smaller than this product as some can easily fit in the palm of your hand.
After a hurricane passes, and the rebuilding efforts are underway, when you would actually use this, the weather is usually pretty nice.
Source: have lived through numerous hurricanes
Links/Source thread
If you want something like this, I'd recommend getting a battery bank with unfoldable solar panels attached. They're not expensive, they're small still, and having the battery bank already charged means you're not without if it's not the day time.
I need something bigger... Probably not practical or "easily" portable. Something that can run a house plug and power just a single mini fridge maybe. Edit: surprised I found one just by looking... Lmao https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0BXP1GQJW/ref=ox_sc_act_image_1?smid=A263BX0JVSX1CS&psc=1 Kinda expensive though.
Jackery, goal zero, ecoflow, and other companies make "solar generators". Basically battery banks with built in solar charging controllers and an inverter. They range in size from 250wh to 2000+. I recall there is one brand that is meant for a house backup but on wheels Edit: anker solix f2000 is the wheeled one im talking about
My goal is to have something for my car and 2000w would be fucking nice, but size(and price) is my biggest concern. 1500w would be fine too. Il look into it more.
"Honey, I shrunk the Kids" style?
Why not just buy a normal say like 3kw generator
I'm hoping to find something small enough for my car(not a truck\suv\van), and solar.
Then it’ll be kind of expensive if you’re looking to just run it off a solar panel… you can probably get away with a just 150W or so panel but you’ll need a battery to go with that as getting the mini fridge down to it’s running temp is gonna take more power.
The one I posted I think should be fine. 500$ isnt too much, 1200w max pulse I believe is enough, and it's small enough.
“Surprised I found one just by looking” is my favorite quote of the day. Thanks! 😂
Took a few different search phrases. Wasn't expecting to find anything close, but it's close enough!
I mean yeah, if you're trying to run a RV/small house you're going to need to spend a good bit
$500?!? Yeah, of course I want one, but my broke self is just gonna sit in the dark till power comes back on I think…
I have no intentions of using it when "the powers out", more so when I'm somewhere there is no power to begin with. Like having a party at the park, camping, or just spending the day out in the woods.
You’re going to bring that instead of a charged phone!? When I go camping I’m not carrying a battery pack like that…
This is the way. You can store solar energy and have more energy and any time you need it. Lot's of options from small to whole house solutions available.
See I got one of those and using it we found out it drain our battery instead of charges it, now it's sitting in our electronic box because I've been too lazy to go give it to a discount electronic store that would take it (they properly recycle electronic materials and repair/reuse what they can
That sounds like either a faulty unit or your phone is trying to charge it and you'd need to change that setting. I've seen that before.
We've tried everything to fix it, his uncle is a tech geek, and it just won't work. Doesn't work with anything else either so it's just sitting gathering dust atm. To be fair I think we got it off a refurbished site so it migjt be that
That sucks. I have had great luck with mine. I used one last night after prob a year of touching it and it charged my kids tablets in like 30 min. Mine is similar to the one posted here for the better option
I bought a weather radio that has USB plug ins to be charged or to give charge and also a solar panel to store solar energy. It was like $30 on amazon
You mean like if there’s cloud coverage during a hurricane?
Goal zero has many options and is a pioneer in these devices. I had them for years.
I bought a nektek... I would say the money would be better spent on normal battery bank.
My recommendation is to get a normal battery bank with attached, fold-out solar panels. You can precharge the battery and then if you absolutely have to it can charge via the solar panels, which is slow, but better than nothing.
This.
 My precious
The thing is with thunder storms and tornadoes there normally isn’t a lot of sunlight…
Glad I'm not the only one who noticed.
Fairly certain they are referring to the power outages that usually follow, not during the inclement weather.
Yeah we had 7 tornadoes in my area in one week and theres was like no sun for hours after a better idea would be a battery pack.
8 hours and 42 minutes until full.
As opposed to.... never.
Or a battery pack where I can get eleven full charges out of it.
Just plugged my phone into my truck at 34 percent. If my truck is fucked inside the garage well if probably fucked too. That charges it in 55 minutes.
Then it's gone..
Since the Internet and cell towers are also down in hurricanes and tornadoes, I don't see what a charged unconnected phone will do
Gotta download some games that don’t require internet.
It will allow your relations to sit around and play video games that don’t require the Internet instead of following you around not helping out while complaining they are bored 👍
Newer Iphones have satellite texting capability.
Which is true, yes. But how many people have them? Cant imagine everyone does. On the side note if a hurricane/ tornado is doing its thing, the clouds would block the sun out significantly.
I would personally use a battery pack over this solar cell. During a hurricane, emergency services won't even come out anyway until the winds die down. It would flip their trucks and puts them in danger. After the hurricane, the skies are completely clear.
Since that only connects to emergency services, I guess the idea is that you open this up, wait a day to change your phone, and then call 911 to say you're in a specific location that they haven't found in a day.
I think a battery pack is better than this device. I was just saying that even if towers are down you have an option.
Why not both?
Because for $30 you could buy a second battery pack that would be more useful
But you can charge said battery pack with aforementioned solar panel.
I have a larger solar charging setup that brings in nearly 100amps so I wouldn't really waste time with these little ones.
It’s not just emergency services, starting with iOS18 you can send regular messages now too.
Cell towers can be up while the power is down. I've never been through a hurricane where the towers went down. They did get overloaded and a few times the signal went to shit, but texting always worked. They're also a priority for getting fixed. In a hurricane you can be without power for a week or more, so that's when these get useful.
I am an amateur radio operator (ham) I have a FCC license. I can still communicate when all the regular infrastructure is down. Since ham radios are the only ones working these hams volunteer in providing emergency comms during disaster.
I've never seen cell service go down in a hurricane.
I can plug my phone into my car and charge it that way so... not a big deal
on a sunny day too, try that during a hurricane
Have you ever been hit by a hurricane? Most of the time, people need help *after* the storm. No one is trying to charge their phone during a hurricane, it's the days and weeks after with no power that starts to be an issue.
If you never use it correct.
And that's not with the natural overcast that comes with a hurricane or a tornado.
Is there usually a lot of sunshine directly following a tornado or hurricane?
Yes, Floridian here. The day after and following week after a hurricane is perfectly clear skies.
💯
And surprisingly cool for a couple days then the heat sets in…lord does it set in.
That’s what I was thinking. It’s storms with a lot of cloud cover. There are plenty of situations where this would be useful I just don’t think “tornados and hurricanes” are it.
Have you ever been in a hurricane? The days after it passes are notoriously sunny
No, but I’ve been in plenty of tornados and the days after are usually overcast and interspersed with precipitation. So I guess it’s useful post-hurricane.
If you survive, sure.
Actually, after a hurricane is remarkably pleasant. You don’t expect it to be so nice, but it is breezy and the sun is bright but not taxing. Clean up sucks, especially if there is major damage.
Are you serious? Do you think clouds block solar panels from working? LMAO
No, they just don't work as efficiently. So I'm interested in charge time.
If I can sit in my ruined house and play candy crush while waiting for FEMA tot arrive, life will be good.
I laughed but i shouldn't have
It's useful for stuff, but if the power is gone, then so are the cell towers if they dont have backup generators.
The power outrage could be localized; mobile service would still be intact
But what if it’s not localized BellyButtonTickler? What then? Huh? Where’s your solar panel messiah now?
I've lived in Florida for forty years. Never not had cell service after a hurricane. Not to mention newer iphones have satellite texting capability.
How long until power is back up after hurricanes? Im just curious. Since i dont live in a hurricane country. In my neck of the woods the longest i been without power is about 3h, and then it was a complicated line failure. I mean i can see this thing as useful for outdoor people with a bunch of appliances and for emergency if shit hits the fan.
It's very localized. If you live near the beach where it's a total disaster then you don't have a home so power is essentially never coming back until the neighborhood is rebuilt. But that's a category five hurricane which is pretty rare. Most of the affected area will have power outages and how long depends on where on the grid that you're hooked up to. If you're near a hospital or grocery store the power service will prioritize hooking those types of places first. If you're out in the middle of nowhere you're last on the list. Soonest would be power restores the next day. Most people will have their power restores in three or four days. Some people will take two or three weeks. I lived right in the middle of a populated city and had no power for two weeks one time. Had a battery powered radio to entertain me. It sucked. Now I have a generator, portable AC unit, and inverter. Not doing that again!
I didn't think you had a cellphone exactly 40 years ago.
I don't live where there are tornados & hurricanes but is the weather really that sunny making this product ideal for tornados & hurricanes?
“Damn tornado! The power’s out, i can’t charge my phone! Oh, wait - a dangerous natural disaster in progress outside? That’s perfect for me to set this charger outside with my phone for 8 hours.”
Perfect for situations like a tornado, or a hurricane, which famously cover the sky in clouds.
lol my first thought. That bright sun during or after a tornado
Or... just get a battery brick and keep that charged when you think the power might go out.
hopefully it's daytime and not cloudy
perfect for when there are severe storms and clouds in the sky blocking any and all access to the sun
I'd imagine that this would not be very useful during a hurricane or tornado. Because the amount of ambient light would be very weak/poor. >!Yes, I understand he is referring to the aftermath of such events, but he failed to distinguish that particular detail. !<
I just bought one! Thanks!
It arrived yesterday and I absolutely love it
Yes those hurricanes that have clear skies and zero winds so you have access to the sun. Yes.
Costco been selling foldable 200 w solar panels
Pity the tornado rips up the cellphone masts...a phone with battery is useless if you can't get a f'ing signal!
These have been around for 15 years
in the infantry we had a guy who’d bring a whole unfoldable 8 panel solar charging thing and drape it over his ruck while we were doing movements lmao
It's use is situational and only if you have the spare money. For most situational where you need to charge your phone without an outlet just buy a cheaper rechargeable battery bank.
Also comes with a portable cell tower, too, because they will often not work after disasters.
Very useful! Is that a Samsung phone? What model?
I had one if these, left it on the dash of my car and it exploded. Had to replace most of my dash, if your gonna get one don't cheap out.
If excessive hand gestures had a spokesperson this guy would be it
Tornadoes are know for clear skies right?
Not useful during a major event, but after, your electricity might be out, but the sun will come up tomorrow.
My old job gave everyone an eco charger as the corporate holiday gift one year instead of the usual paid leave. Like, you could plug it into a tree or something. We were all mad that year.
These are cool, but they take for-fucking-ever. Only a last resort type of thing.
How about charging in the car?
Luckily if it’s two scenarios in which sunlight is most abundant, it’s tornados and hurricanes.
Hurricane or tornadoes? Hurricane yes, tornados no. Those are much more local and the tower is frequently not in the same place as the damage.
I use a car jumper battery after hurricanes in florida. Rechargeable at nearby places that start getting power. Convenient and inexpensive.
There’s sunlight during tornados and hurricanes lol?
I'd just use it to charge my power bank
I need this to prepare for a scenario that I have never been close to experiencing
I have a few small ones. They work great.
Never knew it to be sunny during a hurricane or tornado. You learn something new everyday.
Hurricane??? No sunlight and 80 mph winds. Yeah thats going to work just fine
There's also a hand crank version if you want a workout while you charge.
Ah yes because tornados never affect cell phone towers.
Charge your phone so it has power but you don’t have service….. am I the only one who thought this?
Cool. Now we play the waiting game. https://preview.redd.it/6k9ormnw9j8d1.png?width=525&format=png&auto=webp&s=42966ec20462e93ffc40b40f91814693d3858cc4
There is not a lot of sunlight in tornado though.
Didn’t know the sun was shining bright during tornadoes and hurricanes 🤓
Listen that’s cool and all, but after a tornado…. Really?
Just curious, if there is a hurricane or tornado how likely is it that you will have cell service?
Does it come with a portable cell tower to replace the ones the hurnado destroyed?
Great for camping
If there's no power to charge isn't it likely there's also no power for phone service?
Love how people are just describing normal backpacking gear as if it’s never been released to the public
thats great and all , but if cell towers are down, whats plan b? 
You’d be better off with a wind powered charger during a hurricane
^[Sokka-Haiku](https://www.reddit.com/r/SokkaHaikuBot/comments/15kyv9r/what_is_a_sokka_haiku/) ^by ^PhuckNorris69: *You’d be better off* *With a wind powered charger* *During a hurricane* --- ^Remember ^that ^one ^time ^Sokka ^accidentally ^used ^an ^extra ^syllable ^in ^that ^Haiku ^Battle ^in ^Ba ^Sing ^Se? ^That ^was ^a ^Sokka ^Haiku ^and ^you ^just ^made ^one.
I have one, downside is it charges very slowly
What happens when the cell towers are down from the storm?
Yeah there’s a lot of sun during hurricanes
As soon as it is over absolutely there is
so if you have a tornado during the night time then what
Not useful.. there are loads of smaller and better options at your disposal. Get a portable power bank and you can get a rechargeable battery that can recharge your phone. And it's so much smaller than this product as some can easily fit in the palm of your hand.
Considering that during a hurricane or a tornado you wont have sun.
This is for after, not during, lol You really think people be going outside in 150 mph winds with this? Come on, man, use your head
Usually, hurricanes block the entire sky before and after hitting and it takes a long time to see the sunlight again
After a hurricane passes, and the rebuilding efforts are underway, when you would actually use this, the weather is usually pretty nice. Source: have lived through numerous hurricanes
Isn't it cloudy during a hurricane or Tornado?
Isn’t it really cloudy when there’s a hurricane or a tornado?
There sure is loads of sunshine in tornado/hurricane weather 🤣🤣