What's a good remote power source

[SHRED]

I'll be away from electricity for a few days backpacking.
We will use our phones as cameras.
I'm thinking that a battery power pack of some sort would be good to charge 2 cell phones.

Any suggestions for a lightweight power pack solution that can charge the phones a few times?

[saidsimplesimon]

1. Enjoy the backpacking

Stay safe

[SHRED]

2. Thank you

[Sailor65x1]

3. I've tried carrying batteries into the field

And this works better for me

https://mobile.redcrossstore.org/product/preparedness/clipray/

[genxlib]

5. That looks like a good option for a hurricane supply kit

Can you tell me, how much cranking does it take to charge a phone?

Unfortunately, it is out of stock so the OP might have to look elsewhere for now.

[Sailor65x1]

8. As you can imagine,

I've never used it to do a "Full" charge. But, I can do about 10-15 minutes of cranking and get significant enough power to do some calls (Galaxy S6, got me from 1% to around 15%). For the OP, that much cranking would get quite a bit of picture-taking I'd think.

Amazon seems to have some in stock.

[genxlib]

12. Thanks

That does sound like a lot of work but desperate times call for desperate measures.

It wouldn't be so bad except it's always hot as hell with no a/c after a storm

[Kaleva]

4. There are some small hand crank chargers that work well for what you want.

If I was on my laptop, I'd post a link to one. Maybe later today when I return home.

[crazycatlady]

6. this

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01F3TZX0E/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

holds 6 charges

[rsdsharp]

7. Powerfilm

https://www.amazon.com/LightSaver-USB-Roll-up-Solar-Charger/dp/B016N2NMBC/ref=sr_1_1?s=wireless&ie=UTF8&qid=1501009906&sr=1-1&keywords=powerfilm

[politicat]

9. We have three of these:

http://amzn.to/2uynK30

They're 10000 mAh solar battery packs as part of our emergency kit. They charge my 6s and my ipad - slowly, but they do charge them both, and they will fully recharge themselves in about 13 hours of direct sunlight. The battery pack has a handle, and you can use a carabiner to snap it to the exterior of a backpack. It's also rugged as hell.

Here was my testing protocol: I fully charged the battery pack via mains current, while letting my phone discharge over the course of a day. (I think it was down to 15-20%). Then I let it charge overnight using only the battery; it was 100% by morning, and the battery pack was down to 70-80%. I let the battery pack recharge in a window sill - it was 100% by nightfall. My phone will drop to 50-60 during the day with normal usage, less if it's a quiet day. I then used the battery pack to charge the phone for the next several days, with nothing but ambient light in a bedroom on the solar panel during the day. The pack fully charged the phone for six days before the pack needed a full, direct sunlight recharge.

The iPad was similar, though it only got 3 daily charges, and my iPad is usually near single digits after a day of use. (It's my laptop replacement.)

[jpak]

10. I have a Solar Monkey Adventurer

Solar charged battery.

Light weight - folds compact - holds charge - has lots of plugs.

Charges my small Samsung phone with no problem.

REI doesn't carry it any more but there are similar devices on the market.

If your cell phone is a juice hog - none of the small backpacker friendly PV-battery devices will charge them.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

11. Use your head

https://www.shop.com/SOLSOL+SS102+Poweraid+Solar+Hat+Collection+Navy-1527211343-p+.xhtml?sourceid=298&CAWELAID=120179660006807443&CAGPSPN=pla&CAAGID=17511433383&CATCI=pla-183850759983&catargetid=120179650023898573&cadevice=c&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIxrvcx6Kl1QIVFJV-Ch0cwAYdEAQYBCABEgJbZfD_BwE

[Flaleftist]

13. I use this:

It will recharge a cell phone several times on a full charge.


https://slickdeals.net/f/8516767-everstart-12-000mah-multi-function-jump-starter-battery-charger-for-9-at-walmart-b-m-ymmv

I got one from Amazon about a year ago.