Help me find the best available solar bag.
January 14, 2011 11:14 AM Subscribe
What is the best solar-powered laptop bag available?
I have a new work laptop, a 15" Toshiba. Work will put a certain amount toward a new bag to carry the laptop in. I would like to go that extra mile and get one of the cool solar bags I have seen around.
Ideally, it would be a messenger-style bag, since I already have a camera/laptop backpack but I'd consider any bag that:
* Can charge both a laptop and an iPhone (bonus points for other equipment, such as camera batteries)
* Has a battery that will hold a charge and thus dispense electricity even when there is minimal sun.
Some earlier questions referenced these bags, but I saw little in the way of side-by-side comparison either here at MeFi or elsewhere on the web.
Anyone have personal experiences with one of these bags (or more)? Seen a great article that compares the various models available? Thanks in advance.
I have a new work laptop, a 15" Toshiba. Work will put a certain amount toward a new bag to carry the laptop in. I would like to go that extra mile and get one of the cool solar bags I have seen around.
Ideally, it would be a messenger-style bag, since I already have a camera/laptop backpack but I'd consider any bag that:
* Can charge both a laptop and an iPhone (bonus points for other equipment, such as camera batteries)
* Has a battery that will hold a charge and thus dispense electricity even when there is minimal sun.
Some earlier questions referenced these bags, but I saw little in the way of side-by-side comparison either here at MeFi or elsewhere on the web.
Anyone have personal experiences with one of these bags (or more)? Seen a great article that compares the various models available? Thanks in advance.
Seconding fief. You will get so very little power from a solar backpack, and at great cost.
Are you sure you're not thinking of the bags that are covered with a large retroreflective panel? One of my coworkers has such a Timbuk2 messenger bag and I've been with him when people ask him how the "solar panel" in his bag works.
posted by MonsieurBon at 12:58 PM on January 14, 2011
Are you sure you're not thinking of the bags that are covered with a large retroreflective panel? One of my coworkers has such a Timbuk2 messenger bag and I've been with him when people ask him how the "solar panel" in his bag works.
posted by MonsieurBon at 12:58 PM on January 14, 2011
Response by poster: I've seen lots of different types of solar bags, including backpack style, messenger style, etc. The Voltaic Systems bags, for example, say about an hour of time in the sun gets your phone about three hours of talk time.
Perhaps that's false. I don't know. That's why I'm asking, and why I'd be interested to see a side-by-side comparison between the best bags. But it's appealing to me to have a bag with its own chargeable battery that I can power up in the sun and then take places.
I would probably not consider this if I work was not, as I said, subsidizing the bag to some extent.
I've seen the Timbuk2 bags. A friend works there and I can get one cheaply. Yes, I'm sure I'm thinking of solar bags, and not random bags with reflective panels.
I am not stylish, and hence I have little interest in a stylish bag.
I believe I've heard the "don't get a solar bag" side of things now. I'd be much more interested in a comparison of the available solar options.
posted by jeffmshaw at 1:25 PM on January 14, 2011
Perhaps that's false. I don't know. That's why I'm asking, and why I'd be interested to see a side-by-side comparison between the best bags. But it's appealing to me to have a bag with its own chargeable battery that I can power up in the sun and then take places.
I would probably not consider this if I work was not, as I said, subsidizing the bag to some extent.
I've seen the Timbuk2 bags. A friend works there and I can get one cheaply. Yes, I'm sure I'm thinking of solar bags, and not random bags with reflective panels.
I am not stylish, and hence I have little interest in a stylish bag.
I believe I've heard the "don't get a solar bag" side of things now. I'd be much more interested in a comparison of the available solar options.
posted by jeffmshaw at 1:25 PM on January 14, 2011
To give you a ball-park of what would be required to charge a laptop via a portable solar panel setup, you would be looking at something like the PowerFilm F15-3600.
The estimates of one hour of sun equaling three hours of talk time are best case scenarios. It certainly involves good sun and a very low power dumbphone. It certainly isn't accurate for modern smartphones.
posted by fief at 1:59 PM on January 14, 2011
The estimates of one hour of sun equaling three hours of talk time are best case scenarios. It certainly involves good sun and a very low power dumbphone. It certainly isn't accurate for modern smartphones.
posted by fief at 1:59 PM on January 14, 2011
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Plus, they are not stylish and vastly limit your bag choices.
posted by fief at 11:51 AM on January 14, 2011