having recently discovered that the manufacturers stated run-time for my new video camera was ever-so-slightly exaggerated (by a factor of about 10!) i'm now thinking that i could use some kind of portable power.

so.....does anyone know of a solution (on the market as opposed to in the R&D stage) which is light enough to take with on multi-day alpine trips and would enable me to frequently (and so i'm thinking solar and/or dynamo) charge both AA and AAA batteries as well as charge something via a USB cable???

i'd ideally not like to pay a crap-load for it either but i do (now) realise that for this to work effectively/efficiently i'll most likely need to spend more than i'd like to (i.e. nothing!).

any advice....?

thanks in advance.

gairy.

How long are you going for and how long does a set of batteries last?
I would most likely just take spare batteries.
The extra weight of a solar panel + charger (and even more weight if you go for a dynamo) is probably not much less than taking a few packs of extra batteries. Then you've got the money and space in your pack that you'll save by going for spare batteries to consider.

For what it's worth, i cant think of any options other than the solar or dynamo that you suggested. Solar would be lighter but bulkier and more difficult to use (trying to keep it in place and angled at the sun the whole time). On a dark cloudy day, you're stuck. A dynamo would be more reliable and easier to use, but heavier. It would also take away a small part of the power you're using to move yourself forward.

Got a soldering iron?
http://ianbarrington.com/2010/03/21/portable-power/

touch wrote:How long are you going for and how long does a set of batteries last?
I would most likely just take spare batteries.

i'll be away for 10 days.

and.....it's not the AA and AAA batteries that're the problem (as i'd happily just carry a spare set of each and then replace 'em as necessary in little towns/villages).

it's more the battery for my Kodak Playsport Zx3 as it's devise specific and only lasted for two hours (continuous running) the other day during it's first test (admittedly that was at around -9 degrees) and so i've either got to take a couple of spare batteries and a charger (to use in a cafe/bar if they'll let me) or buy about 20 batteries to take at £10 a pop!

Ian wrote:Got a soldering iron?
http://ianbarrington.com/2010/03/21/portable-power/

i do indeed own a soldering iron and am not afraid to use it (although that's not because i'm good with it but just a bit irresponsible and reckless) - will take a good look at the when i get a minute.

thanks.

ian,

i was reading through that blog post and thinking that it'd be good to ask the author a few questions about the thing and then i realised that it's your blog!

i had a look around the site and now i realise that you and beth and the ones kindly making me my shiny new frame bag - cool.

so.....how well does it work???

how easy is it to put together???

the testimonials and info on the site seem to make it all seem perfect for my needs.

i've just placed my order and so we'll see if i'm up to the challenge of a: reading the schematics and b: soldering the fiddly little bugger so that it works!

thanks for the link buddy!

I used a PowerMonkey to keep cameras charged, the Solar charger works quite well and fitted easily to my climbing pack. I believe that Exposure make a connector allowing you to charge via usb from a piggy back cell.

I have an Energiser charger from Ebay that cost £3 including batteries and came with mini-USB and some phone charger lead (don't have a mobile)

2x Lithium AAs charged the MP3 player 3 times giving me 45hrs of music for the flights and the Annapurna Circuit. Weighs about 60g and is not much bigger than the AAs it takes.

SSP

gairym wrote:i had a look around the site and now i realise that you and beth and the ones kindly making me my shiny new frame bag - cool.

Yes, that's us. Your bag is coming on nicely actually :D

so.....how well does it work???

I can get two-three charges of my GPS of one pair of Lithium batteries.. I used it on two occasions on the Wales Tour once I'd stopped for the night, and I also used it on the fly in my jersey pocket while doing the BB200.

how easy is it to put together???

I found it fairly easy, and I hadn't done any soldering since high school 20 years ago. I'm slightly drawn to the MYOG side of things (which is how Wildcat Gear came to be), so there are surely easy and maybe cheaper solutions. But it was fun to build and I take pride in using something I built up myself (though not conceived the design). The instructions are fine to follow. I used a different box so that I can stash a USB lead (which I shortened especially) into the same box:


Charging by ianbarrington, on Flickr

thanks for the link buddy!

My pleasure

didnothingfatal/Singlespeedpunk,

thanks for that - i'll be honest, if i'd realised that there was a sub-tenner ready-made solution before i bought the MYOG kit then i'd most likely have taken the easy route and got one.

but.....i've ordered my kit now and am really looking forward to making my own little electronic gadget to solve my energy problem.

Ian wrote:Yes, that's us. Your bag is coming on nicely actually

good good. glad to hear it. can't wait to get it out in the hills!

cheers for all your help folks - appreciated.

gairy.