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19 of 19 found the following review helpful:
 Military technology and durability. Apr 18, 2011
By Techhy
"Dude!"
First of all, all powerfilm folding panels come with an RA-2 adapter, which connects to the marine connector provided on the panel, this adapter provides a CIG-LITER (AUTO DC JACK). (This is hardly mentioned in most literature.)
This is only one of many powerfilm panels I have purchased. I ALWAYS test them prior to gifting them, both to check that the gift is functional, and to develop a sense for the quality of the flexible PV technology. These panels have produced every single rated watt, and perform gloriously in low sun conditions (20-30% in full cloud cover). There are no other true comparitive competions available. (Brunton, etc which are heavier, bigger, and more expensive, as well as less rugged). I have purchase all of the models available not just the 20w unit, and I find the 20 & 30w to be the most useful, however I find myself never leaving home without the 60w one since it will power my laptop directly (with no adapters!) even in cloudy conditions. And even the 60w is the size of the laptop, not a bad rig. (The 20W here is the size of a typical notepad!) On all of the models, I used a sharpie (silver/black/red depending on panel fabric color) to indicate the "fold lines" otherwise it is a challenge to fold back the way it was manufactured without spending some time figuring it out each time. So I would suggest to Powerfilm company= Put a hint of how to close it up imprinted on the fold lines, and also= offer the marine connector as an accessory so we can make our own ends! And THAT my friend is an EXCELLENT product which prompted my review, normally I only leave reviews for terrible products to warn away buyers, but this time I decided POWERFILM is company I should invest in! (great quality and true ratings!)
Further note: The panel outputs above ratings even when laying on a hot van roof (tested at 157F) in full direct sun exposure on a 111F (not exaggerating) Texas "heat wave" summer day, however even though it achieved decent rating in such conditions, it is still derated from it's actual ability if the panel is kept cool, so I suggest putting the panel on the grass, a table, or suspending it so that the breeze can cool it underneath during such extreme conditions. (not on hot pavement!) The thermal derating factor is less with this panel than others tested, but it is the difference between the laptop charging properly or cycling (my laptop tested at 20.8Watts MIN requirement). It is similar to the video on YouTube where the output decreases after the panel is SHOT FULL OF HOLES with a pistol several times, but still outputs nicely (Heat has the same effect without the bullet holes!). In my case the borderline is the rated value of 20watts. (In such a case I use either a 30w panel, or a combination totaling 30w or better, but it is something to be aware of that is inherent with ALL solar panels of all kinds...)
Occasionally you will find these panels for around $10/watt on Amazon. YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THE CHANCE TO OWN THEM IF YOU WERE INTERESTED ENOUGH TO READ THIS ENTIRE REVIEW.
Enjoy the great outdoors while we still the "liberty" to do so!
Now a "lesson" in solar power: (not "review" related, but here goes...)
Your device (lets assume a laptop for discussion) will have a WATT rating, there will be a label on the adapter- however that rating is for the AC ADAPTER, your laptop will be lesser in reality. So the best way to find out is to use a DC ADAPTER (Automobile 12volt to PC power voltage - they are as low as $15). The reason for this is because you will not need an inverter (or the extra wattage to power it). You can use a DC AMP METER(google how to do that if you do not know) to determine the ACTUAL current, lets say 1.1amp at 14.5volts for example is what you measure. The voltage printed on the adapter/laptop will not need to be measured. So the WATTAGE is VOLTS x AMPS (14.5x1.1) = 15.95WATTS. Now you know a 20W panel will suffice for this device (with 4 watts "left over" to use a splitter to charge a cellphone or whatever!). The values are taken from a little netbook, not a full sized laptop which consumes nearly exactly 20W. TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION the laptop may not charge AND run at the same time, so it may require charging up while OFF, and RUNNING when the battery is charged up, or RUNNING with the battery removed (pray for no clouds!). The reason for this is that when the battery is charging it will consume "extra watts" - typically around 28W to CHARGE & RUN simultaneously. (You can test for this too by measuring when charging & running!) Charging RADIOS and CELLPHONES are not as complicated since they typically charge at constant rates. Using battery chargers (AA/AAA etc.) offers no real technical challenge- But there is VERY little online help for learning about portable PV systems. I am certain IF powerfilm started a blog for this it would help. I would offer a great many suggestions that will not fit in this Amazon review department. Powerfilm would sell many more of these if people had a way to learn this stuff- I know this because everyone I introduce to this technology buys it for themselves.
2 of 2 found the following review helpful:
Simply awesome! May 04, 2011
By J. Masotti
What's not to like? It's compact and lightweight, and generates a solid 20W on a sunny day.
Near perfect camping accessory. Worth every penny.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Works great and is very portable. Jul 28, 2011
By S. Leiphart
"leiphasw"
I bought a Powerfilm F15-1200 20-watt folding solar panel and an RA-9 charge controller to go with it a couple months ago. (Thankfully my purchase preceded the recent $100+ increase in price.) I took them to Haiti with me for a 3 week missions trip the end of June 2011. I needed to charge my little Netbook computer plus a few dozen AA batteries that were in everything I and my accompanying team members used: flashlights, cameras, air mattress pumps, etc. Since the 12 volt 20 watt panel won't directly run the 19 volt 16 watt Netbook car adapter (I'll explain why later) I also brought two small 48 amp-hour 12 volt lead acid Gel Cell batteries along. (One would have been plenty.) This 20 watt panel and the RS-9 controller in series charged the 12 volt batteries. (These were 12 volt batteries I had bought for a computer UPS which ended up not needing them.) The charge controller is necessary to prevent the panel, which can produce up to 18 volts if not limited, from continuing to charge the 12 volt battery beyond the 13-14 volts which is the maximum for a 12 volt battery. If the charge continues, the excess voltage will be converted to heat and the battery will literally cook itself to death. The charge controller limits the voltage to the maximum safe voltage for the battery and reduces the current as the battery approaches the fully charged state.
This 20-watt panel and the charge controller worked as they were supposed to work and were extremely reliable. The folding solar panel is small and light weight and is "obviously" intended to be portable. However, the Ra-9 charge controller built specifically for this application and sold supplied by Powerfilm is a "permanent", "screw it to the wall" design. If you look at the picture of the device, it is about 2 inches by 2 inches on the square top. BUT, it is about 1.5 inches high with two big ears with screw holes in them. Internally, the "potted" resin filled chamber with the electronics is only about 5/8 of an inch. the extra 3/4 inch or so of empty space and the big screw hole ears is just wasted space! Before I left for my trip, I took wire cutters and chopped away all the bottom plastic that was empty space and lopped the ears off with it. Now my "customized" controller is about 1/2 as big as it was when it arrived and is much more of what a portable solar panel should have.
With Powerfilm branded panels, they add what appear to be totally custom / proprietary "marine grade" connectors on everything. These connectors appear to be very high quality and water tight. They are great if you want to buy only their Powerfilm branded or approved devices, but to adapt to any other non-Powerfilm device, you will need to chop those connectors off and improvise some other connector arrangement.
My Powerfilm 20 watt panel combined with the charge controller worked great for the solid 3 weeks of charging I used during my trip to the outer reaches of Haiti well beyond the run of the power lines. I had more power than I knew what to do with since the sun was nearly straight up and blazing every single day!
Oh... the 12 volt 20 watt to 19 volt 16 watt conundrum with my Netbook. The problem isn't the with the 20 watt panel or the "average" power requirement, it is a problem with the way that charger power is made. To get 19 volts from a 12 volt supply, what is used is called a "charge pump" in the 12 volt adapter. This is a high speed oscillator circuit which charges a tiny capacitor to 12 volts. Then it quickly reverses that capacitor and connects it in series with the original 12 volt power source. This gives 24 volts. This 24 volts is then used to charge yet another capacitor to the needed voltage; in my case for my Netbook it was 19 volts. This 19 volts is then sent out the output to power/charge the Netbook computer. This oscillation of charging the tiny capacitors and flipping their polarity occurs hundreds of thousands of times per second. The problem is that this oscillation causes the power to be drawn from the 12 volt source (i.e. the solar panel) only part of the time. While the tiny capacitors are being charged, the 12 volt power is being used. While the circuit is flipping the capacitors around, it is not being used. Therefore, during the charging time, up to double the "average" draw is being taken and is "made up for" by not drawing anything while the capacitors are being flipped. So, the average power needed is only 16 watts in my case, but about 1/2 the time up to 32 watts are needed and the other half of the time 0 watts are needed. This panel can produce only 20 watts peak even for the tiny fraction of a second that more is needed, no more.
Therefore, this panel cannot power a charge pump "car charger" that is required to produce more than 12 volts on its output. This is not a problem with the panel; it is a problem with the way the power is used in the device's charge adapter.
Theoretically, though I have not tried this, placing a small capacitor across the panel's power before the charge pump adapter could solve this problem since it would charge from the 12 volt panel and could supply the tiny pulse of greater current needed by the charge pump. Perhaps I'll try this soon and add a comment in that regard.
Cheers! Please do something good for someone with the power these solar panels and controllers provide.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Enough power for small things Jun 17, 2011
By Agnius Griskevicius
"It is not soft, it is hyperfocal"
If your goal is to trickle charge batteries and run SMALL devices, this is a good panel.
First, I was very surprised how small it was. The manufacturer's website does not have too many pictures of the product. It is quite small and light.
I use Targus Premium Laptop Charger (AC/DC) APM69US to plug into provided female receptacle and I was able to charge my iPhone 3GS in moderatly overcast conditions. When clouds got thicker, I started getting "device not supported" message on my iPhone - there was not enough current.
I hooked it up to my Volt/Amp meter and in overcast conditions was getting 18V (open circuit) and .3 amps. When sun came out the amps rose to .7. It was about 4 o'clock in the afternoon.
Second test was trying to trickle charge my Thinkpad X220I 12.5" 320GB 4G, and that just did not work. At noon with full sun out I would get charge symbol flashing off on my laptop every 2-3 seconds. After "charging" for 30 minutes I booted up the laptop just to find the charge reduced (probably from booting up action). So my conclusion is that there is not enough current to charge a laptop, but I knew that - it is only a 20W panel.
I am moving to 60W panel, we'll see if it works for me. I want to be able to run a laptop in sunny conditions, and charge in overcast. I am trying to avoid in between battery systems as they are another thing to worry about and another loss of power in conversion.
If you try to buy American, then it is a mixed bag. It is "assembled in China with U.S.A. solar modules and other foreign components". Go figure. I was hoping for USA made panel as Brunton clearly states that it's origin is "overseas". I wish Powerfilm was more forthcoming on their website (and amazon).
6-18-2011 Update
I plugged in Canon LC-4E Battery Charger for the LP-E4 Battery Pack and in bright sunlight it appeared charging. Even covering 2/3 of panel it would still charge - I could see charge light go off, recalibrate to the new current and then continue to charge. So if I only needed to charge my Canon LP-E4 Battery Pack, this panel would work. The batteries are 32WH, and they charge in couple hours on AC, so with solar they would charge depending on the power of your panel. You need Canon CB570 Car Battery Cable for 500 Series Batteries for interface between the charger and the solar panel.
1 of 7 found the following review helpful:
 not great, just ok Jun 25, 2011
By greenterrace
Haven't had a chance to really try this panel out yet. So far won't charge or run Apple products. You must buy an adapter to up the amps to run a netbook or charge a tekeon portable battery. Seems to only run small electronics. So it would be fine as long as you don't have high expectations. Shipped and arrived on time in as-advertised condition.
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