Best power charger for hiking

How do you determine the best power charger for hiking and backpacking? First: check out this video from David on Earth. We explore the key factors you'll need to consider when selecting a unit to recharge your phone or gps device while on trail.

Chapters:
00:00 - Introduction
00:21 - Options
01:20 - Battery Banks
03:54 - Understanding Solar Technology
06:00 - Battery Bank + Solar
07:19 - Solar Panels
11:03 - Recommendations

Links to products in this video:

Our mission at David on Earth is to encourage and inspire everyone at any age to get more active and to live healthy, happy, and longer lives. We focus on hiking and backpacking, the gear we use, and ways to help everyone stay vertical as long as possible!

6 WAYS YOU CAN SUPPORT THIS CHANNEL
1. Participate on YouTube. Subscribe to this channel, press like, share with your friends, and leave comments - all these small actions help us do better in search results and build a bigger audience.
My Patreon page has content not found anywhere else - not Youtube, not my website, not anywhere. Comprehensive planning/training guides, stock photography, additional merch, and other special offers.
6. Buy one of David's books on Amazon
"Purpose on the Colorado Trail"
Gear in this video:

[DavidonEarth]

Tell us about your power (re)charger system!

[shirleydiazhurtado]

*I love my new solar **Generater.Systems** . It has the right amount of charging power for my needs and the light weight makes the portability idea.*

[madzen]

I kinda like that the charging time is so long, you're not really supposed to be on your phone all the time when outdoors anyway

[Dippy-st]

I could listen to this man talk for hours, his voice is very relaxing

[bobv]

Thanks for the clear explanation of trail power options out there. As you mentioned there are many choices. I'm planning a few section hikes & my old 10000 mAh bank is not holding a charge very well. Time for a new one. The choice for power on the trail is so dependent on individual needs. All of the factors you mention to consider for sure. I'm looking at how much I want to charge, how fast & how often. For trips over 5 days I do take a solar panel primarily for those just in case situations where if I'm out of bank power I can hopefully charge my sat-com/gps device in a bind. Really appreciate your clear overview. It was very helpful. Thanks again! Best V

[oeckstei]

Have had an anker with 26, 000 mAh and it has charge my iPhone at least 6-8 times in a week with active use.

[_BigLife_]

Nice video and information. Thank you

[shmayazuggot]

Take a look at the shargeek storm. Its 94Kwh, can charge it from zero in 1.5 hours and it has 3 ports including a dc in/out port, also has a folding solar panel add on ~7w charge to the phone.

[chrislucas]

This is an EXCELLENT video. Very, very good for someone just starting to look into solar/power banks. Loved the explanation, the content, etc.
More videos like this reviewing pros/cons of portable systems would be awesome.

I'm currently spending a lot of time outdoors just in the city/suburbs; as I walk AT LEAST 45 mins per day, and usually closer to 90 mins. (Doing the '75 Hard' challenge to peak my mental and physical health). I'm also not driving at present, and take all forms of travel - from family members, to Lyft and Uber, to our Frontrunner and TRAX trains (SLC, Utah area).
I WOULD LOVE TO SEE a video like this for urban travel, as I LITERALLY live out of my backpack from the moment I leave the house in the morning, until I get home 9-12 hours later. A 10, 000mAh power bank has worked well so far, but what else could I do to improve?

I've started researching better (and rechargeable) headlamps (both front facing as well as something to face backwards so traffic can see me on the roadways, walking or taking a scooter). I've considered researching a power bank that will also charge my laptop (as it has USB-C on it, and I "think" it can be charged via USB if it has the proper charger.)

So a video like this that deals with urban "survival" for all the things you don't think of until you start doing a lot of voluntary (and involuntary) walking and public transit in daily life, would be great. Just a thought.
At any rate - love your style! Again, great video!!!

[DrJohn]

Good timely review/explanation for me with the western trip coming up this summer.

[alexanter]

I do have the Ravpower panel like yours but has 4 leafs and is 24w. I'm in London and is charging even in cloudy days

[CarvingAPath]

This video was extremely helpful. Thank you for taking the time to post. Answered a lot of questions. Thanks again!

[tobytollefsen]

Newbie here. Thanks for some great explanations and what to look for. Toby

[southernstacker]

I was planning on starting the lower leg of th AT next spring and need something solar to keep my devices charged. Thanks for the video.

[robertmeyer]

I have a lot of power banks and a few solar . Anker has never let me down. I got 26500Mah with USB C . runs. Charges my laptop . that big blue panel I have. Works great even under cloudy and over cast . output drops off a lot but still puts power into my bank. over time adds up. The bigger the solar panel the better under low light I found. I got big blue solar bank 26000 Mah. has 10watt folding panel. only takes a day or 2 to recharge solar. I charge camcorder /laptop /phone/ camping lights . I went a weak trip and never ran out of power. thank you video was great !

[vBDKv]

I use a battery pack with a bigger solar panel. It works great. Those battery packs with tiny built in solar cells take *forever* to recharge. Oh and I use X-Dragon 20w panel with a Varta energy 20000mah battery pack. From 0 to 100%, it takes roughly 5 hours. That's fast.

[goodinplenty]

I haven't met an anker product that I didn't like. I enjoy their battery banks, cords, and earbuds. Great products!

[waterfallw]

Your video has helped me understand how solar panels work and what to look for to suite my needs, thank you so much!

[abuzz]

This is excellent information. I have an Anker 12000mah power bank and wonder what type of solar panel I can use to charge it.

[SaadonAksah]

I use the Forclaz 15w charger to charge my baseus power bank. It works but Im gonna look for a faster charging set up.