# $20 solar cell-phone chargers -- everyone should have one? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 17, 2026, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914 "2026-10-17T16:24:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Timz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Timz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Timz)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/1 "2026-10-17T16:24:40Z")
Everyone who wants to be prepared for days-long power outages, I mean. In the old days, phones still worked when the power was out – now they don’t. So you need your own power source to be able to communicate at all. Do those cheap solar-charged phone-size batteries fill the bill? Leave the charger out in the sun all day to charge its battery, then plug in your phone to charge at night? Sounds like a fine idea – is it as fine as it sounds? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/2 "2026-10-17T16:27:17Z")
My plan for a long power outage is to recharge the phone in the car, so no, I don’t have a solar charger. ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/3 "2026-10-17T16:30:51Z")
Problem is a power outage will affect the cell towers too, some have generators but if the outage is too long (more than a few hours?) the cell towers will fail. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/4 "2026-10-17T16:36:06Z")
Depending on how widespread the power outage is, of course. If your entire town or region is down for days, then, yeah, your local cell towers will probably go down, sooner or later. At least around here, while power outages due to severe weather (high winds, tornadoes, ice storms) are not uncommon, the outages tend to be more localized: within a town, some blocks or neighborhoods may be down, due to a local service line being taken out by a tree or whatever, but the next block or neighborhood over may well still have power. So, cell service may be somewhat impacted (i.e., a particular tower might be unpowered), but generally speaking, the service may not go down entirely. That said, we don’t get hurricanes around here. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/5 "2026-10-17T16:42:43Z")
> [@Frodo](#): > > Problem is a power outage will affect the cell towers too, some have generators but if the outage is too long (more than a few hours?) the cell towers will fail. Yeah but at least I can still play Candy Crush ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/6 "2026-10-17T16:44:04Z")
Ah you are right, I was thinking of more general power outages, for your run of the mill localized outage it will be very useful. Though what I do in those cases is vampirize power from my work laptop, since it’s either outside working hours or I can’t work because my router is down. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/7 "2026-10-17T17:25:04Z")
My experience with those cheapies is it takes about 3 full days of intense dawn to dusk exposure to direct sun to charge them enough to put a half-charge in a modern phone. There might be better ones out there, but I’d want something that gave specs about a) battery capacity and b) solar cell output and charge rate. I can do the math on how well [this] solar array will charge [that] battery. Or not. Particularly for people in northern climes, the odds on full sun after a big storm are low; days of gloom more like. Further, dawn to dusk in February in Boston and dawn to dusk in February in Miami are two very different amounts of time and intensity / directness of sunshine. Even under completely clear skies Boston will receive half the watts per day that Miami will. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/8 "2026-10-17T17:27:29Z")
We don’t have long outages here either. I have a small power brick that holds a bit over two full cell phone charges that I use in shorter outages and when I’m at a full day event like a music festival. I have a much larger power brick in my car that stores way more energy and can jump start a car battery. The trick is to keep them fully charged which isn’t a problem for my OCD ass. As someone already mentioned you can use your car, especially if you have an EV. My van life friends have big solar chargers but they cost in the $200 range. It certainly wouldn’t hurt to have a cheap solar charger. They are probably nice for backpacking, not that I backpack. I’d go for a more expensive version with more storage if I lived in hurricane country. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/9 "2026-10-17T17:44:55Z")
My experience is similar. As a gift, I got a phone-sized battery with an attached solar charger. I left it out in direct sun for a full day, and the 4-LED charge indicator on the battery did not move at all. I eventually discarded the device. I did get a full sized 40 inch x 20 inch solar panel which I plan to use for charging batteries and devices during an emergency. I haven’t had occasion to use it yet, but it’s supposed to deliver 500 Wh per day (enough to charge a phone ~20 times), so I expect it to work much better than the crappy one I discarded. It did cost about $150 but you get what you pay for. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/10 "2026-10-17T17:46:25Z")
A couple of years ago, we had a really bad power outage around here… The outage map had red all over the city, and for some customers, it was something like 10 days before power was restored. But even then, there were still a lot of places that did have power, so you could still charge your phone at work, or at a friend’s house, or a community center, or some such. That one was about a worst-case scenario for Cleveland. Places in hurricane or earthquake territory might get it even worse than we did. But then you’re back to the cell network not working. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/11 "2026-10-17T18:29:12Z")
> [@Frodo](#): > > Problem is a power outage will affect the cell towers too, some have generators but if the outage is too long (more than a few hours?) the cell towers will fail. There’s a cell tower at the town transfer station with a Generac generator at its base. I _think_ it has a natural gas supply line. Also, both AT&T and Verizon have portable cell towers they can bring into town in the event of a major local disaster. ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/12 "2026-10-17T18:48:46Z")
I live in the woods in the mountains so we have power outages fairly frequently. Years ago I invested in a dual fuel generator capable of powering the whole house (unless someone tries to do laundry or vacuum). If I run out of fuel I also have a 200W battery bank that’s always plugged in. If things get really crazy it has a solar charger too from when I used it on my sailboat. I don’t trust the cheapies to work when you need them to. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/13 "2026-10-17T19:10:26Z")
I have a 32000 mah battery with a solar panel on top, it’s _just_ good enough to keep the battery steady over it’s default discharge. I also have a folding 12"x 36" panel for a bit more oomph as well as the ability to drain the UPS on both my and my wife’s desktop computers, assuming we have time to shut them down quickly. Otherwise, these days we have the wife’s 2024 Rav4 Prime which allows for a 1500w draw off the traction battery and being able to run the ICE to recharge such if needed. But the cheapo $20 solar cell phone chargers? No, can’t endorse them. Anything in that price bracket is very likely to fail out of the box, or barely be able to even trickle charge. I suspect it creates a false sense of security more than anything. (IMHO, YMMV, etc.) ---
**Author:** ![echoreply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/echoreply/32/3641_2.png) [@echoreply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/echoreply)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/14 "2026-10-17T19:38:16Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > My experience with those cheapies is it takes about 3 full days of intense dawn to dusk exposure to direct sun to charge them enough to put a half-charge in a modern phone. Agreed. I was gifted (in exchange for a review) a 20,000mAh battery pack with a solar panel on one side. The battery and charging parts worked great, but the solar panel was a complete waste. A full day in the sun was not enough to put even the smallest charge on the battery. I half believe that all the solar panel does is light the LED that claims it is charging by solar. If you really want a solar chargeable battery to act as a small emergency generator, then you are probably looking at $200+ for a setup with a reasonably large solar panel. It is not a bad idea, depending on what sort of power outages you want to last. If, however, you have a fantasy, like I did, of running all your portable electronics off solar power from a $20 battery/solar setup, then you are out of luck. Another option is to just use the $20 battery as a normal portable battery, and if there are power outages, then use it to keep your phone charged, and re-charge the battery at work or wherever there is power. ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/15 "2026-10-17T19:49:04Z")
I spent that $20 on a 5 gallon bucket and a toilet seat that snaps onto it instead. I plan to use the contents to repel boarders if necessary. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2026, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/16 "2026-10-18T05:40:08Z")
> [@Timz](#): > > In the old days, phones still worked when the power was out – now they don’t. Not precisely true. Landline phones still worked because they had power from the lines coming into the building. Those were powered by the local exchange office, which had a big bank of lead-acid batteries to supply the phone system power, and a local generator to keep those batteries charged during any prolonged grid outage. That is still relevant for the 27% of households (50% or seniors) that have a wired landline phone. And really, for cellphones too --cellphones are only wireless for the last mile or so going from the phone to the nearest cell tower – those are wired to the exchange office, and from then on, the call goes over the regular telephone network (wired, fiber, microwave, undersea cable, etc.). ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2026, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/17 "2026-10-18T05:50:17Z")
I sometimes hike with a little solar charger hooked to my pack. They charge slowly and won’t give you a great return, but OTOH, it costs nothing to charge them and you can get enough charge to make an emergency call. That said, I periodically charge up all the little batteries and solar chargers from wall current so they’re ready to go. We have a Jackery that holds a charge well and just got folding solar panels for it as a backup. We’ve had roof panels in the past, and even in the cloudy winter PNW, they did charge. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2026, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/18 "2026-10-18T11:05:22Z")
Those little chargers don’t do much. And a power outage might not be your biggest problem in an emergency. My county’s communications is largely served by a small number of fiber lines. The cell towers are fed by the fiber connection, so if they lose that, they may shut down automatically. At one time, the county was fed by a single fiber line. Even though I had power, there was no cell service or internet, and only local landline phone. The cause was some farmer with a backhoe who forgot to call diggers hotline before digging, and he severed the single line. This happened again earlier this year, although this time there was some redundancy. In both cases, power was not the problem. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2026, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/19 "2026-10-18T11:34:53Z")
Agree w those concerns. Which apply equally to landlines. ---
**Author:** ![ZonexandScout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zonexandscout/32/544_2.png) [@ZonexandScout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZonexandScout)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2026, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914/20 "2026-10-18T12:29:00Z")
We just happened to have had a power outage today at our house in NC. It only lasted about 6 hours, but we began to get concerned about my wife’s tablet that she uses for reading and maintaining a wifi hotspot using one of our cell phones. The solution I’ve found is a USB adapter that fits my Ryobi 18V or 40V batteries that I use for my tools, trimmer, and lawn mower. The adapters are about $15 to $20 on Amazon and work just fine. I always have a few batteries charged or charging in my laundry room, so why not use them? (I also have big flashlight and lantern attachments to use with the batteries.) You can also get an inverter that uses two 40V batteries to produce 350 watts of AC for about $80. Works great for CPAP and other critical devices. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-solar-cell-phone-chargers-everyone-should-have-one/1033914.md?page=2)