Portable solar panel buying guide shows the renewable technologies have grown in popularity.

You can have portable solar panels for home, portable solar panels for camping, portable solar panel for caravan use and portable solar panel for RV and the good news is that the same panels can be used in all places.

Although it would be great to cut ties with all electronic devices, sometimes people escape from their hassles of the connected world unintentionally. The portable solar panel buying guide provides information in a summary list.

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Your phone or iPad or computer batteries will lose charge and the particular device will die. A portable solar panel will recharge your batteries and reconnect you to the World Wide Web.

 Having a portable solar panel will let you do two things at once; escape for the weekend while being available for work, friends or family. Isolation may not be your thing.

Okay, the desire to stay connected might be a small part of why you are here! It’s understandable that before you spend your hard earned cash you will want to find the best portable solar panel for your needs. That may be in the form of a portable solar panel kit, which can become the portable solar panels for home, camping, RV, caravan or mobile home.

This portable solar panel buying guide has five mini reviews of great portable backpack solar products to help you plus three mini reviews of great portable RV solar panel kits; products that we feel are worth you having a look at. 

If you are not sure if you need a portable solar panel, let us explain why these new gadgets are so handy. These gadgets are easy to set up and super easy to use. There are two sizes in portable solar panels: the RV portable roadside charging solar panels and the personal backpack carry type. No assembly is required.

Once you open up the solar charger kit you simply position it facing the sun. Secure it by attaching it to something so it will not blow away or fall in the water. That way you can do something else while the sun and solar panel do their job.

It is important to choose the right quality portable solar panel. You want to have all your gadgets power up when you need them. You want to charge up all of your electronic devices while the sun shines; everything that requires being charged.

It’s sensible to do some research on the portable solar panels that are available before you buy. Portable solar items can range from tens of dollars up to several hundred dollars, so, I hope this article helps you choose.

The portable solar panel buying guide lists some portable recharging gadgets that might be new to the market; but you are reading this so you may have already seen them being used.

It's tempting to rush out and invest, but do your research. This portable solar panel buying guide will help your search in some product information.

Decide on the electronic items that you will want to charge. Usually you avoid taking too many electronic appliances on holiday. While you are away hiking, camping in your trailer or out on your boat why load up with electronic gear?

Electronic gear needs to be useful and working. Mobiles help to capture the moment; laptops are there for email and entertainment. This portable solar panel buying guide suggests that the portable solar panel's capacity will mostly determine what gear gets charged. Set up whatever best suit your needs. So here are some things that you’ll want to consider. Decide what gadgets you will take on holiday and their charge requirement before you pull out the credit card to purchase your portable solar panel.

If you’re ever going to use the solar charger on a boating trip make sure the gear resists water. Many solar kits say they are waterproof but it depends on how you are going to use it. Yes, kits can be rain resistant but if they are used over water it’s really important to be waterproof.

Make sure the panel cell is efficient. Both Polycrystalline & Monocrystalline solar cell systems work well. But a smaller portable solar panel is more portable than a larger one. The smaller the cell, the more efficient it needs to be. Usually a Monocrystalline cell has better efficiency so they can be made smaller.

A better or higher solar cell efficiency means you need less panel area to achieve a given wattage output. The best portable solar panels for camping might be different to the best portable solar panels for hiking. Your hiking experience might be better with a mobile phone with a good inbuilt camera that sits on your belt but a solar charger that isn't light weight and easy to carry is likely to stay at the car or tent site.

Some portable solar panels are flexible and easy to pack away. That is useful when you want to move the panels.

This portable solar panel buying guide proposes that your solar panel kit should at least be foldable to make it a manageable size.

Most portable solar units come with a storage bag provided. Some portable solar panels fold up to a suitcase-sized box. Others fold or roll up and fit into a bag with handles.

Some portable solar panels are small enough that you can fold or roll them into a backpack. Some personal panels even attach to the outside of your backpack to charge your phone while you are hiking.

One personal portable panel may be used for charging a phone, tablet, computer or rechargeable battery. They only need a panel and a USB port. Maybe you want two solar panels if you are charging your phone and a tablet.

When it comes to charging your laptop computer or a similar sized battery you might have to look at using a bigger portable solar panel.

• Battery – if you are charging a battery make sure that the system comes with an external controller. We suggest you get it with an HQST 20A PWM Controller.
• Make sure there is a built in Ammeter in the panel or attach an external one to read the power being converted from the sunlight.

The size (wattage) of the portable solar panel will depend on what you’re preparing for re-charging. A lightweight portable solar panel on a backpack should be enough if you want to top up your mobile phone.

If you expect to recharge your car battery, or the battery for a boat, you will need a larger system. It can still be portable but it's not going to be the size you want to carry any distance. Running the appliances in an RV while you’re camped in an off-road site will need some extra panel area. That’s especially true if you want some charge in a battery bank for after sundown use later.

A lightweight portable solar panel can be as light as a half a pound. The larger portable models can weigh up to 30 pounds.

Weight matters when you’re carrying anything from place to place. Most people prefer the small light portable solar panels when they are hiking. The same applies if you need to be manually moving portable solar panels for RV use from your vehicle to the site to set them up and later when the campsite is being cleared, moving them again to storage.

The more efficient the panels, the lighter the panels can be. Lighter panels are so much better for moving around.

The weight won’t matter as much if you have the panels attached to your RV or can be unpacked from the RV and set up to close to where you stop.

To charge your battery you unfold it, plug it in and lean the panels back on its support frame. The same set up goes for charging or operating any appliances. 

If you are buying a portable solar panel for charging a battery on your boat, or for using near water, make sure that you get a marine grade system.

Everyone wants the biggest bang for their buck!

No one wants to be paying for something that they don’t need. There is no extra benefit from buying a system that is too big.

Bigger costs more, takes up more space and will need care and maintenance. Take a look through the reviews in the portable solar panel buying guide. There are links in the reviews to pricing.

If you are unsure about how much wattage you need from your portable solar panel, list out the wattage of the things you are going charge with it. Then, consider the largest wattages items that would be charged together. Add wattages for the multiple items needing a re-charge at the same time.

If the most items you can charge in a group is 4, due to the number of outlets, add their wattages and find the charger that has a capacity slightly larger than that number.

Hopefully, you know more about what you are looking for in regard to portable solar chargers. The reviews provide some guide as to quality and service you might expect from the portable solar device. The star rating provides an indicator for customer satisfaction from validated purchasers. A table in this portable solar panel buying guide should make comparisons easier.

• It uses automatic charge optimization to recover from reduced power that is caused by shade.
• When you're back in the sun your E.Flex5W Plus will automatically determine your charging requirements.
• Lightweight and very slim
• Water-resistant
• Different mounting options - comes with two carabineers & four suction cups
• Compatible with any USB device
• Overcharge Protection

• You can charge any portable USB device with this portable solar power source!
• No pocket, no protective cover for panels, single USB port

• E.Flex5W Plus will stop charging when the sun is not shining on the surface of the whole panel
• It has a very small surface area covered with solar cells

• This portable solar panel has no pocket, and no protective cover for panels
•  It has only a single USB port
• No built in battery

This is the perfect charging pack to add a quick recharge anywhere there is sunlight.

Your experience of camping will depend on where you go, who you go with, what gear you take to use and how long you are out mixing it with nature.

Find your panel choice for portable solar panels in the tables below and use the buttons to see a review of the solar panel kits described and check the price at Amazon.