Goal Zero Nomad 7 Plus phone charger solar

[Lisa Truck Gypsy]

Does anyone know anything about this product? I'm looking for a small portable solar unit and will only be charging a Samsung phone, and a laptop.
https://www.rei.com/product/880056/goal-zero-venture-30-solar-kit

 

[John61CT]

REI sells good stuff, good guarantee policy.

Watts/amps POV it's tiny, but you're paying for the robust portability for hikers, climbers, kayaking, just for charging tablets & phones.

If that's not you, for Van use, you can get a lot more power for the money.

 

[jimindenver]

7 watts is a incredibly small amount of solar.

 

[Suanne]

I got the 7 watt Goal Zero panels for recharging a few devices while I travel around in my Prius over 2 years ago. I find it works ok for charging my smart phone, wifi hotspot, and recharging batteries. It takes more than a day to recharge a drained battery on my tablet/laptop (2-in-1 type).

I liked the smallness and convenience of the panel, but knew I wanted more wattage. So, I got 2 more folding panels -- Renogy 14 watt -- for a total of 35 watts altogether. This has been working well for me now for over a year.

The thing I like about the Goal Zero product over Renogy's, is the additional types of plugs, in addition to USB. But, I like the extra wattage and cheaper price of the Renogy panels.

Hope that information helps in your decision making.

Suanne

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

You don't mention how you will be using this charger. Is it for when you are away from your vehicle like on a trail?

Exactly.  You should be able to easily recharge your phone and laptop while driving with charger's plugged into the cigarette lighter socket.  Solar would only be needed if you were going to sit in one place for days.

 

[highdesertranger]

you are paying a lot for very little solar. highdesertranger

 

[Almost There]

Way back before I had a good solar system I used to just charge my Samsung phone AND my laptop with the accessory plug on the dash. I have a 12V charger for my phone and used a $20.00 120W Black and Decker plug in inverter for the laptop.

I could go 3 days and still have the van start, having charged the phone and the laptop once each, each day. Day 4 required a boost so I quickly learned not to go more than 3 days without starting the van and going someplace which was no problem because I needed ice by then anyways.

Just saying that you might even not need that overpriced really small solar system in the first place.

If you're running on an old(er) battery in your vehicle you might want to put the money in to a newer more robust battery but if it's fairly new, put the money towards something else you need.

 

[John61CT]

Just saying that you might even not need that overpriced really small solar system in the first place.

I didn't even imagine anyone would think they need something like this around a vehicle or civilization.

It's strictly for when you're away hiking, rafting, climbing, tent camping etc