Been into Solar Chargers for the past 6 months. Interest in solar charges grew from wanting to be prepared for emergencies. The electronic devices that I have are powered through AA, AAA, and USB sources. Therefore, my focus was on finding a solar charger that can power one or any combination of the three. This is the review of the XTG AA and AAA Solar Battery Charger.
I was hopeful as this solar charger is supposed to be able to charge both AA and AAA batteries. Many charges do not have the ability to charge AAA batteries. In addition, the solar charger has the ability to charge devices through a USB adapter. On the positive side, this charger did appear to have some ability to charge AA and AAA batteries, could use AA or AAA batteries to charge a device with a USB connection, there is a charge indicator for either the first AA or AAA battery position, and has a red LED light that turns on when you have a battery inserted and is in the process of charging.
The negatives, however, appear to lower the rating of this device significantly. First, the solar charger was not able to fully charge some of my AA or AAA batteries. I have used Eneloops, Energizer, and Duracell NiMH batteries ranging from brand new to a several years old, but only some of them reached top-level charge as indicated by the third, yellow-green light. Instead, the batteries only reached the mid-level charge indicated by the yellow-orange light, even after a complete full day of bright sun. New alkaline batteries and NiMH batteries charged in another device provide a full charge indication. Second, the level indicators are very vague with a red for low, yellow-orange for medium, and yellow-green LED for full charge. Third, there is no indication of the battery charge being completed. The red LED will remain on, even when I put in a fully charged NiMH. Fourth is that the device appears to be poorly constructed. I bought this device in new condition, but it appeared used when it arrived. The device itself had misaligned LEDs and the battery door did not appear to fit well.
Overall, I rate this XTG AA and AAA Solar Battery Charger a 3.0 out of 5.0 stars. The charger has a good concept and some function, but does not appear to execute the job well. Furthermore, the build quality is not what I have come to expect from XTG. Better performance and build quality would have raised its rating significantly. The XTG AA and AAA Solar Battery Charger is a disappointment compared to their SOL1500 Premium Solar Charger, which I rated a 4.8 out of 5.0 starts. AA and AAA Solar Battery Charger - Charge Your Batteries Via USB or Sun Power - Features Also Include a Battery Tester and USB Output for Charging Cell Phones, iPods/mp3s, and More
Caveat: I have not tested the solar charging features yet.
The product works as advertised, and in fact has some features not shown on the product page. You can provide USB power to other devices using standard disposable batteries (Alkaline, etc.), and can do so with only one pair of AA (rather than the full complement of four AA).
However, the battery tester is weak in that it only provides 3 different LEDs for indication (red, yellow and green) rather than some kind of meter or higher resolution indicator.
The one big disappointment is that when charging the battery (the instruction sheet says its the same whether charging via solar or USB), the unit does not give ANY indication of progress or completion. You don't know when the batteries are fully charged!
Charger arrived yesterday.Seems like solid construction.Nice clean cells,no scratches.Here are the specs on the instruction sheet:Ni-MH AA 2000mah-12hr charging time for two batteries.24hrs for four batteries.Ni-MH AAA 800mah-4.8hrs for two batteries.Ni-CD AA 1000mah-6hrs charging time for 2 batteries,12 hrs for four batts.Ni-CD AA 600mah 3.6 hrs charging time for two batts-7.2 hrs for four batts.Specs also say 500-1000 cycles,which I think means alot compared to just 500 cycles,which some companies claim for their product.I put two 1900mah AA eneloop batteries in,which were discharged down to about .8 volts according to my multitester.After about six hrs of fairly strong sunlight(second week of February) the batteries tested to 1.5 volts.In my opinion this is pretty good news.I would think that in the summer time,four of the same batteries could easily be charged in a day or less.Included cable is USB A Male to Mini USB B 5 pin Male.USB A Male being output and USB Mini being input.To the other reviewer who had a problem with the charging status light not turning green,I would suggest that that feature would cause a significant increase in price.Also,if you're into all things solar,using a multitester is easy to learn and an absolute necessity.Hope this helps.
I have had this item for 3 day's now, and it does everything I expected it to do base on the reviews; I give this SOLAR charger a 5 star based on what this unit is, and does, and not based on what I magically want it to do :) Yes I did take a chance on this purchase, but the option of returning an item is available. Take a minute and look and think about the item. This is a solar charger, you cannot expect an electrical charge out of it like you would right out of your wall socket. This item is $25 bucks, and I know that if you were to go into a Radio Shack to purchase this very same item it would run you, "oh I would say anywhere from $59 -$89 bucks". Yes the battery indicator does not indicate a green light for rechargeable batteries, so you do need a voltmeter, and I have seen voltmeters at the dollar store that work well or on this site for a buck or two. Of course your batteries will charge without a voltmeter, it's just so you will know when the batteries are fully charged. Just use common sense depending on the weather. This charger so far, works great, as long as you have patients and a little understanding for the still in process movement of solar energy. This charger charges four AA within a charge, or two AAA batteries within one charge, one charge can take up to 1 to 2 or 4 days, this all depends on your location, weather, and rechargeable batteries you are using. This device fully charged my HTC Touch just fine off of two AA batteries; you can charge a device with either 4 AA batteries in the charger which is nice! Or you can charge a device with 2 AA batteries in the charger which works fine as well; you can also charge a device with regular none chargeable batteries (single use batteries)! That is a big plus for those who travel a lot. Those who want the option of being able to charge their digital cameras, phones, or whatever device it may be that can handle the correct charge from this charger. The USB output is DC 5.0---350mA and the charging current is 200mA for 2 batteries and 100mA for 4 batteries. My unit did come in a package that was sealed, and yes it has a shiny finish, but there are some small scratches that make it look like it was used before hand (which I doubt, I think it's just the best finish they can come up with). So far the unit is working good, I recommend it for either travel, or emergencies, because you can use regular none rechargeable batteries to charge up your devices successfully, make sure you test it out before leaving town, and yes you can use rechargeable batteries, just recognize the time it may take to charge it. The other reason why I recommend this device is for emergencies, or even if SHTF for those who know what I am talking about :) it will work great for flash lights and portable games for your kids. Oh I almost forgot, the other poster was right, the durability is not solid, but not that weak either (meaning it won't break as long as you don't throw it against a wall or drop it 50 times like some do with their phones. I will repost on here with updates, I plan on testing out outdoor solar light rechargeable batteries in this charger, and please excuse my grammar; I am posting this as a favor to you, and hope it helped a little. - Backup - Battery Charger - Solar Charger - Charger'
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