Let’s face it, there are times when you’re out hiking, camping, or enjoying the great outdoors and your smartphone or other device runs out of power with no outlet in sight. Our BlitzWolf 20W Solar Charger review takes a look at a solar-powered, off-grid portable charging solution with dual USB ports.
Specifications
The BlitzWolf 20W Solar Charger has the following features and specifications:
- Highest Ever Sunpower Conversion: Compare to 15% or less conversion rate of some other solar chargers, this solar panel is 21.5%-23.5% efficiency, the highest ever you can see!
- Dual USB Powerports: 3A/20W for dual ports, intelligently detect your devices and deliver the highest possible with Power3S Tech, no worry about overcharging and overloading.
- Automatic Restart: Don’t worry whether the panel is out of solar power, the charger panel will automatically restart charging when it is illuminated again.
- Charges All Phone Models: Under BlitzWolf tests with various phones, this solar panel is capable of charging all the phone models, including iPhone, Samsung, HTC, Sony, Nexus, HUAWEI, XiaoMi, etc. Ideal for outdoor camping, hiking or exploring.
- Total maximum Output: 5V/3A
- Power: 20W
- Panel Type: Sun Power
- Opened Size: 270 x 675 x 4 mm
- Closed Size: 270 x 150 x 28 mm
- Weight: 550g
What’s in the box
- Solar Panel Charger
- USB-A to micro-USB cable
- 4x Carabiner Clips
- User Manual
- Warranty Card (18-month warranty)
Design
The BlitzWolf 20W Solar Charger is very well constructed with a durable material shell which folds over nicely into a fairly compact package. When unfolded, the top flap has two grommet holes in it with three solar panel sections beneath it, another two grommet holes below the bottom panel, and a pouch with a charging box with dual USB-A ports.
The pouch closes with a simple velcro strip in the middle. To be honest, it’d be nicer if the velcro strip was longer or if a zipper was used instead to really make sure your stored device doesn’t fall out. On the outside of the pouch you’ll find the BlitzWolf branding and a diagram showing that the Solar Charger works in full or partial sunlight but not rain.
When folded up, the Solar Charger is held together with a strip of velcro along the long end and the BlitzWolf logo is printed in white with a blue stripe and “20W Solar Charger” printed across it.
Ease of Use
There are multiple ways to set up the BlitzWolf Solar Charger. You can lay it flat on the ground, prop it up against a tree trunk or rock, or even hang it from a line, tree, or your backpack using the included carabiner clips. After the solar panels are exposed to (hopefully full) sunlight, plug in the device(s) you want to charge and tuck them inside the pouch to keep some of the heat off while charging. Even though the pouch is black, it does a decent job of keeping your device relatively cool while charging under the hot sun.
Performance
While the BlitzWolf 20W Solar Charger is rated for 20W/3A charging, that rating is combined between the two ports. During our tests, under full afternoon sunlight, we saw a peak output of 4.53V and 1.17A for 5.3W when charging a USB Type-C smartphone. By comparison, when charging via a wall outlet, the output was 8.5W. The more typical average seemed to settle around 5V and 0.82A for an output of 4.1W. As expected, this output was maintained even after plugging in a second device to the second USB port due to the combined nature of the output rating.
To simulate clouds, we stood in front of the panels one at a time and watched the output drop (again, as expected) until it finally stopped charging with all three panels obstructed from the sun. After moving aside, charging was pretty quick to resume as the Solar Charger soaked up the sun once again.
While the output was o.k. for charging your devices at slower speeds, we were unable to attain the combined 5V/3A output even under direct sunlight — but charging speeds were definitely adequate for a solar powered solution.
Price/Value
The BlitzWolf 20W Solar Charger is currently selling for $49.99USD. Personally, I think this is a bit high for a portable solar charger without some sort of internal power bank backup, but it is priced in line with other similar products. I would pay a bit more if it included a portable power bank that you could use to store power in.
Wrap-up
If you’re frequently going hiking for the weekend or looking for an off-grid way to charge your smartphone and other portable devices, the BlitzWolf 2oW Solar Charger will do the job albeit at a slower rate than advertised.
