Infinit Solar Backpack: Review
Charging mobile devices on the go using the sun is a good idea, and Infinit’s backpack is well thought out and practical
The backpack comes with a plastic bag containing a USB cable and eight power adapters designed to charge different devices, but if yours isn’t included, and you have a USB charging cable for it, you can always plug directly into the battery. The number of connectors is actually a bit depressing. The ITU has done its bit to persuade phone makers to standardise on the same micro-USB charger, but there are still an awful lot of different chargers out there.
There’s a a small red LED on the outside of the bag that tells you when the panel is charging, and there are four blue LEDs on the battery which tell you how much charge it contains.
The battery has 2000mAh capacity, enough to more or less charge up two iPhones at 1200mAh. With an output power of 800mA, it should take a couple of hours to charge a phone.
The speed of charging from the solar panel depends on how much sun there is, of course. The maximum specified rate on the battery is 600mA input charging, so on a sunny day, it might charge up in a little over three hours.
On my trip away, the panel managed to put about 500mAh (half a charge) on my old Sony Ericsson, propped up on the table of a Eurostar train, taking whatever random sun came through the window during a two and a half hour trip, which included a spell under the English Channel.
The specified output rate is 700mA, so it should charge an iPhone in under two hours.
Wisely, given the fact that you can’t rely on sunshine, Infinit provides a UK plug with a USB adapter to charge devices when there’s no sun.
You have to work at it
To make the best use of this bag, you have to work at it. Place the bag to get as much sun as possible, and channel that onto your devices as quickly as possible so the panel can slurp up some more energy.
The bag itself has an anonymous black waterproof cover, which would also make a good disguise for it, if you are worried it may look too enticing to thieves.
Overall, I’d be happy to use this backpack day-to-day. Though £89.99 is a bit out of my normal price range, it could be justified if I was spending extensive time off-grid.
