Customer reviews from bioliteenergy.com
BioLite - SolarPanel 5+ 5 Watt Portable Solar Panel - Black
Average customer rating
3.9
(106 Reviews)
Rating breakdown 106 reviews
5 Stars
66
4 Stars
8
3 Stars
8
2 Stars
7
1 Star
17
57%of customers recommend this product.
(
34 out of
60)
Customer Reviews for BioLite - SolarPanel 5+ 5 Watt Portable Solar Panel - Black
Posted by: Marge
Verified Purchase:Yes
Works great…and charges the battery bank which is awesome. Biolite products are quality!
Written by a customer while visiting bioliteenergy.com
Posted by: Katherine from Ontario
from Ontario Canada
Length of ownership:1 month
Verified Purchase:Yes
Bought this solar panel for my trip into the national parks in Zambia. Tested it at home (Canada) and it charged quickly, especially when aligning the sundial correctly. Once charged by the sun, I plugged in my cell, and that was charged quickly by the solar panel. I also charged my Kindle and Fitbit with no issues and the solar panel still had power to spare. So far, I'm quite happy with the Solar Panel 5+ and I hope it performing just as well in the jungle.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting bioliteenergy.com
Customer Rating
1
Not very impressive
on May 31, 2023
Posted by: Bart
Length of ownership:1 week
While putting the solar panel centered in full midday sun without clouds in the summer, I'm only picking up a charge speed of 2 out of 4. The build in battery when fully charged is almost fully empty after leaving it alone for one or two days.
The sun dial and stand are nice details, but if the core functionality of the panel is not working properly... it's of not much use.
Would not recommend this product. Probably going to get a different brand panel.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Response from bioliteenergy.comBy BioLite, CS, May 31, 2023
Hi there. Thanks so much for sharing your experience. Please send our team a message here: https://www.bioliteenergy.com/pages/contact. We'd love to connect to help troubleshoot or replace your panel.
Written by a customer while visiting bioliteenergy.com
Customer Rating
5
Easy to Charge
on February 15, 2016
Posted by: Karen Rackham
The SolarPanel 5+ was very easy to charge. I instructed my 12 year old Grandson how to line up the Sundial to charge the SolarPanel. He took it outside and was able to set it up easily. Once charged I was able to charge my phone, Bluetooth earphones and portable speaker. My son took it on a Boy Scout Campout and strapped it on his Backpack and it was fully charged when they arrived to the campsite. Also I hung it from my pot rack that is in front of a window and even though it was not lined up by the sundial it did charge in 3 hours. I'm very impressed with all BioLite products and this is no exception. Looking forward to all your new products.
Written by a customer while visiting bioliteenergy.com
Customer Rating
5
All Day Tiki Jam
on February 16, 2016
Posted by: Sam
I thought I would take advantage of the warmer weather in Houston to give the solar panel a crack at gridless energy to run my summer Tiki Pool and Bar.
I used the panel to alternately charge my iPhone for streaming music, and to recharge AA batteries for my outdoor wireless speakers.
The panel performed like a champ. We were able to keep playing dub jam all day while we did some spring cleaning around the pool and hot tub.
The panel was extremely easy to keep in direct sun with the help of the viewfinder. One caveat was that we had a beautiful cloudless day. But so far I love the panel and the potential it has for the trail, campsite, or just lounging by the pool.
Written by a customer while visiting bioliteenergy.com
Customer Rating
4
Ticks All all of the Boxes
on March 26, 2016
Posted by: Anonymous
Other than the fact that I always could use some instructions with respect to how to get any biolite product out of it's box; there are no negatives here.
Since their beginnings Biolite has always earned my trust and they've done it again. They said is was light weight - and it is. They mentioned it was "tough" - and so it is. How 'bout "simple" - it couldn't be more straight forward.
We acquired it thinking in terms of "risk management"......a handy safeguard should something need recharging. What we've discovered is that it is really a convenience that takes concerns and the need for serious conservation off the table.
Written by a customer while visiting bioliteenergy.com
Customer Rating
5
Extend the Day
on September 11, 2016
Posted by: C. Rob
I went to Cedar Point over Labor Day weekend with my friends to celebrate my 30th birthday. I hooked my SolarPanel 5+ onto my CamelBack to make use of standing in line in the sunshine. Taking photos and videos all morning, as well as GPS constantly running in the Cedar Point App, my iPhone battery was taking a hit. When we stopped for lunch at the saloon, I took my cable out of my pack, and plugged in. By the time I had finished half of my burger, my phone was completely charged, and the onboard battery of the SolarPanel 5+ still had 3/4 charge left. My friends got a quick charge for their phones as well, and we were once again on our way.
At 10:30 that night after riding the Giant (Ferris) Wheel, we tailgated with some snacks and drinks in the parking lot, waiting for traffic to clear on the peninsula causeway to head back to the mainland. The SolarPanel 5+ had fully recharged since lunch, and I took time to charge my phone again and post to Facebook about my day. I wouldn't have had the battery life to take the amazing photos of the park at night from the top of the Ferris wheel had it not been for the SolarPanel 5+.
Earlier in the morning, walking into the park, I'd heard another patron behind us comment, "Now that man is self-sufficient!" in reference to the SolarPanel 5+ on my back. In a line that evening, another Cedar Pointer asked where I got the device on my pack, and I proudly replied, "BioLiteEnergy.com!"
Thanks for helping us extend the day, BioLite!
At 10:30 that night after riding the Giant (Ferris) Wheel, we tailgated with some snacks and drinks in the parking lot, waiting for traffic to clear on the peninsula causeway to head back to the mainland. The SolarPanel 5+ had fully recharged since lunch, and I took time to charge my phone again and post to Facebook about my day. I wouldn't have had the battery life to take the amazing photos of the park at night from the top of the Ferris wheel had it not been for the SolarPanel 5+.
Earlier in the morning, walking into the park, I'd heard another patron behind us comment, "Now that man is self-sufficient!" in reference to the SolarPanel 5+ on my back. In a line that evening, another Cedar Pointer asked where I got the device on my pack, and I proudly replied, "BioLiteEnergy.com!"
Thanks for helping us extend the day, BioLite!
Written by a customer while visiting bioliteenergy.com
Customer Rating
5
A Gift
on February 7, 2017
Posted by: Jim L.
I received a BioLite Solar Panel 5+ as a Christmas gift. It is an item I didn't know I needed, since we are old people and don't do camping or cycling any longer. However we live on the 7th floor of a condo with a significant western/sun exposure, and I've always wanted to transfer that power into something more than loading up the air conditioner during summer.
I struggled a bit with learning the operation since the "quick start" instructions aren't very comprehensive, and when I found the on-line manual there were a couple of errors. And, after one cycle of charging the unit using sunshine then downloading that power to charging a Kindle device, the Solar Panel 5+ stopped functioning.
I phoned BioLite and spoke with representative Zach, who was very helpful. He handled the situation as a warranty claim and immediately e-mailed a shipping label. I packed up the panel, slapped on the label, and drove to FedEx office to ship it, free of charge to me. The next day BioLite authorized a replacement order which arrived by USPS four days later.
The new panel worked as designed and I already was pretty high on the learning curve. It has now been thru numerous charge/discharge cycles powering cell phones, Kindles, and GPS/watches. It's pretty cool, and I'm doing my little bit to save the planet.
I struggled a bit with learning the operation since the "quick start" instructions aren't very comprehensive, and when I found the on-line manual there were a couple of errors. And, after one cycle of charging the unit using sunshine then downloading that power to charging a Kindle device, the Solar Panel 5+ stopped functioning.
I phoned BioLite and spoke with representative Zach, who was very helpful. He handled the situation as a warranty claim and immediately e-mailed a shipping label. I packed up the panel, slapped on the label, and drove to FedEx office to ship it, free of charge to me. The next day BioLite authorized a replacement order which arrived by USPS four days later.
The new panel worked as designed and I already was pretty high on the learning curve. It has now been thru numerous charge/discharge cycles powering cell phones, Kindles, and GPS/watches. It's pretty cool, and I'm doing my little bit to save the planet.
Written by a customer while visiting bioliteenergy.com