Every so often, I forget to charge the gizmo that does most of my work--the Blackberry--and provides entertainment--the iPod or Kindle.
It's not so bad when the destination is a motel room. But when it's a tent and the site doesn't have a plug-in, I'm powerless.
The Solarpod charger by Highgear is a palm-sized device that stores sunlight, room light or a charge from a laptop USB port and allows you to keep the gizmos going. The price is reasonable: $50. The charger comes with a variety of power tips to adapt to a bunch of electronic devices. It held up to being crushed in my pack for a week and has a built-in carabiner to hold it in place (if you remember to use it). The unit charges quickly and has an indicator on the back that tells you how much power remains stored.
But...
It seems to quickly lose its stored charge if it sits around for a couple of days in the dark. And it doles out less than an hour of juice after an eight-hour charge in the sun.
That said, there are times when you'd do anything to be able to make a couple of calls or listen to some tunes before zipping up the sleeping bag. For those times, Solarpod is a nice companion to have.