Can I charge a solar panel under cafe lighting?

[Jet Cash]

The back up power bank for my mobile has just packed up, and I have bought a replacement on Amazon. It has 3 ways ro recharge itself. and one is a solar panel. It has just occurred to me that this could work under the light in a cafe. If this is possible, what would be the best lights to recharge it.

[odolvlobo]

It seems to me that the lighting has to be bright enough to reach sufficient voltage. Considering that the charger expects sunlight, I don't think it will work. But it doesn't hurt to try.

[Jet Cash]

I've read up a bit on this, and it seems that the wavelength of the light is important, as well as its intensity. The type of solar panel makes a difference as well. I bought the battery bank for conventional use, but the fact that it has a solar panel is a bonus. Obviously it will be handy if I am using my mobile on the beach, but I have a card reader associated with my internet banking, and that has a small solar panel to provide power. I use that almost exclusive under room lights.

I should get delivery of the new battery bank today, so maybe I'll review it here.

[20kevin20]

Artificial light should be able to give it a bit of power. The thing is, in comparison with the Sun, it will charge way slower. It would probably take at least a few more times (if not dozens) to charge it - and the less intense the lighting is, the more it's going to probably take. But in the end, as long as it's free energy and charges your bank - even 0.5% only - why not, right?

I had a few solar-powered power banks and I remember they used to start charging if I put my phone's flashlight on the panel. I haven't tested it with non-LED bulbs though - and most of my power banks with solar panels on them went faulty after a while, so I stopped using/purchasing them at all.

I'm really curious to know whether the one you've purchased is fine. Will try to keep up with your posts to find out

[Jet Cash]

Well it looks as if the answer in "no" for this charger. I collected the battery bank a short while ago, and I plugged it into the can charger, and that works well. When I arrived back at Asda, the sun was quite bright, so I tried it in the car park. I thought it was broken, as I coyldn't see the charging LEDs. On closer inspection, I noticed that they were blue under a smoked cover, and there wasn't much contrast in the sunlight. I'm quite pleased with it so far, as it does more than my bead bank. It does have a wireless charger, but I don't have anything to use that.

One thing that I didn't like was a prize card in the box. It was a scratch card, and I could claim a prize if I gave it a 5 star rating on Amazon. The prizes were £10, £15, and £20, and, of course, I won the £20 prize. I claim this via email, but there is no code relating to the card or the prize. I guess everybody wins the £20 prize. This explains why it has so many 5 star ratings. Based on my initial impressions, I would probably have given it 5 stars anyway, but I will claim the prize.

[20kevin20]

Not 100% sure I got it right, do the charging lights not light up as powerful under the sun as they light up with the can charger? If yes, I think the most logical explanation is that the sun doesn't give it as much power as your charger does - so the LEDs only slightly light up.

I've received the "prize" thing in different forms with almost all of my Amazon orders as well, and that put me under doubt every time about the product I've ordered. I usually go for highest stars (obviously). They either send you coupons or some extra products for "free", basically promoting false 5-star reviews..

[Jet Cash]

I've had a bit of time to experiment, and this is what I have found, and I might even read the manual a bit later to see what I have got wrong.

The indicator lights don't vary in intensity with the power supply. The problem was simply the contrast in bright sunlight ( yes, I am in England ). It fooled me a bit, as it only has one indicator status when charging. That is two lights on, and three cycling. When it is charged, all the lights are steady. This contrast the PNY bank that I am replacing, that uses the lights to indicate the state of charge. To check the current state of charge, you need to disconnect it, and tap the multi-function button, and that will tell you which of the 20% charge bands still need to be charged.

None of this helps with using cafe lighting to charge the bank though, and I'll need to do some further research to determine if this is possible. I've installed Tiny Web Gallery on Rag St, and I'll take some pictures a bit later to clarify the charging options. I've got another couple of small solar panels, and I will see if any of those will generate a charge. Of course another alternative is to use a cafe that has power sockets available for customers.

[Jet Cash]

[possibly final update]

I've tried numerous artificial lighting sources, and have had no apparent success with any of them, do I'm giving up on that test. I'm extremely pleased with the product so far, and it has turned out to be useful if I am using the phone to watch videos for long periods in a cafe without a power source. It allows me to listen to crypto and other discussions as a background whilst I am updating web sites, and other simple tasks. The solar panel is effective, even through glass, so one approach may be to find a window seat in the cafe. We are entering the winter period in England, so that might have to wait for the summer, and then I will probably be on the beach. It looks as if I am going to get a £20 Amazon voucher from the supplier, and this makes this product an amazing bargain in my opinion.

Unfortunately my notebook computers are all 19 volt, so I can't charge those, but I am considering building a small single board computer with USB power,and using that to run a portable Bitcoin node.

[paxmao]

Yes you can. Try the old solar powered Casio calcs and see. But certainly, it won´t be enough for your purpose because you´d need a huge surface.