I know, it's pretty annoying when your ipod battery is flat only a few hours into a long journey. No music, no audio books, gee you'll have to think of something else to do. Or perhaps it's your cell phone that is the problem, just as you are talking to someone. You hear those dreaded beeps and then the phone goes dead. You'll have to find a phone box somewhere - one that works that is.

I guess I'm as guilty as the next person. I want immediate access to my entertainment or communications devices. This is the reason why I have this and that gadget for all sorts of things. Unfortunately all these appliances need power from time to time and I have forgotten to recharge them leaving me stranded. The way round this common problem is to use a portable solar power generator.

There are quite a few portable solar power generators around at the moment. They all have the same basic set up. A number of solar panels will absorb photons from sunlight to create electricity. This is stored in a battery, like a lithium ion battery that you might find in laptops. The generator will have a connection that can be used to connect various appliances to the generator so that they can use the stored electricity.

The best part is that as long as there is some sunlight, your solar generator will always be charged or at least not losing power. Provided there is some sun out, the battery will always be charging. This should mean that whatever hand held device you may be using will always have a potential power source. You'll never be inconvenienced again from lack of power.

When going for a portable solar generator there are a few things to consider. First should be the type, size or efficiency of the solar panels. Bigger panels will obviously have more surface area and thus provide more direct current. This has to be weighed against bulkiness and aesthetic appeal. You want your generator to be compatible in terms of size with the devices it will be powering. And it should be comfortable to carry in a backpack or something like that, without being heavy.

You also want to find out what kind of capacity the battery has. For example, how long will an power sucking device such as a PSP last. The longer this time is the better the battery but again this has to be balanced against the size and weight of the battery if you want a generator that will be completely portable.

Something else to consider is the type of hand held devices you can plug into the generator and whether you need any adapters. At the very least it should be compatible with a cell/mobile phone, a gps device, a blackberry and a pda. You would also want it to be compatible with the popular entertainment appliances like PSP's , ipods and a dvd player.

Environment Products on our marketplace

For extra details about portable solar power generators visit http://www.solarpowerappliances.com/ . The site also features many other products including solar powered ovens and outdoor lighting.