3rd party portable solar panel

[superben79]

I am thinking to get a portable solar panel to connect to the arlo pro. I see many portable solar chargers from amazon have similar output as the oem USB charger. Any one tried 3rd party solution? Let's set aside the concerns of water or moisture

[TomMac]

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Yes... I have used a solar panel / small controller / 6v-4ahr gell cell to run an original Arlo... it worked fine. The solar panel kept the gell cell fully charged during the day and if no sun it would have run for  longer than the OEM cells

BTW, controller was made with a small LM317 chip...

here's a good read as to basics; http://www.reuk.co.uk/wordpress/storage/solar-battery-charger-with-lm317t/

Problem is this usage is a bit above the average user to make and install, tho there are simpler ways to do it now.

As there are many game cameras that use 6v batteries and matching solar panels.

Like this solar panel ; https://www.amazon.com/Moultrie-Deluxe-6-Volt-Solar-Panel/dp/B001VMX5J4/ref=sr_1_8/146-8861355-13195...

With the PRO, it becomes easier as the camera will run on 5v ( BUT NOT charge )... So you could pull the battery pack , get a solar cell with battery combo ( like this ; https://www.walmart.com/ip/ReStore-SL-5000-Solar-Charger-Battery-Pack-with-Dual-USB-Charging-Ports-B... )  and run the camera.

Main issue here is the USB cable isn't outdoor rated so you would have to seal the port well ... Also the unit above isn't weather proof , tho others are, you just have to search... but still do-able

All comes down to how much you want to tinker !

[superben79]

so i got a solar panel, which can output 5.2v and 2.1a (tested and was able to charge ipad pro). under direct sunlight, the panel cannot charge the cam.

[jguerdat]

That's because 1) the charger must be Qualcomm Quick Charge capable and 2) as a result it has to be able to supply both 5v and 9v to charge. It will be interesting to see how the Netgear solar panels handle this.

[ElonMusk]

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superben79 wrote:
I am thinking to get a portable solar panel to connect to the arlo pro. I see many portable solar chargers from amazon have similar output as the oem USB charger. Any one tried 3rd party solution? Let's set aside the concerns of water or moisture

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Looks like the solar panel is finally listed in the Arlo products section as coming soon (Model VMA4600) https://www.arlo.com/en-us/products/arlo-pro/solar-panel.aspx#VMA4600

[ElonMusk]