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60w Suaoki:




I picked up one of these just when prices came down, though I don't think they're in production anymore.
They fold up very compact (but thick) and have the usual USB-A ports inside the sleeve, but it also has
a 5.5mm barrel jack direct to the panels. Unfortunately the panels are wired in parallel, making the panel
voltage quite low (4.5-6.0v). So it requires a low voltage controller that can boost if you want to use it to
charge a 12v battery.

Although it has a rated 60 watts output, you're never going to be able to use that, as that's over 10 amps at
5 volts. But the high potential output means you're likely to get a fast rate of charge even when the solar
conditions are very poor. Even if the panels are only running at 20% efficiency, it's still producing 12 watts.
My solar tester rated this wallet at 47 watts, which is right about what I would expect since actual output in
Iowa is usually around 76% of ISO rating. So their claim of 60 watts is "fair".

Also since these panels are all wired in parallel, without isolating diodes, shading just one or two panels
will produce significant loss in power as the sunny panels struggle to heat up the shaded panels. I picked up
another one (used) on something of a whim. The low panel voltage isn't well-suited to use charging batteries,
but it's an unusually compact high power USB charger so I don't mind having a spare.

It's possible to make up for the low panel voltage using a boost regulator that can work with a very low input
voltages to boost the output voltage up to a level that will work with a common solar controller. I've set my
boost regulator to an output of 18 volts, to feed into the controller's "panel" input port. The panel port on
the power box is marked "9-13v", though I've never seen anywhere near that. Maybe that's why they quit
making this model?



3.5-30 to 3.5-30v 100w 6a LTC1871 (in boost)

cables and regulators	closed above	closed back	closed front	closed side	dimensions
inlet markings closeup	inlet markings	inlet port	label	pouch	Suaoki 60w unfolded

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last updated 05/20/2025 at 21:40:17 by make_www_index.command version 2025.05.20.B