Solar Panels and Battery Packs Powered by Goal Zero
I had been looking for a solution to power a number of devices whilst backpacking and travelling after my old power monkey had seen better days. After lots of research I came across Goal Zero who seemed to have a number of products that would work for me and I narrowed down my choice to 3 products.
You can checkout all the Goal Zero products on the Goal Zero Website and also a number of them at Wild Earth if you want to price compare. The video review of the Nomad 7 Plus and Venture 30 is contained in the video below. I also have more information below the video.
If you have watched the video you will see the combination of the Nomad 7 Plus Solar Panel and the Venture 30 Power Pack worked really well on an 18 day backpack of the Larapinta Trail. For day trips and overnighters the Flip 20 or 30 is a great design and manages to power my phone as well as Sarah’s. Here is a bit more information on each of the products..
Nomad 7 Plus Solar Panel – I chose the Nomad 7 based on weight and power output. There are larger solar panels in the Goal Zero range however I didn’t want to carry a heavy Solar Panel with me. The 7 Plus in my opinion is a lot better than the Nomad 7 if you are going to use backpacking. It has a great design with the magnetic closing, is lightweight and gives a little bit more power than the Nomad 7 panel. I like the charging indication and the removable stand if you want to reduce the weight further. Attaching to a backpack and using to charge whilst hiking is also possible. In the video below you will see this in action.
Venture 30 Battery Pack – There are a number of different sizes of battery pack available from Goal Zero and after looking at the power capacity and reading a number of reviews this is the one I chose. As per the video review this did the job on an 18 day Backpack powering 2 iphones, a Camelbak UV Water Purifier and a Garmin GPS watch. Using it in conjunction with the Nomad 7 Plus solar panel worked well. I could charge the battery pack during the day as well as simultaneously charge devices from the battery pack with the solar panel plugged in (something I could not do with my previous battery pack). What I also found interesting was the smart charging sensing the device being charges and delivering the right charging profile. This means I can charge my iphone quickly at the right charging input as well as other devices such as tablets etc.
Flip 20/30 Battery Pack – I was after a smaller battery pack than the Venture 30 for day to day charging and I looked at the Flip range of chargers from Goal Zero. An easy flip out USB plug allows for easy charging of the battery pack and a USB output port for charging devices. This is a great deisgn, delivers decent power and lasts for a good day whilst charging two devices. You can choose the capacity that suits you in the Flip range.
Review Transparency…A bit of info about this review as I get asked this many times so like to make it clear… This review is for a product I purchased myself and use on my adventures. I am not sponsored by the brand or by anyone else. This is a genuine review of what I use and hope you find this useful. I do have an affiliate link from an outdoor store (Wild Earth) I use for most of my gear and find their prices really good as well as their customer service. If you find this review useful then you can use my link to connect through or you can head off and do your own research on where to buy etc. My main aim is that you find this useful and if you do buy it by clicking on my link I will get commission on it at no cost to you.
Richard.
