MintyBoost: Portable USB power

[barf_jay]

I currently use an iPhone 4 while hiking to take notes, document my trail journals, and taking hundreds of pictures during my hikes along the Appalachian trail. The issue of course on my long journeys of > 4 days, is battery life. Just a quick note, I also keep my phone in 'airplane mode' to conserve as much battery power as I can and only come out of this mode to send an occasional text message to my wife. Therefore, I searched the web for a lightweight cheap way to recharge my phone while out on the trail.

Found several options from solar to the nPower Peg that was reviewed by my hiking buddy Prada. I came across another option called the Minty Boost. See link below:

http://www.ladyada.net/make/mintyboost/

This is a pretty cool option that uses two AA batteries mounted in an old Altoids can that boosts the voltage to 5 volts so you can charge numerous devices including my iPhone 4. They sell it as a kit, so you have to have some basic soldering experience to be able to put this thing together. The great thing is they tell you step by step on how to do this:

http://www.ladyada.net/make/mintyboost/solder.html

I was going to take pictures while I built the unit, but the site already has some great high resolution pictures, so please take a look at the site, has lots of great info and other stuff.

I did some testing to see how much of a charge I could get out a set of batteries, see below:

Normal Duracell Batteries (1150 mAH capacity): 20 % charge 40 min duration
Sanyo eneloop rechargeable (2000 mAH capacity) 40 % charge 1 hr. duration

They do make higher capacity AA batteries, so you could improve on the performance.

What I found is that the normal Duracell Batteries got extremely hot while they charge my phone, while the eneloop batteries got warm but were ok to touch.

With the unit 1.2 oz & (2) AA batteries 1.8 oz. the entire unit only weighs in at 3 oz.!! With an extra set of batteries still brings you in under 5 oz., so far this is the lightest weight option available. In addition, using rechargeable batteries that can be recharged up to 1500 times saves money on batteries.

If you are looking at a low cost & lightweight solution to recharge your phone or other devices on an extended hike, the Minty Boost is a great option and gets two thumbs up!!

[Wyatt]

That is a pretty neat idea. I'm going to have to choke down another tin of Altoids and mess about with this sometime.

[RETCW4]

I use an iGo powerXtender Charger. $9.97 at Radio Shack or http://www.igo.com/powerxtender-char...t/ps002640004/ $15.99 with 1 fre device tip. It uses two AA batteries.

Specs:
Output Power: 5W

Output Voltage: 5 VDC

Weight (with batteries): 2.98 oz (84.37 g)

Weight (without batteries): 1.28 oz (36.29 g)

Dimensions: 3.6 x 1.9 x 0.89"" (94.44 x 48.26 x 22.61 mm)
iGo powerXtender with iPhone tip.png

[barf_jay]

The iGo looks pretty good. Never came across it on my searches...I am a geek and the MintyBoost let's you put it together yourself. This would be a good option for those wanting an already assembled device. Thanks for the info!

[Odd Man Out]

I love it. I used to build Radio Shack kits when I was a kid. Plus, I love Altoids. Does it work with Lithium AA? Do 2 AA's only give 20% charge? That doesn't seem very practical.