When the battery on your phone or GPS dies and you have no charger, it really sucks. This article provides solutions to that problem so you won’t be in that situation anymore.
Battery life
There are several ways to charge your GPS. Battery life on GPS trackers, smartphones is increasing as battery technology improves. Only a few years ago batteries lasted, max – a few hours on power hungry devices. Active trackers with interactive screens use a lot of power.
They are not the passive pinging gps units you can put on your dog or to find your keys. Battery life has improved somewhat but it is still the major issue impacting any electronic gadget outside. A general rule of thumb is to always keep the battery fully charged whenever possible.
When hiking or in an enclosed area you will need the next generation of GPS tracking. Our hiking GPS guide provides an in-depth analysis of GPS for hiking and camping. Here is our guide to GPS Tracking for Camping Accessories.
Extra battery
When using a full-featured gps tracker while camping or hiking you can expect to your gps tracker to last 6-8 hours when using a lot of processing power, screen brightness and tracking. If you are out for more than a day then you will need a way to charge your gps tracker since it is a best practice to have it available for use at all times while in the woods, on the trail, or on the open water.
By having an extra set of gps batteries you are making sure that you will have enough navigation if the unexpected happens like a sudden storm or blizzard when you have to seek shelter and your “vacation” may turn into a survival situation. Always be prepared for the unexpected and charge your gps.
Solar power
Solar power is another option to charge your gps tracker. A lot of the current technology allows for USB and plug adaptors to charge your gadget. They also have extra batteries installed so you will get some juice even if it is a cloudy day outside. This is a potential downside to charging your device. You may not always get a good charge unless you are in a really sunny area.
Hand crank generator
This hand crank generator is a great emergency power source. It should not be used as a primary backup. Your primary backup is the power source you will use for immediate, quick charging.
This is one of the better charging options for emergency power that you can take anywhere and will work in any situation. You just need energy yourself to crank it. The hand crank generator will produce enough juice to power your phone in one minute. With enough cranking, you will be able to charge your devices but it will take some time.
Portable windmill
Portable windmill chargers are improving in technology and more compact than they were in the past. The smaller windmills use wind to turn a generator which then produces electricity to charge your phone or gps device.
These seem great but the reviews are not the best. For a really good device, the prices are much higher than other technologies which are not dependent on one source of energy to produce electricity. These will work but are not the ideal power sources for camping or hiking. Windmills in your backyard on the other hand. That may be a great idea.
Start a fire
The BioLite is a cool stove that also converts heat into electricity and it boils water while you roast marshmallows. The extra electricity is enough to charge your phone and gps. If you charged your phone for 20 minutes it would have enough battery for a 60-minute call. Tip: turn your phone or gps off for a quicker charge.
They use electricity while on, even when you are charging them. The key to the charger is to follow the directions and get the fire right. Once you do that you won’t have any trouble charging your devices.
Spare power bank
Hands down, this is our best and most effective recommendation as a primary backup source. If you really use a lot of juice you should consider having multiple sources to charge your devices. There are some really great portable power banks that pack a punch and can power your phones, GPS for days. These GPS Trackers are optimized for power savings.
The bigger power banks have 20100mAh so they can easily charge several devices. With this much power, it can charge your iPhone over 7 times or your Samsung 5.2 times.
These portable power packs have come down in price a fair amount over the last few years. This will be enough power to charge up your phones, GPS several times.
Helpful Tip
Did you know? Portable chargers were proven to be very important with the latest windstorm that hit the DC area this March. Many of the people in my area did not have power and were in their cars, using their car charger to charge their cell phones.
Portable chargers were proven to be very important with the latest windstorm that hit the DC area this March. Many of the people in my area did not have power and were in their cars, using their car charger to charge their cell phones.
Luckily I had my power bank and was able to keep my phone charged until the power comes back on. I only wish it could power my fridge and the stocked freezer we had.
USB port from a laptop
Your laptop’s battery carries a lot of juice as well and can charge your GPS or phone – for a while. It is not configured, however, to charge your devices multiple times. It is set up to take care of your laptop and offer. You could charge your computer but this is probably the last thing we would recommend as an optimal choice for charging your GPS and phone.
Conclusion
Within this article, we reviewed provided a list of the 8 Must-Have GPS Tracking for Camping Accessories to get the most out of your time outdoors. GPS is a great tool but you should be prepared to keep your GPS Tracker charged. You should be prepared and bring these accessories so you have fun without losing touch or your way.