Creating power for my mobile devices; one step closer

I became much more powerful today. Well, not so much me personally, but my overall plan to create the power I use on my mobile devices got a big boost. Literally. Let me introduce you to the latest device in the house, the Xantrex XPower Powerpack 400 Plus. Portability isn't tops on the list of attributes; even though it has a nice handle, this portable battery / inverter / air compressor weighs a shade over twenty pounds. No, I won't be taking this with me to Starbucks (besides I know where all of the outlets are), but I may use this for capturing pedal power on my bike. That step will require a larger cash outlay, so I'm on the fence just yet. Meanwhile, this is good to have around the house in case of our power outage or a flat tire. The portable battery can provide around 400 Watts of AC power through the two outlets and I expect that I can fully charge the unit with a solid two hours of biking. Better load up the iPhone with some good tunes...

Comments

[James Kendrick]

What kind of belt clip will work with that?

[Jordan Running]

Sweet! I've been trying to find a good mobile power solution for a long backpacking trip--obviously the above is way too heavy, but do you have any suggestions?

[gear]

How do you go connect the bike to the Powerpack 400?

[Kevin C. Tofel]

Jordan, I used to use a 130-Watt portable power pack from Battery Geek to extend runtimes while mobile. It's a small brick so it's more portable than what I've just purchased. The trick is getting power back in it while backpacking. I know that the powerpack I just bought can be recharged in 8 hours with a solar panel, but it's too big for backpacking.

Gear, click the link above in my post and you'll see the solution I'm considering. It's basically a customized bike trainer with a parts to capture the energy I create by pedaling. The correct DC connection from that will go to the power pack and recharge the internal battery.