If you've ever had to charge your phone without a regular charger, you know how difficult it is to find anything with a powered USB port. At times like these, even a small amount of electricity can be the difference between getting home and being left with a dead battery.
What you may not realize is how many strange devices can actually power your phone. Some are regular electronic devices with surprise USB ports, while others convert one type of energy into electricity that can charge your phone. Here are some of the strangest things that can bring your phone back to life.
Manual phone charger
When the power goes out, you're camping, or you simply don't have access to a power source, one of the best and easiest ways to generate some electricity to charge your phone is to start it by hand.
These devices are usually available in the form power bank or flashlight and have a small battery that can be charged using a USB port that slowly charges your phone.
When you turn the handle, the crank spins a rotor inside a small generator (essentially an electric motor with magnets and copper wire). This produces several watts of electrical current, which is usually stored in a battery. Once you have generated enough electricity, you can plug in your phone and charge it gradually. It will probably take some time to increase the battery charge by a few percent, but even that can be useful in a pinch.
The catch is that you have to constantly turn the knob to keep the energy flowing, but the reason these devices are so useful is because they only rely on your own energy. They are usually small enough to fit into a survival kit or take with you on a trip.
Portable solar panel
While manual starting is good because it doesn't rely on external power (other than yourself), if you have access to solar power, you can get significantly faster charging while still staying off the grid.
Usually you will see solar panels built into power banksbut there are also full-size portable solar panels designed to not only charge your Android phone, but in some cases also provide a certain amount of fast charging.
A good example is Anchor SOLIX PS30 30 Wwhich provides 3A/5V on the USB-C port or 2.4A/5V on the USB-A port. In sunny conditions, this charging speed is comparable to that of lower-end fast charge adapters.
These solar panels usually have a foldable design, making them easy to carry in a backpack, or you can unfold and attach them so your phone can charge while hiking or biking.
The only downside is that portable solar panels require direct sunlight to operate. On cloudy days the power is low and at night they simply don't work.
Bicycle wheel “Dynamo”.
In the context of bicycles, dynamos are small electrical generators that are attached to a bicycle wheel to generate electricity. They operate very similarly to manual chargers, as they also rely on mechanical energy.
The main difference is that you use the bike's wheel rather than your hand to generate electricity, making it much easier to use.
Dynamos are commonly used to power lights and various other bike accessories, but there's nothing stopping you from using them to charge your phone—as long as you have a USB port to plug it into.
Like hand cranks, dynamos work best when combined with a power source (charger module/buffer battery), e.g. Five plugs6 plus to store the generated charge and smooth the energy supply.
While some e-bikes don't necessarily involve dynamos, they can also charge your phone. Some models come with built-in USB ports, and creative professionals even have managed to press into the batteries of their electric bicycles using golf cart converters.
Wi-Fi router or modem
Sometimes the easiest way to charge your phone is to find a device with a powered USB port. One such ubiquitous device that you can find almost anywhere, be it in your office, local cafe or bedroom, is the Wi-Fi router.
There is a surprising amount what you can do with the USB ports of your Wi-Fi routerand one of them charges your smartphone. However, not all routers can send enough power through the USB port to effectively charge your phone, as routers are relatively underpowered.
You'll be lucky if you get even 2.5W (0.5A/5V), although some travel routers like the TP-Link AC750 can provide up to 1A/5V.
- Brand
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TP Link
- USB ports
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It's tiny, inexpensive, and our top pick for the best routers for travel. For most people this is the simplest solution.
Devices with reverse USB charging port
Some gadgets have USB ports that look like they're only meant to power the device itself, but some actually support reverse charging via USB. Some phones also support wireless reverse charging, which is pretty cool, but those aren't the only devices that can provide power.
It turns out that such gadgets as USB fans, Bluetooth speakersAnd smart lamps also can support reverse charging.
Some are specifically designed to be used as power banks, but they still aren't devices you'd typically consider charging. Output current is usually limited to 1A, but in a pinch they can still work well if you don't have access to any other form of charging.
As you can see, there are countless creative ways to charge your phone even if you don't have access to electricity. Although most of these “chargers” have limited power, they can only perform slow charging when worry about battery begins, these charging methods can make all the difference.
