If you’ve ever watched your battery percentage drop in that last ugly stretch before you can find an outlet, you know the feeling. And yeah—sometimes you swear you charged the pack. Then you get the reminder that the pack is, in fact, dead.
A tiny panel with a built-in battery
The SolMate’s solar output is described as more than enough to keep the unit’s internal 2000 mAh battery topped up and ready for use.
That matters because the device isn’t just a panel you clip on and hope for; it’s a panel plus storage, so there’s something waiting in reserve for when you actually plug in.
In a real moment, you can almost picture the small click of the switch—like when the light hits and you decide, okay, now we’ll let it charge—while your backpack straps creak and the sun does its thing.
USB charging, regulated power management
The unit also includes a switch that enables or disables the SolMate.
It’s a small detail, but it’s exactly the kind of thing that helps in practice; you don’t want the device doing anything you didn’t intend, especially when it’s sitting in a bag.
And since it includes both common port types, it’s positioned to be a grab-and-go charger rather than a specialized accessory.
The physical design is where things get a bit more clever.
The case is all 3D printed, and rather than just being a flat enclosure, it has a set of design choices aimed at the sun.
Misryoum analysis indicates that offsetting the bulk of the battery and PCB storage area to one side lets the SolMate naturally cant toward the sun.
Even the clip used to attach it to a backpack is printed—so it’s not merely “assembled,” it’s built to be carried.
Misryoum newsroom reported this entry also points back to the broader challenge SolMate is part of, with other submissions alongside it.
If the idea is to solve the ‘forgot to charge the battery pack’ problem in a way that fits into daily carry, SolMate seems built for that—though, honestly, whether it’s enough for your usage depends on what you plug in and how long you stay in real daylight.
Still, the combination of a 2 W panel, a 2000 mAh internal battery, and regulated USB output is a pretty direct attempt at making “out there” feel a little less helpless.
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