Knog’s portable PWR bikepacking power lineup goes self-sufficient with an ultra-compact new folding PWR Solar panel setup to recharge your adventures. Packing 10W of charging power that folds down almost as small as an iPhone Max, the new Knog PWR Solar could reshape how you keep all your electronic gadgets charged on multi-day bikepacking and adventure gravel bike rides…
Knog PWR Solar 10W ultra-portable photovoltaic panel
Knog’s PWR lineup got off to a rocky crowdfunding start several years ago, but has steadily evolved into a wide-ranging modular lineup of interchangeable PWR bank battery packs, on & off the bike lights, wireless speaker, and even a camp lantern they say is great for bikepacking. But all of those existing PWR systems relied on pre-charging batteries at home before the start of your adventure.
Now, the new folding Solar 10W PV panels – which Knog previewed in their ‘In The Wild‘ feature on YouTube last summer – will power your gadgets on the go…
Tech details
The Knog PWR Solar 10W is a compact folding set of four Sunpower Maxeon GEN 5 monocrystalline photovoltaic panels, with a built-in solar charge controller outputting a max 10Wp at 5V via a single USB port – an estimated 2A. Pair it with a power bank battery to store power for later, or charge your electronic device directly.
But the folding PWR Solar 10W isn’t meant to charge while you ride. The entire 5-part solar power setup is held together in a durable, rubberized case that accordion folds compactly for travel, and weighs a claimed 450g.
When closed it measures just 167mm tall x 97mm wide (compare that to a 161 x 78mm iPhone 12/13 Pro Max, or a 127 x 72mm regular iPhone), and is 35mm thick. Extended out to harvest the energy of the sun, the Knog PWR Solar 10W measures 540mm long x 175mm tall.
Magnets inside the case keep it close, but also make it easy to stick the panels to a large metal object when positioning it to catch the best rays of sun. Or hang the solar panels from the built-in D-ring, or simply lean it against a larger object facing the sun.
A set of 4 LEDs indicates good capture of solar energy to aid setup, and to show how fast it is charging your connected device.
I have to admit that I’d love to try it out. But at the same time, I’d really want to strap it on top of a big bikepacking saddlebag to see if it would survive charging as I ride, and not just waiting for camp at the end of the day.
Knog PWR Solar 10W – Pricing & availability
The new Knog PWR Solar 10W foldable photovoltaic panel set will sell for a relatively reasonable $100 / 115€. That’s about the same price as you’d pay for a similar output mobile 10Wp PV panel from other trusted companies like Biolite or GoalZero. You can surely find a cheaper folding solar charger on Amazon.
But Knog’s solution looks to be much more compact and claims to use more efficient photovoltaic cells than pretty much any other comparable setup we’ve seen.
The trick, you can’t buy it just yet.
We’ve spotted the PWR Solar panel in a couple of online shops where you can preorder it now. But real availability online from Kong and their official retailers is expected in about one month’s time, in early March 2022.
