DOKIO 100W Portable Foldable Solar Panel Kit (19x26in, 5.3lb), with Separate Controller and Dual USB, Monocrystalline Charger for 12V Batteries & Power Stations, RV Camping Trailer Emergency Backup

This kit can charge a lifepo4 battery. Maximum charge current is coming from this cheap pwm charge controller, it's only at around 14.6 volts max voltage from this controller with this solar panel. Which is enought to charge a 12v lifepo4 battery at 14.4 volts charging. The only trick to charge a lifepo4 battery more quickly, is to have full sun day on solar panels.Best to invest in a mppt controller charger, but not totally necessary for a small solar panel setup like this. 14.4 volts in full sunlight on this solar panel to charge your lifepo4 battery fully. Make sure solar panel face is facing sun at 90 degrees to sun for best voltage.These solar panels seem to work, but they are fragile. Do not bend them too much, I heard one making a slight crackling sound when bending slightly. Good to have or make a solar stand that supports this solar panel well so it doesn't bend much. Like make a solar stand out of pvc pipe and carriage bolts to make a folding frame stand.Nice to have this light weight portable solar panel. Does charge a 12v lifepo4 battery 50 ah pretty quickly. But better to buy another solar panel to get more juice to battery for when you have loads on battery, and for charging, topping off your battery much faster.Too bad that all solar panels are only about 23 percent efficient or less. Can you imagine if solar was 100 percent efficient ? You could then run the whole World off of pure sunlight !!! Plenty of power comes from solar if We could get much more efficient panels, controllers and batteries. We need about 50 percent more efficient solar for it to really take off, and for a forever energy source.Solar panels used in space by NASA etc. like on all satellites, work better in the coldness of space, if you chill a solar panel down in temperature you can get much higher charge current. Much More effeciency from freezing temps, on a solar panel.

Since they arrived, I've been quite cautious with my panels, given the mixed reviews, reports of very little power delivery (both initially and degrading over time). I suspected that the people reporting decreased power production over time may be over-bending and over-flexing their panels, damaging them over time.I've been using my panels for a few weeks now, and so far, my experience has been very pleasant! I also have made sure not to bend or flex them, avoiding leaning them against anything (esp at a harsh angle). So, I've really just placed them on top of my van.I've been very happy with the power delivery. I have been sampling it over different days in different conditions:- Midday, light clouds: 128W-149W @ 16-17V, giving 8-9A. (see images of screenshot for example @ 146.2W, and the partly cloudy sky)- Early morning, full sun: 90W @ 18V, giving 5A- Midmorning, very cloudy: 40-65W @ 16-17V, giving 2.5-3.5A- Summer evening, cloudy, tree coverage: 20-40W @ 16-17V, giving 1-2.5ASo, I was shocked. I've seen it get up to 160ish Watts, and never expected to see more than 75% power (150W). So I was happy with that. And I'm also surprised that even with pretty heavy clouds, I was pulling in roughly 3A. Since I'm mainly planning to run my laptop and phones, (and possibly a small fridge), even this 3A is enough power for me if I let the panels run all day.One other location I was curious about was placing panels on my dashboard. I want to try exposing just a single panel, hoping that it can fit on my dash without shadow. 2 unknowns: I don't know how much my windshield will block the light, and I don't know if 1 panel can pull 1/4 of the full power potential. My understanding is the panels are wired in parallel, which is excellent, because they're essentially operating independently, or additively. (If they were wired in series, that would mean whichever panel had the lowest power, that would be the max power possible from every panel.) Still, in practice, I think I'm getting less than 1/4 power from the single panel. My thought is that the full panel covers so much ground, it's more likely that at least 1 panel will receive good light. However, the smaller footprint of the small panel will only pull 1/4 power when it's getting full sun. In other words, in full sun, I suspect the single panel will pull 1/4 of the 4 panels. But with any clouds, having all 4 panels present will actually help maximize power.I have a LiFePo4 battery, so the included charger won't work. Still, I'm happy to have this junky little charger in case I want to drag the panels out to the beach, providing USB power, or for emergencies to trickle power into my car battery.It would be nice to be able to lean these panels against a wall, or the side of my car. I'm just too nervous that I'll damage them with flexing. I'm thinking about creating something out of some old tent poles, but haven't yet landed on a design that I'm excited enough to build out.The other day, I came outside to find the panels had blown off my van and were just laying in the lawn. They seem to be still functioning fine. So, I'm happy that the panels are sturdy enough to withstand a 7 foot fall onto grass. I also need some basic solution to keep 'em strapped down, because I don't want a $200 kite.In terms of the quality, I'm pretty happy with the fabric itself, the quality of the handles, etc. The little metal rings seem pretty flimsy, but I can work with that. And some of the stitching is coming undone, leaving some dangling threads around. Again, I can mend that and deal with it.Overall, with a couple underwhelming features, I'm more than happy with the power output. Nothing in this price ranges is even close, and I can't even find another panel offer this kind of wattage.