LiPo chargers, solar vs non-solar models

[MauiMaker]

You good folks have several LiPo battery charger kits listed...

USB / DC / Solar Lithium Ion/Polymer charger - v1.0 ID: 390
USB/DC Lithium Polymer battery charger 5-12V - 3.7/4.2v cells ID: 280
USB LiIon/LiPoly charger - v1.2 ID: 259

The first one is explicitly for use with Solar panels, and having a higher product number I will guess it is a newer design. It has a different charger chip and that big cap. However it seems hard to keep in stock.

Can the 280 charger be used with your 6v solar panels?
What are the downsides if it is marginally usable?

[adafruit_support_bill]

The 'special solar sauce' in the solar charger is detailed in the design notes: http://learn.adafruit.com/usb-dc-and-so ... sign-notes
A standard charger such as #280 can work, as long as you have strong and steady sunlight and a big enough panel to keep the voltage from collapsing under the load. My personal experience with this charger and a 3W panel as a power source on a mountain trek was that is was not reliable enough to justify the pack weight.

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