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Thank you for purchasing a patented SuperMole Power Booster or solar-assisted cellular telephone battery. With a good understanding of its capabilities and limitations, you will find that this one of the most useful and gratifying products that you have ever purchased.
Please read all of this material before use, as it will help you maximize the solar charging efficiency and, perhaps, teach you a little about one of our most powerful and renewable energy resources, the Sun.
First of all, it's important to understand that this is a "solar-assisted" battery, which means that a supplemental charge can be added to a cellular battery. However, the battery can also charge using only the Sun when necessary. In regular use, you should expect to charge the battery using a household AC charger or automobile DC car cord. Either of these methods will charge the battery faster and more completely.
The patented SuperMole technology utilizes the essentials of photovoltaic electricity production and, as a result, is limited by several facts. Chief among these are the availability of solar exposure and the size of the solar array. The size of the Solar Array is limited by the space available on the phone case, but you can maximize the exposure to the Sun. The following information will help you make decisions about how, when and where to charge the battery.
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Time of Year
During the summer months, the Earth's angle of exposure to the Sun is at it's greatest and, therefore, more intense. Even though the Sun appears to be just as bright during the winter, the solar radiation is stronger during the summer. Add to this the fact that the days are longer in the summer and it becomes obvious that the battery will charge better, almost twice as much, on the longest day of the year than on the shortest day of the year.
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Time of Day
The time of day at which charging takes place provides a varying degree of performance. At noon, or when the Sun is at the highest point in the sky, the maximum charge level will be obtained. Therefore, solar exposure for one hour at 9AM will provide less charge than one hour at 12 Noon on the same day. The total time of solar exposure will have a cumulative affect.
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Orientation to the Sun
For optimum performance the Solar Array must be oriented facing directly toward the Sun. As the Earth rotates, the position of the Sun relative to the Solar Array changes throughout the day. If the orientation is not corrected, the effectiveness of charging decreases. Adjustments are not necessary for slight changes, however, over a period of hours, the loss of efficiency can be significant.
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Air Temperature
Solar cells are affected by extremes in temperature and work within the temperature range of 0°C to 90°C (32°F to 194°F). However, for the best performance the maximum surface temperature of the Solar Array should be below 50°C (122°F). Obviously, you must place the battery in the Sun to charge it so it will naturally heat up and become hotter than the "air" temperature.
Keep in mind that the higher the air temperature, the higher the Solar Array temperature and, therefore, charging efficiencies will be affected.
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Ever notice how hot the area between the dashboard and the windshield of your car gets? For the reasons noted above, it is not recommended to place batteries in this area for charging.
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Solar Filters
Solar Filters are objects or conditions that block the transmission of light to the Solar Array. These may be intermittent situations such as a passing cloud or the shadow of a building or continuous impediments such as fog, air pollution or tinted glass. Since solar electricity is primarily generated within the visible light spectrum, anything that reduces the intensity of the light reduces the charge efficiency
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Most vehicles and commercial buildings have tinted windows. This tinting reduces not only the visible light but the ultraviolet wavelengths as well. For these reasons, charging through tinted glass will significantly or completely reduce charging efficiencies.
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Latitudinal Position
The strength of the Sun is at its greatest along the Equator. As one travels further away from the Equator, the intensity of the Sun diminishes and the effectiveness of solar charging decreases. The image below illustrates this condition.
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q. How does the battery work?
A. It works just like your regular cellular phone battery. It can be charged at home with an AC charger or in your car with a DC charger as you would with any battery. But if you are at the beach, at sea, camping or anywhere regular power is not accessible, you can charge your PowerBooster or Spectron battery in the Sun.
Q. How fast does my battery charge?
A. When using a traditional charger, your battery charges as usual. When following the instructions in this pamphlet, if you place the battery in the Sun for 15-20 minutes it will charge enough to make an emergency call. It will also charge completely in the Sun when provided with ample solar exposure and time. A good rule of thumb is that for every hour in optimum sunlight you will add about 15 minutes of talk time.
Q. Does my phone need to be turned off in order to solar charge?
A. No. Because, in general, the Solar Array provides more power than the phone uses in "stand-by" mode, keeping the battery's Solar Array oriented to the Sun while the phone is on effectively keeps the battery at full charge. This is ideal while at the beach, camping or outdoor dining. If you can turn off the phone, however, 100% of the solar energy will be directed to the battery and the battery will charge considerably faster.
Q. How can I tell when the battery is charging?
A. It is almost impossible to keep the battery aimed at the Sun and read the battery meter at the same time. Furthermore, because the phone is not actually placed in a charger, the meter on some models may not indicate charging at all. To help you determine that the battery is charging, PowerBooster and Spectron batteries are equipped with one of the following indicators that identify sufficient solar exposure: 1) A red LED or, 2) A SunSpot photochromic image that changes color when exposed to sufficient sunlight.
Q. Will the battery charge under an artificial light as well as by sunlight?
A. Yes, but at a much slower rate. For example you may get 1-2 minutes of talk time per hour of charging under a 50W halogen desk lamp, where sunlight generates about to 10 to 15 minutes per hour.
Q. How long will my battery last?
A. PowerBooster and Spectron batteries are warranted for a full year from the date of purchase; however, you can expect your battery to provide satisfactory use for several years.
Q. How long will the solar panels last?
A. No one really knows. Solar panels powering satellites in space still produce electricity after 30 years in this harsh environment. It is safe to say that the solar array used in your PowerBooster or Spectron battery will work long after the battery is no longer serviceable.
Q. Do I need to recycle my battery when I get a new phone or when it is finally depleted?
A. No. SuperMole uses Lithium ion batteries exclusively. As such they do not contain chemicals that are known to be harmful to the environment such as cadmium so they may be disposed of in the normal waste system. If you are environmentally conscious, however, you may contact the RBRC at www.rbrc.org to locate a recycling center near you.
GLASS
SuperMole batteries are meant to be charged outside in sunlight. Charging them inside through a window is a poor substitute. Think of suntans- in the same way that you can't get a suntan through a window- you can't charge our batteries through windows either. Optimal charging is achieved through placing the battery in full sun between the hours of 11-2pm.
CHARGE/DISCHARGE
Charge the battery when you first receive it on a regular home or car charger. Then discharge in the usual manner by talking until you receive a low battery indicator. Do this twice then try solar charging.
BATTERY CAPACITY
If you are going to be using your battery a lot in the solar only mode you might consider getting the lower capacity battery (600Mah) rather than the high capacity battery because it will charge faster in sunlight.
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