I have a few spare 18650 cells, and an iPhone 5, so I figured I could put them to good use.
I’ve seen the ZUWIT, and I like it very much, but it’s way out of my price range. Plus it seems to have difficulty fitting protected cells. Is there a reliable clone I can put on my wish list for the summer? Even a basic USB charging pack (sans flashlight) will do.
Thanks. Tib.
The XTAR WP2 II charger is only $18 and it can charge your iphone with an 18650 battery inserted into slot 1.
It isn't a flashlight but I'm not a fan of having multiple things in one package. They usually do many things "ok" but none of them very well. If you know what I mean.
@JOE That is fascinating. I didn’t know that. Thank you. I have an XTAR WP6-II. I don’t suppose that would that be able to do it? I do a lot of hiking. It’s fine once I get back to the Jeep - I have a small invertor in the back for recharging various bits of kit - but I need something easy to carry in the mountains.
I was thinking of a battery pack (or torch) I can carry in my rucsack for emergency charging. I’ve recently switched from a HTC-HD2 running GPS software (with several spare HTC batteries) to an iPhone (which you can’t even open). I agree with you on the jack-of-all-trades-master-of-none philosophy. I’m a big fan of redundancy. I figured my emergency phone charger could then be a spare spare torch. I’d just carry a stash of 18650 batteries in a side pouch of my rucksack.
@Suncoaster I like that piece of kit too. It looks a bit big for my rucksack, and it would be redundant with my lead acid invertor in the car, but scrolling down the thread I noticed some very cute 2 cell versions. And they weren’t expensive. Hmmm… thanks!
I use this one, I bought a half dozen of them they are super useful. They have a .5 amp and a 1 amp charging output for I-phones.
Manafont and DX has them also
I use the ML-102 with my 4s. :D
Haha. 
Using a single good quality 18650, do you think I could reliably charge my iPhone 5 with the ML-102?
Reviews claim that the eNB 2 dual 18650 charger, when fresh, can charge an iPhone about 4 times. http://www.fasttech.com/products/1207400
Could either of these units power my flat iPhone enough to switch it on and make an emergency call?
Thanks, Tib.
With a good, fully charged 18650 the ML-102 will charge an Iphone 5 to 100%. Not sure how many times though…
Thanks, guys. I think I’ve found my solution. The ML-102. At around 30g plus battery it’s light, and I’ll be carrying batteries anyway. Best of all, I don’t have to wait until summer. At that price, I can get one right now.
@E1320 At 70g I liked your device too, but it looks like the battery is sealed in. Do you know what the emitter is?
Regards, Tib
Does anybody know off the top of their head whether the iPhone 5’s battery is happy with a charger designed for an earlier generation of iPhone? I don’t ever intend to own an iPad, so I don’t need super heavy duty.
@Suncoaster I’ve never been a big fan of iCrap. I knew when I accepted the 32 GB iPhone 5 that I would be giving up swappable batteries, unrestricted bluetoothing, text delivery reports and memory expansion slot.
However, I got unlimited calls and texts plus 6GB of monthly data allowance (inc. unlimited music downloads) on a 4G network for $35 per month. And I didn’t pay a penny for the phone. Side by side, the S3 looked tacky. I can’t text on a touchscreen for toffee nuts, so I make good use of Siri and Dragon Dictate. Chuck in an Otterbox Defender case and I’m sorted.
I also picked up TomTom Europe for $45. I already had a licence for Ordnance Survey mapping of my entire country (in 1:50,000 and 1:25,000) which I simply transferred over. Google Earth runs like a dream on the iPhone 5. A complete SatNav/GPS/satellite imaging solution that didn’t cost me anything.
An 18650 battery charger completes the picture. Now if only I could get the perfect 18650 flashlight…
What kind of charger? Factory Apple wall cube?
I’ve used all kinds of chargers that were made for the 4 to charge my 5.
- Energizer car/wall charger
- HTC wall cube
- Chinese wall cube from DX
- Chinese car usb charger. Worked fine but died after a few months.
Basically, as long as the voltage and amps are the same you should be fine using any type of USB output charger.
iPhones are so fragile, I have even seen them inside of fancy cases get cracked from small drops. If iPhones were at least semi-durable than I would totally be on board with getting one.
Check out the Life Proof case, it’s a similar (better) option to the Otterbox
-JOE- kshark
Guys, I’m at risk of being an iPhone case junkie. I looked at the Griffin Survivor too. There are videos on YouTube of the iPhone 5 being chucked out of bedroom windows by little rich kids in these cases and surviving. I’m going to take my chance in the OtterBox Defender. It’s already on the phone, which was brand new, pristine going in. There is a certain risk with taking cases on and off. The most dangerous thing of all to take an iPhone 5 out of is the retail box. It comes apart so suddenly, it damn near threw my phone across the room!
Don’t get me started on flashlight cases. I’ve just bought a SkyRay brand fake of their own King. I figure I ought to protect it, even if it doesn’t make me smile, but cases that fit the flashlight and my budget are virtually non existent.
Good info here, thanks.
Mophie has a charger case for the iPhone - it doesn’t add much weight or bulk and can either charge it up or keep it charged.
IMHO they are not as fragile as people think - I’ve dropped my 4s a few times and it’s in a regular old case. Still looks good. I know someone who is extremely tough on their phones and his iPhone, while it looks like cr@p still worked perfectly, cracked screen and all.
I did the Android Debacle with a Droid X. Horrible experience in many ways and the “freedom” was overshadwed by the poor hardware, OS, and usability. And then there was the orphaning of that device that just doesn’t happen in the iOS world.
