Check out my new solution for charging the Spark in the field

[GearHead83]

I just bought the Omars portable power bank on Amazon. This thing is a beast and with a 24,000 mah capacity it can charge all three of my Spark batteries five times over. The real treat about this unit is it has an AC connection so you can literally power any household device up to 80W, incredible! I use my 3 battery charger dock from the fly more kit and this way I can quickly charge my extra batteries while still being able to fly. This thing is a bit larger than my 22,000 mah USB power bank but the weight is almost the same. It also charges itself from empty to full MUCH faster in about 4 hours compared to my USB power bank which takes around 7 hours. With this unit you can charge 3 batteries, your controller and phone/tablet all at the same time! The price to performance ratio is better than anything else I've seen. This is an excellent piece to add to your field kit in my opinion.

 

[idbl_fanatic]

My solution: Google Image Result for http://therantsandraves.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/img_0333.jpg

 

[GearHead83]

My solution: Google Image Result for http://therantsandraves.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/img_0333.jpg

Haha while that works I'm not convinced I could bring a Ford Flex with me out on the hiking trail

 

[Spark 317]

I would think this would work as well.

It has an outlet too.

 

[idbl_fanatic]

I would think this would work as well.

It has an outlet too.

View attachment 4409

I see what you did there.

 

[Bluebird]

Thanks for the info...just added this to my Amazon cart!

 

[GearHead83]

Thanks for the info...just added this to my Amazon cart!

No worries! I toil over my purchases in order to get the most functional and cost effective kit. Might as well share my findings and hopefully I can help others in the process. Report back with your review, I am confident this will fit your needs well.

 

[giac]

Not to spoil the fun (sorry), but have you tried to charge "all 3 of your batteries 5 times over"? I bet it won't work. Reason is simple: the 24000 mAh are at 3.7V, while spark batteries are at 11.4V. A better measure is the energy: your power bank is rated as 88 Wh, a spark battery at about 17. This gives 5 charges in total (single battery) assuming a pretty high efficiency, which I'm not sure you'll have if you use the account outlet and the AC charger (you go from 14.8 V internal to 110 outlet to 11.8 with the charger... A lot of conversions).
Other than that, seems a pretty good solution for certain scenarios.

 

[Kevin Kirby]

Not sure what your total expense was, but my solution works great for about $100. I've got a charging station that charges 4 batteries plus 2 USB ports for $60. I use a 480 watt inverter to power it from the car $40. Charge time for the spark batteries is about 90 minutes so I can fly almost continuously.

 

[GearHead83]

Not sure what your total expense was, but my solution works great for about $100. I've got a charging station that charges 4 batteries plus 2 USB ports for $60. I use a 480 watt inverter to power it from the car $40. Charge time for the spark batteries is about 90 minutes so I can fly almost continuously.

This power pack is $79 but I got $4 off so there's that lol. Would love to take a look at your solution if you have a link, however the inverter would not be of use to me as I am often in places where vehicles can't go.

 

[GearHead83]

Not to spoil the fun (sorry), but have you tried to charge "all 3 of your batteries 5 times over"? I bet it won't work. Reason is simple: the 24000 mAh are at 3.7V, while spark batteries are at 11.4V. A better measure is the energy: your power bank is rated as 88 Wh, a spark battery at about 17. This gives 5 charges in total (single battery) assuming a pretty high efficiency, which I'm not sure you'll have if you use the account outlet and the AC charger (you go from 14.8 V internal to 110 outlet to 11.8 with the charger... A lot of conversions).
Other than that, seems a pretty good solution for certain scenarios.

I am certainly no electrical engineer so you may be on to something here. All I have tested so far is I have charged two batteries to full (from just less than 20%) and the power pack still showed it had 3 out of 4 "bars" on it's power indicator (the amount of juice I received it with). If it did only charge a single battery five times I would imagine the power level would have dropped much more noticeably than that...

 

[tgenty]

I use this power bank https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B072...Y340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=ravpower+110v&psc=1
With the 110v outlet I can charge 3 batteries with the charging hub, which is great. But after that I can only charge 20% of my galaxy note 5. So I guess with your extra capacity, you can fully charge 4 batteries but let us know how many batteries you were able to charge.

 

[Jim Pickett]

No matter how you look at it's specs, still sounds like a good option for $80. Thanks for posting.

 

[rangemaster728]

No matter how you look at it's specs, still sounds like a good option for $80. Thanks for posting.

I use this:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Power-ba...or-all-Smart-phones-Black/144851106#read-more

Nice $30 (on sale now) solution, 20,000mAh with 2 ports that will charge devices at up to 2.4A each, regulated outputs and a 2A recharge rate.

 

[mrcruiser]

I use this power bank https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B072...Y340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=ravpower+110v&psc=1
With the 110v outlet I can charge 3 batteries with the charging hub, which is great. But after that I can only charge 20% of my galaxy note 5. So I guess with your extra capacity, you can fully charge 4 batteries but let us know how many batteries you were able to charge.

I am also looking into this power bank (it is also available in Europe). Can you tell me how fast does it charge the Spark batteries when the charging hub is connected to its 110v outlet? Is it the same speed when charging from a regular ac outlet? Also, how does it compare to a "regular" power bank which is able to provide 5V/2.4 or 3 Amps (of course in this scenario only 1 battery can be charged at once).
Thanks for your answer in advance!

 

[tgenty]

I am also looking into this power bank (it is also available in Europe). Can you tell me how fast does it charge the Spark batteries when the charging hub is connected to its 110v outlet? Is it the same speed when charging from a regular ac outlet? Also, how does it compare to a "regular" power bank which is able to provide 5V/2.4 or 3 Amps (of course in this scenario only 1 battery can be charged at once).
Thanks for your answer in advance!

With the 110V outlet, it charges as fast as a regular outlet. So around 1h30 to charge all 3 batteries at the same time. I tried several USB power bank, even with a 3A USB port, it takes more than 1h to charge 1 battery with the drone. That means longer charging time, plus you cannot use the drone while charging the battery.
I definitely recommend the 110v power bank

 

[mrcruiser]

With the 110V outlet, it charges as fast as a regular outlet. So around 1h30 to charge all 3 batteries at the same time. I tried several USB power bank, even with a 3A USB port, it takes more than 1h to charge 1 battery with the drone. That means longer charging time, plus you cannot use the drone while charging the battery.
I definitely recommend the 110v power bank

Thanks for your rapid and precise answer, I clearly see now that this is the way to go. I was also debating b/w an ac power bank and a dedicated Spark field charger from DJI or from Smatree but that would limit my future options considering a drone upgrade since these are dedicated for the Spark batteries.

 

[GearHead83]

Thanks for your rapid and precise answer, I clearly see now that this is the way to go. I was also debating b/w an ac power bank and a dedicated Spark field charger from DJI or from Smatree but that would limit my future options considering a drone upgrade since these are dedicated for the Spark batteries.

Just a thought, the power bank tgenty suggested is $10 more than the one I linked and has less capacity. However with it's long cylindrical design it may fit better into a tight pack. Also availability in Europe would also be a consideration. Either way, having a 110v on hand in the field is invaluable.

 

[mrcruiser]

Unfortunately the one you have is not available in Europe, that's why I was considering other alternatives. The one tgenty has is available and here this is one of the cheapest products. Because of the customs we pay more for almost every tech devices.

 

[GearHead83]

Unfortunately the one you have is not available in Europe, that's why I was considering other alternatives. The one tgenty has is available and here this is one of the cheapest products. Because of the customs we pay more for almost every tech devices.

No worries, his (or her) suggestion will suite you just fine. I'm sure you'll be satisfied with your purchase. Happy flying!