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Anyone Else Waiting for Dahon's Biologic Reecharge?

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Anyone Else Waiting for Dahon's Biologic Reecharge?

Old 05-03-10, 06:30 AM
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Anyone Else Waiting for Dahon's Biologic Reecharge?

I'll be starting a solo coast-to-coast trip following the Northern Tier at the end of June (W to E), and have been hoping to use the Reecharge for my iPod Touch (for audiobooks and occasional wifi access), cell phone and camera. I built up a new LHT for this trip and incorporated a generator hub, so I'm all set, if only this product would make it to market in time.

I think I recall previously seeing something about March availability on Dahon's website, but I currently can't find anything at all about when it will be available.

Is anyone else in the same boat? Anyone happen to have more current information?

Thanks!
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Old 05-03-10, 07:18 AM
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Oooh, I've been looking for something like this! All I had been able to find were homebrew projects!

It looks like it's available for sale now. A bit expensive, though.
https://us.dahon.com/accessories/2010/biologic-reecharge
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Old 05-03-10, 07:35 AM
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ah.... sure.
 
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Originally Posted by Derailed
I'll be starting a solo coast-to-coast trip following the Northern Tier at the end of June (W to E), and have been hoping to use the Reecharge for my iPod Touch (for audiobooks and occasional wifi access), cell phone and camera. I built up a new LHT for this trip and incorporated a generator hub, so I'm all set, if only this product would make it to market in time.

I think I recall previously seeing something about March availability on Dahon's website, but I currently can't find anything at all about when it will be available.

Is anyone else in the same boat? Anyone happen to have more current information?

Thanks!
When I rode the route I was able to find enough charging spots to charge my ipod and phone as needed. It was a bit of a pain from time to time. If you can't purchase this ahead of time I would suggest something like this. It will charge your ipod about 3 times between power sources and charge your phone as well. The solar panel might add a little juice over days. I use it most for the 3500mah battery.

Be aware that this will charge an ipod touch 3rd gen. Many of the charging units available will not.

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Old 05-03-10, 07:37 AM
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Originally Posted by Arcanum
Oooh, I've been looking for something like this! All I had been able to find were homebrew projects!

It looks like it's available for sale now. A bit expensive, though.
https://us.dahon.com/accessories/2010/biologic-reecharge
Unfortunately, if you follow the "BUY NOW!" link from that page, you see "Item is not available at this time. Can be Preordered." on the next page. I did that, but there's no indication of when it will actually be available.
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Old 05-03-10, 07:41 AM
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ah.... sure.
 
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Here's a great cheap way to go if everything falls apart. only $15 and it will charge ipod touch 3rg gen.

I don't know why the link isn't working.. trying again.

https://www.fommy.com/view-full-page.asp?skuno=84075

If you do a search for the part mentioned in the link you will find it... Can't get the link to work. sorry

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Old 05-03-10, 08:00 AM
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there are more chargers available e.g.:this one, or this one, amongst others.

use your google-fu to find more. I know there's at least one other that MY google-fu won't let me find in 20 seconds.

Last edited by jurjan; 05-03-10 at 08:01 AM. Reason: horrible url quoting..
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Old 05-04-10, 11:43 AM
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Originally Posted by jurjan
there are more chargers available e.g.:this one, or this one, amongst others.

use your google-fu to find more. I know there's at least one other that MY google-fu won't let me find in 20 seconds.
Thanks for the information -- I was unaware of these. With shipping, the Zzing looks like it would be about the same price as the one from Dahon.

Has anyone tried the Zzing?
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Old 05-04-10, 06:39 PM
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...i too have been looking into something to charge my phone/ipod, but i've yet to find many people with much experience with any of them. here's three other possibilities to add to the list: E-Werk, The Plug, PedalPower+. the other devices mentioned in this thread all sound intriguing as well. choices choices...
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Old 05-19-10, 07:52 AM
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You can use Amzer Solar charger and it is eco friendly. This is fantastic product as I am using this since 2 months. Please check this link for product description:

https://www.fommy.com/view-full-page.asp?skuno=83981

You can also check the video demo of this item:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zFJfOEcDaE
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Old 05-19-10, 01:19 PM
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I've been waiting for this too for the exact same reason. They were suppose to be out by spring, I'm not sure what their deal is?
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Old 05-19-10, 03:17 PM
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I finally gave up on the Dahon Reecharge. It may well end up being a good project, but the delayed release is getting too close to my departure. Last I heard was sometime in June, but it wasn't known if that meant early or late June, and I'm leaving at the end of June.

So, I ordered an E-Werk from StarBike in Germany (along with a B&M Cyo headlight and a B&M Topline taillight). The combined price, with shipping, was ~$250 USD. I would have preferred to buy everything in the U.S., but that would have cost another hundred or so bucks..

Initially I didn't want the E-Werk because it doesn't come with a battery, but then I remembered that I already have a battery that can be charged by and deliver power through USB. (BTW: you can get such a battery very cheaply). So, ultimately, I think the E-Werk will be more versatile, and it will be easier to replace the battery as necessary.

Anyway, I don't expect the E-Werk to arrive for another week or so, but I'll post back when I get it.
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Old 05-28-10, 03:11 AM
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Hi: I'm in UK and I too am waiting on this one to charge my GPS. Thought it may be delay only in UK until I found this thread.
Orginally Dahon website said 'twas available from 20/03/10. I rang importers early this year and was told it was due mid April
Found devise on website https://www.discountcyclesdirect.co.u..._description=0
This stated was due in mid May 2010 so I ordered one, in hope rather than expectation.
This week have recevied email from discountcyclesdirect that the thing is not due to be available until 28th June. ???
I hope they mean this year!
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Old 05-28-10, 04:15 AM
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Originally Posted by rollinbone
Hi: I'm in UK and I too am waiting on this one to charge my GPS.
Have you considered the E-Werk? I have mine now, and I'm very impressed with it. It is smaller than I expected and incredibly versatile. For many devices you don't need a cache battery (i.e., you can use the E-Werk to charge the device directly as you ride), and I'd expect that to be more efficient.

If you need a battery to store energy and output it via USB, you can get them very cheaply through Monoprice.com. Since batteries don't last forever, this would make for easy replacement when they stop holding much charge -- I suspect this will be an issue for me because I only intend to use this on tours, which I only do once a year or two, and I don't think lots of idle time is good for batteries.
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Old 05-28-10, 02:56 PM
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How has the battery charging gone?

Also, have you charged an iphone. I have the PedalPower+ (their universal cable that is supposed to work w/ the iphone 3gs) and I'm not too happy. The iphone constantly cycles on and off charging until I get to at least 10 MPH, sometimes a bit more. I took an imax battery out on a four hour ride, and the power went up a bit, but not as much as I expected.

Originally Posted by Derailed
Have you considered the E-Werk? I have mine now, and I'm very impressed with it. It is smaller than I expected and incredibly versatile. For many devices you don't need a cache battery (i.e., you can use the E-Werk to charge the device directly as you ride), and I'd expect that to be more efficient.

If you need a battery to store energy and output it via USB, you can get them very cheaply through Monoprice.com. Since batteries don't last forever, this would make for easy replacement when they stop holding much charge -- I suspect this will be an issue for me because I only intend to use this on tours, which I only do once a year or two, and I don't think lots of idle time is good for batteries.
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Old 06-02-10, 04:36 AM
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I did look at that E-Werk but problem is that GPS units USB port is has a rubber cover to keep out the rain, so I could only use while riding in dry weather (it rains a bit here sometimes, even in the summer)
With the Reecharge, I hope, I can charge up during the day and then plug it into the GPS unit during evening/night (in my tent during trips) to charge it up. Only using it to charge as I ride in a real emergency.
I haver 5 bespoke batteries for my GPS so could always just change them over. They usually last about 6 hours each if the screen is not on all the time.
Note: My GPS is a SatMap Active 10 - see https://www.satmap.com/about.php
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Old 06-02-10, 05:35 AM
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Originally Posted by quester
How has the battery charging gone?

Also, have you charged an iphone...
The battery charging works well, but to get the battery's charging indicator lights to come on I need to be going about 11 MPH (700x35 tires). For my first test I just spun the wheel by hand and couldn't get the charging lights to come on at all -- I worried something was wrong until I went for a ride and they came on solidly by 11 MPH. The battery specifies an input current of 1 A, so I suspect the E-Werk can't deliver the amp until the wheel is going 11 MPH. I wonder, however, if it will take some charge even at lower speeds, just more slowly and without the indicator llghts.

Although I don't have an iPhone, I do have an iPod Touch, and I can easily get that to go into charging mode just by spinning the wheel with my hand. However, I think it only needs 500 mA (0.5 A) to recognize a charge.

I don't know if there's a risk of damaging an electronic device by charging it the correct voltage but too low and inconsistent current. I'd like to think it would just slow the charging time, but I don't know that for sure. I will soon have an iPad, and I don't yet know if I'll be willing to risk charging it directly (presumably more efficiently) or if I'll always want to charge it with my cache battery.
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Old 06-12-10, 05:23 AM
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In case anyone is interested in hearing more about the E-Werk as I continue to experiment with it, I've started a blog entry about it.:

https://hpscott.wordpress.com/2010/06/10/ewerk/

I continue to be very impressed with it. As mentioned above, I don't have an iPhone, but the E-Werk causes my cheapo prepaid phone to indicate that it is charging by just a few miles per hour.

I definitely wouldn't argue that the E-Werk is an economical solution, but if, like me, you get a kick out of the "elegance" of not buying batteries or needing outlets while on tour, I think this is a good way to go.

I still don't have my iPad yet... should be here end of next week. I'm very curious to see if I'll be able to charge it directly from the E-Werk. If so, I think I'll be all set.

The real test, however, won't start until my tour (July 8th), but I'll keep the blog updated as I go.
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Old 06-12-10, 07:31 AM
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I always take a second battery with me on tour. It's only a small weight disadvantage (less than 50g) to have an extra camera and phone battery. When I have access to power (i.e. when I'm not wild camping) I make sure the phone, camera and MP3 players, plus the spare batteries are fully charged that night. I like the reassurance factor of knowing I have a fully-charged battery in my bag in case it's needed.

I've recently been looking at the iPod Touch and thinking of buying one for an upcoming trip. I notice that an external adaptor/battery pack is available through ebay (from Hong Kong or China) which performs a similar role. Then I found this: https://cgi.ebay.com.au/Solar-Power-B...item3efea0201a

or

https://cgi.ebay.com.au/Solar-Battery...item563cf6a422

I've had good success with Hong Kong-originated phone/camera/computer accessories bought cheaply through ebay. This device claims to charge an ipod using solar power. It would be nice if it worked. If you search on ebay for "solar ipod battery" it will bring up similar listings. I don't get my iPod Touch until next week but when I do, I'll be definitely taking the risk and buying one of these items. Hopefully if the solar function doesn't work too well, it will still function well as a back-up power source. It seems cheap enough to take the risk anyway.

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Old 06-12-10, 11:25 AM
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Thanks for the write-up! I've been considering an E-werk, and there are not too many reviews out there. Thanks for explaining how to use it too charge a camera battery, that was something I was confused about.
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Old 06-12-10, 11:37 AM
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Originally Posted by Derailed
I don't know if there's a risk of damaging an electronic device by charging it the correct voltage but too low and inconsistent current.
No.

Caveat: im not sure if there is a difference with Apple's new battery technology, but if anything memory free batteries should be better....
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Old 06-29-10, 04:31 AM
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The Reecharge: Have just been informed by the UK importers that this will not be available in the UK until 06/09/2010
Apparently the unit proved so popular they have had to wait for new batch to be manufactured.
This implies that someone, somewhere in the world has got one of these, if you're reading this - please give report!
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Old 06-29-10, 09:01 AM
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Originally Posted by rollinbone
The Reecharge: Have just been informed by the UK importers that this will not be available in the UK until 06/09/2010
Thanks for the update! Dahon gets some serious demerits in my book for not being more realistic in their delivery dates, but I'm still curious to hear what people think of this product.
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Old 06-29-10, 11:33 AM
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I have a Soldius solar charger, and a little hand-cranked charger for emergencies. I've found the combination to be adequate. When using the GPS on the tandem, I'll sometimes have the stoker hold the solar charger angled correctly to the sun to get maximum charge... every little bit helps.
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Old 07-12-10, 11:13 PM
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So there's no confusion, the available date in UK printed previously in my reply is in format dd/mm/yyyy, so please read as 06 September 2010
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Old 07-13-10, 05:46 PM
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Kayakdiver said: "When I rode the route I was able to find enough charging spots to charge my ipod and phone as needed. It was a bit of a pain from time to time."

I kind of agree. I just finished a 1000 mile solo and really didn't have too much trouble finding someplace to plug in. Between parks that leave electricity on, soda machines, ice machines, and other appliances that use the same power, I just ended up 'borrowing' power from different places. I did ask most of the time and was never turned down.

On the down side to plugging in someplace, you do have to wait or double up on duties...like laundry while the phone is charging.

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