Chapter 8: Electronics and Internet Access

These are links to relevant things that I mention briefly in Chapter 8.

This is the little inverter that I use, and it’s great.

The video embedded below (here’s the direct YouTube link if you can’t see it) is a fantastic introduction to solar and batteries. If you’re wondering about how much solar panel wattage and battery amperage you need, watch the video:

These are a couple of the USB external battery packs that I have: Jackery Bar Premium 6000 mAh External Battery Charger and Anker 2nd-Gen Astro E5 High-Capacity 16750mAh 3A Portable External Battery Charger. There may be better ones out there; The Wirecutter has a good roundup of the best options.

This is the portable solar panel I have. Outdoor Gear Lab has reviewed a bunch of them.

Here are commercially available steering wheel desks if you don’t want to make one like mine.

This is the mobile WiFi hotspot I use. I buy a 1 or 5 GB package each time I go out on a trip (depending on the length of the trip). Most of these use the AT&T network, but the one I have uses the Verizon network, which is great because my phone has a Straight Talk AT&T plan. The top-rated review (starts with “Wal-Mart is selling two similar models of these Straight Talk LTE Hotspots”) mentions getting one that uses the Verizon network.

This is the WiFi signal booster that I use outside of McDonald’s restaurants, etc.