EcoFlow’s Power Hat is a floppy, phone-charging solar panel for your noggin

By wazup on August 3, 2024 Comments Closed / 64 views

The power of the sun on the crown of my head.

By Wes Davis, a weekend editor who covers the latest in tech and entertainment. He has written news, reviews, and more as a tech journalist since 2020.

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A picture of a smiling woman wearing the Power Hat and looking at her smartphone, which is plugged into the hat. — a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Image: EcoFlow

EcoFlow’s new Power Hat must be the dorkiest piece of headgear I’ve ever heard of — and I think I love it? It’s a wide-brimmed floppy-ish sun hat full of solar cells that you can charge your phone with. EcoFlow says it can charge a 4,000mAh smartphone to capacity “in as fast as 3–4 hours.” Sounds ideal for casually scrolling feeds at a campsite or surviving in a sun-blasted, Mad Maxian desert wasteland.

According to EcoFlow’s specs, the $129 Power Hat’s solar cells are made from a thin, flexible material called passivated emitter and rear contact (PERC) monocrystalline silicon. It offers roughly 12-watt charging via the USB-A and USB-C connectors on the underside of the brim. The whole thing weighs 370 grams.

A cropped image showing the USB-A and USB-C ports on the Power Hat.

a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Image: EcoFlow

Oh, and the Power Hat is IP65 rated, meaning it’s dust-proof and can withstand water jets from any direction (although I question whether that holds true if you’re pointing a super soaker at the USB ports). Here’s a promotional video, complete with an inoffensive, vaguely Kings of Leon-sounding soundtrack, which is perfect floppy hat music if my past music festival experience is any indication:

The hat comes in two size ranges. The smaller one is adjustable between 56–58cm (22–22.8 inches) while the larger size is 59–61cm (23.2–24 inches). The Power Hat will be available in preorder until August 31st and EcoFlow says it expects to start shipping them out in mid-September.