Solar energy is a well tested power source that is already being used around the world for numerous commercial, industrial, government and domestic applications. It is powering water pumps in African villages, weather stations in the Antarctic and satellites in space!

It works by transforming the energy from the sun into a reusable form of electricity, a process known as Photovoltaic (or PV for short). Your solar panel acts as a collecting tray, helping you catch the sun’s rays. The bigger the panel, the more energy you can collect. The energy collected is stored for your future use in a battery.

Clean and green, solar power is a renewable, sustainable and non-polluting source of energy. It is easy to see the appeal of solar power for domestic use. Low maintenance and long lasting, it is a highly cost-effective and reliable energy supply.

The Surge features an internal battery which your iPod touch draws on when needed. The integrated solar panel will charge the internal battery, provided sufficient light is available. When you’re on the go and unable to plug in, solar charging is a great way to get some extra power to make it through the day.

The Surge uses a solar panel to collect sunlight, which it turns into electricity. If your iPod touch is not fully charged, it transfers the charge to your iPod touch. When your iPod touch is fully charged (or when it is not inserted), the Surge transfers the charge to its internal battery. The charge from this reserve battery will transfer to the battery in the iPod touch as necessary.

The built-in LED lights let you know whether you have sufficient light source for solar charging and approximately how much charge level remains in your charger. Please note that percentages indicated below are approximate and that fewer LED lights will light up when the iPod touch is inserted into the charger.

The first LED will light up RED to indicate the Surge is charging. This is anytime the charger is exposed to sufficient light for solar charging, or connected to USB.

Indicates that your Surge is charging by Sunlight or USB cable

By pressing the button next to the LED lights, you may get the following light combinations:

	Indicates that your Surge needs to be charged because it is giving the last of its power to the iPod touch or is out of power. USB charging is recommended.
	The battery in the Surge is almost depleted&mdashplan to recharge soon. USB charging is recommended.
	The battery in the Surge is about half full.
	The battery in the Surge is almost full.
	The Surge is fully charged. Please note: You will probably only see this light combination when the iPod touch is not inserted in the Surge or when it is still connected via USB. When you insert your iPod touch into the fully charged Surge, only three bars will light up as the Surge gives power back to your iPod touch.

To see the charge on your iPod touch, refer to your iPod touch user manual.

You can charge your iPod touch with the included USB cord to hook the Surge up to your computer or the standard Apple USB adapter for wall power. Or, when on the go, you can just use the sun! You never need to remove your iPod touch from the case to charge it!

No, your solar panel is not defective, nor is it less efficient. Unevenly spaced lines on the solar panel are a common occurrence and don’t affect efficiency in any way.

Certainly! Check out our Solar Planner to get an estimate of how long you would need to keep your Surge in sunlight to keep it charged over a number of days. This doesn't take into account charging via USB.

No, the Surge is designed for the size, contour, and hardware of the second generation iPod touch.

Absolutely!

Simple! Place your thumbs (please refer to the illustrations to the left) on the lower section of your iPod touch and gently push forward to remove it from the Solar Charger case.

Yes, scratches will accrue over time but won't affect solar charging functions. We recommend that if you need to dust off or clean your solar panel, that you use a soft cotton cloth, lightly dampened with water.