Akerplunk Business Blog: 2018

Thursday, January 11, 2018

Goal Zero Nomad 7 Plus Review

In most metrics, except for weight and portability, the Goal Zero Nomad 7 did not stand out. Though the panel did not perform outstandingly regarding output power and efficiency, it does have an excellent design and is a significant improvement from the previous model.

Charge Interruption Recovery

Much like other panels in this capacity range (i.e., the Renogy 5W and the Outad 7W), the Nomad 7 Plus struggled to recover a charge after an interruption in solar energy. In fact, the 7 Plus would not even re-connect to our iPhone after being shaded for a few seconds. This is a huge issue with such a lightweight and portable panel, as charging a phone or another small device is its main use. Panels with more overall output power, such as the Anker PowerPort 21, Anker Powerport Lite, Instapark Mercury 10, X-Dragon 20, and Nomad earned 8 out of 10s for this metric.

Charging Speed

In our side-by-side comparisons, the Nomad 7 Plus was one of the least efficient chargers for an iPhone 6 in direct sun. We gave each panel 30 minutes to charge an iPhone and measured the increase in battery with each panel. The Nomad 7 Plusonly managed to charge the phone 18%. This was less than the previous model, the Nomad 7 which managed to charge a phone 33% in the same time. For charging the external battery, the Nomad 7 Plus performed worse than its predecessor again by only charging our external battery 9% in four hours. It's important to remember that other panels with the same wattage, like the Renogy 5W and the Outad 7W, had dismal numbers in this category as well, since their overall output is just not as powerful as a 20W panel.

Multiple Device Charging Speed

This small panel can't charge multiple devices at once and thus is only designed with one USB port. Unlike the previous model, the Nomad 7 Plus comes with just one USB cord and no adaptors at all, making it overall more straightforward and easy to use. If charging multiple devices at once is essential to you, check out a more powerful panel, such as the X-Dragon 20W or the Anker 21W.

Top Home Business Opportunities

Cleaning Services - Along the same lines, there's currently a heavy demand for cleaning services, and the demand for domestic cleaning services will only increase with our aging population. If you're good at organizing and comfortable with the thought of running a crew, this home business opportunity has the potential of turning into something big.The cleaning service I use is a man and wife operated home-based business that has multiple cleaning crews and over 150 residential and commercial customers.
Fall Prevention Products - Sales and Service - Did you know that falls are the leading cause of fatal injury among elderly American and Canadians? And did you know that the death rates from falls among older men and women have risen sharply over the past decade? (Falls Among Older Adults: An Overview, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). Now, what if you developed or distributed a product related to helping seniors prevent falls? Think of the growing size of the potential market!One of my business associates distributes a variety of fall prevention products from her home, including a padded hip garment that prevents hip fractures from falls. Another sells and services electric scooters.
Wedding Planner Services - People are still getting married. In 2014, 6.9 people per 1,000 married in the United States, meaning there were 2,140,272 marriages (CDC). And these numbers refer only to the traditional kind of marriage; there's also a growing demand for gay marriages, providing even more opportunities for wedding-related businesses of all kinds.You need to be good at planning and have a mind for details, but if you are, becoming a wedding planner could be your dream business - and there's no reason you can't do it from your home.