Solaris POP - Plug & Play 160 Watt Solar Panel, Portable and Do It Yourself (Green)

I want to start out by setting the tone, I want these types of products to succeed and be great for individuals.I was excited for this all-in-one solar panel to come. Setup out of the box took all but a few minutes but the directions for the arms of the base were kind of confusing. Once plugged into an outlet the status light blinked red for a minute then blinked green. I have the green unit but i don't believe there is a difference other than border color.After hooking up a watt meter, it was only showing bursts of 45 watts or less even after 2 days in the sun. The status light was flashing green. I emailed through amazon to the vendor who contacted their support who said it was defective. What they don't explain is that to return it you need to ship it back. This is a 3ft by 3 ft panel. Not the easiest thing to return ship if you didn't keep the box. My advice is keep the box for the length of the warranty. They did send the replacement promptly, however.Word of caution, when you do unplug the panel, do not touch the power plug prongs by accident, the current does not shut off instantly and you will get shocked. (just take my advice and don't try it. it only tingles but still would advise against it.)Once i got the replacement i set it up again and this one was operating better. I did end up putting it on an 50 ft extension cord in the end and still working as if it was directly in the wall.The pitfalls:The base is something not to be desired. its flimsy (not from a material standpoint but from a put together standpoint). There's no way to attach the panel to the base, its simply sits there. Adjusting the angle is a process of taking the panel off, taking the one part of the legs out, lowering / getting it back in notches then putting the panel back on. On a windy day if the power cord is behind the leg it can easily pull out and the whole thing goes down to the ground. My improvement suggestions would be to add clips to the back to allow the panel to lock into the base. Create a base with bolts that allow adjustments easier and allow for better locking of pieces together. Add a space to allow pole mounting or additional legs to allow gutter / roof mounting. If you want to do a pole or roof type mount with this you will need to build your own stand / holder.The power cord is more like 6 ft not 10.With owning this for 2 weeks now in the upper Midwest i'm still disappointed with the consistency of the output. Playing around with the angle didn't seem to make a difference. I've blocked it against the base at the proper suggested angle for the time of year. The output still bounces around and isn't consistent with its output even on a clear day. I would have expected a bit more consistency on the output. The most the power meter has recorded is 145 watts. Generally its about 30-110 watts. Mostly cloudy days its been about 5 -20 watts, semi cloudy days its 20-60 watts. I've watched it in the sun directly with no change and watched it go from 120 watts down to 30 watts then right back up to 120 range. Not sure why the fluctuation.The user manual is non existent. Only more of an assembly guide and do not open the back black box on the back of the panel. Would be nice if there was some additional troubleshooting or things to look at. Some things i can tell you are:Green flashing = unit is working / online to grid powerRed flashing = disconnected or connection issueIf you are getting back and forth flashing (green, red, green, red, etc) and you have it on an extension cord, try a different cord or make sure the unit is plugged in snugly to the "outlet" part.I'll attempt to update again once i've had it longer.

First one came broken (photovoltaic glass was shattered)--had to get rid of it. Thankfully a refund was granted without having to return it (since it was a hazard).Second one came, similarly packaged but thankfully intact.The metal stand that comes with it is a little puzzling to assemble--could definitely use better pictures.Bought a KMC Smart Plug as suggested, did some testing. It indeed gives around 150-160W on a sunny day with optimal angling.Do not use indoors or have any part of the panel shaded (even just a small part)--any shading will decrease the amount of power by 10 fold.Handle by the sides when lifting--do not try to lift with the top margin since the rubber lining is only held to the panel with glue (which can come off with heat).Use this on a deck or a flat roof that only you have access to--it's REALLY portable which means it's going to walk if you put it on a patio that's accessible to others.