Charging Solar watches - Natural vs. Artificial light experiment using Seiko Digital Tuna
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- Опубликовано: 25 авг 2024
- The new Seiko Digital Tuna SBEP001 has a unique function of measuring the level of the charge it gets from different light sources which gave me an idea of comparing natural daylight (both cloudy and sunny) to an LED flashlight to see which is better.
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Nice video, and very practical test. 😎 I'm curious to know what level of charge you get off a regular incandescent light bulb though.
Sometimes it's not just about intensity of light, but specific wavelengths that are optimal for the solar cell. And LEDs have a very narrow band of wavelengths that they give off. Even to the point there is no real white light LED. They accomplish it by a couple of different tricks. Either putting a red, yellow, and blue leds very close together. Or by using blue leds that pass through a phosphor that emits yellow light. Such that the led passes through, but mixes with the light produced by the phosphor from florescence to look white.
Keep up the good work!
Thanks and you just had me roaming around my house trying to find an incandescent bulb as almost all I have is LED.
I DID however find one and just tested it.... At 20cm it is at level 2, at 15cm it is 3, at 10cm it is at level 4, at 5cm it is level 5 and if I put it almost touching the lightbulb it goes to 6 but it burns my hand so it cannot be good for the watch.
I think you are on to something as the bulb doesn't appear as bright as the LED and yet it gets even better results 👍😄
LOL, now that I think about it, I've replaced about all of mine with LEDs too. Thanks for going the extra mile. Either way, your right in that it easier, cheaper, and more efficient just to use the sun. 👍
You are quite right it's all about the wavelengths and spectrum of the lights being used more towards the ultraviolet end of the spectrum.
@@WatchGeek try using TL lights ( like old study lamps) and compare to your LED lights.
im using an 8 year casio S800 ( cheap low end solar watch) and i find it helpful when i cant get out sunbathing my watch on rainy day ( im in tropical , so it took 2 months of indoor prob to deplete mine to low )
Great comment. An aquarium full spectrum LED light (the kind for keeping planted aquariums happy) will work pretty well as they have white, blue and red mixes to simulate a more realistic sunlight effect. I do agree that there is nothing better than real sun and a south facing window is the best but if one is in a place where this is difficult to obtain for the watches a light like this on a timer will do a decent job.
"...finding logic in watch collecting is almost impossible..." So true.
I take my watch outside so he can pee and play, is a very happy watch.
😂😂😂😂👍
😂😂💀
Nice one 😂👍
It’s a good boy, yes it is!!
Don't forget to check his homework completed.
You might need a charging station in scandinavia here we got several months without sunshine each year
Vidar Mathisen I own three Tough Solar G-Shocks, and have never seen the battery indicator drop below Medium on any of them, and I live in constantly cloudy Bergen.
I was in Norway for 2 months. ..my protrek kind of died there. Now it works but no matter how much you try to charge it, if I use the compass or the light the power level goes to the minimum straight away (LMH warning sign)....apparently this can be solved by disconnecting the internal battery and connecting it again, but I haven't tried...don't want to open the watch. Any other mean to solve this?
@@STEALTH1DAN seems a bit defective sounding
@@STEALTH1DAN when there was an article that says norway is one of longest sunlight duration ( prob not sunny but beats no sunlight at all right?
Since I bought my second watch I stopped using my gw-3500 on every day basis, and for a month and a half watch just lays on top of my desk in pretty dark room with curtains always on. But when I get home I turn on the light, and it also LED light - just two bulbs 7W each to lit the room, and charge level always stays on high level.
The kind of LED light matters a LOT i have noticed. You can test this well with a solar calculator. Flashlights and their single cold-white LEDs really aren't suitable for charging solar watched. But if you lay it under one the shade of a desklamp that you have turned on during the evening, it will suck up that energy from the light at close proximity a lot better and getting quite a lot of power from it. And it's not wasted because you would have turned on the lamp anyway. Keeping that in mind also makes you more aware of what lights to use at your home and where to place them. All to keep the "no-light" periods for your solar watch as short as possible.
I work midnights.
I put the watch on the window sill after I get home
Has run perfect for years, no money spent on a charger
It's worth mentioning that the reason LED flashlights (&lights) are ineffective in providing high energy light to a solar watch (or other solar panel) is the very same reason that they are efficient at providing bright light without consuming power at a high rate (thus the absence of energy reaching the solar panels). LED = Light Emitting Diode. The emitter does not act as a continuous light source; it's a rapidly flashing light emitter. Our vision isn't capable of observing this affect; this is why car LED fog and headlights look so weird when seen in our rear view reversing camera, but normal when viewed directly. Your welcome!
That's not why. And most LEDs don't operate that way. This comment is almost entirely made up. It's incandescent lights that blink at 60Hz. LEDs almost never do this except for some with odd dimmer functions. I used to work at Eaton Halo lighting.
It's the time integral of luminous flux that determines how bright it looks. So it doesn't matter if the source blinks at a 100Hz frequency. It's average energy over time
LEDs are just very effective at turning electrons into photons. 90% vs 4% efficiency compared to a tungsten filament.
Thanks for flashing that light in my eyes
Good info, thanks. I typically use the sunshine outdoors to charge my solar watches. In winter when it gets to -40 outside, I use the sunlight that comes in via the windows. :)
I have a Casio Pro Trek with its original battery that’s 15 years old that I’ve charged regularly with a small lamp at my watch storage station. I use sunlight mostly but winter can make that difficult, but my little focused light works amazingly.
I live in Sweden. We don't have sunlight in the winter, so I need one of those gadgets
Im curious to see if UV light is the key to perhaps charging it faster
I understand that the sun is most the efficient. However, I live in a northern city and my watch box sits at a north facing window. This scenario simply does not provide ideal solar exposure for my collection of watches. Any discussion on the best forms of artificial light would be great. Cheers!
Well, here in northern scandinavia days are very short in winter and I am in an office at work in the few hours of daylight , maybe wearing longsleeve that cover the watch or working infront of a monitor with only light in the roof, add some use of the functions of the watch and you can run out of juice. It has happened.
FYI.
If you bring your flash light closer to the watch (touching the face of the watch) your charge lever will increase. Could reach level 6-7 with that flash light of yours.
It’s called LUX.
The closer light source to the solar panel the more energy it produces.
You have a valid point about charging stations.
Just make sure your tests are as accurate as possible ( like keeping the light on the watch, not half way)
Thank you for the video.
Hi im new to gshock, i just bought a tough solar gshock, but the battery level didnt rise when i use torchlight to charge
@@mygamingchannel8555 try timing how long it takes for the battery to lower without using the torch, and then compare it with the use of the torch.
very useful, thank You Sir!
This is great! I had been wondering about this!!
Me too, which is why I decided to do the video, I'm glad to know I wasn't the only one interested in that 😄
Cause I’m disabled paralyzed from the waist down and am wheelchair dependent. So it’s pretty tough to get outside much. And it’s really silly and begging for someone to see my watch and steal it. So things like that Coolfire charger for 28 bucks on Amazon is a huge advantage for me. Just saying direct sun light isn’t available to me in my life style. My main piece I have used the charger on is my MTGB1000-1AB.
As usual, enjoyable video with interesting information. Keep it up mate ;)
So, because I am a nerd and I collect flashlights as an EDC hobby, I can tell you why the flashlight was inconsistent. It’s because lumens, the “output” measures of light emitted from an LED, are fluctuating. They don’t always stay the same, especially the further away you move. Also, 99% of flashlights you can buy as a consumer have what’s called a “step down” feature. This is to prevent overheating the LED, battery and body of the light. So while 2,000 lumens is great and really bright, you might only get that for 30 seconds before the light steps down to maybe 400-600 lumens. So that’s a big reason why flashlights wouldn’t be as effective.
Good post which identifies the some of the few issues with solar watches. Solar watches are good, particularly the ones with the Citizen Eco-drive movement.
If you need a quick charge in an emergency, use your cars halogen headlight on full beam. Place watch around 1 meter distance from headlight and in 30min or so it will provide enough charge for a few days use. Check the watch isn't getting too hot after a few minutes, and increase the distance if it is. Discovered this when camping during a dive holiday. Necessity is the mother of invention!
I have a gshock that a bought a 2years ago and loved so much. But I then I got an apple watch a year later and out the gshock in my draw
I took it out the other day and was shock when I say it was dead. I thought I have to buy a new batter. I put it on my desk and today I say “Chg” blinking. I looked up what that mean and saw this video and now it make total since. NEVER put the gshock away. And now I love my watch even more.
Thank you for this content, it was very helpful.
Why do you need to put your watch on a window sill at all (at normal latitudes in the U.S.)? If you have a watch that supposedly can store a ten month charge, then it would seem that just wearing a short sleeve shirt in the summer would keep your watch charged enough to make it through the winter months. Any thoughts?
Totally correct, but I'm the exception. My room is pretty dark and I can't charge them all up by using them. I own about 80 watches (83, I believe) and their turn comes just once in a while. I converted a normal watch box (no glass) to a charging station with LED lights inside and a switch. I turn on the lights inside the box and let it run for some time and then turn it off in the evening. There is a bit of light bleeding from the case, that's why I don't let it run at night. I own 7 solar watches, all Casio and they are always on High for me, so it works if you really wanna do it. But I agree, for normal people who don't own 83 watches, it's as simple as going outside and touch grass for a while.
As I jusr aquired my first solar, I am extremely aware of this. I am glad I can use daylight and as much light from inside places, as I rarely use long-sleeved t-shirts
Usefull indeed. Thank you .
I wish my watch had a feature like that, to measure the amount of power coming from a light source. Now I need to buy this Seiko :p
i hate you now you made me feel like I bought the wrong watch! :)
Thank you for shading some light on this l always wonder about!! Thanxs for the clarification!! :-)
weedXD38 shading some light?
I like the way he talks with his hands when his hands are the only thing you can see besides the watches.
It reminds me of the guy on Svengoolie. You can only see his hands but he makes random movements like this guy to emphasize the fact that he's talking. He sometimes even has to let go of the watch to use his hands, as if he can't talk without them.
Yeah thanks for shining that bright light in our eyes 👀
You just need a bright flashlight to surpass all daily charging speed. Got my gshock charged from 1/5 to 4/5 in less than 30min of exposure to a 800 Lum flashlight (not even working in full brightness). These silicon solar panels works best with visible light and stretch a little bit to IR spectrum, so flashlights can be ideal. Though it may vary from solar panels with different brands or light source, and especially the placement of solar panels on the watch dial.
Every video I have watched from yourself has been a worthwhile and interesting experiance, I always feel that my time is well spent!
I really appreciate your high standards of accuracy and delivery!!
Great job Sir
!!
Thank you very much for the nice words. Make sure to watch this Sunday as you will be able to participate in a giveaway
I shall attend the gathering Sir!
Great content! Thanks so much! You should also try one of those smart lamps and see what different colors would do.
I cheated. I got a charging station for my Tough Solar. When I got the watch, it was only 1/2 charged. I work mostly indoors, so it actually discharged completely. I’m happy to say that I spent $30 for a 10¢ bulb with a rubber gasket to hold the watch. Bitterness aside, it charged the watch and it’s been going strong.
"A dark cloudy day with a storm approaching." Or as we Scots call it.....a typical summer! 😂
Thanks so much! I was trying to find out if I should let my gshock solar die or go low from time to time or keep it fully charged all the time, as different types of batteries work differently and some store up a "memory" if you keep them always charged, which reduces the battery life greatly.
You answered my question that I should keep my watch as fully charged as possible. Thank you. 😁👍
I just use a bright light and leave it for a few hours and it never left high power for many months. But the led is more reliable than the constantly changing and lessening power of the sun.
Distance to the object is important regarding a calculation of lux. Sunlight at the strongest point/time in day is about 120k lux. But that's at a distance of 150 million km's. A very strong LED flashlight prduces the same lux at 1 mm. Full sunlight has a colour temperature between 7000K and 8000K Kelvin. Construction lights have a colourtemp. of 6500k so would be very suitable to charge your watch.
Its very impressive that your continuously trying to improve your English language when it isnt your mother tongue. You use words that clearly show you are always working on expanding your vocabulary. Keep up the great job. Im tracking you on socialblade. Very impressive numbers
Thanks 😊
The funny thing is that I studied German in school and English was something I picked up from all the movies I watched and yet, my level of German is not even close to my English 😄
Watch Geek your english is superb buddy.
Thanks
Watch Geek Impressive, I genuinely thought you come from an english speaking country with a local region accent
Haha thanks
I use my bright LED desk lamp, and I measured lux, and they are above measurements limit, and works for my watches really great! 😁
P.S. During Summer I don't need it, just Winter.
Nice to see Gulfmaster! Keep up the excellent work!
Thanks
I just put em in a window (not in direct sunlight) and the battery is always on high.
Great informational video, keep it up and cheers from Southern California!
Thanks 😊
LOL, I'm using a dedicated LED light charger to power my G-Shock watches. It’s connected to an inverter, six 100Ah batteries, and ten 500W solar panels. Charging them is a breeze, anytime. And yes, they’re not the only things using all that power.
Excellent tests and useful knowledge. Thanks.
Excellent video! Well done, buddie. Love your watches.
Thanks, that was very interesting info. liked and subscribed
I use a natural light lamp, works well.
Was that some... northern soul in the intro??? :D I am in the process of converting a six grid cheap Lidl's display case into a solar box, I have carefully run round both UV and bright white cob LED strips and just waiting for another LED PSU. I arrange the UV lights into the lid and the white stuck to the bit above the grids below the area of the lid and seems to work well, will wire in a on off switch to the rear but under the lights at mo is a Citizen radio controlled eco drive, a Pulsar 80's solar and a almost new Pulsar VR43 and all seem good and charged up.
Nice experiment...lux is also available in manual
Genius man thanks.
Very interesting! Thanks 😊
hello sir, couldn't agree more with you in this topic. to me practicality is everything. thank you again for your englighment. keep it coming. cheers. :)
Thanks for watching.... Again 😁👍
Dude. Succinct and very informative. Thanks.
Love that Seiko
I have a Bering solar watch, quite simply you just need to let it see some light, any light and it will keep going for a very long time. When I first took it out of the box, in the evening in a subdued lit room, it started working right away with 2 second jumps showing it was under charged. Within a couple of hours it was running normally. I know it will live for decades so long as it can have some light as it's food source
Good video. yeah i've as vid showing similar but using a solar cell and a multimeter to try and convince people that even these powerful LED flashlights are no match for the sun.
I live in an area where it’s raining and cool 10 months a year. My charger is the answer
Fascinating!!!
Thank you very much for giving us this proof bro totally awesome content 👍👍👍
Good video, thank you. What model Seiko was that?
I've had the square Casio Solar Watch for a couple of months now, and it's always showing medium charge. It could be that it's because it's winter in the UK, and hence it's not getting a lot of sun. I sometimes pull my sleeve up a bit when outdoors to expose it to sunlight a bit.
I've left it in my window for hours during the day (but it's not in direct sunlight) to see if it will make a difference to the charge level, and so far haven't had any luck. What sort of charge level does your Seiko watch get when left in a window during the day, but not in direct sunlight? Do you know what charge level is required to create a positive balance of energy throughout the day?
I'm sure when summer comes along the watch will be fine, as it will get much more sun exposure, so I hope the battery stays charged until then.
Try keeping it on a window sill such that the watchface has a clear view of the sky or at least some line of sight to the sky. Do this for 3-4 days and you'll see the charge indicator go from medium to high. Try keeping the watch on your windowsills as much as possible for the battery to get a good amount of juice. Once it's fully charged, you only need a few minutes of exposure to light everyday and it'll stay on high. Worked for me for my Gravitymaster. I lived in the UK countryside for 5 years and I know it gets pretty overcast, especially during winters.
But what about fluorecent lamps? Like a normal fluorecent lamp we can buy from stores?
thanks for the great video. one question my g shock mtg got completely drained... after charging will the battery life get bad as it was drained once? Thank u :)
How many lumens was the flashlight outputting? What is the wavelength makeup of the light that it is outputting? Some lights are vastly brighter than others, and some output different wavelengths than others. Without this information, the outcome of your test is so broad and vague that it is basically useless. It did not prove that LED flashlights are bad at charging a solar watch, it proved that the particular flashlight that you used for the test, on the brightness setting that you had it set to, only achieved level 4 charging, and as someone else pointed out, you had the front of the light way farther away from the watch than would have been ideal. There is so much wasted light spilling out of the sides
Perfect review!
Great Information thanks
I have a Casio Gravitymaster GPW-2000-1A2JF and I love it......
Very useful, thank you. Sophia
Helpful, thanks!
Thanks for th information
Hello, i have a watch question unrelated to this topic. i have a seiko, and i believe its a model SKA-085, a kinetic automatic that i got used unworking. figured itd be the capacitor, so i bought an entirely new one which was almost impossible for me to find, and it went from being unable to charge, to keeping about 24 hours worth of battery from a hard, constant 30 minute shake. rediculous. any thoughts as to what it could be now? thanks
Seiko make the best practical watches.. I already own 4 Seikos
How abou the battery replacement series? I have one, but today the condition is off, maybe my seiko is getting low battery
My casio has been on 'high' for over 11 years now.. It is so awesome.. Tough solar all the way
Which model?
@@aznddog gw-9010 mudman.. And it's still on high 👍🏻👍🏻
@@Joemamma664 That’s amazing.
I've been high for 20 years.
@@iliketurtles4463 same 🙃
So what were the model numbers for the 2 “G-Shocks” shown in this video?
nice one for that video the window chill it is from now on thanks........
Try to avoid leaving it in direct light to not overheat the battery
Excellent!
I have a lamp on my desk behind my monitor for "fill" light. I plan to keep the watch there when I'm not wearing it. No need to change anything just for the watch.
should I get an auto watch then? I only worry that solar watches might not charge properly... some of my friends have Citizen Eco-drives and they complain that it never charges up despite wearing it everyday.
Wow it worked cheers
great video indeed !! thanks, I wonder if it is possible to have the same strength of light through the glass of a window. meaning: can i have the same level of charge if I kept my watch by the window? or does it have to be in an open area without any barrier even a glass????? what do you think... hope if you can demonstrate it
Thank you very much for that important video. I have some solar watches. Rangeman, Riseman, Edifices and others. I thought about buying a charging station. But I realized that it makes really no sense. With a charging station you can charge a watch very fast. But for what for? You can only wear one watch, all the others can lie on the window for hours. They charge slow but good. No direct sunlight to heat the watch, normal daylight does the job. And if this is not enough, I lie the watches in a circle around a LED lightbulb behind my TV. In a distance of 15 - 20 cm. But you are right, normal daylight is the best! And by the way, it's the idea of solar watches, to need no additional electricity.
I keep a lamp running behind my monitor anyway, so I use that lamp for charging watches.
Good info, TY.
The tough solar panel on my solar atomic G-Shock is designed for outdoor natural lighting only facing the direct sunlight exposure or background daylighting indoor artificial lighting doesn’t do anything I tested it for the first two hours didn’t budge at all The only One exception to avoid 30°C or above the case of the tough solar atomic G-Shock gets so hot and it will melt the liquid crystal display if you’re not careful be extremely careful on a 30°C day or beyond go for it.
I was going to conduct this same test, now I do not have to. Thank you
Sir pls solve my problem pls pls pls I'm having a csio youth series watch how many hours should I keep it in sunlight to have that radium light pls pls pls
Hiya ive just watched your video on charging solar powered watchs. Now then i have Casio ECW-M300 E. 5117. IVE HAD THIS WATCH AROUND ABOUT 9/10 YEARS. NOW LAST WEEK I FOUND THAT BATTERY LEVEL .NEARLY C FOR CHARGING. SO MOST OF THE TIME AT THIS TIME OF YEAR ITS CLOUDY. SO PUT MY WATCH ON THE WINDOWSILL. TO CHARGE ITS BEEN THERE FOR 10DAYS AND NOW ITS REACH M ON CHARGING SCALL. SO IF WITH THESE CONDITIONS WILL THE WATCH BE FULLY CHARGED IN ANOYHER 10/14 DAYS? WHAT DO THINK
Voltage don't depend on intensity of lights but it's frequency... Sun wins ☀️
I agree sunlight is so powerful doesn’t have a chance to overheat at all exception if it’s a 40°C day then Your solar watch can overheat and black out ignore other people go for it but never on a 40°C day Liquid crystal display will black out LCD for short
Should I put the kings in the drawer in the dark. In the dark they turn off or should I put them out on display. If I put them out the kings will stay on
Putting 10hrs in full sun - is this good or could it even damage my solar watch?
Good info and nice video.
Thanks
Lots of comments on the energy for charging solar powered watches. My question, in case it has not been asked is on ultraviolet light (UV Light). How would this light source affect the charge, at what level and would it charge the watch at a faster pace than sunlight? I appreciate your studies and your sharing of information. Great job on sharing on your videos.
yes, a small uv light would be sufficient to charge a solar watch. however uv lights are bad for humans. just like how sunlight is bad for humans.
be VERY careful with uv lights powerful ones can literally give you a sunburn in seconds. and even low power ones if left on in a room (it's invisible so you wouldn't notice) would give ve you a sunburn overnight. if not on for just a few moments it needs to be covered by a uv absorbing shell or put inside a container that blocks all light.
The light didn't work well because it's solar-power not light powered. Put a flashlight to a plant in a dark place and see if it grows put it out in the sun and see if it grows. I'm majored in science and was was honor roll student since very young. Thank God
The plant will grow with an led light. When pot was made legal in canada it was also alowed to grow 3 plants. My brother also uses led for his bonzi plants....
1-7-2023 hello I recently got the GWM5610u and I was wondering are there different levels of low medium high in regards to power .meaning can you be in medium ,go out in the sun then be on high but if you stayed out in the sun you would get higher. Hope that makes sense.Wis-I like that!
Great video. I have a Casio GRB100, does it need to be in direct sunlight for it to charge?
Whats level of charging indoors when you are not wearing the watch? How many sunny days of wearing it will it take to recharge a battery?
what's model is casio square?that's model is with carbon fiber and you replacement band and bezel?thanks for your time
It is a GW-S5600 modified with a regular GW-M5610 bezel and strap.
Here's the review of it. It's the lightest G-Shock ever made as all stainless steel parts have been replaced with titanium.
ruclips.net/video/1NTA94LiUZ4/видео.html
Watch Geek and why did you change the carbon fiber you were not satisfied with?thanks for the information..
No, I simply want to save it for a possible future resale and I prefer the stealthy look of the regular matte resin
yeah, probably the best square g ever. featherlight!!! thank you for that great video, able to get that watch used and still in good condition. really recommended it. cheers. :)