Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I purchased this a few days ago in preparation for an upcoming amateur-radio field day event. While I have other high-end solar components, I needed something portable, and my mechanical skills are not exactly the best. I chose the preassembled 100W solar suitcase charger and after a single trial run, I am impressed. Build quality is generally good, the panels performed to specifications (I don't blindly trust specs, so I test them upon receipt), and the pwm controller is highly configurable to really dial in voltages for the various battery chemistries I use. One thing I noticed that is not mentioned elsewhere, is that the charge controller is mounted on a dedicated plate that can swing outwards from the panel in case of replacement or if you prefer a controller from another manufacturer. The plate that supports the controller is attached to the backside of one panel via industrial-grade velcro - and lots of it. While I had the panel fully angled out to about 45 degrees, seeing and manipulating the CC controls was difficult. In addition, the higher heat generated by the underside of the panel itself so close to the controller made the temperature-compensation a bit too agressive, and did not bring my battery up to the required voltage during boost. Measured temps on my own IR thermometer here were 90F ambient, yet directly underneath the panel, the CC was measuring 43C / 109F. This wasn't surprising since the front panels of all makes can easily get to 150F in full sun. The fix here was to GENTLY pull the CC controller plate away from the panel itself so that it would hang vertically. DO NOT use anything to pry the plate away from the panel - just SLOW, steady handheld force to overcome the velcro without breaking the panel. Now the CC hangs vertically. This way I could see and manipulate the controls easier, and also provide cooling to more accurately reflect the ambient temp. Now the temperature-compensation feature of the CC was close enough for me. I'll be modifying my plate to have less velcro to make pulling it away easier without risking panel damage. In the meantime, when storing the unit, I just don't push down too hard on the velcro making it easier to pull away next time. I like the tangle-free cabling, and also the connector setup. While the system worked, when I took a look inside the junction boxes, I felt the need to touch-up the soldered connections a little bit. Also inspect the cable input / output leads from the controller itself for any rogue "frog hairs" that might short later due to hurried construction of jamming the stranded wires into the sockets. Mine weren't shorting, but I cleaned it up a tiny bit. I also carry a medium-sized towel with the kit inside the case. I use this not only to keep the panel clean, but also use it when setting up to ensure that the charge controller starts perfectly - ideally one should always connect the battery first to wake up the CC, and THEN connect the panel. Since I setup in full sun usually, what I do is drape the towel over the panel to reduce any output from it, connect the battery, and then whip the towel off the panel matador-style. The included CC is supposed to be smart about this, but connecting the battery first, and the panel LAST is an old habit to break. What really sold me on Renogy was that is seemed like ALL of their products proudly have their specifications stated and easy to obtain! That means they are not afraid of guys like me who will not only verify the specs on paper, but actually use my own test equipment to validate - this isn't my first solar-rodeo! I also loved the fact that the quick-start sheet that accompanies the manual for the CC, shows the importance of selecting your battery chemistry, ie Gel, Sealed, or Flooded. That one is important. I use "flooded" for my Optimas, and "sealed" for nearly all other agm's since the voltages as listed in the charge-controller's manual match up to the battery manufacturer's specs the best that way. I choose the best voltage, and not necessarily blindly follow the default designations. Of course you can manually override those default setup voltages. I will have no problem ordering more gear from them for upcoming projects. The generally good build, and most importantly the openly-displayed specs that are actually relevant and not just fluff - impressed me a great deal. *** UPDATE *** - 27 May 2014 If you are a stickler for exact voltages like I am, then you may want to think about compensating just a little bit for voltage drop, or make up your own controller-to-battery cable with a larger gauge, like #12 to #8 or so (if they will fit!) Mine came with 15 feet of 1.5mmSq wires, which roughly translates to about 14 - 16 AWG. With 15 feet of cable, this amounts to about a .4V voltage drop at the start of absorb. The discrepency lessens at the end of boost however. Therefore I have taken a conservative approach of simply adjusting my controller voltage to 0.2V higher than normal in both boost and absorb to provide a bit of voltage drop compensation, ie if I want 14.4v for my battery in boost, I'll set the controller for 14.6V. Of course temperature-compensation will make real-world voltages change, but I tested this by running dc voltage drop calculaters, and temporarily disabling temp comp to make sure I was not fooling myself. I'm sure this thin of a gauge was for portability / weight-saving reasons, and is easily compensated for by manually programming my voltages about .2v higher than normal. Works for me, but as always, consult your battery owners application manual to make sure of the allowed specifications.