Celestron Elements ThermoCharge 6
This pocket power bank from Celestron is a 2-1 device that doubles as a hand warmer. Elements by Celestron is a line of rechargeable electronic tools designed for the avid outdoorsman. They are water resistant, dust proof, crush proof and drop tested to withstand the abuses of the wild. The ThermoCharge 6 is a rugged, ergonomic, 2-in-1 tool featuring a hand warmer and portable power bank for charging USB devices on the go.
- Provides up to 8 hours of scent free heat
- Ergonomic aluminum body with Power Curve design enhances heat transfer
- IP65 rated water resistant and dust proof and drop tested tough- ready for any excursion
- 6000 mAh rechargeable lithium battery charges smartphone, tablets, sports cameras, MP3 players and other USB –powered devices
- C-Link feature allows for connecting other Celestron power banks to extend heat times up to 16 hours
- Auto charge feature means no buttons to push- simply plug your device into the USB OUT port to begin charging
- 2-in-1 Outdoor tool: Hand warmer and Power bank
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rvr2002 –
I’ve been looking for one of these since my hands got cold during the late dear season. I’m not able to handle cold weather like I use to and find an item like this to help me!
yabejeffdberner –
It warms up and charges phone very quickly but the strap easily breaks up
milchr_zlgmow –
Very good for hunting
Bartlet –
This one is having trouble charging. Dead after less than 6 months. Will report back later…trying to return. Cel strong says no -they are selling bad products.
spyderbench104 –
Works great, lasts all night !
G. Bozin –
The main button on the outside doesn’t work (it’s actually a fake button which pushes the real button under the lid). To use the device, I have to unscrew the locking pin and flip the lid open to operate it each time.Assessing the design to see if it’s a manufacturing issue or what… it’s definitely a design issue.This thing sucks.
John Danilson –
I am a skier. My phone gets very cold and the internal battery often gives out. It’s not an issue with the phone but at single-digit temperatures, the battery cannot hold the same level of charge. So I wanted a large reserve that I could plug into the phone when skiing. This seemingly had the added advantage of keeping the phone warm. Unfortunately, it cannot both charge the phone and enable the warmer.The charger so far has been sufficient but I’m downgrading this due to the lack of dual simultaneous functionality. I skied all day today in temperatures ranging from 4F to 12F and the phone never fell below 100%. At the end of the day, only one blue light was out.
Keupa –
UPDATE: My original post is still listed below if you care to read. I contacted the manufacturer about the situation with the button on top and they said that it should not function that way. They sent me a new unit that was delivered within a week or so of my conversation with them. Much to my satisfaction, the new unit works as described and expected. It’s still a little big, but it will come in “handy” when cold weather hunting hits. Increased my rating to 4 stars. Still thought it was a bit pricey and still not have a flashlight with it, but it will work. Thanks Celestron for your prompt service to make this right!Original Post:Disclaimer: I just received this item today and have not field tested the item in terms of it’s battery life when put to the task of charging a phone and heating in a tree stand or blind.Pros: Seems pretty rugged and sturdy. Love the carbiner paracord attachment for securing to a hunting vest or belt loop or whatever. That guarantees that you aren’t looking at your heat/charge source 15-20ft. below you!Cons:1) HUGE! It will definitely fill a pocket with not much room left inside for something else. This will take some getting used to. I was anticipating putting the phone in the same pocket as the power bank, but that may have to be modified given the size of this thing.2) Power button on the top is ridiculously hard to push! In order to turn on the heat, I have to take one hand on the bottom, the thumb of the other hand on top and then push together extremely hard to activate the heat option. Tried other fingers to push and still didn’t work. Not sure if this is a problem with just this particular item or a model issue. Really makes it sort of inconvenient and defeats the purpose of a one hand operation. When you remove the top and push the power button, it is really easy to activate. Just wonder if something is wrong with this particular product. I’ve fiddled with the lid to ensure that it is seated properly, but nothing seems to fix that major problem.3) You cannot charge and heat at the same time. Pick your poison? Cold hand for a time or dead device for a time? It would be nice if that sort of detail was listed in the description of the product. Really is a bummer.Overall, for $40+, I was hoping for something that is relatively easy to use with one hand and help with keeping the phone charged in the woods and a warm trigger hand! Unfortunately, at the current time, I’m not sold yet that this particular model will do that. I may explore returning it after reading more about it to see if anyone else was experiencing the same problems. If the lid/button issue is resolved, I would imagine that this will work out ok despite its size and single-task capability. We’ll have to wait and see.
pat –
this hand warmer is coming out in winter for the second year since i purchased it. it had lasted the whole of last year and still keeps my hands warm without any loss of performance. great item.
Simon Lewis –
Worked well for 2 months when it was cold. Has been stored in the dry and was put away fully charged. Took it out to use this winter and it wont take a charge and will not turn on. Amazon won’t accept the return. I’m very disappointed with both celestron and amazon.
Andrew Scott –
Ok. I purchased this for a recent winter trip to Alaska as I knew I could be in temperatures as cold as -60F. I used this in combination with the dry chemical heaters “Hot Hands” as I think there is a place for both of these technologies and this was the best fit for me.When you don’t need a heater, this make very nice USB charger especially when you are going from one plane to the next and need to charge your phone and Bluetooth headphones everywhere. I purchased (2) of these devices and never ran out of power during my all day travel from FTL to ANC. Enough said for it’s charging abilities.As far as a heater, well I turned them on in my front pockets of my jacket pocket and kept them on from around 10am till I arrived back to my hotel each evening. Being outside in -20f to -42f all day, you need to make sure your body is kept very warm. Wearing the proper clothing and also having the right tools to stay warm are necessary to staying alive in the untamed and unforgiving lands of Alaska. Chemical heaters in my shoes, pants pockets etc help out quite a bit, but the Celestron Elements 2-in-1 Hand Warmer did a great job in my jacket pockets keeping my hands warm when they needed a retreat from the cold. I spent 5-8 hours outdoors each day in varying temps with the coldest being -42f and the warmest being +20f. As a photographer, I need my hands to be free to control my camera settings and work the camera. In these extreme temps, you can only have your hands with thin e-tip gloves out for as much as 4-5 minutes before they are in severe pain from the cold. I would alternate hands while keeping the other warm in my pockets wrapped around my heater. So nice and toasty! Words cannot describe how good this felt and kept me from frost bite. I really can’t figure another way I could have done this trip without modern technology! While I don’t need this heater until my next trip, it doubles nicely as a power bank and I know everyone can always use one of those.My only complaint is the power button. It is very difficult to turn on and off as you have to press very hard to engage the mechanical button that presses the actual button on the other side of the protective cover. Even with this, I would highly recommend owning not one, but (2) of these! I also had them in my back pockets from time to time as they really warm your buns up nice when your hiking.You can extend your batteries when you are driving in your car by turning off the heaters, although keep in mind, it takes about 5-10 minutes to fully warm up so remember to turn them back on before use is needed. Charge times at night when I returned back to the hotel were a bit longer than I would have liked. If you run these down to the end which I did 2 times just as a test, you will need at least 8-10 hours to fully charge. Make sure you plug them in as soon as you return and get them ready for your next day well in advance. You will NOT want to be without these. You can also charge in your car to top off and extend use. Bring extra USB cables and 12V adapters with you for the road.Overall, you must get (2) of these per person and use the chemical heaters in addition for your feet and other pockets. If your a photographer such as myself, maybe you will want an extra for your camera bag to keep your gear warm especially your batteries so they will work well in cold temperatures. In case you don’t already know, when lithium ion batteries get to cold, their capacity decreases. A fully charged lithium battery at zero degrees f, has only 50% capacity and once the battery gets too cold, they just shut down as if they were dead. Once they are warmed back up, they continue as though nothing ever happened.I hope this helps everyone and if you have any further questions, feel free to ask me.Highly recommend this product!!!
Steven D. Bassett –
I bought this for my mother in law. She loves it. She was wearing a mitten on her hand to keep it warm (surgical problem required a device to be implanted in her arm but caused slower blood flow to her hand which made it cold) The hand warmer warms up in seconds and stays warm for hours. 12 hours for the “ten” model. Only thing I didn’t like was the foot long usb to sub mini cable. They didn’t even supply a cheap usb to household socket power supply. Fine, I had one hanging around and recharged the battery which is ten thousand milliamphours. Needless to say it took more than twenty four hours to charge…a bit slow. So I bought a high capacity quick charger (65 watts) and a ten foot charging cord. Ma is a happy camper now. Short waiting time (about 6 hours to charge). So when she goes to sleep we charge the hand warmer. She wakes up to a fully charged unit. This is a great device, well made by a reputable company (Celestron) if you need warm hands this is the way to go. Highly recommended.
J. Young –
The good;Charges at a decent speed, power bank is a decent size, clear charge indicator, rugged and feels like it will last years, good quality storage pouch supplied.The bad;Older mini-USB port means most cables we have laying around are not compatible, as a hand warmer it’s of limited use as when outside in the cold it never seems to warm up fully.Overall I would say it’s useful, but more-so as a rugged power bank, the hand warming function is nice to have as an extra feature but not good enough to be the main reason to buy.