Why do you have so many light options?

HELIO has multiple light choices for a variety of off-the-grid uses. The flashlight is powerful. The lantern is works well as a task light, covering uses from cooking to reading to assembly. HELIO's red lantern is for anybody who wants to work at night and preserve night vision: astronomers take note. The flashing light feature can, of course, ensure safety. All these lighting modes are backed by HELIO's large battery, so they last for a long time—up to a month on a single charge.

Why does HELIO has such a large battery?

HELIO has a large battery so that normal users will have a power buffer between themselves and darkness. With HELIO and its large battery capacity, you are never in the dark.

How much does HELIO weigh? What are its dimensions?

HELIO weighs 370 grams, and its dimensions are 216mm x 61mm x 32mm.

Can I charge HELIO with a cable, or is the solar panel the only way to charge it?

It is possible to charge HELIO with a USB cable in addition to the fact that you can charge with the solar panel. When charging over USB, a complete charge can be achieved in about 6 hours.

How long will it take to charge HELIO with the solar panel?

The solar panel will take 5-7 days to fully charge the unit under ideal conditions. If conditions are less than ideal—if there are clouds, or shorter days due to Winter, or if the unit is not in direct sunlight for any reason—a full charge may take quite a bit longer. These limitations are inherent to solar panels, even very efficient ones like the one on HELIO.

How many times can I charge my phone (or other device) with a fully charged HELIO?

HELIO has 3,170 mAh of USB-out charging capacity. This is enough to charge an iPhone 8 about 1.75 times, a Samsung Galaxy S8 once, a GoPro Hero 4 2.5 times, a 6th generation iPod Touch 3 times, and an iPad Mini 4 to about 60% of its fully charged capacity.

Does HELIO work in the rain?

HELIO is designed to be water resistant, and is rated at IP65 for water resistance. This rating is an industry standard for surviving water intrusion testing under 15 minutes of rain, at 12 liters per minute projected against the device.

Does HELIO have a warranty?

Makers4Good will warranty against manufacturing defects for one year.

If you give away all the profits how do you stay in business?

Makers4Good has great investors and supporters who care about helping those in need more than personal profits. Makers4Good doesn't need to keep any profits in order to stay in business and to keep providing great products and helping people.

What does Makers4Good do with its profits?

For every HELIO purchased, 100% of profits go to provide our lighting products to nonprofit organizations. The specific type of solar lights given to nonprofit partners will vary depending on their individual needs. In some cases, we will give our HELIO solar lights to our nonprofit partners for use in their programs. In other cases, the most effective support will be to provide one of the lower-cost solar lanterns that we sell, and therefore to help a larger number of people. Makers4Good will work with our nonprofit partners to identify and to provide the most useful form of support for each partner's specific needs.

How does this compare with a One-For-One program?

It is the same general idea; you get a great light, and when more people buy our products Makers4Good can provide more products to those in need.

Our investors and supporters want to use 100% of our profits to support charities with our solar products. Our approach also allows us to match the products we give to what a nonprofit needs most. We work with each nonprofit partner to give them the most useful product we can provide.

Why are you giving 100% of your profits to charity?

Our goal was to give as much support as possible, and 100% seems to meet that goal.