Yes, you can do this, and there are several ways to get there. Perhaps the easiest solution is to purchase a unit called the Diogenes Personal Solar Power Pack from a company called Sundance Solar (603-456-2020; ). It sells for $199, weighs about two pounds, and is about the size of a hardbound book. It’ll charge all sorts of things聴AA batteries, cell phones, and camcorder batteries. Voltage can be set from 2-12 volts, and it comes with the cigarette lighter adapter. Ed Bender, who designed the Diogenes, which is built around Siemens solar cells, had a customer in a few days ago who bought a Diogenes for use with a Sony camcorder.
There’s also a device called the iSun ($80) from a Canadian company called ICP Technologies (icpglobal.com). It’s a compact, easy-to-use solar unit that also is adaptable to charging a wide range of items. In its basic configuration, however, it’s limited to 2 volts. You’d need to link three units together to get the 6 volts you need. ICP also makes a 12-volt unit, the BatterySaver Powerpak, that can be set to 6 volts and that has a cigarette lighter adapter. It’s about the same size as the Diogenes, and retails for only $35, which sounds too good to be true, but there it is. I think the Diogenes has a little better solar cells, hence the price difference.
Keep in mind that none of these small units is terribly efficient. They’ll work best in bright sunlight, although in Colorado you should be able to find plenty of that.