The PES can even power other devices in conjunction with a notebook or separately. The voltage controller has a multijack output and a voltage selector for two-way radios and Global Positioning System units. Indoors, you should place the panels in a south-facing window, because glass filters out some of the sunlight. A moderately cloudy day produced an Opti-Meter reading of 30 for one panel. That was too low to do much.
Recharge time depends both on sunlight available and on the individual notebook's requirements.
On clear winter days, we got combined readings of 200 and could run while recharging. We haven't tested the panels in a summertime haze. The panels were quite rugged and water-resistant though not waterproof. They probably would survive anything a notebook can survive. They're rated to operate at temperatures from minus 10 degrees to 140 degrees Fahrenheit.