Harvey, I'm a fan of solar power, but I think the Lith-Ion pack makes better sense in terms of weight and reliability for most thru hikers or people wanting to recharge camera gear or Apple products. Seems like the expensive air charges for a sat phone would naturally limit the talk time, therefore the power consumption. To really utilize a solar charger, I think you'd have to talk a lot or leave it on standby waiting for a call. For someone like myself just listening to tunes climbing the big passes, a AA powered mp3 player is my choice. I rarely even turn on my Android, but I might use it a little more if I download that app and add waypoints for the best campsites, bear boxes, and other info.
I bet you scored some cool gadgets from those scouts.
