Jackery, Anker... Which portable power station is best?

[Pitstop Penny]

Hey everyone! I'm doing more trips in the van for work and vlogging for my magazine, mostly. I need something to charge my phone, laptop, camera, mics, and more.
Can anyone recommend something to keep me going when I'm not got access to electricity? Thanks all!

 

[Ch1pbutty]

Fit solar panels instead, then no need to plug in.

 

[Kev56]

I'm looking at getting one too, i've looked around but am no wiser as to which one. Some of the comparison sites do seem to have a bias (prob a commercial one) At the moment i'm edging toward the Delta 3 plus. Would like to hear from anyone on here who has this model.

 

[Razor Crest]

I use Aferiy. I have a P310 in my van and it has a 7 year warranty.

 

[Davilu]

A vote for the Jackery Explorer 1000 v2 from me - a good balance between size, power and cost imho

 

[DukeofPork777]

A vote for the Jackery Explorer 1000 v2 from me - a good balance between size, power and cost imho

Agree…. You can pick one up for £500 in the sales.

Loads of power for your gadgets and gizmos. Leaves the power in the van for the van

 

[ThomasHJ]

I'm looking at getting one too, i've looked around but am no wiser as to which one. Some of the comparison sites do seem to have a bias (prob a commercial one) At the moment i'm edging toward the Delta 3 plus. Would like to hear from anyone on here who has this model.

I agree this model is interesting. It can supply 4 times as much power as the standard leisure batteries. At around 720 pound (over here in NL) its quite some money but I'd be interested to read up on these things and see if it could be something I would enjoy.

 

[Wannabecamperman]

I concur re the V2 Jackery 1000. I bought this in the sale delivered for around £550. I also have the old Bluetti AC200 Max with extension pack, though this is far more bulky and only taken on longer trips with hair dryer / induction hobs / grill, etc

 

[secret lemonade drinker]

I have an ecoflow river 2 pro. It charges up off of a 12v cigarette lighter socket whilst driving, has three 240v ac outputs rated at 800w but can provide double that for about 15 minutes, so approx 1600 watts which should run a microwave to heat up a meal. it has usb and 12v outputs and allows my wife to work from home in the van whilst we travel away.

 

[colintfcolintf]

Bluetti AC70P fits in cupboard under the sink, also have a Anker C1000 Solix
You probably can’t go far wrong with any from the main players

 

[Californication69]

I’m using ecoflow delta 2
Loads of power and easy to charge using a folding solar panel toooo

 

[Daveb999]

A vote for the Jackery Explorer 1000 v2 from me - a good balance between size, power and cost imho

Yup, same as I have, excellent units

 

[sticky1]

Hey everyone! I'm doing more trips in the van for work and vlogging for my magazine, mostly. I need something to charge my phone, laptop, camera, mics, and more.
Can anyone recommend something to keep me going when I'm not got access to electricity? Thanks all!

I use power banks a fair bit and my advice would be to do the maths on what capacity you need and this will help narrow down your choices.
I find it easier to convert everything to watt hours as most devices give you that data.
It’s worth noting that if you are plugging in to 240v sockets it will be using the built in inverter and I typically estimate that as a 20% loss of efficiency, so I just add 20% to the wattage.
Obviously lots of stuff you don’t need running for an hour so you can divide up your watts per hour.
Once you have your daily consumption you just need to decide how long you are likely to be without being able to charge back up.
Obviously portable solar can extend your off grid time.
The other point made earlier is the max wattage can be so much higher than the 300w max in the van, so if you want to run something like a hairdryer you can have that option with power banks.
Personally I like EcoFlow and Anker, but have heard good things from people using Bluetti. I’d recommend looking at reviews of the associated mobile app as this can be useful for managing the power bank.

 

[Betsycalifornia]

I'm looking at getting one too, i've looked around but am no wiser as to which one. Some of the comparison sites do seem to have a bias (prob a commercial one) At the moment i'm edging toward the Delta 3 plus. Would like to hear from anyone on here who has this model.

I’ve got this model in the van. Also got 2 Anker and another EcoFlow at home. What would you,like to know?

 

[Kev56]

I’ve got this model in the van. Also got 2 Anker and another EcoFlow at home. What would you,like to know?

Hi, got a few questions first one is will the fit in between the the front seats.

 

[Betsycalifornia]

Both the Anker c1000 and the EcoFlow delta 3/plus, plus having two solar inputs, fit between the front seats nicely. One issue with the Anker in that location is the sockets are on the front face and it’s tight getting a plug in. EcoFlow sockets are on the end.

 

[SpuffingtonMe]

I've got an Anker 555 (1024kWH) and very pleased with it. I bought it originally for my T6 Ocean but have used it all around the house, garden and in my last campervan also for charging my eMTB. I have a number of Anker products and frankly speaking, given how these things can overheat and destroy your home, it was important to buy from a respected manufacturer.

I originally bought an Ecoflow down to the recommendations from folks on here but when the item was delivered, it was faulty and Ecoflow ignored all my emails to request a replacement and/or refund. In the end, it took me referring the case to Amex to get them to respond. After that, the item was collected within 48hrs and refunded but it had taken a month to get to that point. I vowed never to use them again. They never at any point apologised or offered to fix the issue.

 

[Corradobrit]

I’m using ecoflow delta 2
Loads of power and easy to charge using a folding solar panel toooo

This is what I have too. They sell a great product but Customer Service is the absolute pits. The online contact system is a joke. I was kept on hold for hours. And when you finally get someone they are very poor.

I originally bought an Ecoflow down to the recommendations from folks on here but when the item was delivered, it was faulty and Ecoflow ignored all my emails to request a replacement and/or refund. In the end, it took me referring the case to Amex to get them to respond. After that, the item was collected within 48hrs and refunded but it had taken a month to get to that point. I vowed never to use them again. They never at any point apologised or offered to fix the issue.

I eventually got satisfaction and a proper response in a timely manner by contact employees through their FB page. I seriously considered dropping the brand until I figured out the best means of contacting the company.

 

[Betsycalifornia]

Have to agree with the EcoFlow support, it is the pits. I’ve got an issue with a PowerStream. Awful service. On the other hand the Anker service was outstanding when my c1000 wouldn’t see the extra battery. They wrote firmware and deployed overnight. EcoFlow, software is flaky at times but has so much functionality compared to the Anker kit. Doesn’t help a decision I know. For me EcoFlow functionality is what I needed so I’ve gone that way at home now as well. But I’d save the support email just in case as they aren’t very responsive. [email protected]

 

[Wannabecamperman]

Regarding support, Bluetti are often slow and not that clued up, though on the one time I had to contact Jackery, they were exceptional. They have internal SLAs to get resolutions in place. The only slight downside to Jackery are the proprietary attachments for the Solar Saga panels, with an 8mm jack connecter rather than the MP4 or XT connectors most others have to charge from solar. The 12v car charger works the same on all products though