Bluetti is a 3-year-old model that primarily makes moveable photo voltaic turbines, battery backup methods, and foldable photo voltaic panels. Their merchandise use LiFePO4 battery know-how, which is at present considered the perfect type of lithium battery in the marketplace and has confirmed fairly well-liked within the DIY and “van life” communities, permitting folks to energy necessary gadgets and home equipment in off-grid conditions.
We lately examined some Bluetti merchandise to see how nicely they use solar energy to maintain the batteries charged and able to ship energy to all types of energy-hungry gadgets. We discovered our Bluetti energy financial institution and photo voltaic panel to be as much as many necessary jobs across the yard, the home, and even within the wilderness.
Right here’s a full evaluation of Bluetti merchandise and extra info on all their makes use of.
Key takeaways
- Bluetti photo voltaic turbines use lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) battery know-how that’s safer and longer lasting than different designs of lithium batteries.
- The corporate provides many battery merchandise in capacities starting from 268 watt-hours to 12.3 kilowatt-hours.
- Most Bluetti batteries are moveable and all include the flexibility to cost from photo voltaic panels, which the corporate additionally makes.
- The corporate provides warranties of 24 months for its smaller moveable photo voltaic turbines and as much as 5 years for its massive residence backup options.
- With the wide selection of choices obtainable, sturdy construct high quality, and nice know-how behind all of it, SolarReviews recommends Bluetti merchandise.
Bluetti’s know-how
Bluetti’s key worth proposition comes from its use of Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries. This mixture of chemical compounds (LiFePO4, or LFP for brief) makes Bluetti’s batteries extra secure, longer lasting, and fewer environmentally dangerous than typical lithium nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) batteries utilized by different well-liked photo voltaic turbines. Bluetti says its LFP batteries could be cycled 2,500 (EB sequence) to three,500 (AC and B sequence) instances earlier than being diminished to 80% of their unique capability, in comparison with different manufacturers’ 500-cycle lifespan.
The subsequent function widespread to Bluetti’s Transportable Energy Stations is photo voltaic enter. From the entry-level EB3A to the flagship AC200P, comes with an MPPT solar charge controller built-in, allowing the battery to get the most from solar panels. Bluetti makes its own foldable solar panel, but also provides standard MC4 connections so any compatible solar array can be used to charge its batteries (with allowable input wattage that differs for each of its products).
Finally, Bluetti includes a pure sine wave inverter in each of its batteries and provides multiple DC and AC outlets to provide options for powering devices. Typical outlets include USB-A, USB-C, 120V AC, and 12V DC. In addition, all Bluetti Portable Power Stations come with 15W wireless charging pads built into the top of the unit.
How a Bluetti Solar generator works
In order to provide a good review of Bluetti’s Portable Power Stations, we purchased a Bluetti EB55 along with a PV120 foldable solar panel. With this pair of products, you can provide power to numerous devices away from home, and even provide yourself some peace of mind in the event of a power outage.
We found the EB55 to be a well-built, capable and versatile piece of equipment. It is an excellent option for people who need power on the go, whether it’s in an off-grid camping setting, as an RV accessory, or even just a fun day at the park or beach.
Bluetti EB55 Details
The EB55 has 537 watt-hours (Wh) of storage capacity and can output 700W of continuous power (1,400W surge). That’s not enough power to start an air conditioner, but it is enough to run a full-sized refrigerator for a few hours during a power outage, or several smaller appliances for a full day, even without recharging.
Accessories that come with the Bluetti EB55 (L to R): solar charging cable, DC charging cable, AC cord, velcro strap, and power brick.
Inside the box, the EB55 comes with an AC power supply, a cable for charging from a vehicle’s DC outlet, and a cable for charging from solar panels. The EB55 has 12 outlets:
- Four USB-A
- One USB-C
- Two grounded and two ungrounded 120V AC outputs
- Two 12V/10A DC
- One 12V DC “cigarette lighter” outlet
The unit is a compact 10.94 x 7.87 x 7.79 inches and weighs in at 16.5 lbs, with a foldable carrying handle on top. There is a built-in cooling fan with vents on the side of the unit, and a small backlit LCD screen on the front that displays the state of charge and input/output wattage using two shades of blue.
Charging
The Bluetti EB55 can charge from AC power with the included power brick, DC power from the solar panels, or both at the same time. It can also be charged using a 12V DC output from a vehicle or from a generator. Charging power is up to 200W from AC or solar, or 400W from both AC and solar at the same time.
In our tests, Bluetti’s 120W solar panel delivered its maximum power to the EB55 effortlessly under full sun on a warm day. The solar panel is about 2 feet high by 6 feet wide, with four sections that fold out from the stored position. On the back of these sections are thin “legs” that fold away from the main body and allow the user to adjust the angle at which the panel is placed relative to the ground, between 40° and 50°.
Features of the Bluetti PV120 solar panel: fully folded, zippered pouch with wires, adjustable leg.
The whole solar panel is clad in ripstop-style polyester fabric, with a hard plastic handle at one end that is used for carrying the panel when it’s folded up. The solar sections themselves are laminated inside Ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) sheets, which allows them to be flexible and resist fading and cracking due to high temperatures and UV radiation. A zippered pouch on the back of one section contains the cables and a list of specifications.
The fully-extended PV120 solar panel.
We’d recommend keeping the battery out of full sun because it heats up when charging.
Thankfully, the EB55 comes with a 5.5-foot solar charging cable with MC4 connectors, and the PV120 panel comes with its own 9.5-foot cable, making it easy to place the panel in the sun and the battery somewhere nearby in the shade. And because Bluetti uses standard solar connectors, additional cables can be purchased online from a variety of sources if you need more than 15 feet between the panel and the battery.
A word of caution: Bluetti solar panels are IP65 rated, meaning they can handle a little splash of water, but can’t withstand rain and snow. Only put them out on a dry day.
In testing the AC charging, we easily got the promised 200W from the charger, although it should be noted that the charging brick has its own internal cooling fan that can get a little noisy, so it’s best to charge it out of earshot. Either the AC adapter or the solar input is capable of filling the EB55’s 537 Wh of storage in about 3 hours from empty, and combining solar and AC together can increase the power to 400W, decreasing charging time down to just 1.8 hours.
Using Power
In our tests, the EB55 was capable of powering many important appliances and devices, and we recommend it for medium-light duty applications like phone and laptop charging, camping, or even for short-duration events like small concerts in the park where no power is available.
We tested our EB55 in a few ways: powering a small outdoor pool pump, running live sound through a PA speaker, and running a full-size refrigerator. In all these tests, the EB55 performed very well.
The Bluetti EB55 running a pool pump.
With its 537 Wh of battery capacity, it could theoretically run the 33W pool pump for 16 hours, even without solar recharging. At medium volumes, the PA speaker and some guitar pedals used 25W. Imagine an afternoon pool party with a rock band at a remote location run entirely by one Bluetti EB55 battery. All you’d need is transportation and a water source.
Closer to home, the refrigerator drew between 105W and 220W, depending on the cycle it was running, so it could be kept running for 3 hours or more during a power outage. If you add 4 hours of solar charging at an average of around 100W, you could extend that time to six hours or more. By plugging in the fridge only sporadically, you could theoretically keep food cold for days during a power outage using a single EB55 and solar panel, and probably have enough energy left over to keep your phone topped off.
Because of its LiFePO4 battery cell chemistry, the Bluetti should be able to fully charge and discharge 2,500 times, which could mean several years of power even with twice daily cycling. That many cycles should still leave the battery at 80% of its original capacity.
It’s a pretty remarkable little battery, and well worth its $499 MSRP. But the EB55 is one of the smallest capacity batteries Bluetti offers, and some of the company’s products can do much more than keep your food cold for a few hours.
Bluetti product comparison
Now let’s look at some of the key specifications of Bluetti’s product lineup. The company has offerings as small as the entry-level EB3A with a 268 Wh battery pack and as large as the expandable AC300 inverter module, which doesn’t come with its own battery but can instead be paired with up to four B300 expansion batteries for 12.3 kWh of storage. That’s nearly as large as a Tesla Powerwall.
The smaller, more portable power stations (basically anything that will fit in Bluetti’s carrying case) are pretty easy; simply bins with batteries, inputs, and output ports, whereas the bigger choices just like the Bluetti AC200MAX and AC300 include Bluetooth and could be managed through the Bluetti smartphone app (the newer, small EB3A can be app-enabled). For very massive battery backup wants, two AC300 inverter modules could be paired with Bluetti’s AC300 Fusion Field for a 240V system with as much as 24.5 kWh of storage.
Right here’s a rundown of Bluetti’s moveable fashions and their key specs:
| Product | Capability | Output (surge) | Max enter W | # of shops | Expandable | Max capability |
| EB3A | 268 Wh | 600W (1,200W) | 430W Photo voltaic+AC | 9 | N | N/A |
| EB55 | 537 Wh | 700W (1,400W) | 400W Photo voltaic+AC | 12 | N | N/A |
| EB70S | 716 Wh | 800W (1,400W) | 200W Photo voltaic/AC | 12 | N | N/A |
| AC200P | 2,000 Wh | 2,000W (4,800W) | 1,200W Photo voltaic+AC | 17 | N | N/A |
| AC300 inverter module | N/A | 3,000W (6,000W) | 5,400W Photo voltaic+AC | 16 | Y | 12,288 Wh |
| AC200MAX | 2,048 Wh | 2,200W (4,800W) | 1,300W Photo voltaic+AC | 15 | Y | 8,192 Wh |
| B230 growth battery | 2,048 Wh | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| B300 growth battery | 3,071 Wh | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Value
Like a variety of know-how merchandise yow will discover on Amazon, Bluetti merchandise typically go on sale, and other people in search of the corporate’s merchandise can typically discover coupons and low cost codes on-line. For reference, listed here are the MSRPs of the most well-liked Bluetti merchandise:
- EB3A: $299
- EB55: $499
- EB70S: $599
- AC200P: $1,699
- AC300 inverter module: $1,899
- AC200MAX: $1,899
- B230 growth battery: $1,399
- B300 growth battery: $2,199
- PV120 photo voltaic panel: $299
- PV200 photo voltaic panel: $499
- PV350 photo voltaic panel: $849
Bluetti battery warranties
The guarantee is the place moveable batteries like Bluetti falter a bit in comparison with purpose-built residence photo voltaic batteries. The guarantee for many Bluetti merchandise covers simply 24 months of defects as a consequence of supplies and workmanship. These merchandise are designed to final for a very long time, however the producer doesn’t supply long-term protection for many of its merchandise.
That stated, if you happen to spring for the AC300 with a number of B300 growth batteries, Bluetti provides 48 months of guarantee protection. Bigger residence battery backup methods just like the EP500Pro include 5-year warranties. These do not fairly match the 10-year warranties supplied by firms like Generac and LG, so if you happen to’re involved about long-term protection, a type of battery options could be higher for you.
Mockingly, Generac and LG use lithium NMC batteries, so the Bluetti ought to theoretically outlast them. Bluetti says its EB-series batteries will final for two,500 cycles earlier than being diminished to 80% of their unique capability, and its AC- and B-series batteries get estimates of three,500 cycles earlier than hitting 80%. Assuming one full cycle per day, that’s over 9 years.
How does Bluetti evaluate to the competitors?
In terms of the perfect photo voltaic turbines, Bluetti is among the many high contenders. Its LFP battery cells are rated to final 5 instances so long as merchandise from essential rivals Jackery and GoalZero, and its merchandise are each bit as sturdy and straightforward to make use of.
With 48-60 month warranties on its flagship merchandise, Bluetti exceeds the requirements set by its rivals, which just about all supply solely 24 months of protection. To be truthful, their 500-cycle lifespans will virtually actually be up inside these 24 months of normal utilization, so Bluetti has an opportunity to increase its warranties and additional set itself aside from Jackery, GoalZero, and others. We hope to see that as Bluetti merchandise spend extra time within the wild and show their sturdiness.
Which Bluetti product is best for you?
In the event you’re on the go and have to maintain small home equipment powered in an off-grid state of affairs, the EB55 is a superb alternative. In the event you simply need to maintain your telephone charged within the wilderness, the brand new EB3A is a good, cheap possibility.
For longer journeys and cabin stays, the AC200P supplies a strong quantity of power storage and energy output that might maintain an off-grid cabin very snug, particularly when paired with a number of Bluetti solar panels wired in series.
For home backup applications, we recommend the EP500 Pro over the AC300 with expansion batteries, simply because of the form factor and the 5-year warranty. If Bluetti ever increases its warranty protection for its modular batteries, we’ll update that recommendation accordingly.
Bottom line: are Bluetti products good?
Bluetti’s batteries and solar panels compare favorably with the majority of other portable solutions on the market. The LFP batteries and ETFE-clad solar panels are powerful and well-built products designed for a life lived outside of the boundaries of the electric grid. On top of that, Bluetti meets or exceeds industry standards for portable devices with 2-5 year warranties on its products.
One caveat here is that the company is still only a few years old, and it remains to be seen whether its batteries will match the estimated 2,500-cycle lifespans, and whether the company will prove adept at handling customer complaints if they don’t. But the tech is solid, the products are proving popular and well-liked, and Bluetti reps actively engage customers through multiple channels, including an owners’ Facebook group. The corporate appears to be doing issues proper.
One other caveat is that Bluetti’s photo voltaic panels aren’t as sturdy as precise residence photo voltaic panels. For instance, they don’t seem to be designed to be exterior within the rain and snow. In the event you’re in search of one thing to behave as a fixture on your house and even off-grid cabin, actual roof- or ground-mounted photo voltaic panels are far more sturdy, and may survive the climate for many years. And you’ll nonetheless use Bluetti battery backup with a well-designed photo voltaic set up.
The Bluetti PV120; SolarReviews and Bowie-approved.
Whatever the caveats, Bluetti is making some nice merchandise. In the event you’re in search of a technique to maintain necessary gadgets powered up whereas within the wilderness, Bluetti batteries and photo voltaic panels have our suggestion.
