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The recent floods across different parts of India have made me curious about whether it is time citizens across India should start looking at buying a portable power station. While portable power stations are quite popular in countries where people regularly go out camping, in India, the use cases may be different.

Portable power stations are expensive and EcoFlow is a popular brand. The latest EcoFlow RIVER 2 Max Power Station costs Rs 51,900. But these power stations last for up to 10 years. Now, the basic difference between a mobile power bank and a portable power station is that, the latter provide both AC and DC current while offering support for AC/DC and solar charging as well. Also, power stations can run

home appliances

and charge your power bank as well. You can connect light bulbs, mini-fridges, routers, laptops, fans among others and of course, charge anything that comes with a battery. Not to forget, the lightweight of around 6 kgs, make power stations highly portable.

WATCH VIDEO: EcoFlow RIVER 2 Max Power Station Review

So, why should you consider getting a power station? Well, you will have reliable power backup during road trips and long power outages due to flooding or other crisis situations. Not just that, you will also have peace of mind while working remotely from hills, beaches or villages. Another USP is that the power stations like the EcoFlow RIVER 2 Max can be charged using a car charger and when plugged to an AC power socket, it takes just 1 hour to get fully charged.

While there are ample use cases and advantages of a power station, we can still not consider it as a necessity for day-to-day routine, at least not for the majority who are into regular office jobs and come back to their homes with an inverter or generator power backup. But what about those days of crisis when you wake up to see cars submerged around you and the electricity supply is cut off due to heavy rains? Or, your happy road trip becomes a nightmare because the roads just got washed away and your mobile’s battery icon turns red?

I used the EcoFlow RIVER 2 Max power station for more than a month and here is my review.

The power station offers 512Wh capacity and can provide 500W output (with boost output to 1000W) and it takes just 1 hour to get fully charged. You can charge using the regular power socket or your car charger and you can also buy a separate solar panel and to solar charge it.

The device features LiFePO4 battery and is claimed to be safe for use for up to 10 years. Lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery cells are claimed to be durable and the company claims that using the RIVER 2 Max six times a week, 3000 full 100% cycles will last 9.6 years until it drops to 80%. Another aspect is LFP cells can withstand warm temperatures plus it comes with its own cooling fans that engage automatically. The rated storage temperature is around -10°C to 45°C with the company claiming 20°C to 30°C as the ideal temperature to store this power station. So, you have to make sure that the device is kept in a cooler space during harsh Indian summers. In terms of safety, there’s TÜV Rheinland certification.

This power station is pretty compact measuring 27 x 26 x 19.6 cm and weighing 6.1 kgs. You can easily carry it around. You can charge this power station by connecting to any AC power socket with 220-240V~ 50Hz/60Hz, 660W. The good part is that you can continue to use the device while it is getting charged.

This power station is pretty compact and you can easily carry it around.

As mentioned, you can buy a portable solar panel separately and plug it in to charge it. Do note that for solar charging, it’s rated for 11-50V 13A, 220W. You can plug a regular car charger too rated at 12V/24V, 8A, 100W.

Now, let’s talk about charging speeds. The three USB Type-A ports can deliver an output of 5V, 2.4A, 12W. This means your phones will take some to recharge as there is no support for fast charging. Meanwhile, there’s one USB Type-C port that can charge a bit quickly at 5/9/12/15/20V, 5A, 100W. You can also use the same USB Type-C port to recharge the device itself.

Talking about AC power output, you can connect any appliance that consumes up to 500W. Note that the total surge output is 1000W, 230V at 50Hz/60Hz. So, it is recommended that you disconnect other devices when you intend to plug a high power consuming appliance like a mini fridge or some kind of heating device. It goes without saying, always look at the power rating of an appliance before plugging it to the EcoFlow RIVER 2 Max Power Station.

You can also connect an external power strip to plug in more devices for charging but make sure you don’t exceed the 500W rating or surge output of 1000W.

Another cool feature is the high switchover speed of less than 30ms. If you connect it to any essential device like a CPAP machine or even a Wi-Fi router you won’t even realise that there was a power cut.

Another cool feature is the high switchover speed of less than 30ms. If you connect it to any essential device like a CPAP machine or even a Wi-Fi router you won’t even realise that there was a power cut.

There’s a dedicated app called EcoFlow that allows you to change charging speeds and settings as well.

EcoFlow RIVER 2 Max Power Station: What’s not cool?

The EcoFlow RIVER 2 Max Power Station does its job well but there are some areas where it needs to improve. For starters, there should be an option to turn off auto cut-off when it’s running on battery and is not connected to the wall socket. For example, I was using it as a power backup for my Wi-Fi router and the auto cut-off is quite annoying. To avoid this from happening, I had to keep the power station connected to my wall socket always, even after it’s already charged to 100%.

It would have been great if the power station had supported higher charging speeds, especially with Android smartphones now supporting 120W charging. If you plug a USB Type-C cable to charge your smartphone or laptop, it really takes a lot of time and you will be forced to use the AC output. Talking of which, you would need to have a universal socket for Indian mobile or laptop chargers to connect the AC supply.

EcoFlow RIVER 2 Max Power Station Review Verdict

Whether you want to invest in a power station or not is something you should decide first. It totally depends on your lifestyle. If you are not much into road trips then this device won’t be of much use. For emergencies, due to flooding or power outages, there are cheaper alternatives as well. While choosing which device to opt for is completely an individual choice as per personal requirements, what is important to note is that you should be aware that there are power stations available in India that can come handy.

Now as far as the EcoFlow RIVER 2 Max Power Station is concerned, it’s a complete package meant for people working remotely while exploring the hills and secret beaches of India.

Now as far as the EcoFlow RIVER 2 Max Power Station is concerned, it’s a complete package meant for people working remotely while exploring the hills and secret beaches of India. Also, for road trips, this is an ideal solution for your entire gang.

Of course, it may sound pricey at Rs 51,900 but like I already mentioned at the start of this article, this device is not a necessity but a luxury and it is about feeling safe that you have ample power backup because a power station can prove to be a lifesaver when you get stuck.