Initial Impressions: Anker’s Solix C1000 Almost Gets a Gold Star
Who says big things don’t come in small packages?
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Selecting a portable power station is a balancing act. Size directly relates to battery life, as well as the number of features the manufacturer can reasonably jam into the thing. You need to pick the one that offers the kind of performance you need in a package you're willing to lug wherever it is you're taking it. Naturally, that generally means making some sort of compromise.
For the most part, folks who need serious power are willing to go with something a little bulkier in the name of getting things done, and there are some seriously awesome options for that demographic. It's those who need something relatively small that tend to make the most trade-offs. Battery life, outlets, and features all dwindle rapidly as you reduce the size of a power pack.
Anker seems to have come up with the perfect solution for people who need performance without the bulk. Its latest entry, the Solix C1000 is compact and absolutely crammed with features and is shaping up to be a far better solution where many larger counterparts would generally be used. The folks behind it reached out to see if I'd be interested in testing one for review, and I jumped on the chance. Here are my initial impressions of it.
What’s The Rundown?
The Solix C1000 is packing a serious number of features relative to its size. Starting with ways to tap into the power, it's got a total of 11 ports to work with. Six are 110-volt outlets, two are USB-A, two USB-C, and one 12-volt car outlet. Already, it's pretty ridiculous, considering that's more than many larger portable power stations and generators have to offer.
Also hidden on the face of this portable power station is another feature that vastly separates it from the pack. It's got a large LED light built right into it. That light has three intensity levels, and I'm sure that it will prove to be exceptionally useful in situations in which I intend to use it. That light can also be operated from the app, which is also stupid convenient.
Yes. The app is pretty killer, too. It gives you the ability to control a lot of functions remotely while providing a real-time reading of battery life, power being used, charging status, and more. It was really easy to set up, as well, which is great for anyone who doesn't want to jump through hoops to set up what is essentially a remote control.
As for the other specs, Anker proudly boasts it features a 1056Wh battery with the potential to bump up to 2112Wh with the use of the B1000 battery pack. It's rated to deliver 1800W through five outlets, with the ability to bump up to 2400W with the SurgePad outlet, which is more than enough for most things you'll power with it. Lastly, it uses HyperFlash technology for rapid charging, fully charging in 58 minutes with a 1300W wall outlet. It can also be paired with Solix solar panels for charging, making it a solid choice for someone on the hunt for alternative power solutions.
All of that's crammed into a portable power station that measures 14.8 x 8.07 x 11.02 inches with a weight of 25.46 pounds. Granted, that's not the smallest power pack you'll find, but it's definitely among the best balanced as far as features-to-size ratios go. You do pay for that packaging, though. This thing retails for $999 on Amazon.
My Predictions?
Of course, I cheated a bit and used this thing a little prior to writing this. It was totally null of a charge when it arrived, and since I was going as far as to charge it up, I might as well have played with it. Right?
The rapid charging potential of the Solix C1000 is very real. It took right around an hour for this thing to reach a full charge from dead. That's especially awesome considering that, at the time of writing this, it's been about a week of charging tools and playing with the light. It's only lost 35% of battery life. Now, that's not representative of constant or even regular use, but it seems pretty solid to me.
I'm not going to just give it a gold star, though. $1,000 is a lot of money for a battery pack. I intend to push it to its limits to find out if it's truly worth the money. I have a lot of work that's taking me away from the shop right now, a lot of which will see that light put to use as it charges power tool batteries and devices. The colder weather is also coming in fast, and it will be a source of energy for heaters because of it.
And unfortunately, I did not receive the solar panels along with it, so we'll have to do without them for this review.
That said, I'm interested to hear your thoughts on it. Be sure to drop a comment on what you expect from the Solix C1000, along with any tests you'd like to see performed. Stay tuned for an in-depth review.
