Initial Impressions: Jackery’s 2000 Plus Solar Generator Will Help Outside and In the Garage

And if your hobbies include anything other than death-scrolling on the sofa between shifts, the demand for a generator becomes even greater. In the context of messing with high-performance cars, you need something to power your tools and trailer in the pits. They're more of an obvious necessity if your enjoyment of automobiles takes you into the wild, far from any conventional power sources. 

The point is, that there's no shortage of uses you can find for one, which is why I decided it was worth my while to see what the Jackery 2000 Plus is all about when the team behind it asked if I'd be interested in testing one. However, seeing as this thing is solar-powered, as opposed to the gas jobbies we're used to, I figure it’s worth your while to run through my initial impressions. 

Jackery's whole goal is to supply environmentally friendly portable power supplies as an alternative to gas-powered offerings. It's a Californian-based company that set up shop in 2016 and is credited with developing the first outdoor portable power stations and portable solar panels. It's also introduced the world to solar generators, and that's what we're working with here. 

The Jackery 2000 Plus is a solar generator that relies on two 200W SolarSaga panels to charge up the internal battery. It offers 2 kWh of battery life, and is capable of delivering 3000W continuous output. It’s fairly well outfitted for recreational use with four 120V 20A AC outlets, one 125V 30A AC outlet, one DC 12V 10A socket, two USB-A 18W outlets, and two USB-C 100W outlets. 

Yeah, I get it. It’s not really a generator. It’s a big battery equipped with solar panels that convert solar energy into stored energy, as opposed to generating anything. However, it’s a pretty solid concept for folks who need a power source and want to do so in an environmentally friendly way. 

The Jackery 2000 Plus showed up with some premium packaging, which I'm always a sucker for. I've been scorned by enough white box products to know that a company that puts a good amount of money into packaging is probably pushing a solid product. 

Setting everything up is pretty easy. Even a total caveman like me, who's terrified of anything that's not using breaker points, can set it up relatively easily. It does come with a comprehensive set of instructions, and its LCD interface makes it easy to find whatever information or settings I need. If that’s not enough, the Jackery app may just get me out of a bind by giving me realtime data and control over the unit. 

Jackery did put an emphasis on portability when designing the 2000 Plus. It's relatively lightweight at 61.5 pounds and has a set of wheels and a pull handle that make lugging it around relatively effortless. The only thing that I feel limits feasibility out in this neck of the woods are the solar panels.  

Here in northeastern Pennsylvania, we have some fairly thick brush. You can count on it blocking out a lot of the sun anywhere you're going to set up camp, and these 7.5-foot units do require a considerable amount of space. So, I'm really counting on that battery life for testing. It’s a good thing that you can charge this unit with 120v power sources in case the sun simply isn’t available. 

That said, I've got a few tests in mind, with one being an actual camping trip. I'll also put my money where my mouth is and use this thing to power tools and lighting while wrenching on my 1969 Dodge Charger and other projects. And I'll be honest, with a retail price of $2,800, I do have some pretty high expectations. There’s only one way to find out what it’s really all about, though. 

If you have any tests you'd like to see me perform or have any questions in general, be sure to drop a comment. Stay tuned for my in-depth review.