Strolling with a van and the definitive power station: Bluetti AC300 + B300

With the summer we have some slightly different test proposals: bikes, camperized van and also a transportable battery module by Bluetti, a rather well-known brand in the sector of those who produce solutions for the storage of electricity. In particular, the house has sent us one of its flagships or the Bluetti AC300accompanied by the 3072 Wh B300 battery.

We immediately accepted because they are very special products that we like to go and try even just out of curiosity, to understand their potential and the contexts in which they can be exploited. It then so happened that we were leaving for a mini trip with a fabulous one Mercedes Marco Polo, a camperized van with which we went hunting for night shots of the starry sky through some Alpine passes such as the Stelvio, the Gavia and the Tonale, so why not take the Bluetti battery module with us? Said and done, it was a memorable experience, which we will tell you about in the coming weeks; in the meantime, however, we tell you how it went with this power station, a dream product for campers but not only.

Before moving on to the technical side it is good to make a small introduction to the product, because it is one of those that are not commonly found if you do not have special needs and whose potential and versatility are ignored by most.

To want to disrespect we could call it a huge power bank, a clearly reductive definition but which we need to enter the order of ideas of the device. We are talking, to be precise, of two distinct elements: Bluetti B300, which is the real battery module with lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) chemistry of 3072 Wh, accompanied by the “brain”, or AC300 which is a control center with pure wave sine wave inverter, capable of delivering 3000 Watt (6000 Watt peak) and equipped with multiple outputs to connect the most disparate devices that require electrical power.

We are not at the level of domestic storage batteries but if the modularity of the AC300 is exploited, it is possible to reach truly remarkable capacities, connecting up to 4 B300 3072 Wh batteries. Here, one of the main differences with a home energy storage system, is that here the whole package can be moved and transported, it is built specifically to be resistant and relatively easy to maneuver, so much so that we took it with us on our van trip. .

TWO SCENARIOS OF USE

The Bluetti power station typically has two usage scenarios: at home as an energy backup UPSor on the move as a small power plant, in contexts where it is not possible to have access to the network.

In the first case the variations on the theme are many, for example it is possible to expand the system with one Smart Home Panelwhich allows you to integrate the battery modules with the domestic electrical circuit to have a real UPS function, or connect the system to the solar panels to have a separate “off grid” power supply system.

The second case is instead what we have experienced in the field, namely the use of AC300 together with B300 on the move, to have a large energy reserve even at the end of the world.

Our program included three days between Stelvio, Gavia, Tonale and return to Milan, we started with a super van from Mercedes, the Marco Polo, a model that marked an era and in recent years has been revisited in a technological key. The goal of the trip was to be able to capture a beautiful shot of the starry sky even with a smartphone (notable top of the range, we will tell you soon which one) as a pretext to create a guide to astrophotography. In short, we have experimented a bit and had to escape as much as possible from the light pollution of the Po valley: for this reason we climbed up to the almost 3,000 meters of the Stelvio pass.

However, it was also an opportunity to try some tech gadgets properly for this we needed to power several devices: two cameras with a good supply of batteries, the drone, three computers, one of which for video editing, some spotlights and studio lights, microphones, smartphones, a portable projector, the electronic gimbal, as well as keeping us a some spare for the van itself, in case it was needed.

Well, needless to say that for all three days the Bluetti power station supported us without batting an eye, we never had to recharge it and when we returned we still had practically half of the available capacity! During our wanderings, several of its features came in handy, one above all the possibility of connecting many devices simultaneously, and it is not obvious because adding up the different absorption there was a need for a lot of power. Also convenient is the fact that, even if it is heavy, the whole system is designed to be moved, with handles, non-slip rubber base and a modular construction designed to stack the elements taking up as little space as possible.

Of course, probably for our needs the combo we had available was even exaggerated, but thinking about multi-day trips, maybe in combination with solar panelsit can truly become a permanent solution.

As we said, the product we tested is actually a couple of elements, the B300 and the AC300: so let’s see in more detail on which technical specifications they rely on to perform the task.

Bluetti B300

The B300 battery has a 3072 Wh capacity and is based on lithium iron phosphate cells, can count on an integrated board that acts as a BMS and protects against overloads and short circuits, is guaranteed to maintain capacity over 80% after 3500 charge / discharge cycles. By itself this module can work independently but only for the supply of direct current and has a limited capacity of connections, for this reason the ideal use is combined with the AC300.

By purchasing only the B300 you have them available 1 USB-A 18 Watt port, one USB-C 100 Watt one 12V / 10A cigarette lighter socket. It is possible to recharge the battery in AC with an absorption of 500 Watts, or with solar panels at 200 Watts, by coupling the two sources you get to 700 Watts, for a charging time of about 5 hours. Finally, you can take advantage of an input for connection with the car compatible with voltages of 12 and 24 Volts.

The battery alone has a weight of 36.1 kg and dimensions of 52x32x26.5 mm, the operating temperature ranges from -20 ° C to 40 ° C. Finally, the package includes a cable for connection to the AC300 module and the cable for connecting the solar panels.

Bluetti AC300

AC300 is the real power station, it contains a 3000 Watt pure sine wave inverter and many input and output power ports.

The alternating current at the output has a voltage of 220-240V at 50/60 Hz and 3000 Watts of powerpeaking at 6000 Watts, the output can be split over 6 Shuko took. Then there are two cigarette lighter socketsone at 12 and the other at 24 Volts, 2 USB-A 15 Watt ports, 1 USB-A 18 Watt port and one USB-C 100 Watt.

On the top they are present two 15 Watt wireless charging pads, while the other ports are intended for expansion with 4 B300 battery packs, and for electricity input: AC input up to 3000 Watt and multifunction input to which up to 4 600 Watt solar panels can be connected, the cigarette lighter connector for the car, car batteries, but also the EV columns directly with an adapter to be purchased separately. The two inputs (AC and multifunction) can be used simultaneously to reach an input of 5400 Watts!

To calculate the power supply times for the devices to be connected, the DoD (depth of discharge) must be taken into account, in the case of the B300 it is 10% of the capacity.

The weight of the control center is 21.6 kg, the dimensions of 52x32x35.8 cm, also for him operating temperature from -20 ° C to 40 ° C, in the package there is the cable with proprietary connector for charging, that for connection with solar panels and for charging from the cigarette lighter socket.

On the front of the AC300 control center, there is a touchscreen LCD display which allows you to control every aspect of the operation of the power station. You can enable the different ports, check the input and output values ​​and choose between 4 operating modes if you intend to use the Bluetti AC300 as a UPS.

• UPS Standard: the control unit is powered by the electricity network and is kept at 100%, if there is no light, the battery comes into operation as a backup.
• Time control UPS: you can choose a period of the day in which the power station must be powered and a period in which it must instead power the electrical circuit of the house, in this scenario it is also possible to specify the minimum and maximum values ​​in terms of capacity that the battery to operate or be recharged
• PV Priority UPS: in this mode, charging via solar panels is preferred instead of from the electricity grid
• Customized UPS: in this mode all the parameters of the previous modes can be set separately

In addition to the digital control panel there is also the possibility to exploit an app for Android and iOS to control the power station via Bluetooth. The control parameters are the same and allow for even more comfortable interaction. The first connection is very simple, after turning on the battery the smartphone will see it as a Bluetooth device and in an instant you will have access to the main panel and all the options.

Among the useful functions there is also that of the firmware update, to update the battery via OTA. The application is well made and functioning, clear in the graphics but above all very complete.

At the end of this unfortunately short adventure, we can only be satisfied with the Bluetti power station. The high capacity, modularity, power and multiple connection possibilities make it one extremely versatile tool that can be used in many contexts.

On the go, as long as you have some space, at home or simply as a power source for instruments of a certain caliber where there is no possibility to connect to the mains. The structure then, despite being heavy, is made with criteria, the body is very resistant and does not fear mistreatment.

Finally, we come to talk about prices: the basic combo AC300 + B300 costs 3999 Euro (often discounted at 3599 Euro), a price that although it may appear high, is actually quite competitive on the market and allows you to save several hundred euros compared to other similar products. Interesting too this combowhich adds 3 solar panels of 200 Watts each. The additional B300 battery alone costs 2399 Euro instead.