5 Reasons The Bluetti AC180 Should Be Your First Portable Power Station

The portable power station market is flourishing, and there are more ways than ever to reduce reliance on the grid, make sure devices still run even during outages, and keep you comfortable while camping. With so many options, however, knowing which portable power station to start with can be tricky.

As sweet-spots go, Bluetti's AC180 makes a very strong argument. Designed to be easily portable, yet powerful enough to run a multitude of devices, the $799 power station fits just as readily into the home as it does on the move. Read on for the five big reasons why the Bluetti AC180 should be your first portable power station.

At one extreme, portable batteries can be small enough to slip into a pocket; at the other extreme, they can be big enough to run a whole home for days at a time. The Bluetti AC180 fits neatly into the middle, designed to be easily moved around so that you always have power when you need it.

The AC180 weighs under 38 pounds, and at 13.4 x 9.7 x 12.5 inches it's smaller than the typical toaster oven. Bluetti has integrated two useful handles on the top, to make it easier to carry, along with softly rounded edges. Bring it to a campsite or tailgate party, and you can keep track of power status with the display on the front; or, Bluetti's app means you can wirelessly monitor how much power you're using, and the current state of charge.

The app also allows you to control the AC180's Silent Charging Mode, which reduces its sound output during charging to as low as 45 dB. That's quieter than the sound of rainfall. Meanwhile, an Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) system means the AC180 can automatically detect a blackout and begin powering essential devices like cable modems in just 20ms.

For maximum flexibility, you want a broad array of ports and connections on your portable power station. The AC180 certainly delivers there: it's equipped with everything you might need, from charging a smartphone or laptop, through to powering home or campsite appliances.

The AC180 has an unexpectedly large number of outputs for a portable power station of its size. There are four USB-A ports and a 100W USB-C port, along with a pair of 120V AC outlets capable of delivering 1,800W. A 12V/10A DC outlet makes plugging in car accessories simple. Finally, there's a useful wireless charging pad, which itself delivers 15W of power.

Bluetti

With a 1,152 Wh LiFePO4 battery inside, that's enough to recharge a phone more than 100 times, Bluetti says, or a laptop 17 times. You could power a light for over 100 hours, perfect for camping, or a fan for more than a day.

Even high-power appliances, which might ordinarily demand too much juice from the average portable power station, will find the AC180 up to the challenge. Power Lifting Mode boosts the AC output from 1,800W to up to 2,700W, so that appliances like hair dryers, electric kettles, and electric heaters can be powered. In an outage, a single Bluetti AC180 could keep your refrigerator running for 17 hours.

Having the ability to power key home appliances during an outage is essential. After all, if the electricity grid goes down, nobody wants to see their refrigerator shut off, or their lights stay dark. Like Bluetti's larger power solutions, the AC180 can connect to the essentials to make sure that doesn't happen. It also supports expansion batteries, to satisfy increased energy needs.

The AC180 can connect to either Bluetti's B230 or B300 external batteries. The B230 has a 2,048 Wh battery inside, along with its own 100W USB-C, USB-A, and 12V/10A car output connections. The Bluetti B300 is even more potent, with a 3,072 Wh battery.

Either will considerably extend the runtime of the AC180. Because they're modular, too, they can be used independently, and are much easier to carry than a single, large battery. Bluetti's AC180+B230/B300 bundles also come with a free P090D to DC7909 cable, used to connect the portable power stations together.

Being able to power multiple devices is important, but so is being able to recharge your portable power station quickly, and that's not something every company does well at. The Bluetti AC180 may be compact, but it supports four different ways to recharge its LiFePO4 battery.

With 1,440W AC Turbo Charging, plugging the AC180 into a wall outlet means a full charge can take as little as 1.3 hours, Bluetti says. Going from 0-80% takes just 45 minutes. Or, you can use a portable generator, which will take the same amount of time. That means you can shut your gas generator off during the night, so as not to disturb your campsite or neighborhood.

Bluetti

Solar charging is the greenest method, with the AC180 supporting up to 500W of solar input. Plug in your solar panels, and you could fully recharge the portable power station in as little as 2.8 hours, Bluetti says. Finally, with a 12V/24V car input, a full charge takes as little as 5.3-10.1 hours. Bluetti includes cables for AC charging, car charging, and solar charging in the box.

Buying a portable power station is an investment, but not all batteries are created equal. Just as you want the battery power to last a long time, you also want the battery cells to have a long lifespan. That's why Bluetti uses LiFePO4 technology in the AC180.

The AC180's battery cells are rated for over 3,500 life cycles, and there's both a 5 year warranty for the portable power station, and an expected 10 year life span. Combined with the AC180's expansion potential, it adds up to a power system that will last as long as you need it.

While better for your wallet, LiFePO4 also promises to be better for the environment. LiFePO4 batteries require no rare earth metals, and unlike NCM lithium-ion batteries, they're also free of nickel, cobalt, and manganese. Going green and off-grid has never been so easy.

The Bluetti AC180 will be released on June 15th, 2023. It'll be priced at $799.