Bluetti AC500 / B300S Power Bank - Review & Teardown

[@dglcomputers1498]

RS do the SP29 connectors under their RS Pro brand if you want them form a known reputable supplier. Have used some of their smaller connectors and did wonder about the amperage/voltage rating given their small size, and the fact one of their small SP13 connectors went bang after shorting out with nothing connected on a UK to 3 pin SP13 lead I'd made up for an outdoor fountain PSU.

[@mikeselectricstuff]

The mains-in connector is confirmed as RS 207-0706. Eighteen bloody quid! Note this is a screw-terminal plug which is tricky to wire with 4mm^2 cable but can evb soldered if the screws are removed. The 12V out connector is confirmed as RS 131-6386

[@mikeselectricstuff]

The 32A output connector is now available from Bluetti's Uk shop

[@OneBiOzZ]

I have seen a lot of these teardowns it really looks like some sort of passion project for them, i cant tell you the last time i labeled the pinouts for every single connector, the whole thing looks like its engineered to a spec you typically would do for a first revision before cutting it down everything is well gooped well laid out thought through and they are confident in it enough to send it to basically every electrical engineering channel to rip to shreds i really truly hope this product outsells expectations, more companies need to be this transparent

[@frollard]

my inner skeptic really hopes they don't cherry pick the ones they're gonna send to tech review channels.

[@pdrg]

Always appreciate your videos Mike, far deeper dive than almost any other reviewer

[@airmann90]

That thing is awesome! Would be handy when RVing, at night when the solar panels have the battery topped off and no power on site.

[@eliotmansfield]

If Mike cant break it and describes the internal gubbins as excellent quality is worthy praise. I was expecting him to tear it to shreds.

[@finsterbarry]

The password for the advanced mode settings is global. For the AC300 unit is 159873 Might be the same for the AC500

[@nibbelnibbel2129]

Password is also good for the AC500 in the EU-Version. THX❤

[@jcthe2nd]

Best review to date by a proper electrician, Thanks mate

[@sdgelectronics]

That's a decent review sample, actually looks useful and good spec

[@andreasu.3546]

Chinese QA at work. Let's just hope they did a better job on the electronics and the software.

[@antronx7]

I noticed that display had a peculiar style of font and graphics usually found on inexpensive Chinese equipment. Then at 45:23 Mike explained it.

[@CalcProgrammer1]

The large Bluetti units look very impressive. I just picked up their smallest unit, the EB3A (NA version with 120V AC) and it's been pretty great for keeping my small loads (home server run off an SBC and my laptop, occasionally a 120V AC fan) running. I got two 100W solar panels to accompany it and if I don't use the laptop much after dark it will keep the SBC going 24/7 on solar. I'm happy with this but now I've got my eye on the bigger units. The question is now "what else can I power?" and I'd like to be able to back up my desktop as well. This one is well out of my price range though, I'd probably just go for a professional whole home solar installation before getting one of these.

[@celeron55]

That transistor/diode attachment method to the heatsinks is super nice in terms of serviceability. No need to desolder all of them in order to get the PCB off.

[@VEC7ORlt]

Hah, we gotten to the moment in time where phrase 'insert power module' from sci-fi movies or books or games just became a reality.

[@gareth4168]

16:53 They spell their company name wrong on the password screen :D

[@st8kout961]

It's been corrected on mine 3 months ago.

[@JacGoudsmit]

The Times Roman font for the numbers on the display, mixed with the Helvetica for all the other text, bothers my OCD but other than that, this looks like a very nice high quality piece of equipment.

[@randybb]

Yea, such a nice product, just the mixed up fonts are killing it :) On the beginning I thought that it is showing some bitmap images and they added these numbers over it as it is not properly alligned, but no. They are changing text as well, so only numbers are so ugly.

[@JacGoudsmit]

@@randybb They're probably using a Chinese font for the numbers. Those usually have Times glyphs for Latin characters.

[@39f3r93r]

Serious question. What part on the B300 is dangerous to touch. There have to be capacitors on it, right? I see you touching everything with your bare hands. Can you educate me on what's safe and what is not? Thanks Mike!!

[@CATA20034]

As usual, a perfect teardown from Mike.

[@nethoncho]

Awesome review. Thanks for all of the details

[@m1geo]

Thanks for a proper, decent, technical review!

[@cskilbeck]

"normal domestic appliance"

[@randybb]

Mike neds to buy an official "banana for scale" :D

[@TechBench]

"...just a normal domestic appliance plugged in to provide some load..." - shows shot of Flexitron X-ray machine...!

[@retrozmachine1189]

Nice to see it does phase align before switching. I've not seen anyone else demonstrate this with a Bluetti to date. Most of the reviewers are either 'man off the street' approach or don't address it.

[@raymondramirez9177]

The AC500 is built similar to the AC300. The main body and frame holds four main boards. The top board is the control or main intelligence board, including the touchscreen and display. The front board (behind the display and outlets) is the M2 board which handles the AC input and part of the inverter output. The rear has two boards. The board on the left is the M1 board which handles the battery input and charging. The board on the right is the M3 board which handles the DC to DC converter that generates the 12 V and 24 V outputs. These three boards are attached to the large heatsinks which holds the semiconductors that do the heavy work. There is a smaller board mounted directly behind the front panel which converts 12V down to 5 V for the USB ports. The lid has three small boards by itself. Two are the wireless chargers for smartphines, and one is the WiFi and Bluetooth interface. If anyone wishes to see more teardowns, there is a Bluetti AC300 teardown that is similar to the AC500 in layout and operation. The KZbin watch ID is 8uvgpcb1Mz8

[@mfx1]

A complete menu lock would be useful for use on event sites.

[@melaniehill9355]

Awesome review loved the tear down and level of detail. Also enjoyed the return of the sketchy arch welder. Thanks for the great video really glad I subscribed!!

[@randacnam7321]

The charge rate inconsistency is due to lithium iron phosphate cells not liking being charged hard at the bottom and top of their charge states. Note that SOC was 14% when it was charging at almost 5kW, which is into the range where they can charge harder.

[@mikeselectricstuff]

It isn't just the SoC, I've seen significantly varying rates even at similar SoC and temperature. I suspect there is a bug somewhere. Bluetti told me that it will never charge over about 2.5kW in any circumstance and the high-rate password wasn't useful in Europe but haven;t had a reply when I told them I'd seen higher. I've not been brave enough to leave it going at 4+kW for any length of time...

[@st8kout961]

I've noticed on mine that although it charges fairly quickly, the charge slows way down when it gets above 95%, like it's programmed to be careful topping off the batteries.

[@RSterkenburg]

"a normal domestic appliance" :D

[@stephenbell9257]

Every modern household needs its own X-ray machine.

[@tinygriffy]

@@stephenbell9257 It was called a TV ... and we didn't stop at x-rays ;)

[@mfx1]

The cable switch looks very "floppy" and easy to accidentally knock to the off position.

[@compu85]

I was thinking the same thing.

[@mikeselectricstuff]

Yes, it doesn't take much force, so could be knocked off without noticing, they could really do with displaying a warning on the screen

[@meepk633]

This is the first time I've been surprised by a scale banana.

[@Dries007BE]

I would really appreciate the "home tie in" video!

[@RocketCityTech]

Guarantee after you uploaded this video there was a mad scramble by the legal department adding numerous warnings to user documentation that ships with the equipment 🤣 “DO NOT: …”

[@MoritzvonSchweinitz]

Do you have a theory why, all of a sudden, basically all tech KZbin channels have been getting very similar power packs like these recently? Did lithium phosphate price somehow drop under some threshold to make these devices feasible? Also: why do these devices never seem to support an online UPS mode? They'd be quite sweet (and even affordable!) high class UPS if they would. Is there some technical difficulty of supporting online UPS mode?

[@mikeselectricstuff]

Marketing & competition. I think market is growing due to fears of energy security and also general green awareness. I think cooling & efficiency is the main reason for not supporting online mode. A 90% efficient 5kW inverter would put out 500W.

[@PeregrineBF]

It'd be *really* interesting to see what Photonicinduction would do if given one of these to review…

[@AlexanderGee]

You say your mains trace looks wonky because of the little transformer but when the battery bank switched over to mains it got noticeably less sinusoidal than it's inverter. What is going on there?

[@mikeselectricstuff]

The mains waveform here isn't very sinusoidal - the transformer added a bit more distortion.

[@tuopeeks]

Interesting walk through, some nice features like sync and switching over. One a concern would be with too many features possibly adding up to a considerable self consumption particularly with off grid supplies, every watts a prisoner 🙂.

[@mikeselectricstuff]

Standby draw with AC output on 50W. 0.3W with AC off

[@tuopeeks]

@@mikeselectricstuff Thanks for the info. Not as bad as I suspected, particularly when off.

[@davelowe1977]

The connector choices are a mess, particularly the 24v cig socket. Do they even have those things on commercial vehicles at 24v?

[@dglcomputers1498]

Yes, trucks and the like still use regular "cigarette lighter" sockets for 24V, a lot of better USB car chargers are designed for both 12 and 24V, though for most use cases 12V would be much more useful as most air compressors, mini fridges and the like will be 12V only. But why oh why use them both for 12 and 24V supplies on essentially the same device, madness!

[@mfx1]

Yes, blown up a few inverters etc. accidentally on a 7.5t, annoyingly it has both 12 and 24v lighter sockets!

[@TecnoBeast1]

Many aircraft have 24v/28v cigarette lighter plugs.

[@SomeMorganSomewhere]

@@dglcomputers1498 Yup, I've toasted a couple of things because I was in a rented truck and forgot about the whole 24V thing...

[@andljoy]

Output of the inverter is cleaner than the mains , i dont know if thats a good things for the inverter or a bad thing for our grid.

[@leybraith3561]

Re 'Taking off the Rubber Socket Covers' @4'41". In a dusty / crowded environment they would keep the majority of the Schmoo (and loose wire ends) out. Might be worth keeping them rather than removing?

[@nezbrun872]

"240V, that's obviously the best voltage" ROFL!🤣😂

[@frollard]

Sidenote for anyone charging a car from a variable source like this - higher voltage is literally the best voltage on the car charger's side (about 90% efficient at 240, 80% efficient at 120v on a tesla). The question becomes "is the bluetti equally efficient from 50v to 220, 230, and 240v?"

[@mikeselectricstuff]

@@frollard It's not so much about efficiency but that it's the input current that is limited to what the EVSE tells the car, so more voltage = faster charge, at least up to the power limit of the OBC.

[@frollard]

@@mikeselectricstuff til. It could be vehicle specific but I recall Tesla documentation saying to use higher if an option because boosting from 120 to 400 was less efficient. (notwithstanding running the aux systems for longer taking a bigger bite of the energy budget, pumps and computers and the charger itself)

[@maxerhard]

14:43 Obviously the best voltage :-)

[@SeanBZA]

Lot of EVSE should work with high impedance earth, because they could be being used in TT countries like Norway or Denmark, where ground impedance is high and there is no earth connection at the supply transformer.

[@tactileslut]

Just a normal household load mumble mumble X-ray machine. Too bad it wouldn't charge while delivering the mismatched frequency. I'd be curious to see how it behaves either trying to run off a slightly overloaded generator or with other AC sources in parallel with its output, manual permitting. Some inverter based generators tolerate working together in parallel.

[@tinfever]

Interesting seeing the parallel fuses in the battery pack. I'd just been reading that was a bad idea since they wouldn't necessarily current balance between them well. Perhaps it actually works okay in some cases? Maybe only when you care about gross overload such that each 50A fuse only sees 25A max under normal operation, so if it is imbalanced and one fuse sees 35A and another sees 15A, no big deal? I also wonder how they are handling multiple battery units being connected in parallel. Could they be switching some of those big inductors to limit the current when multiple units at different voltages are plugged together?

[@mikeselectricstuff]

I suspect they switch batteries in & out until they're balanced. I've also seen parallel fuses in a Makita drill battery. No reason that they wouldn't balance & share current - one would blow first but the other would follow very shortly after.

[@frollard]

Dangling in the air the fuses might not share equally, but soldered to the same pcb they'll share temperature pretty quickly and that steady state will keep them in line until the bad juju kicks in. I think. Sameish as how it's bad to run 5mm leds in parallel, but power leds frequently have many strings in parallel - being gooped to the same substrate keeps them in check.

[@tinfever]

@@frollard I think the reason for the current potentially not balancing was that the resistance for a given fuse model isn't tightly controlled. I don't think a tolerance is usually even specified. I guess if you either design to allow a +-20% resistance difference due to manufacturing, or just measure a bunch a figure out who makes them consistently, it'd probably work OK.

[@poprawa]

All phone and USB PD charging capabilities are great for use in camping cases. Also 2 fully independent dc charge inputs would be great to use solar power and ignition output from running car mixed as needed @edit: I re-watched andthose are independent channels, so this is great :)

[@poprawa]

At this power levels you can use electric stoves without limitation, so this sounds like good addition @edit: I re-watched andthose are independent channels, so this is great :)

[@mikeissweet]

Great video Mike! As usual

[@gvii]

Wow. That welder is a thing, huh? I apologize, I know it's a bit off-topic, but that thing was...interesting. And maybe a bit terrifying as well. Anyway, very neat setup. Quite a beast as well. Excellent deep dive on it, it does seem very well built. Though it would be interesting to compare it to a further down the line production model. See if and where they either streamline some of the things on there or just plain cheap out.

[@Basement-Science]

Yeah, he has a video about the welder.

[@Karl-yz1rs]

Great video - really interesting seeing not only the performance, but the internal build quality. Annoying it'll trip RCD's when switching back to mains with the output Neutral / Earth bond in place - is this an easy fix? - i.e. Something like an actual ground / rod connection on the bonded Earth / Neutral on the output?

[@alexchernikov6276]

Hi there. Have you noticed any fans inside the battery? By b230 emits a strange wobble that sounds like a daft fan, but I can't imagine seeing a fan inside of an enclosure with no vents. Thanks.

[@reviews2you]

I find it peculiar they don't have time to discharge and time to full, how can they overlook that? Also weird with deep discharge that the AC inverter won't turn on, I found the same on mine. I would think people primarily use these for AC so I don't see much benefit to being able to use a tiny bit more DC at the risk of damaging it. I also think the app needs to have full control with the same options as the touchscreen. If that touchscreen ever fails you will be severely limited by what you can do w/ the app.

[@mikeselectricstuff]

Time to discharge wouldn't be very meaningful on any varying load - they'd get complaints about inaccuracy. Base load of AC inverter probably too high to be useful in deep discharge mode, DC only also limits the discharge rate in this mode.

[@Berkeloid0]

@@mikeselectricstuff Possibly but driving cars is also highly variable and they can give you a good estimate of your remaining range. If they tracked the device's use over a long enough time it could probably end up quite accurate, if you were using it for the same thing like running a fridge or freezer.

[@reviews2you]

@@mikeselectricstuff I couldn't disagree more. All the other competitors do it, Ecoflow, Jackery etc. Just do a 3-5 second sample. Saying you have 7 hours and getting 6 is better than not having any gauge other than doing your own math. And the monitor accounts for idle consumption already.

[@zaprodk]

Uff, those terrible looking serif fonts on that LCD. There is no excuse for not using a proper font like on the static elements.

[@Nitrxgen]

The use of serif fonts on displays like this always scream to me: Made in China. It's very typical because their own fonts are almost always calligraphic (and therefore serif) and the same fonts may contain Latin characters that are serif, it's what they're used to. There are baseline sans serif fonts with various supported Chinese character ranges as a secondary consideration but I guess they just don't use them. Mystery about the static sans serif text though, I'm guessing that text are baked into the images based on the antialiasing (the changing text is aliased) if I had to guess I would say the visual design and static text were not produced by Chinese developers? We will never know.

[@zaprodk]

@@Nitrxgen I think you are correct. The static pictures were designed by a design team, and the chinese software team made the actual programming of the display. I do have one of Dwin's displays at my disposal and there is no excuse for not importing a proper font for use - It supports proper truetype fonts with anti aliasing. It's just sloppy developers that doesn't really care i believe.

[@Berkeloid0]

@@zaprodk This is something that sets alarm bells ringing for me too. If the software developer can't be bothered to do something easy like import a nice-looking font, what other more important things might they have been too lazy to do properly as well? (EDIT: @Woodsy posted in another thread the 16:52 misspelling of their own brand name, which just adds weight to this concern.)

[@dglcomputers1498]

Yes nothing like cheapo looking fonts on chinesium equipment, a decent font isn't a big or difficult ask. We have a Chinese made/designed Haier washing machine and one of the things that makes it look decent is the fact that it uses decent fonts. A product that looks cheap is a big turn off for a lot of people even if the specs are good.

[@tibortth]

How are the busbars mounted to the battery PCB? Is it press-fit or soldered? Custom component, or anyone knows something similar?

[@circuitdotlt]

I wondered what's inside. Thank you.

[@st8kout961]

I hardly ever use the touchscreen as mine is close to the floor and hard to see, but I found out that I can only turn DC on/off with the app. Bluetti instantly contacted me and said the touchscreen needs to be replaced, under warranty of course. After seeing this teardown I could do it myself if it comes down to sending the unit back to them. The box won't even fit in my car. I'm going to suggest this unless they plan to send a repairman to my house. I'll just need a replacement decal.

[@T2D.SteveArcs]

Only passing one of the two " identical " conductors through the hall effect current sensor allows them to measure say 300A with a 150A CT ... I have a few of those Hall effect sensors and they are pretty nice they can measure pulses aswel , if I remember correctly one I used was 150A (plus minus 75A) 150khz bandwidth .. Great video mate Steve

[@SolarMinerPH]

that makes sense. that would be useful to use on my circuits too

[@lambda7652]

i have the smallest unit they sell and i noticed it won't charge on 50ħz if it's sett to 60hz this is because it only has one inverter and using it for AC in and output. So to AC charge and Discharge it needs to synchronize output frequency and voltage to the input voltage. (this is why it takes a moment if AC in comes back on I assume if it can do this it could also work as a grid-tied inverter but sadly its not supported

[@mikeselectricstuff]

regardless of syncing, any backup supply should have a delay before switching back to grid, , as it's common to have brief on/offs when power returns.

[@lambda7652]

@@mikeselectricstuff Sure but it appears like its using the DC-AC inverter also as AC-DC charger. This is why it can only switch over after Sync. Try AC charging it with it's own AC output. (it won't let you) but if you put a isolated Variac between its output and input weird things happen :D

[@AlexPlusLEDS]

The circular connectors look like they are CPC style connectors. However, the quarter/half turn on the retention looks a little wrong, I don't know if official CPC connectors have a partial turn to lock. You might be able to attach just the face of the connector, without engaging the plastic lock.

[@ToomsDotDk]

The mobile app dont have access control for connection over BT, so anyone near the device can just connect and turn the outputs on/off

[@mikeselectricstuff]

You can turn off the BT on the unit and access via the more secure wifi if you're that paranoid

[@st8kout961]

My experience has been that only one BT device at a time can connect to most BT items, including the AC500. In fact, I have to turn off BT on my iphone for my ipad to use the BT app, even when the iphone is not being used, and vice versa. I've had to turn off BT completely on my iphone so that it will 'let go' of the AC500, so I can use my ipad BT. For both devices to have access to the AC500, my iphone app is set to wifi and ipad app to BT.

[@boriss.861]

Mike a great review and tear down. How does this compare to the Tesla Power Bank that seems to get a lot of marketing for PV Storage?

[@mikeselectricstuff]

Less integrated, but more portable

[@rkan2]

Tesla Powerwall was originally designed with NMC (Model S/X) chemistry batteries and marketed for a bit cheaper than this. That was a long time ago now though and it is currently quite hard to get. All reservations from 5 years back still haven't been fulfilled, though plenty have. Bluetti should be much more available and there is no electrician required to install it. AFAIK the Tesla powerwall was also marketed as a three phase supply (outside NA anyway). The inverters are about the same power. (5kW continuous and 7kW peak on Tesla Powerwall originally).

[@biggiejohn3360]

the cables are all standard aviation connectors

[@mikeselectricstuff]

The 32A output is something different - I've not been able to find anything like it yet

[@TheRasteri]

What do you reckon is the cheapest/simplest way to get 60hz 120v AC in the UK? Let's say at 1A?

[@Motorman2112]

An audio amplifier and a tone generator? One that can do 2000W into 8 ohms would give you 16A at 120V.

[@TheRasteri]

​@@Motorman2112 lol I had the same idea but thought it was crazy. Still, if I drive it from an mp3 player I could see which appliances prefer which styles of music.

[@worroSfOretsevraH]

I'm wondering how does a company source all the components used in a project like this. The engineers start by going trough sites like Mouser or Digikey for weeks, searching for all the components necessary? I mean there are a huge amount of different connectors, plugs, cables, battery cells. Not talking about the more exotic transformers, chokes, inductors, relays so on, and so on. I would definitely like to know more about the designing process of such an elaborate instrument.

[@mikeselectricstuff]

Made in China so local sourcing of most parts. Magnetics will be custom made.

[@andreasu.3546]

Now it would be great if you could combine three units to make 3-phase.

[@raymondramirez9177]

In the U.S we use the Split Phase version of the AC300 to produce 240 VAC. Two units are connected with a 9-wire cable and one of the units is defined as Master while the other is defines a Slave in the settings. The Master generates the original 60 HZ waveform, while the Slave must follow and generate an opposite (180 degree) waveform to produce the two 120 VAC line that feeds a new Fusion Box which sums up the 240 VAC output. For a 3-phase system, you have to define a new programming so the three units are 120 degress out of phase to each other. In theory it seems possible but I doubt that Bluetti will actually build it. Their products are directed at hoome and outdoor applications, not for any industrial applications.

[@letterglettera9318]

Since you have a U.K model, does it gives you an option to change the language? I am planing to get a German model but I don't know German. I just want to know if I can change the language. I have emailed bluetti U.S but I have never heard from them.

[@mikeselectricstuff]

It definitely has German, don't recall if there were any other options.

[@letterglettera9318]

@@mikeselectricstuff ah thank you! Bluetti Asia (Philippines) is what we have, but they are not selling the ac500, matter of the fact it ends at ac200p and it has been sold out for more than a year. We have a great need, since Europe, U.K and Australian uses 220/240volts I am forced to buy from there. I'm in Texas, U.S and I plan/need to buy overseas. Well thanks for the info. I have a brother in Manchester. Thanks.

[@AndreaPersegoni]

Hi Mike, interesting. Maybe you can help me with one issue that even Bluetti cannot fix. I am having significant charge drop overnight. PV priority so grid connected but not charging. AC and DC off, wifi off. I cannot explain 10% drop at night or more. When charge is 100% complete by PV, next morning I find 80%. Bluetti is suggeting disconnect grip, PV... come on, it is an UPS! What to test, how to set to avoid this loss_ THX for tips

[@sparkyprojects]

The CT only on one wire should be ok, it will be measureing half the current if those 2 wires are in parallel, so they just need to take that into account when calibrating

[@mikeselectricstuff]

They are not in parallel - one goes to each battery connector

[@jtmtb856]

Hi Mike, nice work! What's your thought on adding an external battery like SOK rack type with same spec as B300 51.2v 60ah lifepo4 in parallel to the terminal on the B300?

[@jamble7k]

banana for scale

[@Pwills]

We just need something to show the scale of the banana now 🤣😂🤣

[@kandremcdonald6955]

Mike, which Transfer Switch can I use with the AC500? I have the AC500 and two B300s (with the intention to get 2 more B300s in the near future). I want to only run 120V at the moment, but want to eventually run 240V in the future. My intention is to get a 10 circuit manual transfer switch and would really know which one to get. Or some options...

[@rkan2]

This is what you call a proper review :P Waveforms from such devices should be the minimum on any review!

[@mikediiorio7949]

you could buy 14-50 input adapter to charge up to 5000Watts input also ev charger adapter

[@peteglass3496]

I wonder how it compares with the Ecoflow kit, they both seem to be highly multi-functional. Yet to actually come to market in 2 or 3 sizes with few publically available details is Zipcharge, a unit focused primarily on EV charging and hopefully rather lighter in weight!

[@KoRntech]

Unless EcoFlow has updated their products they were not using Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries that's why I went to Bluetti this summer.

[@ferrumignis]

@@KoRntech The Ecoflow Delta 2 and Delta Pro use lithium iron phosphate cells, I don't know about the other models.

[@vaidasmiskunas2331]

Hi,does ups mode actually works in Uk?

[@m1geo]

Would love for you to do a similar review for the Anker 757.

[@eigenvector7035]

I wonder why the inverter output sine looks cleaner than the mains sine? Is the mains harmonic content this bad in the UK/around London?

[@tomsixsix]

Due to all the SMPSes on the power grid pulling power only at the peaks, the peaks of the mains tend to be distorted. This is common all over the UK.

[@TheStevenWhiting]

1:30 The highly technical banana for a size comparison :o)

[@poprawa]

9:20 so this is the proper way not to make any contact with customer support, nice :3

[@kandremcdonald6955]

Is the Bluetti AC500 a floating neutral or is it bonded to ground? I know little to nothing about this electrical stuff...

[@mikeselectricstuff]

Floating

[@DakarFourByFour]

Not confidence inspiring that they don't spell their own company name correctly @16:53 BULETTI

[@st8kout961]

The spelling is corrected on mine, which I bought about 3 months ago.

[@rkan2]

If it is a well designed lithium pack - you should be able to charge it in freezing ambient temperatures and thus like you said it should have a heater.

[@mikeselectricstuff]

It does have a heater

[@tinygriffy]

I think an aubergine or a paprika would be much better suited to provide a size comparison. Microwave Ovens with Handle detection and turntable control .. 🤔 Wouldn't it be cool /nice to be able to use the EV Battery as backup for the house..

[@skotomoto]

OMG! Ready for power shutdowns? How is your electricity bills now?

[@MadeleineTakam]

I went with a Sealey Pure Sine Wave PSI1000 Power Inverter; A Clarke IBC15 Intelligent 12V/15A Battery Charger; And 3 Deep Cycle 120AH leisure batteries. Ready for the power cuts. Cheaper I think.

[@edc1569]

Problem with SLA batteries is you have to be on top of them otherwise you ruin them.

[@MadeleineTakam]

@@edc1569 The Clarke IBC15 Intelligent 15A Battery Charger, keeps the bank of 3 batteries totalling 360AH fully charged 24 hours a day 365 days per year. It checks the condition of the batteries chemically, it trickle charges and maintains, it switches off when batteries are at full auto switches back on when not. It can cope with up to 400AH. I have a good relationship with Machine Mart, my husband used to buy thousands of pounds worth of kit every year with his company before he retired. If the unit gets a fault, I will take it back and get an instant replacement anytime in next 5 years. The Batteries are bought from ABS Batteries. A reputable seller. They are branded and have a 5 year “Pick up and replace” warranty. The Sealey Inverter is put on the market by a British reputable company that has been in the trade for years. Sealey. Every single part for my inverter I can purchase cheaply with on phone call. I have a 3 year no quibble warranty. By a company I can ring anytime. All the equipment I have bought I can ring an English company speak to them in English and get the response I want in seconds. Total cost of my unit including high ampage switches and fuses £471. My system that took me a few hours to put together acts as a 24 hour high powered UPS. It will still be working in 5 years time unlike many of the “Power Bricks” or as my husband refers to them “Anchors” people are buying. Try doing that with the joke of unit reviewed here. I know it might look from my Avatar, that I don’t really know what electricity is. But I really do; And I really know what I am doing.

[@ferrumignis]

​@@MadeleineTakam _"the bank of 3 batteries totalling 360AH"_ Just remember that you shouldn't try to extract 360AH from those batteries, at least not if you want them to last a good number of cycles. 50% DOD is typically the maximum recommended for AGM deep cycle batteries, which still leaves you with over 2kWh.

[@0xbenedikt]

Very nice review!

[@modrobert]

You will contribute to even out the electricity rates over time by using this, maybe if enough people follow your example we can go back to fixed rates.

[@mikeselectricstuff]

In the UK there's talk about offering users rebates for not using power between certain hours - this could be good for gaming that...

[@TheStuffMade]

Interesting device, but quite expensive. It's hard to beat something like an old school Honda generator on cost and performance, they'll keep running as long as you have gas, but of course I understand not everyone live in a place where you can run a backup generator.

[@raymondramirez9177]

You have to compare the cost per kWH and the simplicity of the Bluetti units with the competition and other piecemeal applications. As an EE, I did my own comparison and Bluetti came out ahead for its cost. BTW, Bluetti does offer specials several times a year to lower costs. I also have a 7.5 kW gas powered generator but it can only run outdoors, while any power station can run indoors.

[@liminalsunset]

I'm kind of disappointed in the level of telemetry they expose on such a powerful and complicated unit, I think some people might have been able to find some form of a use for an API or something for reading all of the individual currents and temperatures perhaps over CAN or RS485 or something like that. The programmatic control this would enable would also probably allow for interesting automations or whatnot.

[@mikeselectricstuff]

They could do this in principle, there is CAN on the interface connector, but not sure there would be enough market for people wanting to do it.

[@randybb]

API via WiFi would be nice, or replace their esp32 fw to something more usable, like esphome :)

[@maxmayer4247]

11:30 the plug looks like a "SP21 IP68 Aviation" connector

[@mikeselectricstuff]

Source ?

[@maxmayer4247]

@@mikeselectricstuff Amazon, can I post a Link?

[@aserta]

@@mikeselectricstuff He can't post a link cause YT's gonna eat him alive. Just google the name, easy peasy. I can confirm that it's within the first search results.

[@raymondramirez9177]

@@mikeselectricstuff Weipu. They are in China and have a webpage. But buying from them is difficult unless you ask for a sample and pay a heavy shipping charge. I did pay $35 for two SP29 aviation connectors.

[@YuriyKrivosheyev]

Great! Thank you

[@queazocotal]

For the 'straight from china' comparison - search imgur for 'powmr 5500w' - detailed internal board shots of the one I got. Also decent build quality. Not quite _as_ nice.

[@LarryRichelli]

Can the B300 be use on it's end with the connections on top?

[@mikeselectricstuff]

I don't see why not, there are no vents to block

[@raymondramirez9177]

Yes, it can. But while it is on its end, don't move it much. The cells may be loosened accidentally.

[@LarryRichelli]

@@raymondramirez9177 Thanks, it is stationary and does not get moved and it working fine

[@aserta]

I wish the designers of these things would look past pinterest design and properly do their jobs. It wants to look rugged, but in reality, any amount of abuse would tear all the caps off, and an accident could even break the plugs with ease. The entire panel should've been recessed and hidden behind a waterproof panel. Nothing submersible, let's not be absurd, but enough to hide the plugs and keep any attached wires and therefore the plugs themselves protected. Anyone who has used outdoors power packs or generators for more than just two uses in situ, knows what time and wear does to these. Nobody wants to go inside a box full of angry pixies and play repairman and i doubt they'd do it for you. These companies never seem to do anyways. I don't know what's up with design schools these days, if they don't start go-fund-mes for water out of thin air bottles, they're probably being busy sucking at the very thing they're supposed to be good at. I know it's a bit acid (my comment), but in this day and age when we're producing so much trash... these kinds of things shouldn't be allowed nor passed on as "ehs".

[@guyh3403]

She's a pure beauty!

[@ericklein5097]

Why the fuck are t hey using 32700 cells? There's no way they have a better density than the large prismatic cells when you factor in all the wasted space and the cell holders. A 16S pack made of 60Ah cells could fit into this enclosure and if its possible to get the 60Ah pouches at a reasonable price (not so sure about this) they could save a bit of weight. Ditch the aluminum casing and the cylindrical cell holders for a slightly more efficient pouch cell holder

[@bradkaral1188]

Aren't pouches less safe than cylindricals?

[@railgap]

Kinda hard to get excited about a $2K - $3K inverter that only works with proprietary batteries. NEXT!

[@ferrumignis]

It's not just an inverter though, it's a complete portable power solution that includes the battery, the inverter, the mains charger and a solar MPPT charger.

[@raymondramirez9177]

The AC500 has no internal batteries (except a coin cell for memery functions on the control board). Bluetti manufacturers their own battery sets, and the AC500 can use the B300 and B300S (improved version with an internal heater). Both hold over 3 kWh of energy each. But with the B300S the AC500 can manage six batteries, for over 18 kWh of energy.

[@RocketCityTech]

Oooooh baby

[@rkan2]

47:00 - How is your automotive PCB/electronics background? How well are JST connectors designed to handle vibration from say 5000 hours of driving?

[@SirHackaL0t.]

Yay!

[@f4c3l355]

Haha, banana for scale

[@TheDefpom]

@0:35 LOL

[@simontay4851]

Naaanah!

[@Lion_McLionhead]

Surprised how bad the english is for $5000, but that's the premium Chinese products now command. Good idea: spend 15 minutes showing a UPS doing what UPSes have done for 40 years. Bad idea: show it powering an inductive load.

[@mogoreanu]

You've got a very small banana there :)