Author: Betty Watson
Date: May 17, 2024
Here at The Powery- we love to talk about "portable power stations!" But what are they? And what can you do with them? As Elizabeth Barrett Browning said, "How do I use thee, portable power station? Let me count the ways." (The original poem was better, if you want to go way off a tangent, but you get it- we love this stuff.)
What Is A Portable Power Station?
Portable power stations are basically big batteries, put in a box, with all of the electronics that you need to 1) plug things in and 2) charge the battery from different sources, including solar. That's actually it.
To get a little more specific, portable power stations usually offer a variety of plug types- normal outlets, USB charging, cigarette-lighter-style outlets, RV outlets and even some others. Next, they have a lot of ways recharge the battery by plugging it into a regular outlet, solar panels, a car, a generator or another battery.
Before portable power stations, setting up a system like that would have required a LOT of components, potentially a degree in electrical engineering and a good amount of money. And that system would have been terrible to carry around! Now thanks to portable power stations, it comes prepackaged in a nice little box in dozens of size combinations for a pretty reasonable price.
Some people differentiate between "portable power stations" and "solar generators," with solar generators meaning portable power stations that can be connected to and charged by solar panels. In our opinion, solar charging capability is a must for any power station that you can take with you, so our definition of portable power stations includes being able to connect to solar panels to recharge the battery.
Now that you have a better idea what portable power stations are, let's get to the part that really matters to you. Drumroll please……
What Can I Do With A Portable Power Station?
This question has endless answers! And there is probably at least one that only you will come up with. The most basic answer is that portable power stations add value any time and any place that you wish you had electricity, but don't have easy access to an outlet.
The most commonly marketed use for a portable power station is: take it camping! Camping, RV trips, boondocking and more are great places for portable power stations because you will get a lot of value from having just a bit more electricity. Charging phones, lights, fans, coffee makers and other small appliances can add a huge amount of comfort to a camping trip.
Another use case for portable power stations is at home during power outages. Most portable power stations are too small to keep you heating and cooling online, but how much better would a power outage be if you could keep the Wi-Fi and TV on? Lights, fans and phone charging are also great to have in an outage… we all have our priorities.
What would you do with a portable power station? This will continue to be a central topic at The Powery and we will keep sharing as we learn and create new options. We also love to hear your ideas! So leave them in the comments, social media or reach out!
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