Porta power jump starter

[Captain sly]

I had a cheap one of these some time ago and was initially quite impressed.  I started my V8 soarer from dead, my V6 Sedona from dead and neighbors transit diesel all in one charge.

Used it a couple of times and then ot just stopped.  It would charge completely but when used for anything other than a power bank it did nothing, so it went back still under warranty. 

After some consideration I decided it was time for another one, but this time I wouldn't go cheap. Bit of research and some chat with some other people and I settled on this 

 

https://www.halfords.com/motoring/battery-maintenance/jump-starters/gb70-2000a-noco-jump-starter-721906.html

 

But when I bought it last month it was £170, quite a bit more than my last one but I have to say a whole different class.

Gave it it's first charge which tool some time via USB and then off to the soarer. 

The soarer hadn't been started for about 4 months and was completely dead..... Hooked it up and first go, straight into life 

https://youtube.com/shorts/n8NeBLsvH08

 

So it passed..... But what about as a power bank?

So off to the house boat and a sunken boat (long story) and after 2 hours of continuous running a pump and the boat was empty and the porta power? Only one light had dropped,  so plenty of juice left

 

All in all am very impressed with ot so far. I have emailed the manufacturer in America and they said to deplete it completely at times and recharge to full, so I will use it some more and do as they say. 

[Captain sly]

for some reason i cant post pics?

[ColinBarber]

Sometimes you get what you pay for.

A cheap no name Chinese company selling a poorly designed product under multiple different brands on eBay and amazon in which you may be lucky and get ones that works, or purchase a product from a large company that has an image to uphold and conforms to all the required safety standards across the world and provides owner support.

[Herbie]

I think the sweet spot is probably somewhere between the two.

There are plenty of no-name (or silly, obviously made up name) cheap Chinese ones out there that you really shouldn't waste money on, but I also think spending that amount of money is way OTT.

I have one made by DB Power and a mechanic mate has one made by Suaoki, both reasonably well known companies with good reputations. I've used mine about 20 times (never on my own car) and, being a mechanic, he uses his much more. I think mine was about £60-£65 and his was about £75-£80 and neither of them have ever let us down.

[Captain sly]

I agree and I know some people have had the cheap Chinese one turn out ok and I guess I didn't need to pay as much for the brand I got as they had lower spec ones that would have done the job.

What made it harder as a choice was my needs. I had just inherited a house boat with various small boats and having the portable power supply with the cigarette lighter output was a big consideration as it meant I could power a 12v pumps and lights etc as well as using it to jump start

[ColinBarber]

On 1/15/2021 at 12:16 AM, Herbie said:

I think the sweet spot is probably somewhere between the two.

There are plenty of no-name (or silly, obviously made up name) cheap Chinese ones out there that you really shouldn't waste money on, but I also think spending that amount of money is way OTT.

I have one made by DB Power and a mechanic mate has one made by Suaoki, both reasonably well known companies with good reputations. I've used mine about 20 times (never on my own car) and, being a mechanic, he uses his much more. I think mine was about £60-£65 and his was about £75-£80 and neither of them have ever let us down.

Most people don't need the one the OP purchased. A smaller one would be sufficient

https://www.halfords.com/motoring/battery-maintenance/jump-starters/gb40-1000a-noco-jump-starter-721898.html

[TigerFish]

The DBPower one I’ve got has been excellent in the 3.5 years I’ve had it. 

[Captain sly]

1 hour ago, ColinBarber said:

Most people don't need the one the OP purchased. A smaller one would be sufficient

https://www.halfords.com/motoring/battery-maintenance/jump-starters/gb40-1000a-noco-jump-starter-721898.html

That was the one I originally had in the basket and as a jump starter would have been great but as a portable power source I went for the more expensive one as it has 12v out put which for me made it worth the extra

[Captain sly]

31 minutes ago, TigerFish said:

The DBPower one I’ve got has been excellent in the 3.5 years I’ve had it. 

I did look at a DB power one on amazon but we can't buy them from there. Do Halfords sell them? 

[Bob King]

I have the same one Sly...not put it to the test yet but with 4 vehicles on the drive not being used...come end of lockdown it will surely be needed 👍🏻
   As others have said they do make less powerful models but I have a diverse range of vehicles ...diesel van to 1.0 Aygo so plumpt for the biggest.
 

 

[Captain sly]

Yes I agree there are lower cost good options but for me it wasn't just about jump starter,  I wanted the benefits of the porta power side as well and with the cigarette socket lead it fulfilled that option very well. It's horses for courses really,  what product at what budget best suits a person's needs.

The price has gone up and had it been at that price I may have hesitated but having inherited the boats, this is perfect,  one box does it all and a powerful lamp as well