RAVPower Portable Power Station 252.7Wh Power House review: Perfect for a weekend camping trip
Small, portable, but oh-so powerful.
Pros
- Small form factor
- Plenty of ports
- Comes with a case and built-in flashlight
Cons
- Built for quick trips
- Not for extended use
Bottom Line
RavPower's 252.7Wh Power House is a handy companion for your off-the-grid power needs, and happens to be affordably priced to boot.
-
Price
$ 335.00 (AUD)
I’ve been quiet for the last few months, but I can explain. I was tasked with testing several power stations, ranging from affordable to almost too expensive. The goal? Find a range of portable power stations for all budgets and use cases.
Admittedly, testing took far longer than I expected. But, alas, here I am, ready with the first review born out of months of testing, frustration, and more testing.
First up is the RAVPower Portable Power Station 252.7Wh Power House, a US$179 / AU$335.41 on Ebay, powerhouse that looks more like a portable speaker than something you’d plug a 110v gadget into, or that could power a lamp for 37:26 minutes. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
The package
Included in the box with the power station is a soft carrying case for holding the station and the included 110V DC charger. Using the bundled DC charger, I was able to go from empty to full in 6 hours and 23 minutes, or 23 minutes longer than RAVPower’s published estimate. Alternatively, you can charge the station using a 60W PD adapter through the USB-C, which should charge the station in just under 5 hours.
As its name implies, this power station has a total capacity of 252.7Wh, or 70,200mAh. To put that into perspective, the current iPhone 12 Pro has a battery capacity of 2,815mAh. The tall, cube-like design is all black, with a handle on the top. There are feet on the bottom of the station that hold it off the ground slightly, but also prevent it from slipping off a smooth surface. Buttons and ports are distributed among the station’s four sides: on one side, indicator lights reveal the station’s charge level; another side has the power button and a flashlight; the third has two DC ports (one incoming, the other outgoing); and the fourth side has three USB ports and a lone USB-C PD port.
On the top of the housing, you’ll find two 2-prong 110V outlets, along with a power button and another indicator light.
Two of the USB ports max out at 12W total, while the third one, and you’ll know which one it is because it’s green, is capable of 18W max output. The USB-C port can accept or dish out up to 60W of power, and for any of the ports, you don’t need to turn on the power station first. Just plug in your USB cable, connect your phone or tablet (or what have you), and it’ll start charging.
Using the 110V outlets works a little differently. You can get 250W from a single outlet; if you use both outlets, you’ll max out at 300W. Before the AC outlets are active, you’ll need to press and hold the small button between the two outlets until the indicator light turns on. Now plug in something like a lamp or laptop charger (as long as it doesn’t have a three-prong ground plug.)
Performance
When testing all of the power stations I have on hand, I used a PortaPow power monitor to measure the amount of energy a power station used while connected to a DROK load tester. For the RAVPower, out of a total of 252.7Wh of power, I measured 234.465Wh of energy used before the station turned off. That gives it an efficiency of 92.78 percent, with the average efficiency for reviewed power stations currently sitting at 87.25 percent.
Another part of the test for each power station was to connect a 4W desk lamp to one of the station’s 110V outlets with a full charge. I turned on the lamp, and left it on until the power station ran out of juice. The lamp turned off after 32 hours of continuous use, but when I pressed the power button to ensure it was completely drained, the lamp lit back up for another 4 hours and 29 minutes (bringing it to a total of 37 hours and 26 minutes).
Bottom line
Overall, the RAVPower Portable Power Station 252.7Wh Power House punches above its weight. It’s one of the most affordable power stations I’ve tested, and it performed very well. The inclusion of a bag to carry it, a 6 hour charging time and a high efficiency make it perfect to toss in the trunk of your car for a weekend camping trip or keep charged in your hallway cabinet for the occasional power outage. If nothing else, you’ll be able to keep your phones and tablets charged and yourself entertained until service returns.
Brand Post
Most Popular Reviews
- 1 Dell U3223QE review: A winning debut for an IPS Black monitor
- 2 HP Spectre x360 16 review: The right 2-in-1 at the wrong time
- 3 Acer K242HYL review: An affordable monitor for any occasion
- 4 GeForce Now review: You bring the games, Nvidia streams the hardware
- 5 Asus ProArt PA279CV monitor review: The go-to for content creators on a budget
Latest News Articles
- U.S. SEC slaps Nvidia with a US$5.5 million fine over GeForce GPUs used for crypto
- AMD shrugs off COVID chip shortage fears by focusing on premium PCs
- AMD announces 2023 ‘extreme gaming laptop CPU,’ Dragon Range
- According to Qualcomm, Nuvia processors are now due in late 2023
- This insightful Nvidia video explains how Game Ready drivers work
Resources
Macworld
What's new, plus best mac-related tips
and tricks
Business Centre
The latest business news, reviews, features and whitepapers
Videos
Watch our video news and reviews from around the world
Guides
Comprehensive buying guides, features, and step-by-step articles
PCW Evaluation Team
Pedro Peixoto
Aruba Instant On AP11D
Set up is effortless.
Cate Bacon
Aruba Instant On AP11D
The strength of the Aruba Instant On AP11D is that the design and feature set support the modern, flexible, and mobile way of working.
Dr Prabigya Shiwakoti
Aruba Instant On AP11D
Aruba backs the AP11D up with a two-year warranty and 24/7 phone support.
Tom Pope
Dynabook Portégé X30L-G
Ultimately this laptop has achieved everything I would hope for in a laptop for work, while fitting that into a form factor and weight that is remarkable.
Tom Sellers
MSI P65
This smart laptop was enjoyable to use and great to work on – creating content was super simple.
Lolita Wang
MSI GT76
It really doesn’t get more “gaming laptop” than this.
Featured Content
- Which Lenovo Laptop Should I Buy?
- Every TV in Samsung's 2022 line-up: OLED, Neo QLED and more!
- Top 10 best Android and Apple phones for under $600
- Everything you need to know about Smart TVs
- What's the difference between an Intel Core i3, i5 and i7?
- Laser vs. inkjet printers: which is better?