My overall opinion of the Elite 100 v2 is based on what I personally would use the power station for. That use is; To primarily provide portable off grid 240VAC power in a Caravan/Motorhome/RV or camping environment. With a secondary capacity of providing 12V and USB variants of DC power and charging capacity. Many RV users already have batteries installed, but not necessarily an inverter connected to them.
Although it will provide limited residential grid failure backup, the 1,024Wh battery capacity, limits its use in this scenario.
My observation regarding form factor; Bluetti have “shrunk” the physical size to effectively fit the AC180, to a similar size/weight of the AC70.
What has been deleted the AC180 has;
a. No Wireless charging pad.
b. 2 USB-A output sockets.
c. 128Wh of battery capacity.
d. Cig Plug to DC charging Cable. (Now Optional)
e. Silent charging of <300W.
What has been added the AC180 does not have;
a. A second USB-C PD @ 140W.
b. 2 x DC5521 12V ports.
c. WiFi connectivity.
d. Variable UPS mode configurations.
What is improved over the AC180;
a. Battery Cycle life.
b. Increased Solar input - doubling input amps to 20A.
c. Faster UPS changeover.
d. Lower self consumption.
e. Improved energy density per volume/weight.
f. Changing the DC input from D7909 barrel connection to a XT60PM-M.
Observations - although some initial “glitches” occurred during testing, Bluetti were notified and promptly pushed firmware updates on several occasions, which resolved those issues. Everything tested eventually worked following those updates, here is a list of those devices;
From 240VAC power outlets - Large and small smart TV, DVD-R, Laptop power brick, Victron 15A - 12V LFP battery charger, LED and incandescent lighting, charging of other power stations (AC70, AC180 & AC200P), Home fridge (540lt), RV 700W microwave, electric kettles (1,000W and 2200W - power lifting), Electric toaster, sandwich press, RV 30A - 12V battery charger, Starlink Mini, Engel 40lt fridge, RV 110lt fridge, home fibre optic & router internet, security camera hub, Ryobi 18V battery charger.
From 12VDC cig socket only - Engel fridge, 12V Laptop adaptor, 12V 4x4 oven (6A).
From USB-C PD - Charging the Bluetti X20, Starlink Mini and from USB-A - Mobile phones, Samsung Tablet, charging of a 20,000mAh power bank.
CONCLUSIONS -
The BAD - I have a 90lt 240VAC only drinks fridge, it will not work from the Elite 100 v2, however, it will not work from any of AC70, AC180 or AC200P either. It’s a cheap fridge and not a big deal.
b. Although other devices work correctly, primarily fridges, the Watts shown on the Elite 100’s display is double what the fridge uses when a power meter is connected. This is somewhat frustrating, but liveable. I’m yet to understand why.
The GOOD - As noted above re size, weight, connectivity etc. I think the improvement over the AC180 is a winner. I will be using it in my RV for 240VAC only as I already have 200Ah (2,600Wh) of house battery running the 12V systems. I will also carry 1 x AC70 to power Starlink (USB-C PD) in the 4x4, along with other kitchen appliances below 1,000W (240VAC). Either will also back up my 4x4 auxiliary battery and run the Engel from either 12VDC or 240VAC. I could use the Elite 100 only, but there may be times Starlink is on in the 4x4 and I want power in the RV at the same time.
@BLUETTI_CARE
This is more of a “wishlist” for me personally - I am disappointed that the Silent Charging rate of the AC180 at <300W has not been applied to the Elite 100 v2.
As noted in my testing and confirmed by Bluetti, the Silent mode of the E1V2 is 600W as is the Standard charge rate.
They differ in that Silent mode, will reduce the Watts below 600 if temperature becomes a factor. Standard mode will apply Fan on if temperature becomes a factor, but not reduce the 600W charge.
I prefer Silent mode 300W charging wherever possible and had fitted a 375W inverter for that purpose in my 4x4.
The only way of using that inverter is to now charge an AC70 from it, then use the AC70 to charge the Elite 100 and then recharge the AC70 again.
I don’t know if this is hardware or firmware adjustable, perhaps Bluetti can confirm… (Why I’ve tagged this to Bluetti) and offer a firmware update if applicable.
Hi @Mandp, Thank you for your review; your opinions are extremely important to us.
We have submitted your feedback to the R&D department.
Generally speaking, we do not recommend customers to use two power stations to charge each other. This is because it will lead to energy waste and goes against our original design intention. If you have to do so, please try to use the larger power station to charge the smaller one. Otherwise, it may easily cause overload.
Please note that the Elite 100 V2 records apparent power, which includes active power and reactive power. Therefore, the value displayed will be higher than that recorded by your electricity meter. This is normal.
Thank you for your attention to this issue. The charging power of silent charging and standard charging modes is indeed the same.
However, the silent mode prioritizes controlling the fan speed to reduce noise. Additionally, when the internal temperature of the unit rises, it will dynamically adjust the power. The 600W in silent mode means the charging power is capped at 600W, and it may be lower than 600W.
Thank you for your response @BLUETTI_CARE
I understand the inefficiency of charging one PS from another, however it will work either way in either Silent mode. My preferred method of augmenting the Elite 100’s capacity is to use the Charger 1 from a spare 100Ah LFP as the source for a total of approx. 3,300Wh.
Due to other loads when driving and towing, I do not have enough residual alternator capacity to use the Charger 1 as well.
From my perspective, design intent is great, when all lines up, but if they don’t the next best thing is improvisation.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to do the review.
Hi all, I just got a 100v2 (US model) too, and generally like it. Some comments:
I agree with Mandp that it should be possible to limit the input power to AC charging. There are many off-grid situations where only limited power is available. Mandp’s example of having a Victron 300W inverter is one such.
The charging rate limit at 12 volts is annoying but I guess I understand the reasons for it. It should be documented in the manual though.
Apparently the power display is in VA (volt amps) rather than watts. VA is different than watts when the load is reactive, like compressors. The ratio is called the power factor. I think if the display says watts then it should really display watts rather than VA.
Generally everything Mandp says makes sense and yes, Bluetti should pay attention ;).
I like the unit a lot so far, but the manual has significant omissions and I sent an email to support@bluetti about some of them. Those should be pretty easy to fix for a future release, I hope.
The 100v2’s self-discharge rate is also kind of annoying. The manual says to recharge it every few months if it is not being used. That’s a nuisance and people can’t always manage that. There is someone on DIY Solar Forum with a dead B300 battery because it was left out of use for years (the owner’s husband had dementia). Ideally it should be possible to just leave the unit plugged into the grid and let it handle its own occasional self-recharging through some setting, even if it is otherwise powered off. A trickle charge input (5 volt USB power at 0.5 watts) could also help with that, but it would change the hardware I guess.
Maybe the AC180P is newer but it’s a better comparison than the regular AC180. At least when I was shopping, AC180P was US$499 new (just before Prime day) and E1v2 was $399 (launch preorder price). AC180P has 1440WH but same weight and size as AC180. So it has higher WH/kg and lower $/WH than the E1v2 even at launch price. I got E1v2 anyway because of lighter weight among other things. Today though, refurb AC180P at $449 on ebay official store is quite attractive compared to E1V2 at $549.
Hi @Mandp, Thank you for sharing your experience and opinions—they are extremely important to us.
Yes, the combination of Charger 1 and Elite 100 V2 is highly recommended.
We have also shared this with our R&D team.
Hi @paulr, Thank you for your testing and evaluation—we’ve submitted them to the technical department for discussion.
It seems you’ve already contacted us via email. Could you please let us know your service ticket number? We’d like to obtain all the suggestions you’ve made regarding the instruction manual for analysis.
We look forward to your new review!
Hi @paulr, Thank you for the update, and we’re glad to hear that you’ve received a reply.
We greatly appreciate your suggestions, and we will urge the technical department to review the instruction manual accordingly.
