Bluetti's new AC200L Power Station Review

[hnymann]

I was given the opportunity to test and give feedback on a new Bluetti product. The only information I was initially provided was the model number: AC200L. I was very curious about this new device, so when the box arrived at my home on September 30th, I was quick to open it and see what this was.
(Edited to embed the videos)

This is how it came.

It comes with the typical cables.

And this is what it looks like once unpacked!

The first thing needed was to get it powered on and charge it. I made a short video of doing just that, showing the various plugs, and what the new style display looks like.

Bluetti AC200L first power on and charging

While I had the AC200L charging I had some time to review the manual, and there were some things that were very interesting to me. Compared with the AC200Max, which I have, the inverter output has been increased to 2,400 watts, that’s a full 20 amps! A typical large appliance, like a mini-oven or electric fry pan, is going to be no more than 1,800 watts to use, and this leaves plenty of margin to keep a fridge running, or a fan and some lights if you’re camping.

Battery capacity inside the unit remains at 2048 watt-hours, as well as having a connector for an external battery, like a B230, a B300, and the manual mentions a new B210 battery option. The AC200L can have two B300 batteries attached since those have a pass-through port to chain two together, for a whopping 8,192 watt-hours of battery storage!

There is no power brick! The charger is built in to the AC200L. The new style display makes it easy to read the important details, and includes the expected run or charge time remaining. With this unit Bluetti is using buttons instead of the touch screen, and I like that change. To me it seems that buttons are better for longevity than touch screens, and these devices are able to last 10 plus years, based on the battery technology used.

The AC200L comes with bluetooth and WIFI connectivity. I love the WIFI feature as I like to check the app to know how well solar charging is doing and if it’s charged yet, even when I’m not close enough for bluetooth.

Speaking of solar, the MPPT charge capacity has also been increased compared to the AC200Max, up to 1,200 watts, and that charging rate is something I was able to test.

Here is a short video showing 1,120 watts solar charging:

Bluetti AC200L close to maximum solar charging test

And here is a short video running a load while solar charging:

Solar charging and running a load.

Next I put it to use for something really important: making coffee!

Brewing a coffee with the Bluetti AC200L

If I could get the coffee maker to brew continuously I could make coffees for 1.5 hours. That’s a lot of coffee.

For an even heavier workout, I used the AC200L to bake a 10" by 15" casserole (upside down pizza!) for dinner. It started at 100% and it’ll need 30 minutes bake time plus preheating.

Pre-heating the Breville mini oven. Battery is at 93%, but started at 100%, the load is almost 1,800 watts, time shows 1 hour battery left.

Here is the casserole baking. The time needed is 30 minutes.

And here we are at the end of the bake cycle. Dinner’s ready! 1,800 watts is no problem for the AC200L.

A few times now I have used the AC200L to power my home office, as I am able to work from home one day per week. For my home office I use a laptop, an external monitor, a table lamp, mug warmer, and chargers for my phone and bluetooth speaker. Since everything at my desk plugs into a power bar this is easy to accomplish. Later in the day I ran a 30 foot solar extension cable through the window and connected it to a Bluetti PV350 panel outside, which got the AC200L charged up again.

Running the home office

Here’s the app showing the solar charging and office power use.

And, of course, we had to take it with us on a trip to the great fall outdoors for a couple of days here in early November. We made hot chocolate and coffee, cooked up a bunch of beans in a pressure cooker, and powered a few strings of lights around the cabin. And I had my PV350 along to keep it going.

But have a look at the display on the AC200L, full sunshine and still easily readable! There are icons to show what outputs are active as well. The usefulness of that became apparent when the sunshine made the button backlighting impossible to see. The display is a huge improvement over the AC200Max.

And finally, some new monitoring capabilities in the app specifically for the AC200L that I noticed. From the main app view of the AC200L you can touch the icons for PV input, Grid input, and AC output and get a display of the power and voltage coming in or out! That’s something I have wished that the AC300 could do, especially for the solar input.

Solar Input

Grid Input

AC Output

I have been very happy with the Bluetti AC200L power station. No noisy power brick with a fan that doesn’t stop, individual buttons for output options, super fast AC charging option if you need it in a hurry or extra slow for quiet operation, really fast solar charging, and WIFI for full remote monitoring. This is a take-it-anywhere-and-power-anything power station.

[BLUETTI]

@hnymann Hi Henry,
Thank you for your comprehensive and detailed evaluation of the AC200L!

The article thoroughly explored our product and its various applications. It vividly demonstrated the performance and outstanding features of the AC200L in different scenarios.

Not only did it mention the excellent performance of the AC200L in outdoor camping and emergencies, but it also highlighted its practicality in areas such as home backup power and mobile offices. It allows us to feel the actual application effect of the AC200L and its ability to solve user problems.

The upgraded APP function (WiFi+Bluetooth dual connection) has also brought great convenience to users.

[Selfmadestrom]

Thanks for sharing with us! Amazing review!

[Chrissie]

Lovely review! This gives Black Friday ideas

[Windrider]

It’s a beautiful setup.
How well does it power your office with that panel? How much power do you get now in November?

[Xavier]

I’m curious too, really, in winter that panel produces what… 5% of its design capacity maybe? What about the wind, won’t it blow it on the ground?
I fail to understand what niche these products fit. Why not simply have permanent solar panels on a rooftop and a classic inverter, possibly one home battery?

[Selfmadestrom]

Hi @Xavier

It really depends on your usecases. When i use it as “Home Battery”, sure fixed panels do can make a lot of sense.

But threre are people who dont cant install any fix solarpanels for any reason. Also Bluetti Products get used by many camping friends who enjoy the flexibility of taking a solarpanel and a portable energy source with it.

If you want to build a permanent solution with Bluetti Products, you are free to install it you way

greetings
Erik

[Windrider]

@Selfmadestrom

If you want to build a permanent solution with Bluetti Products, you are free to install it you way

ja, and products like the AC lineup make us “ungovernable”. Since they’re not attached to the house, they’re not permanent, so not subject to taxes and regulations. It’s adding to the freedom mindset.

[Derceto]

Spec sheet says they are compatible with a B210 battery pack. Is that something new?

[hnymann]

It worked wonderfully for my home office. There’s no high power usage needed, so the fan doesn’t even turn on, it’s completely quiet. The PV350 had no trouble charging the AC200L.

Regarding the panel in November, if you look at the picture with the picnic table and the Keurig coffee maker you can see that there are 307 watts coming in. That picture was taken in the first week of November, so as long as the panel is facing the sun it works quite well. It’s the same for my home system, which is a Bluetti AC300 and two 1,500 watt solar arrays. I adjust the angle of the panels to face the sun monthly. As we approach winter we get fewer daylight hours, but I get the same rate of charging during those hours, somewhere around 2,200 watts, sometimes better.

[hnymann]

Apparently, yes this is a new battery. One graphic I’ve seen from Bluetti seems to imply it will be around 2,150 watt-hours of storage.

[hnymann]

While the number of hours of good sunlight is reduced as winter comes along, the rate of charge does not change if you can orient the panel towards the sun. In my review there is a picture of the AC200L on a picnic table with the Keurig coffee maker. The display is showing 307 watts of incoming solar charging, and that was from the PV350 facing the sun in the mid-morning hours.

The advantage of winter is that the reduced temperatures improves the solar panel’s performance, so there is a trade-off between hours of sun, but better charge performance. I’ve not had the wind blow a portable panel over, normally in my experiences there are too many obstacles for the wind to get strong enough.

There are many uses for these portable stations. They are great for taking on travels, and that’s also where the portable panels work well. Some people buy these instead of a gas generator for backup purposes. Some will use them instead of a larger system like the AC300, AC500, EB900, etc., because they don’t need the larger sized system, or because of price. These portable units can be useful to take along to remote locations on a property and still use power tools at the location. It always amazes me to read the different ways people are finding to put these power stations to use!

[Dell2416]

Great information thank you

[amandine]

@hnymann

This is a take-it-anywhere-and-power-anything power station.

hello,
You seem quite happy with this model. Would you recommend it to someone who would use it permanently in a house? Or would you advice another model?

[hnymann]

Of all the portable power stations this one has the best potential for that use, yes. For example, the AC300 has a 3,000 watt inverter, and the AC200L has a 2,400 watt inverter, so it can handle almost the same load size. The AC200L is also expandable, in case more energy storage capacity is needed. Up to 2 expansion batteries can be added.

The full answer to your question really depends on what you would be powering with this unit. Is it for backup power to keep, say, a fridge and freezer running, and maybe the blower fans on a gas or propane furnace? It could do that.

It could also be used to continuously power a few loads in the home. Some permanent panels would be installed in such a case, and connected to the AC200L. A transfer switch could be installed in the home to connect the AC200L to, so that it would power those loads normally in the home.

The AC200L has the ability to function that way, depending on your power needs.

[Diane]

big thanks for the details - it contributed to helping me make up my mind… ordering tonight!

[Selfmadestrom]

If you received it, be sure to share some details about what you like and maybe can be improved :)

[Diane]

Oh no, it’s not available in Europe? I was on the USA website. Seems I’ll need to wait… and miss the promo

[Selfmadestrom]

Seems like, its was the same with AC70. Its started “much” later in Europe than for the US.

At least i cant find it too.