Introduction

Remember this news post from a couple of months ago? I thought the whole idea of a massive 5100 Wh UPS on wheels was hilarious and cool simultaneously, and clearly many of you agreed. It got enough attention to where the manufacturer, BLUETTI, based out of California, contacted us to see if we would be interested in doing a review of one of its products. That 5100 Wh unit was still making its way through the Kickstarter timeline, so I got my hands on a smaller unit for a few weeks of testing. BLUETTI is barely two years old, but has already made waves in the field of portable power stations, offering both DC and AC power in/out and solar panel support. The AC200 was its flagship for quite a while. Thanks to the company for arranging a unit for TechPowerUp for a sufficiently long time!


Would you believe that there have already been two UPS reviews here? The last one was over 13 years ago, and things have changed massively since in more ways than one. Look at that absolute chonker of a unit in the photo, and now imagine my own plight in dealing with it without any help. BLUETTI was also kind enough to send a set of solar panels for it, which worked out well since they arrived just as summer was kicking off in the UK and there was actual uninterrupted sunlight for 15+ hours daily. This article also came about because I was interested in learning more about LiFePO4 (lithium iron phosphate) batteries, which are quickly becoming affordable enough to allow such units to exist. Grab a drink and settle in as we begin our coverage with a look at the product specifications in the table below.

Specifications

Packaging and Accessories

The AC200P shipped straight from BLUETTI, but this is also how you would receive it from authorized resellers. The power station is large, heavy, and expensive, so shipping packaging has to be spot on. We get an outer box without much information on it, as well as side pads for further reinforcement on top of four straps to keep it together and transport it. There is an inner box with more branding that is not too much larger, including a render of the product itself. PowerOak is a BLUETTI product line, so don't get confused by the PowerOak branding. Opening the box, we see the accessories right away, with a plastic pouch holding paperwork and the other accessories inside two cut-out compartments on a large foam piece that also adds protection to the power station beneath.


There clearly is Chinese factory influence at play here since I have seen that generic QC sticker many times with Made in China products. Also included is a handy user manual (online copy here) in English that goes over the various ways of charging and discharging the AC200P, which is well worth the read if you are unfamiliar with some of the included cables. The warranty card also confirms the two-year general warranty, which I think is on the shorter side. The AC200P was originally crowdfunded and backers got a 3-year warranty, so why reduce it for general consumers?

Provided to charge the AC200P is a 500 W power brick, which is technically a 470 W unit rated for 8 A and 58.8 V output. An indicator LED confirms its working status, and two quietly run, small fans cool the electronics inside. The AC200P seems like a decent option for those dual power brick laptop units, such as the Alienware Area 51m if those companies decide to go this route in the future, but obviously is overkill for most other such applications.


All the cables come inside a black drawstring bag, with a substantial tie-down strap holding them all together. There are four separate cables, including the power adapter cable that goes from the AC wall socket to the power brick itself, and residing in the UK, I have the 240 V mains version here.


It's the other three cables that can be confusing for someone who does not know about the other charging options, beginning with the 2-pin aviation connector that has a red dot to align it and a push/pull locking ring. This goes to the accompanying port on the BLUETTI AC200P, and on the other end is a female XT90 plug with a yellow nylon housing. The XT90 connector can handle 90–100 A and comes in very handy here, with the other two cables providing two charging options that plug into the XT90 connector itself. As such, both of these other cables have a male XT90 connector on one end. The shape of the housing also prevents a wrong connection. The first of these cables splits into male and female (positive and negative as a set) universal MC4 photovoltaic cell connectors for the solar panels, and the second goes to a cigarette lighter connector for charging from a car or similar output.


The foam piece we saw has a third cutout in the bottom go over the AC200P from the top, and there is a matching foam piece at the bottom to keep the power station protected and snugly in place. A plastic cover around it also keeps it free of dust out of the box.