Great review. Likely would have bought a different charger but the Electrify Home was free from Audi. It is overly bulky as you said, and because of your review I bought a different holster prior to having the unit installed. Thank you.
Hi Tom Thank You, Thank You, Thank You …. I think that I was one of the fifty who kept bugging you about doing this review. Great review. You’ve given me a lot to chew on. Thanks, again.
I'm an electrician who has worked with Qmerit. Qmerit doesn't install squat nor do they "come out" to asses the install. They are a middle man that connects customers to electricians. (Read added cost.) They give pricing based on pictures submitted by the homeowner so they often miss critical points of the project. Long story short, you're better off getting a good referral directly to an electrician in your community.
Hello, very good and comprehensive review. However, you only briefly mentioned cable length. When I am choosing a charger, the cable length is a prime consideration - more so than wi fi connection. This gives the maximum flexibility with install location and where to park the car in the garage. I would consider giving that more value in your points system and talk about it more upfront. Thank you for making such informative videos. I enjoy your appearances on Inside EVs podcast. My wife and I often sit through the whole thing. Thanks again
I'm glad you review these evse's for us to pick what's right for us. I would love to see you test temperatures of the evse's and the j1772 after charging for a while. Would be good to see manufacturers who have better cables etc.
This may sound stupid, but why not just connect the cable provided with the EV to the Nema 14-50 wall plug? The in-car set up allows you to set the charging times and amount of charge.
Problem with rubberized surfaces is that they tend to disintegrate/liquify after few years. This is something you may want to use literary for decades. As for the cable - maybe you could test how it handles if you drive over it on concrete surface. That will happen sooner or later and I would prefer more rigid cable that can survive this over bendy one that splits open (then again it may be the other way around that this will not survive because it's too rigid)
Tom, you may want to consider doing your connector “drop test” as the last test you do because if the connector is damaged to the point it is unusable, you won’t be able to do the remaining tests until you can get a replacement unit.
One App is convenient but not worth the price given the average cable, sub-average holster and missing tech features. I suggest they change the cable and connector to include a built in led light to add light not only for holstering it but to the charge port also. It could be integrated below the clip and be triggered by pressing the clip release. If there isn’t an off the shelf cable with the needed conductors then a lit holster, as you suggested, would be the best option. Thanks for the review and pairing with the app. The simplicity is nice. Security Torx screws would be an easy fix until they add a security pin. Honestly a security pin/mount with app notification of removal or tampering (vibration) would be so easy. Who wants their $650 purchase gone when you go to your driveway in the morning. You could have tampering trigger an internal siren and strobe as well as app notification. Goodness knows it’s big enough to house a small lithium battery to keep the siren and strobe going for ten minutes while unplugged. Then it’d be worth the $650. Awesome review and thanks for the double deep freeze test and other side by side comparisons‼️ That made this your best review yet that I’ve seen.🎯
Great review Tom. This one is $1099 in Canada, I think I will stick with my outdoor Nema 14-50 plug and the cable provided with my XC40 P8 that also has a max of 40 amps.
Gee, let me think? "Moe, Larry, I'm tryi'n to think, but nothing's happening!" No, I can't remember having to pay a thousand dollars to fill up my car. I just slip some cash to kid with a nozzle in his hand and "wham bam , thank you m'am", the job is done like a date at the drive in! Now we're talking Americana! " I like to live in America " . Prof. I. VerMctin
ChargePoint for the win. I bought mine based on your original review. I, like many, have gone down the Amazon rabbit hole looking for a charger and there are so many cheaply made and cheap priced ones that are probably crap. I don't take delivery of my MY for a few months but got a good price on mine and bought it early. I live here in VA and it can get below freezing here in the winter months and even lower if we get snow. All this being said, this was a great review and all the points were spot on. EA/EH has a good product here. I'd personally recommend it for those in warm climates. But they would have to keep in mind the size of this unit, that charging limit and the price. While it's still one to recommended they still might be better off with something else that has done well in your tests but coming in a little cheaper.
The 2 part holster is so you can hang any excess cable on the main part of the holster but have the connector mounted in a different location say closer to your car’s charge port. Just adds flexibility in my opinion.
Hey Tom! It's time to add another factor to the smart score! Service metering capabilities. WallBox now has the "Power Meter" which installs at the service mains and communicates (hard wired) to the charging station allowing two exiting features. 1) Throttled charge rate based on size of service and total use which avoids costly service upgrades while allowing the full amp draw of the charger (up to 48A). 2) SOLAR CHARGING! Directing you car to charge off any excess solar your panels produce rather than sending back to the utility.
Great review. Given the thick cord, perhaps this can do more than 40A if converted to hard-wire? The install document only mentions 3 of the 8 possible DIP switch settings for selecting the max allowed current (16A/32A/40A). I wonder if there are other settings, but they chose to only list this as a 40A charging station. Might be fun to flip those DIP switches in different combinations and see what current the EVSE advertises. Curious if the thick wiring and other related components (relay and connectors) are actually rated for more. Also - if taking more requests, how about the Emporia Energy Home Charger. 40A plug-in, or 48A if hardwired. 24 foot cord. $500, often on sale for $400.
can you do a video on all the chargers you have gone over showing the scores in a spreadsheet format. Love to see all the info in one place and your take on extended usage of some of the products.
I've had my Home Station in use about 9 months now. I guess I didn't know that I was supposed to have problems with the cradle. Mine went on with no problem. The screw was long enough and it sits very solid. I actually like how solid the connector feels when I plug it in. Never missed yet. While the cable is thick, I haven't really had an issue with how it handled in this past winters cold. My next door neighbors Tesla cable is a lot more flexible, but that doesn't stop it from being draped all over the floor. But that probably is more of being the nut over cable management.
Ital Design is the Italian design studio founded by famed auto stylist Giorgetto Giugiaro! Also Tom, when you’re describing connectors, most are black as is your jacket. So, the connector that you’re showing gets lost against the jacket.
Audi is shipping these “free” to new auto buyers (and leasees). I can’t believe you took a point off for inability to “participate” in demand response programs. I DO NOT WANT the electric company to suck my battery dry because they can’t provide enough electricity to the grid. I give this +100 pts for not being part of that.
Great videos! As a future ev owner, I'd like to know how to navigate thru the various battery types.... nickel vs lithium as well as blade batteries. Also I'd welcome your thoughts on ONE power system on the Gemin 001 that went 752 miles on one charge. Thank you for your knowledge & patience in teaching all us ev newbies. Also enjoy your Inside EV videos!
Battery types: battery packs are made from cells. These cells have basic properties: cell form factor (prismatic cells in many dimensions, pouch cells in many dimensions, cylindrical cells in many dimensions) and cell chemistry (Li-NMC (lithium-nickel-manganese-cobalt) in multiple flavors and compositions, Li-NCA (lithium-nickel-cobalt-aluminium) in multiple flavors, LiFePO4 - lithium-iron-phosphate in multiple flavours, and more in the future like sodium-based instead of lithium-based chemistries). Usually, cells are assembled to modules first and then modules are assembled to battery packs. "Blade batteries" / "cell to pack" cells fill the dimensions of the individual battery case with very long cells, and omit composing cells to modules first. This improves energy density, but it reduces repairability. ONE (our next energy) is a Michigan-based US startup. They took a 2021 Tesla Model S (with relatively low drag), removed its 100 kWh battery pack (composed of cylindrical cells and with water-glycol based thermal management system), replaced it with an experimental / proof-of-concept battery pack (from prismatic cells) of the same outside length and width, called the battery pack "Gemini 001" with 203.7 KWh of energy and an energy density of 416 Wh/L. Then they put in on a dyno, drove at a constant or average speed of 55 mph, achieved 882 miles and estimated it to get about 750 miles range in real world driving. A company like ONE is doing research and development with new cell chemistries, form factors and battery management systems. They do have no restrictions on legacy production facilities nor supply contracts, patents, costs, marketing and product strategy. At the early stage, they lack restrictions and testing on safety, reliability, and can optimize on a single goal: range. The ONE Gemini battery pack shows what likely will be possible in the coming years, in case battery packs of 200 kWh (about double the current capacity) make it into series-poduction vehicles of the sedan type. However, it remains open, if and then actual car manufacturers will use such battery capacity in actual cars. It will decrease the dependency on long-distance charging infrastructure for the user, but at the same time, the car manufacturer can produce only half the number of cars from a given amount of supply (number of cells/number of GWh per year), and the buyer will have to pay a premium on the the car due to more capacity. On an actual EV buyer, this proof of concept can have multiple effects: some may wait for more capacity and range, some may figure, it does not represent their actual driving profile, some may regard it as an engineers' apprentice piece.
I would disagree about the size comments. To make chargers smaller means miniaturization and when you do that you can generate more heat and / or less durability, it's not for sure but it is likely. For me high quality and durability will always more important then size. Great review though. Please review Flo X5, EVduty, and Siemens Versicharge
Power sharing would have been an important feature. Another solid video. Of course. 4.45. Nice. It is pretty after all more premium price than Tesla. Interesting. Shouldn’t it be subsidized with the lawsuit money? Curious.
Frankenstein say, " cold ,bad for plastic". Your so right Frankenstein! I mean it's in the very name " p l a s t I c". But don't worry no one would be so stupid as troy out in a glorified golf cart up here. Not when you can totally destroy life on earth by burning a few drops to get toasty warm in your old Detroit Bedroom on wheels. Hey, turn on the ozone whole suck machine to dry out the few morsals of Snow that fell of you shoe
Tom, great review as always. I use a cheep holster from Amazon, and works great. Would love to see a review of the emporia energy. They just dropped the price to 399 for a 48amp charging station.
Love your channel. i'm finding out a lot about these EVSE, haven't decided which one to buy for my 2022 Chevy Bolt EUV. One recommendation on deep freeze test if you could plug the cable into EV and see how well it performs after 12+ hours of deep freeze.
Another helpful video. My electrician installed my NEMA 14-50 outlet using a 60A circuit to future proof my charging setup. I’m assuming this should cover all 50A plug in as well as higher amp hardwired chargers. Correct?
@@alexnutcasio936 not a big deal when the time comes. It’s only about 2 feet of wire and a breaker. For now “future proof” is switching to a Tesla Wall Charger.
I had the same problem with screwing in the insert into the holster. But after several attempts, the threads caught properly and the supplied screw worked fine.
This IS the one we’ve all been waiting for!!! Great review and love the additional quick release factor and connector durability. These tests are awesome Tom because 99.99% of us Tesla owners charge at home. I’ve been to a SC once as home has always been sufficient. What I am curious about is, thus far, what is the best wall connector you’ve tested? Charge Point Home Flex?
Those three units have the highest scores are excellent choices for smart-charging features. The ChargePoint Home Flex, the Enel X JuiceBox, and the Wallbox Pulsar Plus. This is a very good choice also, but it needs to add powersharing and demand response availability. I would also like to see it at $599.00 to be more in line with comparable 40-amp units.
@@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney FMPOV, there cannot be a single rating to match all people's requirements. And thus, there cannot be best units in general, but it will depend on the requirements of the user. The users live in different weather conditions (like you said), some install it outside others inside their garage, some will keep with a single unit forever and never need power sharing of multiple units. If you wanted to set up a recommendation system, you should people allow to state their requirements first, and then the list of recommended products should be based on these requirements/filters.
@@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney why not the Gen 2 Tesla J1772 plus the Gen 2 tesla? You can daisy chain up to 4 off one breaker, saving $1000’s for multiple EV homes. The Tesla’s price and weather resistant is also really competitive.
@@olemissjim Tesla pulled the J1772 wall connector from their website and we don't know if they're going to ever offer it again. I've been emailing them for an answer, but no response.
Still makes no sense. If you have two distinct inner parts (one for J1772, one for Type 2 for the EU), then you have two parts already. Each of these could be a one piece design. The third part (the common base as an additional plastic piece) only creates additional "complexity", needs more screws, installation time and cost.
Tom your reviews are great and very informative. I have a suggestion for you to review the way you present when you are holding black items against the black background of the top you wear - 5 out of 10. It would improve the clarity of the content of your videos .
Question: new to channel - which EV Charging Station does Tom think is the best? Does he have a resource I could go to vs. watching all of the charger videos? Thank you!
Why would one want a "charging station?" My electrician is just installing a socket that works with Level 2 charger that came with my car. Says it's cheaper and does the job. What am I missing?
The level 2 socket can be used power the portable L2 charging cable taht came with your car, or for a unit like that that mounts to the wall. Some people prefer to keep the one that came with the car in the trunk in case they need it on the road. Also, not all EVs come with a good level 2 charging cord, so they need to buy a charging station.
For a solid minute or so, I thought the connector holster itself was another charging station (EVSE) as shown at time 14:15. I mean the holster itself is almost as big as the Wallbox Polestar Plus EVSE main unit. I wonder if Electrify Home is so thick because they initially planned for people to wrap the cable around the main charging station unit.
Thank you for the review of the electrify America charger! I am trying to figure out if I do not link up with the app and just plug my car in until my full charge which is set to 80 will it just turn off automatically? I have tested and when the charge is complete it is flashing slow blue. At this point has the charger turned off and stopped using electricity? When I get around to unplugging it does go to the full green ring. I tried calling the lady did not know!
Big charging units can be nice if you like to coil the cord around it. My charger is smaller, and you have to be careful when coiling the cord around it so the coils don't fall off.
I noticed the left side of my outlet gets extremely hot compared to the right side. The outlet was replaced, properly torqued, and it’s still hot on the left side. I’m starting to wonder if the prong on the PLUG that comes with the unit is bad. Can anyone test the temperatures on this unit to see if the left side gets hot at the outlet where the prong goes in?
I am putting a charging station in my garage.. not sure what to get. I like the longest cable possible. Can use wifi connection but not necy. My wifi is very poor in my area. I need a comparison sheet to assist me.
Hey Tom, can you do a review of a smart charger that manages multiple accounts and billing to account holders. I believe Enel-X Pro, Wallbox Pulsar Plus, and a new Blink model offer this capability. A big downside for some of these is the annual fee for software such as $329 for Chargepoint and $216 for Blink.
Hi Tom, I watched your review of the Neo splitter review you did a few years ago. I was wondering if you have reviewed any Load Shedding devices for the home or apartments. The devices I am interested are not the plug-in devices but a hardwired system like the Loadmiser or the Simple Switch devices which might share a clothes dryer or stove circuit. These systems are ideal for homes which may not have the capacity to just add a wall charger to the panel. The idea, I'm sure you're aware of, is to have a primary circuit for example, a Stove (40 amps) and a secondary circuit which might be an EV or a hot tub etc. If the EV is plugged in it is automatically turned off when the stove is turned on, so as to not overload a panel which may only have a 100 amp limit. Once the stove is turned off for several minutes the EV will automatically begin charging again. If you have not reviewed these home Load Shedding devices, would it be possible for you to take a look at them? The issue we have at our townhouse complex is that our total incoming power for the combined building (12 townhouses) is 600 amps so load calculations are required to determine the limit of the amperage used.
Just wanted to note that EVSE's (with GFCI) actually send out a pulse of current to ground to make sure that the impedance isn't too high. (i.e.; your grounding system is up to snuff). This pulse is usually higher than the trip point of the 5 milliamps that a class A breaker will trip at. In the case of the Grizzl-E, it does this check at power up and at some timed interval. I know this because the inspector made me install a GFCI breaker on the 14-50, and it tripped the breaker every time I turned it on. He didn't seem like the arguing type so I just said ok, had him inspect again, then replaced the GFCI breaker with a standard one after the permit was completed. I eventually just hardwired the Grizzl-E, so that removed the GFCI requirement anyway.
I am about to install a level 2 charger out by my front post by the street. I am looking at buying TESLAs charger (even though my family has 4 CCS charging cars) I think this will be the standard in 5 years on any new car so why spend a couple thousand dollars to install something already outdated? For $475, it is reasonably priced and future proof. ANY COMMENTS?
I'm getting my 2023 Lyriq in January 2023 and I'm wired with a 100AMP connection so I'd like to utilize an 80AMP EVSE. Can you recommend one? GM has not offered the "ULTIUM Home Charger" yet as promised. Thanks
Tom, I understand your desire for cable flexibility in cold weather and personal desire for thin cables; however, I would really like to know the gauge of the wires supplying power. I understand the chargers you are comparing here are all UL listed; however, that means it should not result in a fire. Not that a more copper would result in less power loss and more efficiency at a higher price for the cable. I think EA may be extra cautious on cable sizing. Also may make it more durable if a vehicle were to roll over the cable once in a while. FYI if you make it to the Bay Area I can show you a custom ClipperCreek install for 38 units and a custom EVSE tester.
Hello, Love the channel and enjoy your videos. Just to comment and solicit feedback from others. You stated that a NEMA 14-60 receptacle was required for a 48A circuit. I believe per 2017 NEC 210.52 the receptacle is exempt from the 125% rule and that a NEMA 14-50 receptacle can be used for a 48A devise unless the manufacturer requires differently. Comments? Only the conductors and OCPD need to be 60A rated, correct?
@@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney If you test the Tesla Mobile Connector, can you put a meter on it to measure the heat output? There seems to be an issue with the gen2 heat displacement compared to the gen1 connector? Thanks Tom, and happy new year!
Maybe I missed it, so can you answer this? What is the cost to charge the car at home and or away? What I am trying to come up with is the price of gas compared to the charging station costs or and at home cost.
It will depend on where you live, what EV you drive, what public charging networks you live by and will use, as pricing can vary widely on public charging stations. I'll give you my example. I live in northern NJ and pay about $.15 per kWh. I drive a Tesla Model 3 and it takes roughly 80 kWh to fully charge my battery. At home: $0.15/kWh = $12 to drive 275 to 300 miles depending on how heavy my right foot is. On Tesla Superchargers I pay on average (They vary from location to location) $0.28 per kWh so it costs $22.40 On Electrify America DC fast chargers it would cost me $0.31 per kWh (plus a $4/month membership fee) so $24.80 Therefore to drive 275 to 300 miles it costs: Home = $12.00 Superchargers = $22.40 EA network = $24.80 (plus $4/mo) There are also other EV charging networks with different pricing models, some charge you by the time you are charging instead of the energy you take in. Charging at home is always much less than charging on the road unless you can find a free charging station, and there are some of them out there.
@@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney I figured the amounts that I had in my head were similar to yours. It's going to be a hard sell to make people convert with the amount of money they are asking for most of these electric cars. Plus the cost to charge is very similar to gas.
@@iamric23 when you factor in the federal and state incentives, the prices are often very close to comparable gas cars. But I do disagree about the fueling cost. It costs me about $800 per year to charge my Model 3 and drive 20,000 miles. The Model 3 is very comparable to a BMW 3-Series that gets 30mpg (EPA combined). That would need 666 gallons of premium fuel to drive 20,000 miles per year and cost about $2,200. Over 3 years, I have a $4,200 savings. You have to remember when you have an electric car most peoy don't use those public charging stations more than once every couple of months, unless you live in an apartment and you can't charge at home and then the economics definitely change. I charge at home 99% of the time and pay only $12 to drive about 300 miles. You can't do that with any gas car. :)
@@iamric23 The cost to charge is NOT similar to gas. For 275 miles on Tom's EV, it costs $12. At 25 mpg, 275 miles requires 11 gallons of fuel. In NJ, gas is about 3.50 now so cost is $38.50 which is much higher $12. However, you don't justify an EV based on fuel savings. EV are justified by significantly less service costs and non-quantifiable benefits such as convenience of charging at home, zero carbon emissions, faster acceleration, and much more fun to drive. I love Tesla because no dreaded dealer.
How does Electrify America charges per minute exactly? They say .32 cents/minute on their website but when you charge your vehicle for 20 minutes it is not $6.40. Lot more. When I ask them, they couldn't answer the question. Anyone knows what the math is behind their charging$?
At some point in time we will need actual teardowns of these units: cut the cable, measure the the actual wire diameter, determine the wire material (copper? aluminium? copper-plated aluminium?), calculate charging losses due to diameter, conductor material and length, measure the insulation of the cable, determine the chemical composition of it (instead of "rubbery" / "plasticky"). Get out the PCB from the case, look for conformal coating, look at the solder points, investigate ICs, capacitors and relays and their specs, quality of steel and screws (stainless?) and so on. Look at the software for the smart features, investigate APIs, attack vectors, update mechanisms and manufacturer remote data capture of the charging sessions. Determine the conformity to the J1772 protocol in the corner cases, determine the actual protocols for power sharing or utility based demand response (EEbus? OCPP? what version? proprietary?), do actual power sharing tests with other units and cars, do actual demand response tests, look for powerline communication abilities (PLC) on the ICs, look for ISO 15118 compatibility, look for V2G or V2H capabilities. This 50 min video looses a lot of time on unboxing, outside looks, wire stiffness, the handle, user issues, holster, and a too short screw. But has almost no content on the engineering side of these units. Your content is still somewhat nice, but lacks technical depth by any means.
We’re still waiting for your top picks comparison video. Choose 4 of your top rated chargers and compare their negative and positive attributes. Or just post the final score for each charger on one page.
I have two GE charging stations, but I don't see them any more. After 24,000 miles my 2013 volt died and they wanted 12,000 to replace the pack, another man has a 2011 volt and only have charged at 110 volt, so I am now wondering if that is my better choice for a small pack like the volt, any comment will be appreciated,Bert
Tom: Is there such a thing as a timer that plugs into a 14-50 outlet which would allow the charger to plug into that so you could set it up to charg at 12AM?
As far as I can tell only Openevse lets you program how many KWHs to insert. Important if your car car always charges to %100 and you want to conserve battery life.
I figured out why such a short screw is included with the 2 piece holster. You are not installing the second piece correctly. If you look at where the inner holster piece goes, you will see 2 tiny tabs that the inner piece will click into. You have to push the inner piece in extremely hard until it clicks into the tiny tabs at the top of the hole. At that point, it will hold itself in place. You can then use the short screw to secure the inner piece.
I had a very early version of the unit. I believe those tabs were slightly misaligned because no matter how hard I tried, it wouldn't snap in place. I think they might have modified it so it fits in place better.
Some thoughts: 1) price is inflated. I feel that if they skipped the fancy designer case they probably could have cut down the price 2) during the app setup, I notice it skips 24 amps. Kinda odd to go as low as 16, but skip 24. My dryer is on a 30 amp breaker, so I charge at 24 amps. I would actually take a hit in output with this EVSE, which I find surprising. 3) I'm surprised that- other than a shared app- there's no promotional deals tied with their public charging services. I recall Chargepoint offering credit at their public charging stations when you installed one of their home EVSE. It seems to me Electrify America could probably sell quite a few of these if they offered to subsidize the cost as part of Electrify America's paid membership. I always had a hard time justifying getting a subscription because I DC fast charge so rarely. If I could shave some money off the cost of the home EVSE through membership I might consider it more. 4) Seriously, the size is ridiculous. I really think it was a waste on the case. I would rather buy a Grizzl-E with its purely practical case rather than splurge money for something "stylish". I know I'm repeating myself.
I wish I could connect to the network and app as easily as you did. This charger works well however the network/app connection is a nightmare. EA tech support has been very slow to respond.
Mr. Moloughney, always look forward to your reviews and testing of home charging stations. Very informative and educational. Do you have a chart as to the specs of the units being tested? . It would be helpful if the specs of your unit being tested, was on the screen, so the viewers could keep all the details clear. I been going over your reviews on different units, trying to select a certain model and hard to keep all the little details separate. Thanks for all your work and the videos for us viewers.
Mr Tom... wish I could find where they show different networks in America and are listed and the size of same. Ones that dependable and ones have issues and are not up at times. I am speaking of other networks and not Tesla. I read that Shell is going to build a large network. I think the networks should show their prices, etc. And I do not think that the US Govt. should be building the EV networks. They did not build the gas stations network. Nor did they give people tax breaks for buying gas vehicles.
My Volvo has a plug-to-wall outlet adapter as well as an adapter to plug into a home charger. Why would I purchase and use a charging station if I could just plug it into the wall and save 500+ dollars? Are there pro and cons to a home charger rather than just plugging into a 220 outlet?
Your Volvo (and most EVs) come with a portable charging cord. It's basically the same thing as a wall mounted charger, except it's made so it can be taken with the vehicle in case you need to plug in on the road somewhere. There's a few advantages of having a wall mounted charger: -They deliver more power and can charge EVs faster -You can hardwire then instead of plugging in, and that is a better/safer installation -Many are wifi connectivity with smart-charging features -Having one allows you to leave the portable one that came with the EV in the trunk in case you need it one day without having to roll up the cable every time you take the car out.
I have been unable to connect to this charger to my wifi and establish all homestation features because there are special characters in wifi password. EH said they are not sure when their system will be able to accept special characters in passwords. They said my options are to change my passwords or set up guest accounts for the charger. I think that should have been mentioned on their website before I purchased.
@39:00 I don’t know if having the APP let you pick the amps is a great plan, considering how many EV owners struggle with TPSS . It’s a PITA but also safer that Tesla makes you rotate the interior switch to set the breaker maximum AMPS. The issue I keep seeing is electricians don’t want to read the install guide and leave the Tesla wall connector at 12A default. As irritating as the Tesla is to go back into to fix the oversight, letting uses change max amps from the APP seems sketchy. I like you new plan to score /test the handle drop. I’ve seen a lot of broken J1772 handles, especially the button. You might want to do the drop test LAST just in case. You could also do a test call/message to each company’s tech support. The generic Chinese units and sadly Tesla will probably be terrible, although i have had great support via the mobile Tesla app for my personal mobile connector. .
38:54 No option for charging on a 30A circuit? That's the most common circuit in existing homes (dryer outlet)! This is super important for us renters who can't modify electrical in their house. I think this EVSE should lose some points for that in the "Smart/Non-Smart" section, because I think most other Smart EVSE's can adjust circuit amps in smaller denominations. Although this is an easy future software update from EA's side, I wonder why they didn't include it.
Another thing to consider adding to "Smart/Non-Smart" section of the Score is the the type of Wi-Fi built into the EVSE. Whether 2.4Ghz or 5Ghz, Wi-Fi 4/5 or 6. I have a Juicebox and it only supports WiFi 4 on 2.4Ghz band, so I have to keep a 2.4Ghz radio running just for it. It's the only device that's on my 2.4Ghz network :( This EA HomeStation also only WiFi 4 (b/g/n) on 2.4Ghz. As we move forward with WiFi 6 and 6E, it's possible that routers will drop support for legacy standards (or at least disable them by default for performance/efficiency). It's kind of silly to release a product in 2021 with WiFi standards from 2008 (WiFi 4).
Tom, do you test to see how hot the cable and connector get during charging? If so, that would be nice to know. It's been my experience that wires heat up to the point where they're uncomfortable to touch when the current is at or near the maximum capacity for that gage. That could be why the EA home EVSE cables are so thick.
Tom, great video thank you very much. I'm new to EVs and have a pre-order in for the Rivian. My thought was I could just plug-in using the provided NEMA adapter straight into the wall. From what I understand the home station will provide a somewhat faster charge, but other than speed what is the advantage? Do I really need to buy a $500 charging station or can I plug it right into the dryer plug in the garage?
Hey Tom, a big shot out to all your videos. I am considering buying Ioniq 5. I have a question about charging at electrify america as it gets free charging. I live at a rental place, so no home charging possible. I have EA charging station near me, it has 4 units and only one unit works at any time, the rest 3 show charger unavailable. Just wondering, is it possible that electrify america make other chargers available if we call the number listed. This is a general question wondering if I am driving long distance and do at EA station where charger is unavailable. Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
I just purchased an Ioniq 5 and would appreciate your opinion on which charger I should buy... I live in Canada and we have a lot of snow and rain here. I've looked at Juicebox and Flo but I don't want to make a mistake here
The app does not work on IOS. I've been having problems connecting mine since I bought and installed the device. And Customer Service has yet to find a resolution even though they are apparently "escalating" my issue. I'm extremely disappointed in the $700 I've spent on this.
Tom, you are the EVSE maven! Thank you for the review and your expertise.
Great review. Likely would have bought a different charger but the Electrify Home was free from Audi. It is overly bulky as you said, and because of your review I bought a different holster prior to having the unit installed. Thank you.
Hi Tom
Thank You, Thank You, Thank You ….
I think that I was one of the fifty who kept bugging you about doing this review. Great review. You’ve given me a lot to chew on. Thanks, again.
The size alone has me looking elsewhere! Thanks so much for the review. Keep up the good work.
I'm an electrician who has worked with Qmerit. Qmerit doesn't install squat nor do they "come out" to asses the install. They are a middle man that connects customers to electricians. (Read added cost.) They give pricing based on pictures submitted by the homeowner so they often miss critical points of the project. Long story short, you're better off getting a good referral directly to an electrician in your community.
Yup. One of the main reasons why I canceled/ignored my bogus QMerit quote.
Great review and nice to see you adding some new tests to improve the quality of the testing.
I haven’t got my EV car yet, but got the charge point flex. I had them use a 4 gauge wire for future proofing. Using a 50 amp circuit for now.
Keep up the great detailed video. Love that you keep adding tests
Thanks, Tom! I like the idea of being able to use one App for home and public charging.
A very deep dive down product review!!! Job well done.
Finally!! Been waiting since October for this since I got my Id.4
Love your channel. Thank you for making these videos. Super helpful.
Hello, very good and comprehensive review. However, you only briefly mentioned cable length. When I am choosing a charger, the cable length is a prime consideration - more so than wi fi connection. This gives the maximum flexibility with install location and where to park the car in the garage. I would consider giving that more value in your points system and talk about it more upfront. Thank you for making such informative videos. I enjoy your appearances on Inside EVs podcast. My wife and I often sit through the whole thing. Thanks again
I'm glad you review these evse's for us to pick what's right for us. I would love to see you test temperatures of the evse's and the j1772 after charging for a while. Would be good to see manufacturers who have better cables etc.
This may sound stupid, but why not just connect the cable provided with the EV to the Nema 14-50 wall plug? The in-car set up allows you to set the charging times and amount of charge.
Problem with rubberized surfaces is that they tend to disintegrate/liquify after few years. This is something you may want to use literary for decades.
As for the cable - maybe you could test how it handles if you drive over it on concrete surface. That will happen sooner or later and I would prefer more rigid cable that can survive this over bendy one that splits open (then again it may be the other way around that this will not survive because it's too rigid)
Tom, you may want to consider doing your connector “drop test” as the last test you do because if the connector is damaged to the point it is unusable, you won’t be able to do the remaining tests until you can get a replacement unit.
One App is convenient but not worth the price given the average cable, sub-average holster and missing tech features. I suggest they change the cable and connector to include a built in led light to add light not only for holstering it but to the charge port also. It could be integrated below the clip and be triggered by pressing the clip release. If there isn’t an off the shelf cable with the needed conductors then a lit holster, as you suggested, would be the best option. Thanks for the review and pairing with the app. The simplicity is nice. Security Torx screws would be an easy fix until they add a security pin. Honestly a security pin/mount with app notification of removal or tampering (vibration) would be so easy. Who wants their $650 purchase gone when you go to your driveway in the morning. You could have tampering trigger an internal siren and strobe as well as app notification. Goodness knows it’s big enough to house a small lithium battery to keep the siren and strobe going for ten minutes while unplugged. Then it’d be worth the $650. Awesome review and thanks for the double deep freeze test and other side by side comparisons‼️ That made this your best review yet that I’ve seen.🎯
Great review Tom. This one is $1099 in Canada, I think I will stick with my outdoor Nema 14-50 plug and the cable provided with my XC40 P8 that also has a max of 40 amps.
Gee, let me think?
"Moe, Larry, I'm tryi'n to think, but nothing's happening!"
No, I can't remember having to pay a thousand dollars to fill up my car.
I just slip some cash to kid with a nozzle in his hand and "wham bam , thank you m'am", the job is done like a date at the drive in!
Now we're talking Americana!
" I like to live in America " .
Prof. I. VerMctin
ChargePoint for the win. I bought mine based on your original review. I, like many, have gone down the Amazon rabbit hole looking for a charger and there are so many cheaply made and cheap priced ones that are probably crap. I don't take delivery of my MY for a few months but got a good price on mine and bought it early. I live here in VA and it can get below freezing here in the winter months and even lower if we get snow.
All this being said, this was a great review and all the points were spot on. EA/EH has a good product here. I'd personally recommend it for those in warm climates. But they would have to keep in mind the size of this unit, that charging limit and the price. While it's still one to recommended they still might be better off with something else that has done well in your tests but coming in a little cheaper.
The 2 part holster is so you can hang any excess cable on the main part of the holster but have the connector mounted in a different location say closer to your car’s charge port. Just adds flexibility in my opinion.
I have had a Cripple Creek charger for 5 years and no issues.
Hey Tom! It's time to add another factor to the smart score! Service metering capabilities. WallBox now has the "Power Meter" which installs at the service mains and communicates (hard wired) to the charging station allowing two exiting features. 1) Throttled charge rate based on size of service and total use which avoids costly service upgrades while allowing the full amp draw of the charger (up to 48A).
2) SOLAR CHARGING! Directing you car to charge off any excess solar your panels produce rather than sending back to the utility.
"Back to the grid", that's funny right there , I don't care who you are..
Next week , "how to arc weld with a AAA battery!"
@@aaronsmith5433 I'm sorry, have you not heard of grid tied solar?
Great review. Given the thick cord, perhaps this can do more than 40A if converted to hard-wire? The install document only mentions 3 of the 8 possible DIP switch settings for selecting the max allowed current (16A/32A/40A). I wonder if there are other settings, but they chose to only list this as a 40A charging station. Might be fun to flip those DIP switches in different combinations and see what current the EVSE advertises. Curious if the thick wiring and other related components (relay and connectors) are actually rated for more.
Also - if taking more requests, how about the Emporia Energy Home Charger. 40A plug-in, or 48A if hardwired. 24 foot cord. $500, often on sale for $400.
Great review Tom, definitely Mr. Charging Station
can you do a video on all the chargers you have gone over showing the scores in a spreadsheet format. Love to see all the info in one place and your take on extended usage of some of the products.
I've had my Home Station in use about 9 months now. I guess I didn't know that I was supposed to have problems with the cradle. Mine went on with no problem. The screw was long enough and it sits very solid. I actually like how solid the connector feels when I plug it in. Never missed yet.
While the cable is thick, I haven't really had an issue with how it handled in this past winters cold. My next door neighbors Tesla cable is a lot more flexible, but that doesn't stop it from being draped all over the floor. But that probably is more of being the nut over cable management.
Ital Design is the Italian design studio founded by famed auto stylist Giorgetto Giugiaro! Also Tom, when you’re describing connectors, most are black as is your jacket. So, the connector that you’re showing gets lost against the jacket.
Tom you finally review this! I have this and have been using it since I purchased my E-Tron. Curious about your thoughts!
Audi is shipping these “free” to new auto buyers (and leasees). I can’t believe you took a point off for inability to “participate” in demand response programs. I DO NOT WANT the electric company to suck my battery dry because they can’t provide enough electricity to the grid. I give this +100 pts for not being part of that.
This was a very informative video thanks Tom
Great videos! As a future ev owner, I'd like to know how to navigate thru the various battery types.... nickel vs lithium as well as blade batteries.
Also I'd welcome your thoughts on ONE power system on the Gemin 001 that went 752 miles on one charge.
Thank you for your knowledge & patience in teaching all us ev newbies.
Also enjoy your Inside EV videos!
Battery types: battery packs are made from cells. These cells have basic properties: cell form factor (prismatic cells in many dimensions, pouch cells in many dimensions, cylindrical cells in many dimensions) and cell chemistry (Li-NMC (lithium-nickel-manganese-cobalt) in multiple flavors and compositions, Li-NCA (lithium-nickel-cobalt-aluminium) in multiple flavors, LiFePO4 - lithium-iron-phosphate in multiple flavours, and more in the future like sodium-based instead of lithium-based chemistries). Usually, cells are assembled to modules first and then modules are assembled to battery packs. "Blade batteries" / "cell to pack" cells fill the dimensions of the individual battery case with very long cells, and omit composing cells to modules first. This improves energy density, but it reduces repairability.
ONE (our next energy) is a Michigan-based US startup. They took a 2021 Tesla Model S (with relatively low drag), removed its 100 kWh battery pack (composed of cylindrical cells and with water-glycol based thermal management system), replaced it with an experimental / proof-of-concept battery pack (from prismatic cells) of the same outside length and width, called the battery pack "Gemini 001" with 203.7 KWh of energy and an energy density of 416 Wh/L. Then they put in on a dyno, drove at a constant or average speed of 55 mph, achieved 882 miles and estimated it to get about 750 miles range in real world driving.
A company like ONE is doing research and development with new cell chemistries, form factors and battery management systems. They do have no restrictions on legacy production facilities nor supply contracts, patents, costs, marketing and product strategy. At the early stage, they lack restrictions and testing on safety, reliability, and can optimize on a single goal: range. The ONE Gemini battery pack shows what likely will be possible in the coming years, in case battery packs of 200 kWh (about double the current capacity) make it into series-poduction vehicles of the sedan type. However, it remains open, if and then actual car manufacturers will use such battery capacity in actual cars. It will decrease the dependency on long-distance charging infrastructure for the user, but at the same time, the car manufacturer can produce only half the number of cars from a given amount of supply (number of cells/number of GWh per year), and the buyer will have to pay a premium on the the car due to more capacity.
On an actual EV buyer, this proof of concept can have multiple effects: some may wait for more capacity and range, some may figure, it does not represent their actual driving profile, some may regard it as an engineers' apprentice piece.
And most will say why would I want a relationship with a car?
Prof I. Ver Mectin
MTOW University Transportation Doctoral program
I would disagree about the size comments. To make chargers smaller means miniaturization and when you do that you can generate more heat and / or less durability, it's not for sure but it is likely. For me high quality and durability will always more important then size. Great review though. Please review Flo X5, EVduty, and Siemens Versicharge
Power sharing would have been an important feature.
Another solid video. Of course.
4.45. Nice. It is pretty after all more premium price than Tesla. Interesting. Shouldn’t it be subsidized with the lawsuit money? Curious.
Good idea for the drop test. What about combining it with the freeze test? Plastic can be more fragile once frozen.
Frankenstein say, " cold ,bad for plastic".
Your so right Frankenstein!
I mean it's in the very name " p l a s t I c".
But don't worry no one would be so stupid as troy out in a glorified golf cart up here.
Not when you can totally destroy life on earth by burning a few drops to get toasty warm in your old Detroit Bedroom on wheels.
Hey, turn on the ozone whole suck machine to dry out the few morsals of Snow that fell of you shoe
Tom, great review as always. I use a cheep holster from Amazon, and works great. Would love to see a review of the emporia energy. They just dropped the price to 399 for a 48amp charging station.
That's coming up in February
that is one i purchased for my ID4 when i get it sometime this year
Love your channel. i'm finding out a lot about these EVSE, haven't decided which one to buy for my 2022 Chevy Bolt EUV. One recommendation on deep freeze test if you could plug the cable into EV and see how well it performs after 12+ hours of deep freeze.
Another helpful video. My electrician installed my NEMA 14-50 outlet using a 60A circuit to future proof my charging setup. I’m assuming this should cover all 50A plug in as well as higher amp hardwired chargers. Correct?
Yep. You can remove the NEMA 14-50 outlet and hardwire a 48-amp station in the future if you want a little more juice.
What will you do when your 48 amp breaker ( 60-20%) is not enough for newer SVSE and vehicles. Is your wiring ( gauge) also future proofed?
Future proof unless you get an F-150 Lightning :)
@@alexnutcasio936 not a big deal when the time comes. It’s only about 2 feet of wire and a breaker. For now “future proof” is switching to a Tesla Wall Charger.
@@marckramer7104 If they ever start building it. Maybe in 2023. Lol
I had the same problem with screwing in the insert into the holster. But after several attempts, the threads caught properly and the supplied screw worked fine.
It's really just a bad design.
This IS the one we’ve all been waiting for!!! Great review and love the additional quick release factor and connector durability. These tests are awesome Tom because 99.99% of us Tesla owners charge at home. I’ve been to a SC once as home has always been sufficient.
What I am curious about is, thus far, what is the best wall connector you’ve tested? Charge
Point Home Flex?
Those three units have the highest scores are excellent choices for smart-charging features. The ChargePoint Home Flex, the Enel X JuiceBox, and the Wallbox Pulsar Plus. This is a very good choice also, but it needs to add powersharing and demand response availability. I would also like to see it at $599.00 to be more in line with comparable 40-amp units.
@@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney FMPOV, there cannot be a single rating to match all people's requirements. And thus, there cannot be best units in general, but it will depend on the requirements of the user. The users live in different weather conditions (like you said), some install it outside others inside their garage, some will keep with a single unit forever and never need power sharing of multiple units. If you wanted to set up a recommendation system, you should people allow to state their requirements first, and then the list of recommended products should be based on these requirements/filters.
@@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney why not the Gen 2 Tesla J1772 plus the Gen 2 tesla? You can daisy chain up to 4 off one breaker, saving $1000’s for multiple EV homes. The Tesla’s price and weather resistant is also really competitive.
@@olemissjim Tesla pulled the J1772 wall connector from their website and we don't know if they're going to ever offer it again. I've been emailing them for an answer, but no response.
The two part connector may be to accommodate a type 2 insert for EU market. Only makes sense if they sell the chargers in Europe as well.
Still makes no sense. If you have two distinct inner parts (one for J1772, one for Type 2 for the EU), then you have two parts already. Each of these could be a one piece design. The third part (the common base as an additional plastic piece) only creates additional "complexity", needs more screws, installation time and cost.
Can you tell if the cable has larger gage wire? Perhaps EA went bigger to reduce line loss. That might explain the larger cable.
My Electrify America Home Station Level 2 Charger died just as warranty ended. Where can I find the main board replacement?
I don’t get why anyone needs to quickly remove their charger with a special release, if anyone can enlighten me…
Tom your reviews are great and very informative. I have a suggestion for you to review the way you present when you are holding black items against the black background of the top you wear - 5 out of 10. It would improve the clarity of the content of your videos .
Good suggestion. I noticed that in the video.
I just bought this HomeStation(Oct 2022) and I am sad to report, the screw to attach the 2 part holster is still short.
I'm not even trying to deal with that nonsense. I already bought the Lectron holder from Amazon for $15 bucks used/like new.
Question: new to channel - which EV Charging Station does Tom think is the best? Does he have a resource I could go to vs. watching all of the charger videos? Thank you!
Why would one want a "charging station?" My electrician is just installing a socket that works with Level 2 charger that came with my car. Says it's cheaper and does the job. What am I missing?
The level 2 socket can be used power the portable L2 charging cable taht came with your car, or for a unit like that that mounts to the wall. Some people prefer to keep the one that came with the car in the trunk in case they need it on the road. Also, not all EVs come with a good level 2 charging cord, so they need to buy a charging station.
Hey Tom, great review. FYI, a lighter color "hoodie" would give more contrast for the connector handles. Just saying.
They really need to put a led in the top of the j1772. Then you could see to put it in the holster as well the vehicle!
For a solid minute or so, I thought the connector holster itself was another charging station (EVSE) as shown at time 14:15. I mean the holster itself is almost as big as the Wallbox Polestar Plus EVSE main unit.
I wonder if Electrify Home is so thick because they initially planned for people to wrap the cable around the main charging station unit.
Thank you for the review of the electrify America charger! I am trying to figure out if I do not link up with the app and just plug my car in until my full charge which is set to 80 will it just turn off automatically? I have tested and when the charge is complete it is flashing slow blue. At this point has the charger turned off and stopped using electricity? When I get around to unplugging it does go to the full green ring. I tried calling the lady did not know!
Big charging units can be nice if you like to coil the cord around it. My charger is smaller, and you have to be careful when coiling the cord around it so the coils don't fall off.
I noticed the left side of my outlet gets extremely hot compared to the right side. The outlet was replaced, properly torqued, and it’s still hot on the left side.
I’m starting to wonder if the prong on the PLUG that comes with the unit is bad. Can anyone test the temperatures on this unit to see if the left side gets hot at the outlet where the prong goes in?
You really should review the Emporia evse it's very popular and energy star rated and UL listed
During the comparison of the connectors and cables, it's hard to see the black components when held up in front of the black shirt.
I am putting a charging station in my garage.. not sure what to get. I like the longest cable possible. Can use wifi connection but not necy. My wifi is very poor in my area. I need a comparison sheet to assist me.
Hey Tom, can you do a review of a smart charger that manages multiple accounts and billing to account holders. I believe Enel-X Pro, Wallbox Pulsar Plus, and a new Blink model offer this capability. A big downside for some of these is the annual fee for software such as $329 for Chargepoint and $216 for Blink.
Hi Tom, I watched your review of the Neo splitter review you did a few years ago. I was wondering if you have reviewed any Load Shedding devices for the home or apartments. The devices I am interested are not the plug-in devices but a hardwired system like the Loadmiser or the Simple Switch devices which might share a clothes dryer or stove circuit. These systems are ideal for homes which may not have the capacity to just add a wall charger to the panel. The idea, I'm sure you're aware of, is to have a primary circuit for example, a Stove (40 amps) and a secondary circuit which might be an EV or a hot tub etc. If the EV is plugged in it is automatically turned off when the stove is turned on, so as to not overload a panel which may only have a 100 amp limit. Once the stove is turned off for several minutes the EV will automatically begin charging again.
If you have not reviewed these home Load Shedding devices, would it be possible for you to take a look at them? The issue we have at our townhouse complex is that our total incoming power for the combined building (12 townhouses) is 600 amps so load calculations are required to determine the limit of the amperage used.
Just wanted to note that EVSE's (with GFCI) actually send out a pulse of current to ground to make sure that the impedance isn't too high. (i.e.; your grounding system is up to snuff). This pulse is usually higher than the trip point of the 5 milliamps that a class A breaker will trip at.
In the case of the Grizzl-E, it does this check at power up and at some timed interval. I know this because the inspector made me install a GFCI breaker on the 14-50, and it tripped the breaker every time I turned it on. He didn't seem like the arguing type so I just said ok, had him inspect again, then replaced the GFCI breaker with a standard one after the permit was completed.
I eventually just hardwired the Grizzl-E, so that removed the GFCI requirement anyway.
Ev car has gfi built in, if u put a gfi plug or breaker before charger it will trip,
I plan on keeping my non-GFCI breaker on my 50 amp EV charging circuit until I sell the house.
I am about to install a level 2 charger out by my front post by the street. I am looking at buying TESLAs charger (even though my family has 4 CCS charging cars) I think this will be the standard in 5 years on any new car so why spend a couple thousand dollars to install something already outdated? For $475, it is reasonably priced and future proof. ANY COMMENTS?
I'm getting my 2023 Lyriq in January 2023 and I'm wired with a 100AMP connection so I'd like to utilize an 80AMP EVSE. Can you recommend one? GM has not offered the "ULTIUM Home Charger" yet as promised. Thanks
Tom, I understand your desire for cable flexibility in cold weather and personal desire for thin cables; however, I would really like to know the gauge of the wires supplying power. I understand the chargers you are comparing here are all UL listed; however, that means it should not result in a fire. Not that a more copper would result in less power loss and more efficiency at a higher price for the cable. I think EA may be extra cautious on cable sizing. Also may make it more durable if a vehicle were to roll over the cable once in a while.
FYI if you make it to the Bay Area I can show you a custom ClipperCreek install for 38 units and a custom EVSE tester.
Hello, Love the channel and enjoy your videos. Just to comment and solicit feedback from others. You stated that a NEMA 14-60 receptacle was required for a 48A circuit. I believe per 2017 NEC 210.52 the receptacle is exempt from the 125% rule and that a NEMA 14-50 receptacle can be used for a 48A devise unless the manufacturer requires differently. Comments? Only the conductors and OCPD need to be 60A rated, correct?
Have you considered reviewing the units included with various EVs like the Tesla Mobile Connector, Lucid mobile connector, etc?
Yes, definitely.
@@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney If you test the Tesla Mobile Connector, can you put a meter on it to measure the heat output? There seems to be an issue with the gen2 heat displacement compared to the gen1 connector? Thanks Tom, and happy new year!
Maybe I missed it, so can you answer this? What is the cost to charge the car at home and or away? What I am trying to come up with is the price of gas compared to the charging station costs or and at home cost.
It will depend on where you live, what EV you drive, what public charging networks you live by and will use, as pricing can vary widely on public charging stations.
I'll give you my example. I live in northern NJ and pay about $.15 per kWh. I drive a Tesla Model 3 and it takes roughly 80 kWh to fully charge my battery.
At home: $0.15/kWh = $12 to drive 275 to 300 miles depending on how heavy my right foot is.
On Tesla Superchargers I pay on average (They vary from location to location) $0.28 per kWh so it costs $22.40
On Electrify America DC fast chargers it would cost me $0.31 per kWh (plus a $4/month membership fee) so $24.80
Therefore to drive 275 to 300 miles it costs:
Home = $12.00
Superchargers = $22.40
EA network = $24.80 (plus $4/mo)
There are also other EV charging networks with different pricing models, some charge you by the time you are charging instead of the energy you take in.
Charging at home is always much less than charging on the road unless you can find a free charging station, and there are some of them out there.
@@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney I figured the amounts that I had in my head were similar to yours. It's going to be a hard sell to make people convert with the amount of money they are asking for most of these electric cars. Plus the cost to charge is very similar to gas.
@@iamric23 when you factor in the federal and state incentives, the prices are often very close to comparable gas cars.
But I do disagree about the fueling cost. It costs me about $800 per year to charge my Model 3 and drive 20,000 miles. The Model 3 is very comparable to a BMW 3-Series that gets 30mpg (EPA combined). That would need 666 gallons of premium fuel to drive 20,000 miles per year and cost about $2,200. Over 3 years, I have a $4,200 savings.
You have to remember when you have an electric car most peoy don't use those public charging stations more than once every couple of months, unless you live in an apartment and you can't charge at home and then the economics definitely change.
I charge at home 99% of the time and pay only $12 to drive about 300 miles. You can't do that with any gas car. :)
@@iamric23 The cost to charge is NOT similar to gas. For 275 miles on Tom's EV, it costs $12. At 25 mpg, 275 miles requires 11 gallons of fuel. In NJ, gas is about 3.50 now so cost is $38.50 which is much higher $12. However, you don't justify an EV based on fuel savings. EV are justified by significantly less service costs and non-quantifiable benefits such as convenience of charging at home, zero carbon emissions, faster acceleration, and much more fun to drive. I love Tesla because no dreaded dealer.
How does Electrify America charges per minute exactly? They say .32 cents/minute on their website but when you charge your vehicle for 20 minutes it is not $6.40. Lot more. When I ask them, they couldn't answer the question. Anyone knows what the math is behind their charging$?
Hi Tom, my home charger is giving me a 2KW per hour, is it something wrong?
At some point in time we will need actual teardowns of these units: cut the cable, measure the the actual wire diameter, determine the wire material (copper? aluminium? copper-plated aluminium?), calculate charging losses due to diameter, conductor material and length, measure the insulation of the cable, determine the chemical composition of it (instead of "rubbery" / "plasticky"). Get out the PCB from the case, look for conformal coating, look at the solder points, investigate ICs, capacitors and relays and their specs, quality of steel and screws (stainless?) and so on. Look at the software for the smart features, investigate APIs, attack vectors, update mechanisms and manufacturer remote data capture of the charging sessions. Determine the conformity to the J1772 protocol in the corner cases, determine the actual protocols for power sharing or utility based demand response (EEbus? OCPP? what version? proprietary?), do actual power sharing tests with other units and cars, do actual demand response tests, look for powerline communication abilities (PLC) on the ICs, look for ISO 15118 compatibility, look for V2G or V2H capabilities. This 50 min video looses a lot of time on unboxing, outside looks, wire stiffness, the handle, user issues, holster, and a too short screw. But has almost no content on the engineering side of these units.
Your content is still somewhat nice, but lacks technical depth by any means.
We’re still waiting for your top picks comparison video. Choose 4 of your top rated chargers and compare their negative and positive attributes. Or just post the final score for each charger on one page.
Hey Steve. You're 100% right. I promise to get to it soon!
I have two GE charging stations, but I don't see them any more. After 24,000 miles my 2013 volt died and they wanted 12,000 to replace the pack, another man has a 2011 volt and only have charged at 110 volt, so I am now wondering if that is my better choice for a small pack like the volt, any comment will be appreciated,Bert
Tom: Is there such a thing as a timer that plugs into a 14-50 outlet which would allow the charger to plug into that so you could set it up to charg at 12AM?
I have a Wallbox, but ordered ClipperCReek remote holder to save space.
As far as I can tell only Openevse lets you program how many KWHs to insert. Important if your car car always charges to %100 and you want to conserve battery life.
Sounds like it's time for the State of Charge holster!
The holster may be designed for various size and types of connectors. Sometimes you leave the center piece out.
It would always require an insert, but the insert could be for another connector.
You should get a micrometer to measure the wire thicknesses. I bought mine for like $10
Yeah, been thinking about doing that. I guess I should. Thanks for the reminder.
Have you looked at reviewing the Andersen EV Charger?
I figured out why such a short screw is included with the 2 piece holster. You are not installing the second piece correctly. If you look at where the inner holster piece goes, you will see 2 tiny tabs that the inner piece will click into. You have to push the inner piece in extremely hard until it clicks into the tiny tabs at the top of the hole. At that point, it will hold itself in place. You can then use the short screw to secure the inner piece.
I had a very early version of the unit. I believe those tabs were slightly misaligned because no matter how hard I tried, it wouldn't snap in place. I think they might have modified it so it fits in place better.
Some thoughts:
1) price is inflated. I feel that if they skipped the fancy designer case they probably could have cut down the price
2) during the app setup, I notice it skips 24 amps. Kinda odd to go as low as 16, but skip 24. My dryer is on a 30 amp breaker, so I charge at 24 amps. I would actually take a hit in output with this EVSE, which I find surprising.
3) I'm surprised that- other than a shared app- there's no promotional deals tied with their public charging services. I recall Chargepoint offering credit at their public charging stations when you installed one of their home EVSE. It seems to me Electrify America could probably sell quite a few of these if they offered to subsidize the cost as part of Electrify America's paid membership. I always had a hard time justifying getting a subscription because I DC fast charge so rarely. If I could shave some money off the cost of the home EVSE through membership I might consider it more.
4) Seriously, the size is ridiculous. I really think it was a waste on the case. I would rather buy a Grizzl-E with its purely practical case rather than splurge money for something "stylish". I know I'm repeating myself.
I wish I could connect to the network and app as easily as you did. This charger works well however the network/app connection is a nightmare. EA tech support has been very slow to respond.
Mr. Moloughney, always look forward to your reviews and testing of home charging stations. Very informative and educational. Do you have a chart as to the specs of the units being tested? . It would be helpful if the specs of your unit being tested, was on the screen, so the viewers could keep all the details clear. I been going over your reviews on different units, trying to select a certain model and hard to keep all the little details separate. Thanks for all your work and the videos for us viewers.
I am in the process of launching a website that has all of the information there. Stay tuned
Mr Tom... wish I could find where they show different networks in America and are listed and the size of same. Ones that dependable and ones have issues and are not up at times. I am speaking of other networks and not Tesla. I read that Shell is going to build a large network. I think the networks should show their prices, etc.
And I do not think that the US Govt. should be building the EV networks. They did not build the gas stations network. Nor did they give people tax breaks for buying gas vehicles.
My Volvo has a plug-to-wall outlet adapter as well as an adapter to plug into a home charger. Why would I purchase and use a charging station if I could just plug it into the wall and save 500+ dollars? Are there pro and cons to a home charger rather than just plugging into a 220 outlet?
Your Volvo (and most EVs) come with a portable charging cord. It's basically the same thing as a wall mounted charger, except it's made so it can be taken with the vehicle in case you need to plug in on the road somewhere.
There's a few advantages of having a wall mounted charger:
-They deliver more power and can charge EVs faster
-You can hardwire then instead of plugging in, and that is a better/safer installation
-Many are wifi connectivity with smart-charging features
-Having one allows you to leave the portable one that came with the EV in the trunk in case you need it one day without having to roll up the cable every time you take the car out.
Tom , I live in a condo and have outdoor parking what is the best charging solution for outside 365 days …. High heat ..rain… and. Occasionally snow
I have been unable to connect to this charger to my wifi and establish all homestation features because there are special characters in wifi password. EH said they are not sure when their system will be able to accept special characters in passwords. They said my options are to change my passwords or set up guest accounts for the charger. I think that should have been mentioned on their website before I purchased.
@39:00 I don’t know if having the APP let you pick the amps is a great plan, considering how many EV owners struggle with TPSS . It’s a PITA but also safer that Tesla makes you rotate the interior switch to set the breaker maximum AMPS. The issue I keep seeing is electricians don’t want to read the install guide and leave the Tesla wall connector at 12A default. As irritating as the Tesla is to go back into to fix the oversight, letting uses change max amps from the APP seems sketchy.
I like you new plan to score /test the handle drop. I’ve seen a lot of broken J1772 handles, especially the button.
You might want to do the drop test LAST just in case. You could also do a test call/message to each company’s tech support. The generic Chinese units and sadly Tesla will probably be terrible, although i have had great support via the mobile Tesla app for my personal mobile connector. .
Tom, will you review the Electrify Home (EVSE) system, please? Just kidding, I'm watching the video now. Thank you.
38:54 No option for charging on a 30A circuit? That's the most common circuit in existing homes (dryer outlet)! This is super important for us renters who can't modify electrical in their house.
I think this EVSE should lose some points for that in the "Smart/Non-Smart" section, because I think most other Smart EVSE's can adjust circuit amps in smaller denominations. Although this is an easy future software update from EA's side, I wonder why they didn't include it.
Another thing to consider adding to "Smart/Non-Smart" section of the Score is the the type of Wi-Fi built into the EVSE. Whether 2.4Ghz or 5Ghz, Wi-Fi 4/5 or 6.
I have a Juicebox and it only supports WiFi 4 on 2.4Ghz band, so I have to keep a 2.4Ghz radio running just for it. It's the only device that's on my 2.4Ghz network :(
This EA HomeStation also only WiFi 4 (b/g/n) on 2.4Ghz. As we move forward with WiFi 6 and 6E, it's possible that routers will drop support for legacy standards (or at least disable them by default for performance/efficiency). It's kind of silly to release a product in 2021 with WiFi standards from 2008 (WiFi 4).
Tom, do you test to see how hot the cable and connector get during charging? If so, that would be nice to know. It's been my experience that wires heat up to the point where they're uncomfortable to touch when the current is at or near the maximum capacity for that gage. That could be why the EA home EVSE cables are so thick.
Tom, great video thank you very much. I'm new to EVs and have a pre-order in for the Rivian. My thought was I could just plug-in using the provided NEMA adapter straight into the wall. From what I understand the home station will provide a somewhat faster charge, but other than speed what is the advantage? Do I really need to buy a $500 charging station or can I plug it right into the dryer plug in the garage?
Is their any benefit in using the EA home charging echo system and using EA charge points on the road?
Hey Tom, a big shot out to all your videos. I am considering buying Ioniq 5. I have a question about charging at electrify america as it gets free charging. I live at a rental place, so no home charging possible. I have EA charging station near me, it has 4 units and only one unit works at any time, the rest 3 show charger unavailable. Just wondering, is it possible that electrify america make other chargers available if we call the number listed. This is a general question wondering if I am driving long distance and do at EA station where charger is unavailable. Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
I just purchased an Ioniq 5 and would appreciate your opinion on which charger I should buy... I live in Canada and we have a lot of snow and rain here. I've looked at Juicebox and Flo but I don't want to make a mistake here
I love these thorough reviews. Question: is it possible to use this without any sort of account or wifi connection? Are there any like that?
Hey how long is the NEMA 14-50 Cable?
The app does not work on IOS. I've been having problems connecting mine since I bought and installed the device. And Customer Service has yet to find a resolution even though they are apparently "escalating" my issue. I'm extremely disappointed in the $700 I've spent on this.
Great review. If you're going to give things a "tom score" it would be nice to see how it stacks up against the competition on a leaderboard.
Coming soon!
Tom can a Tesla gen 2 mobile charger with its plug adapters charge a vw id4? I know I will need a Tesla tap.