By far the best review of this battery system on UA-cam. You really hit all the bullet points! I ordered one this week and was a little nervous about the no return policy, this review has me feeling very good about my decision and helps me understand the strengths and limitations of the pack. Thank you!
@@frediventure3 The standard River has a much smaller battery (288 vs. 720wh), has a smaller expansion battery (576 vs. 720wh), slower wall charging, etc. I'd go with the Pro or Delta Mini over these older products
@@todd.parker thank you so much really aporeciate your quick reply. One more queation tho. Im planning to buy a protable ref freezer. Alpicool which is about 45watts do u know how long i could run it with river pro? Tnk u so much man. Your review is is amazing. Good luck to you🤗
Much appreciated this review! Confirms my confidence in my choice. I originally picked up one of the Duracell 660 units and couldn’t return it fast enough! My wife couldn’t even budge it! I just ordered one of these. I am still waiting for FedEx to get their act together and deliver it. Great customer service from ECOFLOW though. No extra battery yet, but most likely will add this on before next winter storm season. However I gave it some thought and I think the connection cable for the 2 units is probably that way for 3 reasons: 1- stiff cable is more resistant to repeated flexing and damage to internal wire strands 2- size of cable (diameter) is to avoid power loss 3- length of cable allows you to carry both units while walking with one in each hand without tripping yourself or hindering your stride
Considering the location of the plug, I think they should make another cable with a 90 degree out sitting flush with the body of main unit. The way it is right now, I am scared one could easily hit or tug on it and cause it to break internally.
We were hovering between Bluetti EB70 and EcoFlow River Pro. Went for the River Pro primarily for the internal charger where-as bluetti had a noisy external power brick. Fastcharge is also a good feature. This review really helped us getting a good view of the EcoFlow product. We're getting the EU version with 2x230V tho :)
Thank You for what you do. I have seen a number of reviews and all seem to say what you did. So, I bought the River Pro. I wanted a mid-size unit, and for the price and fetches, this is the best.
Luckily I bought this unit 2 days before I saw this post and video..so glad I watched it as it confirmed my choice. By far the best review I've seen and I understood all of it as I'm not a high tech person. Delta was my second choice but seemed for my needs this one was better and cheaper even after buying the expansion battery. And at $399.99. I can afford more expansion batteries as needed to survive longer days of uncertainty. Very well put together. Thank you
Months later are you still enjoying it? Researching this thing and mostly just coming across promo reviews where someone was sent one but little follow up or someone using it regularly.
@@bucky716 yes, works perfectly. Its very portable and has enough power for what I'm using it for. Ego generator is what I'm using for my heavy backup. But I have 15 batteries to keep it running. It just has a slow recharge time otherwise I'd give it a higher rating. You won't go wrong with this choice, because you will need a fast solar charge to be ready for the next day without power
We have used the ua-cam.com/users/postUgkxOTeIs0vv4_9B5hsmnLsk9r930uDQLu_Y for probably 30 hours with our camper and it’s been great! The noise level is really only noticeable when running the AC and other appliances like the microwave, hair dryer, or coffee pot. It’s not huge like other ones and it has wheels so even at 90lbs, I can move it!
Really informative video. I’ve just ordered this eco flow unit will extra battery. With proposed power blackouts in the UK and Europe this winter I think it’s going to come in handy.
Perfect timing. I have been considering this River Pro. Was originally wanting the Yeti 1000x but they never came out with that model, instead they go right up to 1500 and a much higher price than I wanted to pay. So been wanting something more along the lines with this model. I am watching the video now but hoping you review it to run a full-size fridge.
It ran my full sized fridge but will only run it for about 12 hours with the expansion battery, maybe 16 if your fridge is more efficient than mine. I really like the River Pro, good stuff.
An update: Goal Zero released a 1000 Core exclusive to Amazon that looks interesting. I'm working on getting. review unit. www.amazon.com/Goal-Zero-Generator-Tailgating-Emergency/dp/B0988916ZK/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=yeti%2B1000%2Bcore&qid=1628701071&sr=8-2&th=1
First time on your channel. What a thorough review! I feel like I got a really close-up look at the Eco-Flow system. It looks like a really well thought out and engineered system. You took a lot of time reviewing all the key features. Nice production work on the video, great camera work and solid audio, something that others on UA-cam struggle disregard. Looking forward to watching more videos from your channel, Todd. Thank you.
Thank you so much, that’s really nice to hear. I do like to show the details and get a bit more close up so you can feel what it’s like. Also, I hate being on camera. I’m working on an Ecoflow’s Delta Max review as we speak so be sure to subscribe if interested.
This is a great review. I received my River Pro and extra battery this morning along with the 160 solar panel. I never was able to connect the extra battery, nor was I able to use the app. After a couple calls to Ecoflow, they admitted that there was a problem getting the main unit to recognize the extra battery. I was told I needed to upgrade the software but because I could never get the app to work, there was no way to get the units to work together. You should never be able to do more with the app than the main unit. This all goes back to Costco in the morning.
Very helpful. Just beginning to outfit for overlanding and just dying with so many options. Thank you!! For my needs, this is going to be ideal, I think.
Great review. I really like my River pro. I don't have the expansion battery but I converted two 400 watt scooter batteries that I use to back up all my small solar gens and it's way cheaper ($90 total for used batteries, charger, connectors and special "dongle"). Not as pretty but saves $300 and I get an extra 100 watts.
I'd be curious to see what you did there. I though connecting lithium batteries of different sizes/voltages was tricky to pull off. I think that's why Goal Zero went with lead acid (boo).
Your speaking ability is worth commenting on, first of all.😁 I love to hear such well spoken narration over an interesting video. Thank you for this great video. 🌥️
Extremely well done. I am in the market for a unit that I can use overlanding while being a decent backup at home during short outages. Thank you for this review.
Dude, trust me, this is absolutely EXACTLY what you are looking for. It will not disappoint on either front. Though, when overlanding, I do bring my 160 Watt Eco Flow solar panel set-up (the best in the business, by the way) and my slightly older Renergy 300 solar battery, just in case.
Thanks for a great review, Todd. I have learnt a lot and just purchased my River Pro. My first time using the Solar panel was a bit of a surprise in that, even it started to collect the sun energy immediately, as shown in the Input watts on the display, there was no increase in the total stored energy % . In fact, it has gone down from 51% to 47%. It is possible that my sun capture was not too high, @36% input only. Just wonder if I have done something incorrectly and thus not will never achieve any benefits from this green energy. Knowing I can make use of the sun's energy is exciting, just need to do it right to make it worth the time too. Your comments are appreciated.
Huh, that seems odd. So you were getting 36w of solar input and the state of charge dropped 4%? Did you have anything connected to the AC, DC, or USB ports that was draining the battery as you charged it? That would explain the losses if the sola input was less than the output.
Thanks !! This was the best review I've seen !! I was going to order a Jackery & heard about the River Pro & this was a great to see the different things it does.. thanks again!!
We have the river max and love it it’s perfect for a weekend of camping , we used to on Saturday charge it in the suv while we ran to gas station or to get firewood but I recently picked up the 110w solar panel for it so I can’t wait to try it in the spring with that
I have a Bluetti AC50S, a EcoFlow River Pro, plus a Jackery Explorer_1000 which is really good!.. but far away the EcoFlow River Pro is the more advanced in every aspect. I love it! 👍
Thank you very much for this review. You gave a lot of valuable technical information. My only nitpick is that the "wild display activity" during the heat gun test was probably the unit reacting poorly to the heat gun's power control circuitry. You probably can't get a proper load above 600w without triggering its surge/overload system. The reason the heat gun could run at such high power was because it was constantly going into and out of its surge algo, but never "timing out". This is probably bad for the unit. This is why the space heater couldn't run without the "x-boost" trickery enabled. Also, it is valuable to know that the companion application, at least according to the top Amazon one-star review, DOES NOT WORK if you do not have cell service. This is a significant problem for a product whose major use case is to be taken out into the sticks where the comforts of civilization might not follow, or when the comforts of civilization have failed you. Fortunately its basic functionality remains functional via the front panel, but losing the ability to configure the X- modes could become a problem. I plan to buy one, and personally will leave the fast charger disabled unless I want to take it on the go, where I will want to optimize my time with a gas generator running or when I have limited access to "shore" power. I'll also probably leave the voltage trickery feature enabled, as I want to see how it'll work with a 700w microwave oven. There is one last neat feature it supports according to the manual: UPS mode. If you turn on the AC outlets while plugged in, it'll shunt the incoming power to the outlets. Then if the incoming power goes out, it'll (after a ~30ms delay) start up its inverter and run your device on battery.
Any updates after owning this? The required cell service for app seems odd. Some versions of android require bluetooth to be used with location on. This might be the confusion? Otherwise bluetooth connection shouldn't require cell service. Or even Wi-Fi direct. Any update on this? Thanks.
I really liked your review on this. You didn't glean over the fact that there is a reduction of appliance or tool voltage when needing to use the X Boost function and true, we don't know how that will affect the appliance or tool. Many reviewers omitted that information, so really appreciate your fair evaluation on this point. I think it's still the best unit out there as a mid capacity generator and have looked at many reviews. I did look at the Delta's reviews and it seems to overheat periodically causing down time, so I went with this unit. I will simply put the extra battery on the floor... not a big deal for me. One thing I might mention is that it's important to set up the EcoFlow from the app the way you like it as soon as you get it and, before taking it out on the road. If your in an area where there's no cell service or we loose service for some other crazy reason, you won't be able to access the app to make changes. Maybe it would work if one has one of the newer satellite phones. Please correct me if my thinking is wrong on this. All that said, I am excited to say I did just buy this unit... along with the extra battery and am waiting for delivery. I liked your set up for the refrigerator generator circuit and want to learn how you did that. This technology is fairly new to me and I'm still learning. Looks like that is a panel box set up?
@@todd.parker I just watched your video on the home integration kit... great info. Was wondering how it was all connected. Looks very doable... Thank you. BTW, concerning the fridge and microwave coming on at same time... someone suggested putting the fridge on a plug in timer. Those work well, as I have one hooked up to my distiller.
I got a River Pro when they first came out on Kickstarter and got delivery in January. February in Texas saw us get hit with a snow/ice storm and this thing saved my butt. They had rolling blackouts where we got power only for a couple of hours at time and then off for 10 yours. That means with this supercharging unit, I could get fully charged before the electricity would shut off for another 10 hours. I had only wished they had a more powerful inverter. Come to find out, they are putting out a Delta Pro which will be the high end. I'm all in.
I just bought the River and the Delta. They will be used for emergency power so the lower amt cycles won't be an issue. I also got both for just over $1960 including one 160w solar panel.
@@todd.parker I’ve seen nothing on it but wonder if it can charge a 12 volt trolling motor. That’s a deep cycle battery (as opposed to a cranking battery used to start you boat engine or car). My boat has an inverter/charger already so it’d be simply like plugging it into the wall. I have found nothing but super sketchy stuff online about connecting solar panels directly to the battery, which does not seem wise.
@@johnbmadwis You could plug a battery charger into the AC outlets on this to charge a battery for sure. If you want to charge via solar, you need a charge controller but those are pretty small an inexpensive if you wanted to go that way. Sort of depends on if you want to leave something out in the weather long term (solar panel + battery and controller in a battery box is best) or just need to periodically charge up the battery (River would work well)
Can do a review or test to see if Ecoflow River plus will power a portable fridge like Dometic CFX28 12 volt or Alpicool C15. I already was disappointed that it would not run my instapot 😒
It should be useful thing in Ukraine lately thanks to our russian neighbours. Thank you for such an informative and detailed review. You helped a lot of people to make a decision and save their time. Appreciate it 🤜🤛
Did you have issue with the external battery not being seen by the main unit? I just ordered this package from Costco and found a few videos that show that issue. It seems it's isolated to Costco purchases. The way I see it all the ones from Costco have older firmware which could be the issue
@@DoritosResidue i bought mine thru amazon, so no issues. But i updated the firmware before i plugged the external battery. Then every couple of months i upgrade firmware if needed.
Thank you for info. Had a portable lead acid unit that I gave away to a recycling concern. For home use most draw would be the expresso machine in early am. Am single with scant knowledge of electricity. My Toyota battery failed, at seven yrs old. Had to "jump start" and bought a new one. Will probably get one anyway as a backup for infrequent power outages.
Hi, today I got my additional battery and - of course - I had the same problem with the arrangement and this stiff cable. So here's my solution: I took off those little plastic caps on the four sides of the grip of the main unit. Unscrew them and deinstalled the grip. Afterwards screw them in again. They will fit even without the grip. So here you have now a nice platform to stack the additional battery on top of the main appliance. Looks good for me now. The cable is "a little bit" to long but it hides behind the stack.
Hard to say without knowing how much power it uses. Find that out in watts, multiply by 2 (hours) to calculate the watt hours you need and that will tell you how big a battery. My guess is the River Pro would handle it
Thanks, excellent review and you were able to answer all of my questions. I’m scratching my head though on the design of these units. The top handle just adds to the height of each unit and prevents units from stacking. Why they couldn’t make foldable handle like in Bluetti is beyond me. I like the ability to quickly pair two units by the cable, but the whole design begs for main unit to sit on top of the extension with short cable or even connector adapter that could snap two units together. What EvoFlow engineers created instead is abomination. I agree that XBoost is very dangerous in playing with voltage so merrily without warning users. Many voltage sensitive appliances, especially the ones with electric motors can be permanently damaged by the owner who doesn’t understand what XBoost is. They should have really not implement this feature at all for a fractional benefit it provides over danger of killing sensitive appliances.
Thanks so much for the wonderful video! Lots of great, useful info and your delivery is smooth as butter! I was wondering what the advantage is of getting this setup vs. the Delta. In our use case, the grid is to the point where we have rolling blackouts every year. I’m not looking to power everything when we lose power. Instead, we’ll transfer the most important food and meds to a smaller fridge, power lights and our devices.
I think the main advantage of the river pro is if you want some thing portable and don’t need a large inverter. The capacity with the extra battery is a little bigger than a Delta also. But if you can afford it the Delta is a much more capable unit with a much larger inverter so for your use case I’d probably go with a Delta. On sale at REI now - www.rei.com/product/197018/ecoflow-delta-portable-power-station
Excellent review, thanks so much! I bought mine a couple months ago after watching your video. So far so good, except I can't get the EcoFlow to pair with my iPhone via Bluetooth (but can connect over WiFi). I didn't buy the extra battery, but I think a better design would be a stackable locking mechanism, kind of like connecting two lego blocks.
Exactly! The delta has a better position in the bigger inverters that the pro, even though the pro stacks up well. I have a pro and a standard river, enjoy them alot.
@@RichardMiller-tq6ut it's not loud, it does have a fan on when charging or during AC use. I think you blowing air excessively is more loud and annoying than this.
@@josh4realz211 I got one. It's much more quiet after slowing down the charge current. I would rarely need it to charge that fast anyway. I just wish I could adjust it without wifi. Other than that I am very satisfied with it so far
Great clear review and comparisons. The only thing I didn’t see you cover was cycle counts. Is there any way to know if the faster charging will decrease the unit’s lifespan? (Or do all lithium batteries pretty much do the same thing?)
I used to get hung up on cycle counts but I’ve come to realize that each company rates their cycles differently so it’s hard to compare. All these are lithium ion chemistry so I think they are roughly the same though battery quality will also contribute but that data is hard to come by. To maximize life just don’t cycle them too deeply and don’t fill them to 100%. I’m a fan of LiFePO4 because they offer much longer battery life and are safer but are a bit heavier.
I pulled the trigger and ordered the Ecoflow River Pro and extra battery. As I was undecided about the solar panel to buy, I am now researching that deeper. I liked the 160w Ecoflow but seems amiss to lose that 40w on the table since the River Pro can handle 200w total from solar. I want to get as close to that as I can. I am considering the Goal Zero Nomad 200 or the Bluetti SP200 200W Solar Panels. I still lose a tad since neither will give me a full 200 but closer than the 160w panel would from Ecoflow. Now to just decipher what connectors come with each. I think the Goal Zero has an Anderson connector or HPP and the Bluetti has the MC4. Something tells me the Ecoflow River Pro comes with a MC4 to XT60 adapter already? Maybe that will allow me to connect directly with that one. Goal Zero I guess I need an Anderson to XT60 adapter.
The Ecoflow includes the MC4 cable so you just need panels that you can adapt to that. You can also easily parallel connect a pair of panels, like two 120w to get there
Excellent review - thank you so much for all of the info provided. I do have one question. How does the fan noise compare to other generators? I've seen another review of this product where it sounded like maybe the fan noise was quite noticeable. But maybe that was just the guy's environment? I'm hoping to buy a generator to run and change multiple small devises - laptops, phone, monitor.. but I don't want a loud distracting fan noise. Thanks again!
Fans are pretty quiet and you only hear them under high loads or fast charging, otherwise it’s silent. Similar to a Goal Zero. Charger is much quieter than the Bluetti because it has a loud fan on the power brick that never shuts off plus the internal fans.
Great review. I am considering this to connect as a ups for my 1/3 hp sump pump, could take it out once in a while when needed for something else. I am a little concerned though about the x-boost, which may be needed with an electric motor startup. Another negative is that it doesn't run off of the extra battery first and it doesn't appear to have a way to charge the extra battery separate.
I don’t think xboost works for most situations so only plan on running 600-700w appliances with this. After a firmware update and some fiddling, the internal and external batteries now discharge at roughly the same rate. You’re right that the extra battery can’t be charged or discharged by itself, would be nice.
Todd, excellent review and comparison. The newer Yeti 1500X has a better standing with the regulated 12v and the enhanced (built in) charging speeds, but not as fast as the Eco Flow and they don't currently offer expansion batts for the 1500X. The Eco Flow looks like a great set up. The only thing I would like to see is a way to make the extra batteries chainable since you can't charge them unless they're connect to the main power station (Just like Goal Zero). I supposed you could just buy and keep a several extra River Pro batteries on hand. Maybe Yeti is panning to follow suit and switch from Lead Acid to Lithium for their expandable batteries. I'm sure Yeti will let us know soon enough. Take care.
I wish you could chain multiple batteries too. At least you could buy a few expansion batteries and cycle through them if you needed to, like you said. For the size and capability, this is hard to beat but let's hope all these upstarts get Goal Zero to level up quick.
Mine is out of warranty and I want to bump up to the Larger River 2 for its replacement, now what can I do with the extra battery while I wait to find a good deal on a used River Pro.
Excellent review in great detail. Was wondering in due time when the internal battery goes bad and needs a replacement. Can you just buy a new battery and swap it out or is this battery sealed inside the unit just wondering thank you in advance
Unfortunately I don' think any lithium power stations make it easy to swap battery packs because they tend to have unique cell configurations with the BMS closely matched to them. That's why I like to recommend LFP battery units now because they have a longer lifespan
Hello again Todd. I hope you don't mind me asking one more Question. I was having difficulty locating a single 250 w 24v panel for this so I started eyeballing a couple 120w panels on Amazon from Newpowa to run in parallel. The title says "120w 24v designed for 24v charge system but looking at the description it shows "Maximum power (Pmax): 120W Voltage at Pmax (Vmp):34.0V Current at Pmax (Imp): 3.52A." Does that imply that these are actually 34v panels and not appropriate for the River Pro? Seems strange that they throw 24v up everywhere but would then be 34 instead.
542WHR from the AC inverter seems pretty low, Hobotech got 640WHR from the Bluetti EB70 AC inverter. This might sway my decision as that's 15% more capacity from the Bluetti.
I think both are good options. The biggest benefit of the EB70 is the LFP battery. The Ecoflow’s fast charging, better display, app, and the expansion are worth considering though.
Great vid. I'd purchased before viewing, so it's great to see I've made a good choice having considered Goal Zero, Jackery, Bluetti and even Anker. A new install for my small van. I've picked a couple of Renogy's 175W flexi solar panels with a VOC of 23.9V. In the UK I hope that's enough to approach 200W and I'm pleased the unit self-regulates any excess on the occasional sunny day. I guess the spare battery gets charged through the main unit? I'm not so clear on that. Later I might install a 'traditional' power set-up in this van, routing the solar panels to a fixed battery. I guess the best way to charge the Ecoflow Pro in that scenario is simply the DC plug, but wonder if that 'banana'(?) cable could be used somehow? Anyone got experience of that set-up? I'd really like to know. I came quite late to power stations having spent hours researching van installs. They seem perfect for my needs: running a Mobicool, charging phones, batteries and lights. And when I'm not in the van I can take it to the allotment :)
You can connect this 2 panels in parallel to stay within the solar charging limits. It will charge the external battery once the main battery is full, yep. I think this will work well for you as long as you don’t have AC appliances that draw more than 600-700w, it’s a great unit
I've improved my design (I think). I'm using a couple of DIN rail mounted Hager changeovers and some rail mounted Wago terminals to switch the feed of the solar panels. Both to Ecoflow and none to onboard, one to Ecoflow and one to onboard, or both to onboard. I can then set the system based on charge state and weather. The enclosure will also have space for a couple of isolators. I will blog when completed if anyone's interested.
Todd, if you needed to choose between the Ecoflow Delta, or the Ecoflow River Pro with the extra battery, which would you choose for home use? Talking simple battery back up for a CPAP and other comparable uses. But, may also be used to help power tools or a portable fridge/cooler for weekends out of the house. Thank you.
Since they are both similar prices, I might go for the Delta because the inverter is so much more powerful and it’s one box. Both would run that size appliance though.
I like the fact you could use after market MCA solar panels. I like jackary but not crazy about them trying to steer everyone toward their proprietary panels at x3 the cost per watt.
Problem with the heatgun is that its feeding back exzess energy so its clear why the power meter jumps around. In my house the light flickers if i use the heatgun not in the max power settings.
No. In fact, even a very large unit like the Delta Pro can only add a few miles of range to a car. For reference, the River Pro holds 0.7kwh of energy and I think even a small electric car like the Bolt is 65khw. I think even a basic level 1 charger needs 15-20A or 1,500w+ so the inverter in this couldn't run it and if it could, it would add enough energy to make a difference, maybe just a mile or two of range
This is $579 now on Amazon. BTW, X-Boost lowers the voltage output, which is fine for heaters, toasters, etc. But not for sensitive electronics. It would be nice if they put the expansion battery hookup in the same place as the main unit too.
@@todd.parker thanks for the quick reply, our power has been unreliable lately. I have a 6000 watt gas generator but a solar would be nice too. Thought about buying a small quiet Honda gas generator but they are pricey for what you get. I like your Apple analogy for the generators.
Great review of the ecoflow system. Have the largest system from ecoflow which I think was an overkill purchase May get a Delta 2 and a river pro instead and save money.
Great informative video. I have a question. I'm planning to use the River Pro for emergency home backup. Do you know if it's recommended to have the unit plugged on to AC? Thanks
It works like a standard UPS for common items. Or you can just leave it unplugged like mine and will hold a full charge and not lose any charge sitting on my desk. We do sometimes use it for power outages for TV, router, few lights etc.
Thanks for the great review. Can you simultaneously charge via solar and AC? I ask because my vehicle has a 400w AC port that I can use when I'm parked, otherwise it's 100w while I'm driving. I'm wondering if I could I use my 100w/400w AC port on my car, and combine that with a 200w solar panel to charge even faster.
If I listened correctly, its internally regulated to accept 200 watts of "DC in", and there is a reason why you can only charge a lithium ion battery at a certain rate....... have you ever spent any time around RC cars? So in short (haha pun intebded), I think your overall charge rate is internally regulated.
I've got a low wattage electric heater that this can power. Also got an electric blanket with a car cigarette plug on it, one for the vehicle and one at home for emergencies.
Could you please comment more on your setup to use a lithium ion phosphate battery to mimic a car charger as a charging option as demonstrated around the 23:00 mark? I really like this as it seems like a nice alternative to chaining the second battery and having extra power in reserve. I just picked up this up alone without the extra battery pack as I decided for my usage if I needed more hours I would probably just grab a larger model and the pack would collect dust, but the recharge option here seems like an appealing compromise and one that could be used for other purposes.
You can connect any 12v battery like I showed and input via the car charger but think of that as more of a trickle charger for the battery at 100w. The external battery effectively doubles the capacity so the big upside to that is you can draw power at a higher rate. So if you’re in a low draw situation the car charger setup will keep things charged up but it’s not as efficient or powerful as using the expansion battery
The river pro is perfect for a one handed, lightweight unit that is good for medium sized appliances. If you need to run larger AC appliances you should go with the Delta Mini or Max.
Thank you for the great review Todd! I'm seriously considering this product and only concerned whether it would have enough power for a Keurig k-mini plus which requires 1470W only during the heating cycle. My guess is with the x-boost it would handle it. Thoughts?
I actually don't think this will power that. The inverter is rated at 600W (Surge 1200W) total and in my tests it could handle up to ~700w for shorter periods and it will definitely trip at 1,400w. XBOOST is a bit misleading because it's still limited by the inverter's total power (600W) but it reduces the voltage to try and deliver more amperage so to handle that much power, it would be outputting around 50v and nothing will run at that level. Most appliances don't function well when it starts dropping below 100-110v and it can damage electronics. I'd suggest looking at the Delta 2 so you can run "real" appliances like the Keurig.
When comparing it to Blueetti for me big downside for me is I need at least 30v input for my solar panels. Which even my blueeti 50s is capable of. Also comparing cycle life of the bluettis that is a big plus for the blueetti. But you did a good job showing the other advantages this unit has. Too bad for me this unit don't work
Hey Todd, thank you for the great review. Until now the 800 cycle times were a deal-breaker for me. As I learned from your video, the quit charging disables the X-Stream charge function. Do you have a figure or guess how this affects the expected cycle times, if only charged in "quit charching" mode. Many thanks in advance and Greetings from Germany
Hi. It's hard to say but with this battery chemistry, they are usually rated at ~800 cycles even with slower charging so I don't know if Ecoflow is already being fairly generous with cycle count with their fast charging but my hunch is this will be a lot gentler on the battery so you can expect a longer life.
@@todd.parker Great review - thanks (just ordered one here in NZ). As a newcomer to these sorts of generators what upper and lower charging levels would you recommend for longevity of battery(cycles)?
Hey Todd. I reached out to Ecoflow regarding solar panel max wattage, voltage, etc and got a canned response that wasn't very helpful, so I was hoping to get your opinion. I just picked up the river pro and battery, and I was thinking about grabbing a single 250 watt 24v solar panel to use with my minivan, and based on my understanding that the River pro can only handle 12A max, the math 250w/24v clocks in at 10.416 amps and this should be ok to use, and based on your video whatever power I get will likely be hard limited at 200 watt. Does that sound like an ideal panel, or is it better to go with two smaller panels? I'm very new to this so I am being cautious, but my assumption was since you rarely get full wattage out of a panel anyway going for the 250 and letting the device limit would get me the best results.
I think that sounds like a great setup. You’re lucky to get 80% of rated output under ideal conditions, even lower if mounted flat on a roof so I think you’ll be fine. One vs. 2 panels is up to you but one might be less to mount
Now on sale at Costco for $700 for the base unit plus expansion battery. At that price its a steal over the competition. I use these for camping and I like the idea that I can leave the expansion battery at home for shorter trips, rather than lugging along a huge unit every time
For the price I can’t decide between this and the battery or the Delta for a little more? Any advice. I realize both have different uses but I’m wondering if the extra inverter size or any other X factors would make the delta a better buy? Any advice?
@@johnb528 good question. The delta is $250 more and has slightly less capacity but a much stronger inverter and higher solar input. Form factor aside, ask yourself what kinds of AC appliances you want to run. The Delta will run pretty much anything a standard outlet can handle while the River Pro is better for small to mid size appliances and electronics. If you don’t need to run bigger appliances the River Pro is a better value and easier to move around
By far the best review of this battery system on UA-cam. You really hit all the bullet points! I ordered one this week and was a little nervous about the no return policy, this review has me feeling very good about my decision and helps me understand the strengths and limitations of the pack. Thank you!
Glad to hear it. I think you’ll enjoy it
Agreed
What's the difference between the regular ecopro river and the pro other than the boost
@@frediventure3 The standard River has a much smaller battery (288 vs. 720wh), has a smaller expansion battery (576 vs. 720wh), slower wall charging, etc. I'd go with the Pro or Delta Mini over these older products
@@todd.parker thank you so much really aporeciate your quick reply. One more queation tho. Im planning to buy a protable ref freezer. Alpicool which is about 45watts do u know how long i could run it with river pro? Tnk u so much man. Your review is is amazing. Good luck to you🤗
One of the best videos I have watched comparing the River Pro with one of its direct competitors.
Much appreciated this review! Confirms my confidence in my choice. I originally picked up one of the Duracell 660 units and couldn’t return it fast enough! My wife couldn’t even budge it! I just ordered one of these. I am still waiting for FedEx to get their act together and deliver it. Great customer service from ECOFLOW though.
No extra battery yet, but most likely will add this on before next winter storm season. However I gave it some thought and I think the connection cable for the 2 units is probably that way for 3 reasons:
1- stiff cable is more resistant to repeated flexing and damage to internal wire strands
2- size of cable (diameter) is to avoid power loss
3- length of cable allows you to carry both units while walking with one in each hand without tripping yourself or hindering your stride
Considering the location of the plug, I think they should make another cable with a 90 degree out sitting flush with the body of main unit. The way it is right now, I am scared one could easily hit or tug on it and cause it to break internally.
Yeah. I wish the cables connected in back too
If you like this one. Then you would really like their delta 1300. I own both.
We were hovering between Bluetti EB70 and EcoFlow River Pro. Went for the River Pro primarily for the internal charger where-as bluetti had a noisy external power brick. Fastcharge is also a good feature. This review really helped us getting a good view of the EcoFlow product. We're getting the EU version with 2x230V tho :)
Awesome. I’m reviewing the Delta 2 now and that’s another winner
Ecoflow delta 2 way better
Thank You for what you do. I have seen a number of reviews and all seem to say what you did. So, I bought the River Pro. I wanted a mid-size unit, and for the price and fetches, this is the best.
Perfect review of the River Pro could not ask for more. Thanks Todd.
This was by far the most through review of this unit I have watched. Extremely informative. Thank you!!
Luckily I bought this unit 2 days before I saw this post and video..so glad I watched it as it confirmed my choice. By far the best review I've seen and I understood all of it as I'm not a high tech person. Delta was my second choice but seemed for my needs this one was better and cheaper even after buying the expansion battery. And at $399.99. I can afford more expansion batteries as needed to survive longer days of uncertainty. Very well put together. Thank you
Months later are you still enjoying it? Researching this thing and mostly just coming across promo reviews where someone was sent one but little follow up or someone using it regularly.
@@bucky716 yes, works perfectly. Its very portable and has enough power for what I'm using it for. Ego generator is what I'm using for my heavy backup. But I have 15 batteries to keep it running. It just has a slow recharge time otherwise I'd give it a higher rating. You won't go wrong with this choice, because you will need a fast solar charge to be ready for the next day without power
@@markf6932 appreciate the follow up and info! I'm waiting for UPS to deliver mine today.
@@bucky716 Amazon has the extra battery on sell. And With a 30 dollar extra coupon. Just ordered another 5 min ago. Cheap buy.
My EcoFlow river pro arrived on sale from Costco. Your review helped in many ways. Thank you for clear and concise review.
Excellent, glad it was helpful
We have used the ua-cam.com/users/postUgkxOTeIs0vv4_9B5hsmnLsk9r930uDQLu_Y for probably 30 hours with our camper and it’s been great! The noise level is really only noticeable when running the AC and other appliances like the microwave, hair dryer, or coffee pot. It’s not huge like other ones and it has wheels so even at 90lbs, I can move it!
Really informative video. I’ve just ordered this eco flow unit will extra battery. With proposed power blackouts in the UK and Europe this winter I think it’s going to come in handy.
Perfect timing. I have been considering this River Pro. Was originally wanting the Yeti 1000x but they never came out with that model, instead they go right up to 1500 and a much higher price than I wanted to pay. So been wanting something more along the lines with this model. I am watching the video now but hoping you review it to run a full-size fridge.
It ran my full sized fridge but will only run it for about 12 hours with the expansion battery, maybe 16 if your fridge is more efficient than mine. I really like the River Pro, good stuff.
An update: Goal Zero released a 1000 Core exclusive to Amazon that looks interesting. I'm working on getting. review unit. www.amazon.com/Goal-Zero-Generator-Tailgating-Emergency/dp/B0988916ZK/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=yeti%2B1000%2Bcore&qid=1628701071&sr=8-2&th=1
Just bought mine! Amazing Detailed review! Open boxed model for $349.99 Free shipping! Cant beat that!
I dig the display of the River Pro. It gives you all the necessary info you need. Most important of all, the usable time left.
First time on your channel. What a thorough review! I feel like I got a really close-up look at the Eco-Flow system. It looks like a really well thought out and engineered system. You took a lot of time reviewing all the key features. Nice production work on the video, great camera work and solid audio, something that others on UA-cam struggle disregard. Looking forward to watching more videos from your channel, Todd. Thank you.
Thank you so much, that’s really nice to hear. I do like to show the details and get a bit more close up so you can feel what it’s like. Also, I hate being on camera. I’m working on an Ecoflow’s Delta Max review as we speak so be sure to subscribe if interested.
@@todd.parker - I'm subscribed! Can't wait.
@@larryware1 my delta max is out btw
@@todd.parker - saw it. Nicely done! I think EcoFlow has the best system available.
This is a great review. I received my River Pro and extra battery this morning along with the 160 solar panel. I never was able to connect the extra battery, nor was I able to use the app. After a couple calls to Ecoflow, they admitted that there was a problem getting the main unit to recognize the extra battery. I was told I needed to upgrade the software but because I could never get the app to work, there was no way to get the units to work together. You should never be able to do more with the app than the main unit. This all goes back to Costco in the morning.
That’s a bummer. The app has worked perfectly for me but I’ve heard others have had the same problem
By far the best ecoflow review, ive been watching hundreds of vids & this one helped me decide way better than others! Great job thanx!🙃
So great to hear, thanks!
Very helpful. Just beginning to outfit for overlanding and just dying with so many options. Thank you!! For my needs, this is going to be ideal, I think.
Great review. I really like my River pro. I don't have the expansion battery but I converted two 400 watt scooter batteries that I use to back up all my small solar gens and it's way cheaper ($90 total for used batteries, charger, connectors and special "dongle"). Not as pretty but saves $300 and I get an extra 100 watts.
parts list and schematic for your expansion batt?
I'd be curious to see what you did there. I though connecting lithium batteries of different sizes/voltages was tricky to pull off. I think that's why Goal Zero went with lead acid (boo).
I used/ watched some tutorials on jehugarcia ("jag35") channel. Bought the dongle from his site, sourced the rest from Craigslist and Amazon.
Your speaking ability is worth commenting on, first of all.😁 I love to hear such well spoken narration over an interesting video. Thank you for this great video. 🌥️
Thanks for the detailed review, based on this just ordered mine! Looking forward to using this product
Awesome, you’ll really like it
Extremely well done. I am in the market for a unit that I can use overlanding while being a decent backup at home during short outages. Thank you for this review.
Dude, trust me, this is absolutely EXACTLY what you are looking for. It will not disappoint on either front. Though, when overlanding, I do bring my 160 Watt Eco Flow solar panel set-up (the best in the business, by the way) and my slightly older Renergy 300 solar battery, just in case.
Thanks for a great review, Todd. I have learnt a lot and just purchased my River Pro. My first time using the Solar panel was a bit of a surprise in that, even it started to collect the sun energy immediately, as shown in the Input watts on the display, there was no increase in the total stored energy % . In fact, it has gone down from 51% to 47%. It is possible that my sun capture was not too high, @36% input only. Just wonder if I have done something incorrectly and thus not will never achieve any benefits from this green energy. Knowing I can make use of the sun's energy is exciting, just need to do it right to make it worth the time too. Your comments are appreciated.
Huh, that seems odd. So you were getting 36w of solar input and the state of charge dropped 4%? Did you have anything connected to the AC, DC, or USB ports that was draining the battery as you charged it? That would explain the losses if the sola input was less than the output.
very good review brother, very in depth and HONEST.
Thanks !! This was the best review I've seen !! I was going to order a Jackery & heard about the River Pro & this was a great to see the different things it does.. thanks again!!
Nice! I think you’ll like this much more than a Jackery
We have the river max and love it it’s perfect for a weekend of camping , we used to on Saturday charge it in the suv while we ran to gas station or to get firewood but I recently picked up the 110w solar panel for it so I can’t wait to try it in the spring with that
I have a Bluetti AC50S, a EcoFlow River Pro, plus a Jackery Explorer_1000 which is really good!.. but far away the EcoFlow River Pro is the more advanced in every aspect. I love it! 👍
2 months ago, is everything still running good on it..?? i see reviews where back up service isnt great??? wanting to buy one myself
But will it last as long as the other two!
I've just bought one!!! Great review 👏
Thank you very much for this review. You gave a lot of valuable technical information.
My only nitpick is that the "wild display activity" during the heat gun test was probably the unit reacting poorly to the heat gun's power control circuitry.
You probably can't get a proper load above 600w without triggering its surge/overload system.
The reason the heat gun could run at such high power was because it was constantly going into and out of its surge algo, but never "timing out". This is probably bad for the unit.
This is why the space heater couldn't run without the "x-boost" trickery enabled.
Also, it is valuable to know that the companion application, at least according to the top Amazon one-star review, DOES NOT WORK if you do not have cell service.
This is a significant problem for a product whose major use case is to be taken out into the sticks where the comforts of civilization might not follow, or when the comforts of civilization have failed you.
Fortunately its basic functionality remains functional via the front panel, but losing the ability to configure the X- modes could become a problem.
I plan to buy one, and personally will leave the fast charger disabled unless I want to take it on the go, where I will want to optimize my time with a gas generator running or when I have limited access to "shore" power. I'll also probably leave the voltage trickery feature enabled, as I want to see how it'll work with a 700w microwave oven.
There is one last neat feature it supports according to the manual: UPS mode.
If you turn on the AC outlets while plugged in, it'll shunt the incoming power to the outlets.
Then if the incoming power goes out, it'll (after a ~30ms delay) start up its inverter and run your device on battery.
Any updates after owning this? The required cell service for app seems odd. Some versions of android require bluetooth to be used with location on. This might be the confusion? Otherwise bluetooth connection shouldn't require cell service. Or even Wi-Fi direct. Any update on this? Thanks.
Thank you for the best professional review! River Pro it is.
Hi Tod. Very neat and easy for a solo female. Thank you again.
I really liked your review on this. You didn't glean over the fact that there is a reduction of appliance or tool voltage when needing to use the X Boost function and true, we don't know how that will affect the appliance or tool. Many reviewers omitted that information, so really appreciate your fair evaluation on this point. I think it's still the best unit out there as a mid capacity generator and have looked at many reviews. I did look at the Delta's reviews and it seems to overheat periodically causing down time, so I went with this unit. I will simply put the extra battery on the floor... not a big deal for me.
One thing I might mention is that it's important to set up the EcoFlow from the app the way you like it as soon as you get it and, before taking it out on the road. If your in an area where there's no cell service or we loose service for some other crazy reason, you won't be able to access the app to make changes. Maybe it would work if one has one of the newer satellite phones. Please correct me if my thinking is wrong on this. All that said, I am excited to say I did just buy this unit... along with the extra battery and am waiting for delivery.
I liked your set up for the refrigerator generator circuit and want to learn how you did that. This technology is fairly new to me and I'm still learning. Looks like that is a panel box set up?
Hi, thanks. That is a transfer panel, specifically the Goal Zero hone integration kit, I have a few videos on it
@@todd.parker I just watched your video on the home integration kit... great info. Was wondering how it was all connected. Looks very doable... Thank you. BTW, concerning the fridge and microwave coming on at same time... someone suggested putting the fridge on a plug in timer. Those work well, as I have one hooked up to my distiller.
@@Martha-ug2gh Good idea on the timer, that could help with making sure you don't have multiple energy hungry applicants kicking on a the same time.
Just bought a unit after watching your review
I got a River Pro when they first came out on Kickstarter and got delivery in January. February in Texas saw us get hit with a snow/ice storm and this thing saved my butt. They had rolling blackouts where we got power only for a couple of hours at time and then off for 10 yours. That means with this supercharging unit, I could get fully charged before the electricity would shut off for another 10 hours. I had only wished they had a more powerful inverter. Come to find out, they are putting out a Delta Pro which will be the high end. I'm all in.
I just bought the River and the Delta. They will be used for emergency power so the lower amt cycles won't be an issue. I also got both for just over $1960 including one 160w solar panel.
Best review I’ve seen so far! Thank you!
Thank you!
This was really good. Clear, focussed on the important. Thank you.
Thanks, I appreciate it!
@@todd.parker I’ve seen nothing on it but wonder if it can charge a 12 volt trolling motor. That’s a deep cycle battery (as opposed to a cranking battery used to start you boat engine or car). My boat has an inverter/charger already so it’d be simply like plugging it into the wall. I have found nothing but super sketchy stuff online about connecting solar panels directly to the battery, which does not seem wise.
@@johnbmadwis You could plug a battery charger into the AC outlets on this to charge a battery for sure. If you want to charge via solar, you need a charge controller but those are pretty small an inexpensive if you wanted to go that way. Sort of depends on if you want to leave something out in the weather long term (solar panel + battery and controller in a battery box is best) or just need to periodically charge up the battery (River would work well)
What's up my man. Im watching so I wanted to drop a comment. I have the river base model. Cool little device. Got a bluetti eb70 coming soon.
Thank you Sir and nicely delivered... I'll be getting one tomorrow !
They may still be on sale at Costco
@@todd.parker Found them at Amazon after eBay sold out.
Thank you so much for thorough review!
Can do a review or test to see if Ecoflow River plus will power a portable fridge like Dometic CFX28 12 volt or Alpicool C15. I already was disappointed that it would not run my instapot 😒
It should be useful thing in Ukraine lately thanks to our russian neighbours. Thank you for such an informative and detailed review. You helped a lot of people to make a decision and save their time. Appreciate it 🤜🤛
Glad it was helpful. Wishing you and everyone from Ukraine all the best in these tough times.
Thanks Todd, great review as always!
I own this unit with the xternal battery. Power went out and kept things going for several hrs before lights came back on.
Did you have issue with the external battery not being seen by the main unit? I just ordered this package from Costco and found a few videos that show that issue. It seems it's isolated to Costco purchases. The way I see it all the ones from Costco have older firmware which could be the issue
@@DoritosResidue i bought mine thru amazon, so no issues. But i updated the firmware before i plugged the external battery. Then every couple of months i upgrade firmware if needed.
Great review man thanks for taking the time to post this!
Costco has this set up for $699 currently through the end of April. That’s with the extra battery.
Thank you for info. Had a portable lead acid unit that I gave away to a recycling concern. For home use most draw would be the expresso machine in early am. Am single with scant knowledge of electricity. My Toyota battery failed, at seven yrs old. Had to "jump start" and bought a new one. Will probably get one anyway as a backup for infrequent power outages.
Great review! You helped me in making the purchase decision. It would be great to see a review of how it stands today 😀
Still really liking it. The small size a quick charging makes it like a bucket of electrons you can fill up and bring somewhere
@@todd.parker thanks for the follow-up
Can you still get the extra battery? Can’t seem to get it! Sold out for a long time.
I think it’s been discontinued. Check eBay?
I like the fact that it fully charges in one hour
Excellent review, touched on everything I was looking for, thanks 👍
Hi, today I got my additional battery and - of course - I had the same problem with the arrangement and this stiff cable. So here's my solution:
I took off those little plastic caps on the four sides of the grip of the main unit. Unscrew them and deinstalled the grip. Afterwards screw them in again. They will fit even without the grip.
So here you have now a nice platform to stack the additional battery on top of the main appliance. Looks good for me now. The cable is "a little bit" to long but it hides behind the stack.
That’s a great idea
Great information on ecoflow river pro, thanks for the comparison too👍🏾
I need to power a Vox Ac15cc amplifier for two hours in the desert. Which one of these solar generators will achieve this?
Hard to say without knowing how much power it uses. Find that out in watts, multiply by 2 (hours) to calculate the watt hours you need and that will tell you how big a battery. My guess is the River Pro would handle it
Thanks, excellent review and you were able to answer all of my questions. I’m scratching my head though on the design of these units. The top handle just adds to the height of each unit and prevents units from stacking. Why they couldn’t make foldable handle like in Bluetti is beyond me. I like the ability to quickly pair two units by the cable, but the whole design begs for main unit to sit on top of the extension with short cable or even connector adapter that could snap two units together. What EvoFlow engineers created instead is abomination.
I agree that XBoost is very dangerous in playing with voltage so merrily without warning users. Many voltage sensitive appliances, especially the ones with electric motors can be permanently damaged by the owner who doesn’t understand what XBoost is. They should have really not implement this feature at all for a fractional benefit it provides over danger of killing sensitive appliances.
Agreed on all points
I’m going to buy the extra battery . Im excited to see the power difference
A very great review, I’m not IT in this stuff but your review was user friendly, thank you ☺️
Thanks so much for the wonderful video! Lots of great, useful info and your delivery is smooth as butter! I was wondering what the advantage is of getting this setup vs. the Delta. In our use case, the grid is to the point where we have rolling blackouts every year. I’m not looking to power everything when we lose power. Instead, we’ll transfer the most important food and meds to a smaller fridge, power lights and our devices.
I think the main advantage of the river pro is if you want some thing portable and don’t need a large inverter. The capacity with the extra battery is a little bigger than a Delta also. But if you can afford it the Delta is a much more capable unit with a much larger inverter so for your use case I’d probably go with a Delta. On sale at REI now - www.rei.com/product/197018/ecoflow-delta-portable-power-station
I have the Pro and the extra battery, and they are nice. Took some figuring out but I think it's great 👍🏼and got them both on sell
Nice review. I bought one. Looking forward to enjoying it.
It’s really great. Enjoy!
Excellent review, thanks so much! I bought mine a couple months ago after watching your video. So far so good, except I can't get the EcoFlow to pair with my iPhone via Bluetooth (but can connect over WiFi).
I didn't buy the extra battery, but I think a better design would be a stackable locking mechanism, kind of like connecting two lego blocks.
Yeah, I agree that a stackable design without cables would be way better
I cannot get the Bluetooth to pair with my Motorola stylus or over WiFi.
Great review, now I want to see your larger delta review!
I don’t have a Delta yet, but maybe they will send me one..
Exactly! The delta has a better position in the bigger inverters that the pro, even though the pro stacks up well. I have a pro and a standard river, enjoy them alot.
Awesome review! I was thinking to get the AC50s but I think this is worth the extra $$$
The AC50(S) is a great value but I think the Ecoflow is worth the upgrade, especially if you get it on sale. See desc for a coupon code.
@@todd.parker is it loud? Which one is more quiet?
@@RichardMiller-tq6ut it's not loud, it does have a fan on when charging or during AC use. I think you blowing air excessively is more loud and annoying than this.
@@josh4realz211 I got one. It's much more quiet after slowing down the charge current. I would rarely need it to charge that fast anyway. I just wish I could adjust it without wifi. Other than that I am very satisfied with it so far
@@RichardMiller-tq6ut I never thought too turn charge current down with silent charge, probably prolongs the battery too.
Great clear review and comparisons. The only thing I didn’t see you cover was cycle counts. Is there any way to know if the faster charging will decrease the unit’s lifespan? (Or do all lithium batteries pretty much do the same thing?)
I used to get hung up on cycle counts but I’ve come to realize that each company rates their cycles differently so it’s hard to compare. All these are lithium ion chemistry so I think they are roughly the same though battery quality will also contribute but that data is hard to come by. To maximize life just don’t cycle them too deeply and don’t fill them to 100%. I’m a fan of LiFePO4 because they offer much longer battery life and are safer but are a bit heavier.
maybe they should do a spiral cable for more flexibility. The port on the River pro should also be on the top.
I pulled the trigger and ordered the Ecoflow River Pro and extra battery. As I was undecided about the solar panel to buy, I am now researching that deeper. I liked the 160w Ecoflow but seems amiss to lose that 40w on the table since the River Pro can handle 200w total from solar. I want to get as close to that as I can. I am considering the Goal Zero Nomad 200 or the Bluetti SP200 200W Solar Panels. I still lose a tad since neither will give me a full 200 but closer than the 160w panel would from Ecoflow. Now to just decipher what connectors come with each. I think the Goal Zero has an Anderson connector or HPP and the Bluetti has the MC4. Something tells me the Ecoflow River Pro comes with a MC4 to XT60 adapter already? Maybe that will allow me to connect directly with that one. Goal Zero I guess I need an Anderson to XT60 adapter.
The Ecoflow includes the MC4 cable so you just need panels that you can adapt to that. You can also easily parallel connect a pair of panels, like two 120w to get there
10:58 Anyone know where I can purchase another power connection cable?
Great review! You covered pretty much everything. The only thing I missed was capacity testing @ 12v.
Thanks! Yeah, I did the fridge testing but don’t have a power meter to test DC output.
@@todd.parker I was me or do i miss
If the unit will allow "pass-throug" charging???
Can be used as UBS device??
Excellent review - thank you so much for all of the info provided. I do have one question. How does the fan noise compare to other generators? I've seen another review of this product where it sounded like maybe the fan noise was quite noticeable. But maybe that was just the guy's environment? I'm hoping to buy a generator to run and change multiple small devises - laptops, phone, monitor.. but I don't want a loud distracting fan noise. Thanks again!
Fans are pretty quiet and you only hear them under high loads or fast charging, otherwise it’s silent. Similar to a Goal Zero. Charger is much quieter than the Bluetti because it has a loud fan on the power brick that never shuts off plus the internal fans.
How many hours for full size fridge ? Looking for hurricane season. Pass thru power ? Did you try any window ac?
Great review.
I am considering this to connect as a ups for my 1/3 hp sump pump, could take it out once in a while when needed for something else. I am a little concerned though about the x-boost, which may be needed with an electric motor startup. Another negative is that it doesn't run off of the extra battery first and it doesn't appear to have a way to charge the extra battery separate.
I don’t think xboost works for most situations so only plan on running 600-700w appliances with this. After a firmware update and some fiddling, the internal and external batteries now discharge at roughly the same rate. You’re right that the extra battery can’t be charged or discharged by itself, would be nice.
Todd, excellent review and comparison. The newer Yeti 1500X has a better standing with the regulated 12v and the enhanced (built in) charging speeds, but not as fast as the Eco Flow and they don't currently offer expansion batts for the 1500X. The Eco Flow looks like a great set up. The only thing I would like to see is a way to make the extra batteries chainable since you can't charge them unless they're connect to the main power station (Just like Goal Zero). I supposed you could just buy and keep a several extra River Pro batteries on hand. Maybe Yeti is panning to follow suit and switch from Lead Acid to Lithium for their expandable batteries. I'm sure Yeti will let us know soon enough. Take care.
I wish you could chain multiple batteries too. At least you could buy a few expansion batteries and cycle through them if you needed to, like you said. For the size and capability, this is hard to beat but let's hope all these upstarts get Goal Zero to level up quick.
You can use most external battery types with this unit.
I am pessimistic if it comes to high charging rates as in general the lower charging efficiency the higher charge rate.
Mine is out of warranty and I want to bump up to the Larger River 2 for its replacement, now what can I do with the extra battery while I wait to find a good deal on a used River Pro.
Costco has a great sale going on right now for these units
Excellent review in great detail. Was wondering in due time when the internal battery goes bad and needs a replacement. Can you just buy a new battery and swap it out or is this battery sealed inside the unit just wondering thank you in advance
Unfortunately I don' think any lithium power stations make it easy to swap battery packs because they tend to have unique cell configurations with the BMS closely matched to them. That's why I like to recommend LFP battery units now because they have a longer lifespan
Hello again Todd. I hope you don't mind me asking one more Question. I was having difficulty locating a single 250 w 24v panel for this so I started eyeballing a couple 120w panels on Amazon from Newpowa to run in parallel. The title says "120w 24v designed for 24v charge system but looking at the description it shows "Maximum power (Pmax): 120W Voltage at Pmax (Vmp):34.0V Current at Pmax (Imp): 3.52A." Does that imply that these are actually 34v panels and not appropriate for the River Pro? Seems strange that they throw 24v up everywhere but would then be 34 instead.
Yeah those seem like too high voltage. There are lots of 19-24v panels and you can just hook in parallel
542WHR from the AC inverter seems pretty low, Hobotech got 640WHR from the Bluetti EB70 AC inverter. This might sway my decision as that's 15% more capacity from the Bluetti.
I think both are good options. The biggest benefit of the EB70 is the LFP battery. The Ecoflow’s fast charging, better display, app, and the expansion are worth considering though.
Great vid. I'd purchased before viewing, so it's great to see I've made a good choice having considered Goal Zero, Jackery, Bluetti and even Anker. A new install for my small van. I've picked a couple of Renogy's 175W flexi solar panels with a VOC of 23.9V. In the UK I hope that's enough to approach 200W and I'm pleased the unit self-regulates any excess on the occasional sunny day. I guess the spare battery gets charged through the main unit? I'm not so clear on that. Later I might install a 'traditional' power set-up in this van, routing the solar panels to a fixed battery. I guess the best way to charge the Ecoflow Pro in that scenario is simply the DC plug, but wonder if that 'banana'(?) cable could be used somehow? Anyone got experience of that set-up? I'd really like to know. I came quite late to power stations having spent hours researching van installs. They seem perfect for my needs: running a Mobicool, charging phones, batteries and lights. And when I'm not in the van I can take it to the allotment :)
You can connect this 2 panels in parallel to stay within the solar charging limits. It will charge the external battery once the main battery is full, yep. I think this will work well for you as long as you don’t have AC appliances that draw more than 600-700w, it’s a great unit
I've improved my design (I think). I'm using a couple of DIN rail mounted Hager changeovers and some rail mounted Wago terminals to switch the feed of the solar panels. Both to Ecoflow and none to onboard, one to Ecoflow and one to onboard, or both to onboard. I can then set the system based on charge state and weather. The enclosure will also have space for a couple of isolators. I will blog when completed if anyone's interested.
@@todd.parker So you cant charge the external battery seperate from the main unit with Solar or AC wall charger?
@@jmb-cm7mr unfortunately no
Todd, if you needed to choose between the Ecoflow Delta, or the Ecoflow River Pro with the extra battery, which would you choose for home use? Talking simple battery back up for a CPAP and other comparable uses. But, may also be used to help power tools or a portable fridge/cooler for weekends out of the house. Thank you.
Since they are both similar prices, I might go for the Delta because the inverter is so much more powerful and it’s one box. Both would run that size appliance though.
@@todd.parker Costco has a great sale on the River Pro and battery $ 699, Delta for $949. Through the 24th. Tough choice…
@@ThanksForTheLaugh that is a good price. Really just comes down to if you favor portability vs. inverter power. Both are great choices
I like the fact you could use after market MCA solar panels. I like jackary but not crazy about them trying to steer everyone toward their proprietary panels at x3 the cost per watt.
Problem with the heatgun is that its feeding back exzess energy so its clear why the power meter jumps around. In my house the light flickers if i use the heatgun not in the max power settings.
Would love to see you do a review of the Delta Pro!
I would too! I reached out to Ecoflow to see if I can score a review unit.
Hi, can this generator be used to charge a small electric car?
No. In fact, even a very large unit like the Delta Pro can only add a few miles of range to a car. For reference, the River Pro holds 0.7kwh of energy and I think even a small electric car like the Bolt is 65khw. I think even a basic level 1 charger needs 15-20A or 1,500w+ so the inverter in this couldn't run it and if it could, it would add enough energy to make a difference, maybe just a mile or two of range
Great review. Thank you so much.
This is $579 now on Amazon. BTW, X-Boost lowers the voltage output, which is fine for heaters, toasters, etc. But not for sensitive electronics. It would be nice if they put the expansion battery hookup in the same place as the main unit too.
$214 on sale right now at home depot, without the extra battery. Killer deal.
Thanks for the great review. Were you able to run your full size fridge without the extra battery?
Yep, worked great. The extra battery just extends the time you can run an appliance, not how powerful the inverter is.
@@todd.parker thanks for the quick reply, our power has been unreliable lately. I have a 6000 watt gas generator but a solar would be nice too. Thought about buying a small quiet Honda gas generator but they are pricey for what you get. I like your Apple analogy for the generators.
Great job !
That was a really helpful video !
Thanks a lot !
Glad it was helpful!
Great review of the ecoflow system. Have the largest system from ecoflow which I think was an overkill purchase May get a Delta 2 and a river pro instead and save money.
The Delta 2 is a great choice. Check out my recent review
Great informative video. I have a question. I'm planning to use the River Pro for emergency home backup. Do you know if it's recommended to have the unit plugged on to AC? Thanks
Yes, you can leave it plugged in and have it work like a UPS
It works like a standard UPS for common items. Or you can just leave it unplugged like mine and will hold a full charge and not lose any charge sitting on my desk. We do sometimes use it for power outages for TV, router, few lights etc.
Mine will be coming friday cant wait
Thanks for the great review. Can you simultaneously charge via solar and AC? I ask because my vehicle has a 400w AC port that I can use when I'm parked, otherwise it's 100w while I'm driving. I'm wondering if I could I use my 100w/400w AC port on my car, and combine that with a 200w solar panel to charge even faster.
If I listened correctly, its internally regulated to accept 200 watts of "DC in", and there is a reason why you can only charge a lithium ion battery at a certain rate....... have you ever spent any time around RC cars? So in short (haha pun intebded), I think your overall charge rate is internally regulated.
I've got a low wattage electric heater that this can power. Also got an electric blanket with a car cigarette plug on it, one for the vehicle and one at home for emergencies.
Could you please comment more on your setup to use a lithium ion phosphate battery to mimic a car charger as a charging option as demonstrated around the 23:00 mark?
I really like this as it seems like a nice alternative to chaining the second battery and having extra power in reserve. I just picked up this up alone without the extra battery pack as I decided for my usage if I needed more hours I would probably just grab a larger model and the pack would collect dust, but the recharge option here seems like an appealing compromise and one that could be used for other purposes.
You can connect any 12v battery like I showed and input via the car charger but think of that as more of a trickle charger for the battery at 100w. The external battery effectively doubles the capacity so the big upside to that is you can draw power at a higher rate. So if you’re in a low draw situation the car charger setup will keep things charged up but it’s not as efficient or powerful as using the expansion battery
Awesome review! What will make you choose this with the extra battery vs the delta? In my country the first combo is cheaper than the delta
The river pro is perfect for a one handed, lightweight unit that is good for medium sized appliances. If you need to run larger AC appliances you should go with the Delta Mini or Max.
I can't believe it, a manual that actually has print large enough to see, that alone makes this unit worth buying lol
😎😎
great review would have liked to see something air fryer tested on it or an induction hob
Thank you for the great review Todd! I'm seriously considering this product and only concerned whether it would have enough power for a Keurig k-mini plus which requires 1470W only during the heating cycle. My guess is with the x-boost it would handle it. Thoughts?
I actually don't think this will power that. The inverter is rated at 600W (Surge 1200W) total and in my tests it could handle up to ~700w for shorter periods and it will definitely trip at 1,400w. XBOOST is a bit misleading because it's still limited by the inverter's total power (600W) but it reduces the voltage to try and deliver more amperage so to handle that much power, it would be outputting around 50v and nothing will run at that level. Most appliances don't function well when it starts dropping below 100-110v and it can damage electronics. I'd suggest looking at the Delta 2 so you can run "real" appliances like the Keurig.
@@todd.parker Thank you! Much appreciated!
When comparing it to Blueetti for me big downside for me is I need at least 30v input for my solar panels. Which even my blueeti 50s is capable of. Also comparing cycle life of the bluettis that is a big plus for the blueetti. But you did a good job showing the other advantages this unit has. Too bad for me this unit don't work
I’d like to review that Bluetti since it’s very competitive with this and has better LFP chemistry and solar input.
Hey Todd, thank you for the great review. Until now the 800 cycle times were a deal-breaker for me. As I learned from your video, the quit charging disables the X-Stream charge function. Do you have a figure or guess how this affects the expected cycle times, if only charged in "quit charching" mode. Many thanks in advance and Greetings from Germany
Hi. It's hard to say but with this battery chemistry, they are usually rated at ~800 cycles even with slower charging so I don't know if Ecoflow is already being fairly generous with cycle count with their fast charging but my hunch is this will be a lot gentler on the battery so you can expect a longer life.
@@todd.parker You mean if you use the battery with it?
@@sixpackbinky I was just saying that in general, you can increase the cycle life by NOT charging fast or to 100% or discharging deeply.
@@todd.parker Great review - thanks (just ordered one here in NZ). As a newcomer to these sorts of generators what upper and lower charging levels would you recommend for longevity of battery(cycles)?
Thanks! Basically you want to avoid extremes if you can so 20-90% or 20-80% it will be kinder on the battery
Hey Todd. I reached out to Ecoflow regarding solar panel max wattage, voltage, etc and got a canned response that wasn't very helpful, so I was hoping to get your opinion. I just picked up the river pro and battery, and I was thinking about grabbing a single 250 watt 24v solar panel to use with my minivan, and based on my understanding that the River pro can only handle 12A max, the math 250w/24v clocks in at 10.416 amps and this should be ok to use, and based on your video whatever power I get will likely be hard limited at 200 watt. Does that sound like an ideal panel, or is it better to go with two smaller panels? I'm very new to this so I am being cautious, but my assumption was since you rarely get full wattage out of a panel anyway going for the 250 and letting the device limit would get me the best results.
I think that sounds like a great setup. You’re lucky to get 80% of rated output under ideal conditions, even lower if mounted flat on a roof so I think you’ll be fine. One vs. 2 panels is up to you but one might be less to mount
Costco has this unit for $699 with the extra battery included. Sale goes until 6/20/21. Just bought one.
Yeah, it’s a great deal!
@@todd.parker even with free shipping to boot!
Costco ran out of them.
Thought I'd note that your post here is what made me go for it last month. Yay for Costco.
@@adventuresinAI1982 haha no problem! I saw that deal and snagged it quick.
Now on sale at Costco for $700 for the base unit plus expansion battery. At that price its a steal over the competition. I use these for camping and I like the idea that I can leave the expansion battery at home for shorter trips, rather than lugging along a huge unit every time
Wow, that’s a great price!
For the price I can’t decide between this and the battery or the Delta for a little more? Any advice. I realize both have different uses but I’m wondering if the extra inverter size or any other X factors would make the delta a better buy? Any advice?
@@johnb528 good question. The delta is $250 more and has slightly less capacity but a much stronger inverter and higher solar input. Form factor aside, ask yourself what kinds of AC appliances you want to run. The Delta will run pretty much anything a standard outlet can handle while the River Pro is better for small to mid size appliances and electronics. If you don’t need to run bigger appliances the River Pro is a better value and easier to move around