Portable power station price showdown

Anker recently launched portable power stations —  the Anker PowerHouse 521 and 535 —  to help South Africans handle Eskom’s rotational power cuts.

MyBroadband compared its new portable power station offerings to those from EcoFlow, Gizzu, Elecstor, and Romoss regarding capacity, power output, and pricing.

We compared the power stations on a price-per-watt-hour (Wh) basis to determine which units offer the biggest bang for one’s buck. However, there are other aspects that customers should consider before making a decision.

When it comes to choosing a suitable power station, some of the most important aspects to consider include:

• Peak power output in watts (W) — The maximum amount of power the station can provide for a brief period. Particularly important for appliances that have high peak usage at startup.
• Continuous power output in watts (W) — The maximum power the station can provide over a long period.
• Capacity in watt-hours (Wh) — How much power the battery can store and discharge. With 100Wh, for example, an appliance that uses 100W of power continuously will deplete the battery in an hour.

Anker announced the launch of its PowerHouse portable power stations on Tuesday.

“The PowerHouse offers consumers resilience against power disruptions, enabling them to maintain their lifestyle and productivity even during power outages,” it said.

The units feature lithium-iron phosphate batteries, which offer enhanced discharge and recharge capabilities compared to traditional lithium-ion batteries.

“To ensure energy optimisation, the PowerHouse series features an energy-saving mode that automatically switches off the station once all connected devices are fully charged,” said Anker.

Anker’s PowerHouse portable power stations will compete with the likes of EcoFlow, Gizzu, Romoss, and Magneto in South Africa.

Portable power station price comparison

Units from each brand are available through Takealot, and to keep the comparison consistent, all pricing used is as per Takealot’s website.

On a price per Wh basis, Gizzu’s 242Wh unit is the most cost-effective option under 500Wh, while its 518Wh backup is the cheapest option available for capacities over 500Wh.

At R3,594, the 242Wh unit works out to approximately R14.85 per Wh. The larger 518Wh unit works out to R13.51 per Wh.

Gizzu also offers two other options under 500Wh — its 155Wh and 296Wh units — which cost R16.12 and R16.89 per Wh, respectively.

Romoss’ Thunder 400Wh power station isn’t far behind regarding cost-effectiveness. It costs R7,399 or R18.50 per Wh.

Romoss also performs relatively well when it comes to capacities of more than 500Wh. Its 933Wh unit costs R13,799 and works out to R14.79 per Wh.

Anker’s new PowerHouse portable power stations, of which only the 521 and 525 models are available, cost more than R20 per Wh.

The 521 model packs a 256Wh-capacity battery and, at R5,999, works out to R23.43 per Wh. This is similar to the price per Wh of EcoFlow’s 256Wh unit. However, the EcoFlow’s power output is 100W higher.

Anker’s Powerhouse 535 unit has a capacity of 512Wh and costs R10,999.

The company will also offer a larger unit in late July —  the Anker PowerHouse 757 —  that packs 1,229Wh of battery capacity.

Elecstor’s portable power stations perform relatively well on a price-per-Wh basis, with its 300W unit coming in at R16.89 per Wh.

Its 1,500W unit also offers significant bang for one’s buck at 16.83 per Wh.

While EcoFlow’s portable power stations are generally quite pricey compared to some of the alternatives, it offers the broadest range with 256Wh, 288Wh, 512Wh, 720Wh, 1,024Wh, 1,260Wh, and 2,016Wh units.

EcoFlow also says its units offer the world’s fastest recharge times when it comes to portable power stations — something worth considering for a load-shedding defence system.

Prices for portable power stations from EcoFlow, Gizzu, Anker, and Romoss are compared in the table below.

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