BLUETTI, a company known for its portable power stations and associated accessories, is currently running an Indiegogo campaign for its new SwapSolar ecosystem of app-enabled products. The launch products in the SwapSolar family include a high-capacity power station with removable hot-swappable batteries plus a multifunction portable cooler. Together, they can keep your perishables cool for up to six days while completely off the grid, or essentially indefinitely with occasional access to power.
The crowdfunding campaign for the SwapSolar campaign is drawing to a close in just a few days with over $1.1 million pledged by backers, and I've been testing out both main products in the lineup to see how they work, including their app integration that lets you keep tabs on the accessories and make adjustments right from your iPhone.
3-in-1 Portable MultiCooler
The highlight of the lineup is the unique 3-in-1 Portable MultiCooler, which can serve as a fridge, a freezer, and an ice maker. BLUETTI says it's the first portable fridge powered by high-density LFP batteries, which retain 80% of their original capacity even after 3,000 cycles. A single BLUETTI B70 battery can power the fridge for up to three days, but it can also run off a standard electrical outlet, a 12-volt socket such as those found in vehicles, or solar panels.
The fridge compartment has a 40-liter/42-quart capacity with an additional 9-liter/9.5-quart ice maker compartment that can produce ice in just 15 minutes from an onboard water tank. The fridge itself features a rapid cool-down mode that can chill the compartment from 85º F (30ºC) to freezing in 15 minutes, and you can set the temperature to as low as –4º F (–20 ºC), so it will work as either a fridge or a freezer.
In my testing, the unit was capable of holding temperature quite well both slightly above and below freezing. BLUETTI recommends keeping the fridge fairly full of items and minimizing the amount of time the lid is left open to help minimize temperature fluctuations, but even with only a few items in the fridge I only ever saw the temperature briefly rise by a degree or two following a quick opening of the lid.
The ice maker is a neat functionality of the MultiCooler, allowing for on-demand generation of ice cubes in two size options for drinks or other needs. Simply fill the ice maker compartment with between 400 ml and 1 L of water, and start up the ice-making cycle. The unit does the rest automatically, passing water over a chilled metal grid to freeze it in sets of 24 cubes.
I wouldn't call even the larger-sized cubes substantial by any means, but they can be made quickly and do the trick for keeping a drink cold. An initial cycle took about 25 minutes to produce a set of cubes, and two additional sets from the same batch of water took about 10 minutes each. You can set the ice maker to produce one set of cubes at a time, or it can run continuously for as long as its water supply holds up or until the ice basket fills up, spitting each batch of cubes into the basket as the cycle completes and immediately starting a new one.
It is worth noting that running an ice-making cycle diverts the unit's power to that function, resulting in the fridge portion gradually warming up. I had the fridge compartment set at 35 ºF, and over the course of the approximately 50 minutes as I ran multiple ice-making cycles, the fridge temperature gradually rose to 44 ºF. It only took about 10 minutes to return to 35 ºF once I stopped making ice, and I didn't notice nearly that much effect on every test series, but it's definitely something to be aware of if you've got perishables in the fridge.
BLUETTI recommends that you change out the water reservoir for the ice maker every 24 hours and fully clean the compartment every three days for hygienic reasons. The unit can run its own 20-minute self-cleaning cycle on the ice-making components, provided it has enough water and power to do so.
In addition to its primary function as a fridge, the MultiCooler can also charge other devices, provided you have a battery installed in the unit. A 100-watt USB-C port and a 15-watt USB-A port are located on the side of the unit, making it easy to plug in a laptop, phone, or other device for recharging.
The most notable physical aspect of the MultiCooler to me is its sheer size and weight. It's rather large at 28 inches (71 cm) by 16.5 inches (42 cm) by 18.7 inches (47.5 cm), so it'll definitely be easier if you've got an SUV, pickup, or van to haul it to wherever you're going. Large coolers are certainly common equipment for camping and picnicking, but it's worth noting that this MultiCooler will hold considerably less than a similarly sized basic cooler, considering the space taken up by the active cooling components and the ice maker.
But even more than the size, it's the weight that limits the MultiCooler's portability, as it tips the scales at almost 53 pounds (24 kg) on its own. A battery weighs an additional 18.7 pounds (8.5 kg), so for on-the-go functionality you're looking at over 70 pounds (32 kg) before you've even put any food or ice-making water into it.
Fortunately, the MultiCooler has convenient recessed handles built into the sides of the unit, but lifting it in and out of a vehicle can still be quite difficult for some people trying to do it by themselves. The removable battery and food baskets can help break the load up into a few pieces to get it out of your vehicle, but the main unit remains quite heavy on its own. However you manage to get it on the ground, a pair of wheels at one end and a padded folding handle at the other do make it easy to pull along behind you, provided the terrain isn't too rough... Click here to read rest of article
Article Link: Review: BLUETTI's New SwapSolar Ecosystem Includes App-Enabled Portable Fridge and Power Station
