Portable Power Station Shootout: EcoFlow vs BLUETTI vs Jackery

Portable power stations have become the Swiss Army knife of road-trip electricity. Fridge? Yep. Laptop? Easy. Coffee machine? Now we’re getting serious.

For a fair fight, we’ve picked three current units sitting almost bang-on the 1kWh mark: the EcoFlow DELTA 3 Plus, BLUETTI Elite 100 V2 and Jackery Explorer 1000 v2.

EcoFlow DELTA 3 Plus

EcoFlow was founded in 2017 by battery engineers and is based in Shenzhen, China. The DELTA 3 Plus packs 1,024Wh, delivers 1,800W AC output, weighs around 12.5kg and uses long-life LFP battery chemistry. It can recharge from mains power in about 56 minutes, while its whopping 1,000W solar input can theoretically refill it in around 70 minutes under suitable conditions.

Find out more - ECOFLOW DELTA 3 PLUS

Its real touring party trick is EcoFlow's optional alternator charging system — drive for around 1.3 hours with the 800W charger and you can refill the battery. That makes considerable sense on a Drive Stay Play road trip.

We love: huge charging flexibility and strong 1,800W output.Next evolution: shave a kilo or two off it.

BLUETTI Elite 100 V2

BLUETTI grew from Shenzhen-based PowerOak, established in 2013, with the BLUETTI brand launching globally in 2020. The Elite 100 V2 brings 1,024Wh, 1,800W output and weighs only about 11.3kg. It can hit 80% charge in roughly 45 minutes, accepts up to 1,000W of solar, and its optional vehicle charger can refill 1kWh in around 1.8 hours.

Find out more - BLUETTI ELITE 100 V2

For touring couples, campers and people who don't want their power station to require its own postcode, that combination is pretty compelling.

We love: excellent power-to-weight ratio.Next evolution: include the solar charging cable as standard rather than making it an extra on the standalone unit.

Jackery Explorer 1000 v2

Jackery was founded in California in 2012; its products are designed in the US and manufactured in China. The Explorer 1000 v2 has slightly more capacity at 1,070Wh, produces 1,500W, yet weighs just 10.8kg — the lightest of our three.

Find out more - JACKERY EXPLORER 1000 V2

Emergency Super Charging can take it from flat to full in 59 minutes, although regular AC charging takes about 95 minutes. The compromise is slower vehicle charging — around 12 hours from a conventional 12V car adaptor.

We love: light, compact and refreshingly simple.Next evolution: faster touring-focused vehicle charging.

But what does 1kWh actually mean?

Forget laboratory gobbledygook. Allowing for normal conversion losses, roughly 1kWh gives you around 850–900Wh of useful AC energy. That's potentially a couple of days for an efficient camping fridge depending on temperature and cycling, around a dozen-plus laptop recharges, or enough short bursts from a 1,000–1,200W coffee machine to keep the campsite considerably more civilised.

And that’s the point. These aren't just giant phone chargers anymore.

For serious Aussie drive touring, EcoFlow gets our nod because its combination of output, fast solar and particularly fast alternator charging suits a vehicle that keeps moving. BLUETTI is snapping at its heels and saves some weight, while Jackery is our pick when portability matters most.

Apparently we now require electricity to go camping. Our grandparents would be disgusted. Until they saw the coffee machine!