GET THE RIVER 2: gohobo.io/river2 use code ECOFLOWAFF GET THE RIVER 2 MAX: gohobo.io/r2max use code ECOFLOWAFF Ecoflow's Website: gohobo.io/ecoflow code ECOFLOWAFF Update: Ecoflow says they've FIXED the UPS/EPS of the R2 Max in production!
Great testing, Tom! 👍we are aware of the River 2 Max EPS feature issue and we have already fixed this on a mass production units, so all the River 2 Max that our users will receive will have a perfectly working EPS. Here is the video: ruclips.net/video/0HcLpAUuFo0/видео.html
Virtually any power station is EPS, which just stands for emergency power supply. I just tried an AC30 with two different things plugged in, and there was not even the slightest blink. I should hope the EPS is working perfectly!
I love these for UPS specifically. Sadly these don't implement UPS traditional features (or provide alternative, e.g., RESTful APIs) were even could be provided to the computer so you could act on power loss / battery level.
@@davidlt It was possible to connect to local API with old River but Ecoflow diabled that in latest firmware. I hope they reconsider to open that again otherwise i have to find something else.
Hi Tom, I watched your review with great interest, particularly the section where you test the River 2 Max in the EPS mode. I bought the UK version of the River 2 Max on 11th Nov 2022 and from my own testing it appears that when the unit is plugged in to a wall outlet, powered up and the AC outlet of the River 2 Max is enabled, the Live and Neutral connections between the wall socket and the output of River 2 Max somehow become transposed, which is obviously a dangerous condition for any fused, earthed appliance connected to the unit. I am wondering if this is the reason why your tests on the River 2 Max EPS function with your old laptop failed, since reversing of the polarity of the live and neutral (rather than just switching from incoming mains to inverter) to the laptop psu may result in discharging the psu when switching over to the Inverter output before restoring the power to the River 2 Max’s outlet. From my own testing it appears the live and neutral connection is in the correct orientation when running from the Inverter output. I have raised this with the EcoFlow help desk but their reply so far has been somewhat limited, by saying; “After confirmation by the engineer, your problem may be caused by the following reasons: 1. The EcoFlow machine is off-grid when it is not connected to the AC charging line, so the equipment is not grounded, and there is no distinction between L and N lines. 2. When the AC charging line is connected to the device and the user's AC line is grounded, the ground wire of the device will be connected to the ground wire of the power grid. At this time, L and N will be distinguished. In this case, after the L and N connections are reversed, if the user does not touch the metal conductive sheets of the L and N ports inside with his hands or through other metal objects, there will be no problem. 3. If your machine cannot be used normally because of the bypass mode, you can choose to return it.” I was wondering if you would be willing to do some further testing to see if this is the root cause of the poor EPS performance you observed.
I have the River 2. After an update to 3.1.1.37 last night I have had power interruptions and now EPS Bypass mode doesn't seem to be working. Wondering if anyone else that has this unit has experienced any problems since the update or if I am having coincidental bad luck.
Thanks for all the tests you do. eb3a is obvious competition, and this may be the best alternative. The advantages of River is 2lbs lighter. Bidrectional PD. They both have bad discharge capacity. My application would be for "bikepacking ebike". Expandable with lightweight powerbricks for capacity if needed. Fast charging is essential if a restaurant world/tour can support it. 54w-106w AC ebike chargers are the right load level. AC adapted kettles, 120w that bypass dc output deficiencies. These are the power outputs that will be used with these devices. Test at 50w, 100w, 120w for capacity measures. How does bidirectional PD work with power bricks? Is there a USB-PD adapter that will deliver 52v-54v? How efficient is the USB-PD port compared to other ports? A possible future is USB power delivery for appliances, or other expansion/pervasiveness. The "right" tests could still show poor energy delivery. But the tests have to be catered to how a small power station would be used. The 2lbs weight savings is a huge advantage. Flat top surface design is good for ebike rear rack fixing. Waterproofness is a major feature/value, the eb3a ignores.
@@TylerOstergaard wish someone would post that update -Im stuck between the max and the pro for home backup for outages (have a gas gen as well for large items) it seems odd that the pro would be 10% more efficient then the max
If you use the product to power a freezer or fridge then the slow transfer time is a non issue.. Having a the inverter running while connected to the wall only lowers the lifespan of the inverter.. Having a UPS is better, but as long as people know that it switches slowly, then its OK for some use cases...
100% professional review. Answering my questions immediately from the get-go making me feel confident in my purchase. I live in my car and currently it takes 4 to 5 hours to charge my power bank at the library and this quick charging is going to save me a ton of time and hassle. thank you!
I bought an EcoFlow River and I used it copiously on a 2wk RV vacation and love it. It saved my house battery. I still use it at home. In the rv I used it for my curling iron and as many as 7 things all at once. And I can carry it. I only recharged it once and it still had 53% charge left. For many uses it is just fine.
Bought river 2 max 2 days ago. Hate it. USB c not working, output reading is all bad, fan is very noise charging or using ac. Can not read ac often. Cheap screen. Bad customer service. Return it now
Thank you for another great review. These updates to the River series are what I have wanted. Thank you for demonstrating the pass through charging so well. It is nice to the charging power go up when you plug in the heater. It confirms the behavior I was hoping to see. I don’t trust that all units with pass through do it this way. Great work.
Good for Ecoflow to incorporate LiFePo4 in their smaller offerings. It's a little early on our west coast isn't it! Probably a little chilly in the desert this morning. Right now it's 8°C, 46°F in the Fraser Valley. Be good & safe today.
I love how thorough you are in your testing. I do however keep asking myself about the DC outputs. Because many of the electronics today (probably even the old Dell laptop you tested with) actually take DC power from a "brick" transformer, is it possible to power the computer via one of the DC outputs? The questions become, how do you match the proper voltage to your devices and is there even a "switching time" for DC as that doesn't use the inverter? Think about all the power bricks that could be replaced with DC to DC connections from a device like this and it automatically becomes a UPS if the DC is coming right from the battery and doesn't need any switch over time.
Since you’re reviewing more units with UPS switchover, can I suggest you upgrade to a better oscilloscope that can show exactly how fast the switchover is? You could use a 2 channel oscilloscope and trigger on when the wall power is shut off and see how many milliseconds the sine wave is disrupted for on the power station’s output.
Excellent Review Professor, but I'm not sure about that background music. Do you get the feeling that EcoFlow was lapped by Bluetti and other products and are now just playing catch up?
Also only 8 amps out of the car charger? My little Anker one can do the full 10 and run a 12v kettle (takes about 45% of the battery for one boil, mind)
I picked up a Bluetti EB3A and I love it! I was really hoping one of these would be a great supplement with two USB-C power delivery ports. Not having more than one power delivery ports makes me appreciate my Bluetti that much more. This is a shame. I sincerely hope Bluetti releases a new version of the EB55 and EB70 soon. 🤞
Although the EcoFlow generator will provide battery backup it has fundamental faults which the review does not high-light. Tor example the EcoFlow Delta with need 2400W to charge it, but even though it will supply up to 3000W for short periods, you can only draw a total of 1200W from it - ie only 50% efficient!!. Its akin to going to a well with a leaky bucket and filling it to the top - but only having half a bucket by the time you are home!!. I think EcoFlow should be more transparent on the high inefficiency of their system. This provides a fundamental problem if one of the modes you want to use is charge the EchoFlow Max during ECON7 cheap period to use the EchoFlow during the expensive day rate period. With only 50% total power output it simply is a non-starter.
That’s Professor … these units are junk. Certainly not a Bluette or Vigorpool …, or even close. Lots of your other reviews across many brands confirm to avoid these units. Would not have expected these results but the Professor validated the outcome.
19:54 I just picked up the Max unit today. According to the diagram in the user guide, it is the “LEFT” side A/C that works with UPS (or EPS as they word it). Not the right side. I will test out tomorrow at work and report back!
Perfect, You answered exactly my question on whether the River 2 could be used as a UPS. Much Thx. I had 3-4 Cyberpower UPS back-ups for the TV, Refrigerator and computer. They lose power totally after a year or 2. This is Great.
My buddy bought a base model for his cabin and it works but has terrible flaws. When he runs a low voltage led light it strobes when he runs old tube lights its fine
Can I charge the river 2 - with a 120.watt solar panel ..and the new river 2 MAX can I also use the same 120.watt panel or do I have to buy a bigger solar panel for charging the river MAx
@@HOBOTECH So as long as the solar panel does 30 amp I can use it on both the river 2. And the river 2 max ?? Hate buy two separate panels when a 200 watt would work for both
Hey there. I've tested my River 2 Max unit as ups. and it works great. Probably there was a problem with firmware or an early model. I've connected router, monitor and laptop to the unit. No blinking at all after disable central power supply.
So I now have a River 2, but something peculiar happened. I connected an led lamp and was letting run down to zero. It slowly ran down to 20% and supposedly had approx 2 hours time left but it suddenly went to 0% and power shutoff. Thought I still had 2 hours remaining from the status readout, but practically dropped from 20% to 0% almost immediately. What gives?????
I got an identical 73% AC efficiency out of the box but after a few full discharge/charge cycles it is up to just over 200Wh (about 80)%. Not bad for a 256Wh unit.
does anyone know if they ever did update the firmware to get the AC / DC capacity any higher than the 70 something percent capacity? that is pretty disappointing ..... I did see in the newest review of the PRO that the PRO is in the mid to high 80s - did these little ones improve with newer firmware?
Ecoflow should challenge Bluetti to a break dancing competition! We can pull out some cardboard, and lights, sound system, DJ...all use their respective solar generators to see who is king...
To be fair, the Ctechi GT200 with the larger 320wh lithium phosphate is better value for money than river 2, better quality with an aluminium body rather than plastic has quick charge usb, LED light, much nicer to hold carry handle and is far cheaper. I have two and looked at the bluetti eb3a and river 2 and jackery as well.
Thanks for the review. I do like EcoFlow products, but don't care much for this case design. The unit is light enough for camping and hiking, but having the handle in the back and display on the front is just asking for trouble. Carrying it with the display facing down to the ground just begs someone to set it down on the front panel. And, setting it down on the front panel is going to messed up the display. Suggest putting a handle on one of the sides, so the unit weight is more balanced (even if it only weighs about 8 pounds). With a handle on the side, the display would face forward, or backward, when carrying it to a site, but not downward. Also, space is limited in a camper, so I look for items that are compact and easy to stow. Square off the back of the unit, put a strap handle on it that can also be converted to a shoulder strap, and you have a better unit for hiking to a site.
Ok - so the pro nor the max passed the UPS test. So what does that mean from a practical scenario when I don't care about instantly switch to battery power? Does your test indicate the two don't automatically switch to battery power. Im looking for a unit to mainly run a router. maybe a desktop for very limited use
At $599 I think they’re decent, but an average value. At the sale price it’s a serious option. With your code it’s a no brainer! Nobody can touch a 5 year warranty, all their features, premium name in the game, etc. for that price.
Great video. As far as use as a UPS goes, will these turn back on after they are completely drained? My use case is I connect my router and modem to one of these and go out of town. The power goes out and the River 2 (or River 2 Max) kick in, but then eventually deplete completely. When the power comes back on, will these restart? In other words, will my modem and router get power again as soon as the power comes back on, and will they also have backup power again once the River 2/River2 Max recharges? Thank you!
It is really interesting to see that the lifepo4 battery units are less efficient than the NMC or Lithium battery versions. I don't know why that is. I would be really interested in seeing if the zendure 1500 has the same issue since the 2000 has around 90 percent efficiency. Dont know if you have received that one yet. I did see an oukitel or ffpower unit in the background, I look forward to that test. they seem to be pretty good for the money, i got a oukitel on the kickstarter.
Glad to see the lfp batteries but I still think bluetti has them beat. Now to get goal zero caught up they seem to be about 5 years behind everyone else. But I will still keep building my own, 280ah eve cells are coming back down in price. Though not to discourage people from buying the prebuilts they are still good units.
What happens when the cells get "old"? Can they be replaced (then or sooner) with the better cells? Does the unit need to be sent to ecoflow for service? Or are the cells user-serviceable? Thanks...
I think you're supposed to just dump the unit. Also, as the prof often says, the inverter / charger / solar controller will probably break before the batteries get worn out. Hopefully when they do wear out (and assuming everything else still works), it should be well out of warranty, so you could try a cell replacement (maybe LFP will be more energy dense then, or you could put sodium-ion cells in it). I have a bunch of cheap crappy NMC sogens I got when a shop near me was selling off old stock. 3x 222wh / 200w ons and 2x 155wh / 100w ones. The latter two look like they can be easily taken apart, and probably just have a few cylindrical cells inside, so I might try "upgrading" them to LFP when they wear out. Probably making them much heavier and only with about 80wh capacity, but they have very bright flashlights on!
The power boost feature is often mentioned better never fully discussed. What sort of appliances would power boost work on and be good for? What would be bad? Great review!
@@TheCarmacon 100%... why would you get this when the eb3a does everything the same and has a 600watt inverter... some development makes me shake my head when it's released months afterwards
Not at all surprised by the poor efficiency. The two 1300 units I bought, tested 58% and 59% on round-trip efficiency. So, they have loss in charging also!
@@louloupro88 Inefficient components and design. A DC to AC inverter will typically lose 15%. The best I have measured is 8% loss. There have been some cheap ones where I have seen 40% loss. Add to that inefficient solar charge controllers (or AC chargers) and you can realize 41%~42% loss. AVOID!
So I am really like my River Max, I think they are the best of the ones I've tried. Right now, my huge Cheesegrater Mac Pro and giant Ultra widescreen 34 inch monitor, etc are running off it in UPS mode. I've tested it and the UPS mode works great. Interesting that the new max can't do it. I plugged it in just yesterday because of a storm that threatened power. Im with you...whats the point of a UPS that isn't a UPS?
When you mentioned bi-directional is that the same as pass-through charging, whereby the unit can charge another device while concurrently being charged itself?
Fantastic review 🎉 Thank you so much. I’m thinking about ordering the base River 2 model as in Europe it’s only option available to order, and max and pro models can be delivered only beginning next year. (I probably will order two base models now to keep my gas water heater working when it’s a power outage). I’ve a question. I want to order the 110W solar panel from Amazon in US because it’s cheaper than in Europe. Will it be work with the European version of the River 2 (that has 220v instead of 110v used in US)? Thank you 🙏
Bit late, but solar panels work anywhere there's sun! You need to watch the input volts (you can over-amp, but never over-volt!) and they'll charge the battery just fine. The output voltage is dependent on the inverter, which will be different in different countries, but the solar ontroller and battery will be the same everywhere .
73% DC capacity is GARBAGE!!! The previous versions of the River would pull like 92% DC. Still did crap on AC with 73%, so that's no change. Pitty, I was really interested in the LFP pro.
As of 10/25/22 Here's the deal - $299 retail - Amazon has a $60 coupon - THEN add the HOBOTECH10 Coupon AND...there is a promotion for a FREE EcoFlow Camping Light - Total Cost before Tax is STILL - 209.00.
Love your channel my friend. You are by far the best channel for generators. Keep up the good work. I base all my buying decisions on your testing. I will pass on any eco flow products. Stick with Bluetti for now
I have the river 2 MAX and was looking at the manual and noticed where description is lists battery type and says lithium Ion I thought the batteries were lithium phosphate?🤔
I'm honestly having a hard time deciding between the river 2 and the eba3. I scour the comments for opinions on the two and I see such mixed results. What do you honestly recommend?
@@fckjb284 I've had mine pretty much since this comment. So far it's been great except when I leave it in my car overnight in the cold. It gives me the "temp" malfunction and wont charge until it warms up
How long do you guys estimate the river flow 2 would be able to pull this system?: laptop (i5 11400h rtx3060) 42 inch Samsung tv 1080p 27 inch dell monitor Hauwei 5g router I know its very vague but if you guys do have similar setups I would appreciate your thoughts :D
Just ordered one of these because Amazon had an amazing sale for the river 2 plus 45watt solar panel for $170. I only need it to keep my Camco 350 somewhat cold when camping so I’m excited to see how it works. Thanks for the review!
Thanks for the awesome review videos 👍👍 I bought a River 2 Max on offer a couple of days ago and have just run an AC capacity test running a small heater on 232w and a Power meter. I actually managed to get 90% efficiency (464Wh) so super pleased with that. Either they've made a big improvement with the firmware or ive got super lucky with mine 😀
I have a River 2 Max and it has a 3rd prong that has continuity with the negative connector - I've never seen an XT60 with this before. Is this something you've run into before? I can't get my River 2 Max to charge using my solar panels because I don't have an XT60 connector with this extra ground pin and I can't find one anywhere other than directly from EcoFlow.
For charging my e-mountain bike (2 wheel drive, 2 batteries) at the end of the day in hunting camp I am getting an ECO FLOW River 2 Pro and to charge it a 220 watt OFF GRID TREK solar "blanket". Both appear to be technically and quality wise at the top of their respective categories. I do wonder why the RIVER 2 series CANNOT use a 2nd backup battery. ?? That is why I want the extra juice of the very recently released RIVER 2 PRO.
@HOBOTECH When you tested the UPS functionality on the River 2 the battery was at 60% so the Inverter was active already. When you tested the River 2 Max as a UPS it was fully charged so the inverter was off and AC pass-through was in effect, needing time to switch form AC pass-through to inverter use. Please retest properly and let us know. Looking forward to buy the River 2 Pro when available again. Thanks for what you do. Update. Never mind, I see they fixed it anyway...
In your opinion would the ecoflow river2 be a sufficient power source to run an ICECO TR-45 portable fridge/freezer with 55W compressor (unsure of amps) for 6-8 hours ? In most cases I would be prechilling cooler at home before moving to portable power supply .
Thank you for your video. It helped in deciding what I was going to get. However, when I had the ecoflow2 connected to a 12v to charge, and at the same time, I had my laptop and a mini fridge connected, the 12v plug charging the ecoflo2 melted Unfortunately, I can't send pictures here. I couldn't get just the car charger because this is from China. I had to send the whole unit back. I had the unit for only a few weeks. The mini fridge drew 35W, and my laptop was 24W. You think I had a defective unit or was that too much to be connected while charging? I tested that mini fridge and when plugged in to the ecoflo2 the plug to the fridge got really hot 119°. If you could explain that, it would be great. Thank you.
any updates on the R2 max UPS/EPS and its the river 2 series efficiency... Ive seen 85% claims but you got ~75% which is pretty lackluster. thinking of picking up a river 2, river 2 max or bluetti eb3a which seems more efficient, comes with more cables, etc.
Does charging laptop from 100w USB type-c output (DC->DC) more efficient, than from AC output + laptop charger (cose no additional convertion DC->AC->DC)?
Can you retest the River 2 Max? Since the firmware is probably update by now. Thanks for the reviews. You provide some very real world use information.
Hi tom, I wondering if you're going to be reviewing the River 2 Pro anytime soon ? As always I enjoyed the review of the Ecoflow River 2 and the River Max. I need something with more power and now that Ecoflow uses LFP batteries I am interested in this product.
Hey prof, have you heard of Powerarq? They seem to be a Japan-only brand of power station that are really "mix n match". They do one that looks exactly like a Jackery, one that looks like a small Ecoflow, and their biggest one looks like a Bluetti AC300 but with the capabilities of the AC200P (it even has the Bluetti interface on the screen). Interestingly, they do one that looks like the small Ecoflow, but it has swappable battery packs.
I have the "new river 2" small unit, says that solar input max is 110, if I use a 160w panel will the ecoflow allow for this and only input 110w max or will the panel be useless. Panel would be ecoflow 160w. Any assistance would be appreciated.
I just had my River 2 delivered and, watching this, I’m glad I did….Very scientific and useful report….Actually, I wanted a slim power station for the car but none of them used LFP batteries.
Question. Could I use this kind of like a surge protector? I have a Visio tv that has fried twice due to lightening. So I unplug it everytime a storm comes in. Also, it would be nice to still have my tv and internet running even if the power goes out. You da man, Hobo!
Prof Hobo: "Here are the results of the quad fisting....." Me: "I think I clicked the wrong channel...I never knew that quad fisting could be so...err....scientific"
Great review! I was going to get a lithium battery for my little travel trailer but they quite expensive and I would have needed to get a new converter. Why bother when I can get one of these? It would be good to get one powerful enough to run my microwave but that's not really that important. Do you think the river 2 would be strong enough to run the fan on my heater? That and the lights is really all that matters. Which do you think is best? The river 2 or the bluetti ac50s? Thanks
My jackery that I've had for nearly 3 years just recently died on me and I'm looking at getting a new product to replace it. Somehow I came across these guys and am planning on getting one of them.
GET THE RIVER 2: gohobo.io/river2 use code ECOFLOWAFF
GET THE RIVER 2 MAX: gohobo.io/r2max use code ECOFLOWAFF
Ecoflow's Website: gohobo.io/ecoflow code ECOFLOWAFF
Update: Ecoflow says they've FIXED the UPS/EPS of the R2 Max in production!
Pretty disappointed you didn't show us how long the laptop would run on the river 2 and what is was drawing when testing passthrough
Nice click bait with 3 packs in the thumbnail and u only test one at their request yeah i bet this will be unbiased
Great testing, Tom! 👍we are aware of the River 2 Max EPS feature issue and we have already fixed this on a mass production units, so all the River 2 Max that our users will receive will have a perfectly working EPS. Here is the video: ruclips.net/video/0HcLpAUuFo0/видео.html
Virtually any power station is EPS, which just stands for emergency power supply. I just tried an AC30 with two different things plugged in, and there was not even the slightest blink. I should hope the EPS is working perfectly!
I love these for UPS specifically. Sadly these don't implement UPS traditional features (or provide alternative, e.g., RESTful APIs) were even could be provided to the computer so you could act on power loss / battery level.
@@davidlt It was possible to connect to local API with old River but Ecoflow diabled that in latest firmware.
I hope they reconsider to open that again otherwise i have to find something else.
Yeah except the solar collector is extra, AND Customer service is off shore...
Hi Tom, I watched your review with great interest, particularly the section where you test the River 2 Max in the EPS mode. I bought the UK version of the River 2 Max on 11th Nov 2022 and from my own testing it appears that when the unit is plugged in to a wall outlet, powered up and the AC outlet of the River 2 Max is enabled, the Live and Neutral connections between the wall socket and the output of River 2 Max somehow become transposed, which is obviously a dangerous condition for any fused, earthed appliance connected to the unit. I am wondering if this is the reason why your tests on the River 2 Max EPS function with your old laptop failed, since reversing of the polarity of the live and neutral (rather than just switching from incoming mains to inverter) to the laptop psu may result in discharging the psu when switching over to the Inverter output before restoring the power to the River 2 Max’s outlet. From my own testing it appears the live and neutral connection is in the correct orientation when running from the Inverter output. I have raised this with the EcoFlow help desk but their reply so far has been somewhat limited, by saying;
“After confirmation by the engineer, your problem may be caused by the following reasons:
1. The EcoFlow machine is off-grid when it is not connected to the AC charging line, so the equipment is not grounded, and there is no distinction between L and N lines.
2. When the AC charging line is connected to the device and the user's AC line is grounded, the ground wire of the device will be connected to the ground wire of the power grid. At this time, L and N will be distinguished. In this case, after the L and N connections are reversed, if the user does not touch the metal conductive sheets of the L and N ports inside with his hands or through other metal objects, there will be no problem.
3. If your machine cannot be used normally because of the bypass mode, you can choose to return it.”
I was wondering if you would be willing to do some further testing to see if this is the root cause of the poor EPS performance you observed.
Mr Hobotech, you the man. Thank you so much for these reviews! I have purchased in the past on your product codes. Thanks!
I have the River 2. After an update to 3.1.1.37 last night I have had power interruptions and now EPS Bypass mode doesn't seem to be working. Wondering if anyone else that has this unit has experienced any problems since the update or if I am having coincidental bad luck.
Thanks for all the tests you do. eb3a is obvious competition, and this may be the best alternative. The advantages of River is 2lbs lighter. Bidrectional PD. They both have bad discharge capacity.
My application would be for "bikepacking ebike". Expandable with lightweight powerbricks for capacity if needed. Fast charging is essential if a restaurant world/tour can support it. 54w-106w AC ebike chargers are the right load level. AC adapted kettles, 120w that bypass dc output deficiencies. These are the power outputs that will be used with these devices. Test at 50w, 100w, 120w for capacity measures. How does bidirectional PD work with power bricks? Is there a USB-PD adapter that will deliver 52v-54v? How efficient is the USB-PD port compared to other ports? A possible future is USB power delivery for appliances, or other expansion/pervasiveness.
The "right" tests could still show poor energy delivery. But the tests have to be catered to how a small power station would be used. The 2lbs weight savings is a huge advantage. Flat top surface design is good for ebike rear rack fixing. Waterproofness is a major feature/value, the eb3a ignores.
Did you buy one of these and how is it?
it would be awesome if you can test the discharge % again it seems that others are getting around 80-85% now with different firmware
ever get an answer on that??? wondering why the pro does so much better.
@@anonimous596 i didn't and good question i've got one now and it seems to do fine but i haven't don't extensive tests so it still might be an issue
@@TylerOstergaard wish someone would post that update -Im stuck between the max and the pro for home backup for outages (have a gas gen as well for large items) it seems odd that the pro would be 10% more efficient then the max
Please test out Yoshino Power Station Solid State Batteries!!! reported as the ultimate battery and portable power station!!!
If you use the product to power a freezer or fridge then the slow transfer time is a non issue..
Having a the inverter running while connected to the wall only lowers the lifespan of the inverter..
Having a UPS is better, but as long as people know that it switches slowly, then its OK for some use cases...
100% professional review. Answering my questions immediately from the get-go making me feel confident in my purchase.
I live in my car and currently it takes 4 to 5 hours to charge my power bank at the library and this quick charging is going to save me a ton of time and hassle.
thank you!
"quadruple fisting" - Professor Hobo
This channel has gotten real dark real fast. 🤣
Got a feeling he was a Metal Head back in the day.
I bought an EcoFlow River and I used it copiously on a 2wk RV vacation and love it. It saved my house battery. I still use it at home. In the rv I used it for my curling iron and as many as 7 things all at once. And I can carry it. I only recharged it once and it still had 53% charge left. For many uses it is just fine.
Bought river 2 max 2 days ago. Hate it. USB c not working, output reading is all bad, fan is very noise charging or using ac. Can not read ac often. Cheap screen. Bad customer service. Return it now
What did u get instead
Thank you for another great review. These updates to the River series are what I have wanted. Thank you for demonstrating the pass through charging so well. It is nice to the charging power go up when you plug in the heater. It confirms the behavior I was hoping to see. I don’t trust that all units with pass through do it this way. Great work.
Good for Ecoflow to incorporate LiFePo4 in their smaller offerings. It's a little early on our west coast isn't it! Probably a little chilly in the desert this morning. Right now it's 8°C, 46°F in the Fraser Valley. Be good & safe today.
I love how thorough you are in your testing. I do however keep asking myself about the DC outputs. Because many of the electronics today (probably even the old Dell laptop you tested with) actually take DC power from a "brick" transformer, is it possible to power the computer via one of the DC outputs? The questions become, how do you match the proper voltage to your devices and is there even a "switching time" for DC as that doesn't use the inverter?
Think about all the power bricks that could be replaced with DC to DC connections from a device like this and it automatically becomes a UPS if the DC is coming right from the battery and doesn't need any switch over time.
Since you’re reviewing more units with UPS switchover, can I suggest you upgrade to a better oscilloscope that can show exactly how fast the switchover is? You could use a 2 channel oscilloscope and trigger on when the wall power is shut off and see how many milliseconds the sine wave is disrupted for on the power station’s output.
Excellent Review Professor, but I'm not sure about that background music. Do you get the feeling that EcoFlow was lapped by Bluetti and other products and are now just playing catch up?
Disappointing. Even my little Anker can simultaneously charge with USB-C. Also, no quick charge ports? People still have lots of non USB-c stuff.
Also only 8 amps out of the car charger? My little Anker one can do the full 10 and run a 12v kettle (takes about 45% of the battery for one boil, mind)
I picked up a Bluetti EB3A and I love it! I was really hoping one of these would be a great supplement with two USB-C power delivery ports. Not having more than one power delivery ports makes me appreciate my Bluetti that much more. This is a shame. I sincerely hope Bluetti releases a new version of the EB55 and EB70 soon. 🤞
That EB70s display panel kills me.
Hello! Does your EB3A make some noise (fan) while connected in UPS mode?
I just use one of the outlet extenders with 3 to 1 outlets, 2 USB C, and a USB A... Under $10
❤ the quadruple 👊 👊👊👊. Still waiting on the Finger BANG BANG!
Although the EcoFlow generator will provide battery backup it has fundamental faults which the review does not high-light. Tor example the EcoFlow Delta with need 2400W to charge it, but even though it will supply up to 3000W for short periods, you can only draw a total of 1200W from it - ie only 50% efficient!!. Its akin to going to a well with a leaky bucket and filling it to the top - but only having half a bucket by the time you are home!!. I think EcoFlow should be more transparent on the high inefficiency of their system.
This provides a fundamental problem if one of the modes you want to use is charge the EchoFlow Max during ECON7 cheap period to use the EchoFlow during the expensive day rate period. With only 50% total power output it simply is a non-starter.
"As for the results of the quadruple fisting..." 🤣🤣🤣 OMMFG!!!
That’s Professor … these units are junk. Certainly not a Bluette or Vigorpool …, or even close. Lots of your other reviews across many brands confirm to avoid these units. Would not have expected these results but the Professor validated the outcome.
19:54 I just picked up the Max unit today. According to the diagram in the user guide, it is the “LEFT” side A/C that works with UPS (or EPS as they word it). Not the right side. I will test out tomorrow at work and report back!
Woo whoo! I just paid 279.00 has to be worth it. 😂
Specs and price-wise, how do they compare to the bluetti $240 eb3a and $500 70s?
Watch the video...
Perfect, You answered exactly my question on whether the River 2 could be used as a UPS. Much Thx. I had 3-4 Cyberpower UPS back-ups for the TV, Refrigerator and computer. They lose power totally after a year or 2. This is Great.
Seems like all the EcoFlow inverters have noise issues. I have a River Pro and no way for my ham radio. My Bluetti 70 is for the radio.
try the test again with the River 2 at 100% charge...that's the problem for the UPS function...it will fail...
hopefully they fix the efficiency issue because 74% is pretty horrendous. ideally you'd want 85-90 percent.
I like seeing grounded outlets. Might consider these for a computer UPS if the switchover gets a bit shorter.
My buddy bought a base model for his cabin and it works but has terrible flaws. When he runs a low voltage led light it strobes when he runs old tube lights its fine
bouge has a solar generator that charges in 30 minutes.
You realize I just reviewed it?
Thanks for this vid. I will b staying far away from this companies stuff.
Can I charge the river 2 - with a 120.watt solar panel ..and the new river 2 MAX can I also use the same 120.watt panel or do I have to buy a bigger solar panel for charging the river MAx
You can use whatever solar panel you want as long as it is within the solar voltage range mentioned in the video.
@@HOBOTECH So as long as the solar panel does 30 amp I can use it on both the river 2. And the river 2 max ?? Hate buy two separate panels when a 200 watt would work for both
Your my go to guy when it comes to solar generators very detailed reviews great job
Hey there. I've tested my River 2 Max unit as ups. and it works great. Probably there was a problem with firmware or an early model. I've connected router, monitor and laptop to the unit. No blinking at all after disable central power supply.
So I now have a River 2, but something peculiar happened. I connected an led lamp and was letting run down to zero. It slowly ran down to 20% and supposedly had approx 2 hours time left but it suddenly went to 0% and power shutoff. Thought I still had 2 hours remaining from the status readout, but practically dropped from 20% to 0% almost immediately. What gives?????
Sadly, the Bluetti EB3A killed these 2 products even before they were released.
I bought both this and the new $70 EF Camping Light together for $196. Pretty good deal.
I got an identical 73% AC efficiency out of the box but after a few full discharge/charge cycles it is up to just over 200Wh (about 80)%. Not bad for a 256Wh unit.
does anyone know if they ever did update the firmware to get the AC / DC capacity any higher than the 70 something percent capacity? that is pretty disappointing ..... I did see in the newest review of the PRO that the PRO is in the mid to high 80s - did these little ones improve with newer firmware?
You rock! I think the laptop test for the UPS test was what sold me on this product. Thank you!
Ecoflow should challenge Bluetti to a break dancing competition! We can pull out some cardboard, and lights, sound system, DJ...all use their respective solar generators to see who is king...
And about support. When you have problems. I prefer a company who keeps his worths then 1 who sells and when you have a problem nobody is home!
To be fair, the Ctechi GT200 with the larger 320wh lithium phosphate is better value for money than river 2, better quality with an aluminium body rather than plastic has quick charge usb, LED light, much nicer to hold carry handle and is far cheaper. I have two and looked at the bluetti eb3a and river 2 and jackery as well.
Thanks for the review. I do like EcoFlow products, but don't care much for this case design. The unit is light enough for camping and hiking, but having the handle in the back and display on the front is just asking for trouble. Carrying it with the display facing down to the ground just begs someone to set it down on the front panel. And, setting it down on the front panel is going to messed up the display. Suggest putting a handle on one of the sides, so the unit weight is more balanced (even if it only weighs about 8 pounds). With a handle on the side, the display would face forward, or backward, when carrying it to a site, but not downward. Also, space is limited in a camper, so I look for items that are compact and easy to stow. Square off the back of the unit, put a strap handle on it that can also be converted to a shoulder strap, and you have a better unit for hiking to a site.
I agree.
Ok - so the pro nor the max passed the UPS test.
So what does that mean from a practical scenario when I don't care about instantly switch to battery power? Does your test indicate the two don't automatically switch to battery power. Im looking for a unit to mainly run a router. maybe a desktop for very limited use
At $599 I think they’re decent, but an average value. At the sale price it’s a serious option. With your code it’s a no brainer! Nobody can touch a 5 year warranty, all their features, premium name in the game, etc. for that price.
So I can’t run a heater on the small one?… my heater say it is 1500W PTC, am not sure what does it mean… explain please
Great video. As far as use as a UPS goes, will these turn back on after they are completely drained? My use case is I connect my router and modem to one of these and go out of town. The power goes out and the River 2 (or River 2 Max) kick in, but then eventually deplete completely. When the power comes back on, will these restart? In other words, will my modem and router get power again as soon as the power comes back on, and will they also have backup power again once the River 2/River2 Max recharges? Thank you!
It is really interesting to see that the lifepo4 battery units are less efficient than the NMC or Lithium battery versions. I don't know why that is. I would be really interested in seeing if the zendure 1500 has the same issue since the 2000 has around 90 percent efficiency. Dont know if you have received that one yet. I did see an oukitel or ffpower unit in the background, I look forward to that test. they seem to be pretty good for the money, i got a oukitel on the kickstarter.
I suspect it has a lot to do with Eco Flow's charge controller, DC regulator, and inverters. I do not see these dismal #'s on my Bluetti LFP.
Glad to see the lfp batteries but I still think bluetti has them beat. Now to get goal zero caught up they seem to be about 5 years behind everyone else. But I will still keep building my own, 280ah eve cells are coming back down in price. Though not to discourage people from buying the prebuilts they are still good units.
Can I put my 4 12v cameras and modem in the EcoFlow River 2 while in DC and just leave them there ?
What happens when the cells get "old"? Can they be replaced (then or sooner) with the better cells? Does the unit need to be sent to ecoflow for service? Or are the cells user-serviceable? Thanks...
I think you're supposed to just dump the unit. Also, as the prof often says, the inverter / charger / solar controller will probably break before the batteries get worn out.
Hopefully when they do wear out (and assuming everything else still works), it should be well out of warranty, so you could try a cell replacement (maybe LFP will be more energy dense then, or you could put sodium-ion cells in it). I have a bunch of cheap crappy NMC sogens I got when a shop near me was selling off old stock. 3x 222wh / 200w ons and 2x 155wh / 100w ones. The latter two look like they can be easily taken apart, and probably just have a few cylindrical cells inside, so I might try "upgrading" them to LFP when they wear out. Probably making them much heavier and only with about 80wh capacity, but they have very bright flashlights on!
The power boost feature is often mentioned better never fully discussed. What sort of appliances would power boost work on and be good for? What would be bad? Great review!
Bad for anything with a compressor or computer chip.
So the Bluetti eb3a is still better being that it will go up to 600watts inverter?
@@TheCarmacon 100%... why would you get this when the eb3a does everything the same and has a 600watt inverter... some development makes me shake my head when it's released months afterwards
Not at all surprised by the poor efficiency. The two 1300 units I bought, tested 58% and 59% on round-trip efficiency. So, they have loss in charging also!
How is it possible to have such a big loss?
@@louloupro88 Inefficient components and design. A DC to AC inverter will typically lose 15%. The best I have measured is 8% loss. There have been some cheap ones where I have seen 40% loss. Add to that inefficient solar charge controllers (or AC chargers) and you can realize 41%~42% loss. AVOID!
So I am really like my River Max, I think they are the best of the ones I've tried. Right now, my huge Cheesegrater Mac Pro and giant Ultra widescreen 34 inch monitor, etc are running off it in UPS mode. I've tested it and the UPS mode works great. Interesting that the new max can't do it. I plugged it in just yesterday because of a storm that threatened power. Im with you...whats the point of a UPS that isn't a UPS?
Is it safe to use 220 solar, if you don’t have exact 110 capacity stated for river 2?
When you mentioned bi-directional is that the same as pass-through charging, whereby the unit can charge another device while concurrently being charged itself?
Bi-directional USB charging is not related to pass through charging.
I would love to test out Ecoflow's new 400 watt Rigid Panels
Thanks for the discount code. Used it to buy a River 2 yesterday.
Fantastic review 🎉 Thank you so much.
I’m thinking about ordering the base River 2 model as in Europe it’s only option available to order, and max and pro models can be delivered only beginning next year. (I probably will order two base models now to keep my gas water heater working when it’s a power outage).
I’ve a question. I want to order the 110W solar panel from Amazon in US because it’s cheaper than in Europe. Will it be work with the European version of the River 2 (that has 220v instead of 110v used in US)?
Thank you 🙏
Bit late, but solar panels work anywhere there's sun! You need to watch the input volts (you can over-amp, but never over-volt!) and they'll charge the battery just fine. The output voltage is dependent on the inverter, which will be different in different countries, but the solar ontroller and battery will be the same everywhere
.
73% DC capacity is GARBAGE!!! The previous versions of the River would pull like 92% DC. Still did crap on AC with 73%, so that's no change. Pitty, I was really interested in the LFP pro.
As of 10/25/22 Here's the deal - $299 retail - Amazon has a $60 coupon - THEN add the HOBOTECH10 Coupon AND...there is a promotion for a FREE EcoFlow Camping Light - Total Cost before Tax is STILL - 209.00.
Outstanding review. My EcoFliw River Max should arrive this week. Thanks for sharing 👍
thanks for checking the ups function test. This is very important for my consideration.
Ecoflow posted they'll fix the EPS on the Max version.
Same
Quick charge ports are dead. These days anything that needs to be charged faster than 12W uses USB-C PD.
Love your channel my friend. You are by far the best channel for generators. Keep up the good work. I base all my buying decisions on your testing. I will pass on any eco flow products. Stick with Bluetti for now
That's cause it's probably an EPS as stated on their website and not a UPS. So it didn't fail. Only good for laptops. Not desktops
EPS is a made up term. It simply means "We didn't want to spend the money to make it switch faster". Apparently it was fixed since.
I have the river 2 MAX and was looking at the manual and noticed where description is lists battery type and says lithium Ion I thought the batteries were lithium phosphate?🤔
Lithium ion is a generic term that covers all types including LiFePO4. All River 2 products are LFP.
I'm honestly having a hard time deciding between the river 2 and the eba3. I scour the comments for opinions on the two and I see such mixed results. What do you honestly recommend?
@@fckjb284 I've had mine pretty much since this comment. So far it's been great except when I leave it in my car overnight in the cold. It gives me the "temp" malfunction and wont charge until it warms up
@@JustinKeithDyou mean you got the River 2?
Aside from battery tech seems like a serious downgrade from my river mini wireless.
@HOBOTECH so if i already have an 160W Solar Panel to add to the river 2 ( from my Delta Mini Setup ) nothing will go up in flames right ? :D
How long do you guys estimate the river flow 2 would be able to pull this system?:
laptop (i5 11400h rtx3060)
42 inch Samsung tv 1080p
27 inch dell monitor
Hauwei 5g router
I know its very vague but if you guys do have similar setups I would appreciate your thoughts :D
Just ordered one of these because Amazon had an amazing sale for the river 2 plus 45watt solar panel for $170. I only need it to keep my Camco 350 somewhat cold when camping so I’m excited to see how it works. Thanks for the review!
Looked like the max was fully charged and not drawing power from AC to charge when you turned the power off…I may be wrong…
General rule of thumb - don't ride the limits of specs. Stay about 10% under and problems decrease significantly.
Looks cute, but I think it will not replace my Baby Energizer 300
Thanks for the awesome review videos 👍👍 I bought a River 2 Max on offer a couple of days ago and have just run an AC capacity test running a small heater on 232w and a Power meter. I actually managed to get 90% efficiency (464Wh) so super pleased with that. Either they've made a big improvement with the firmware or ive got super lucky with mine 😀
I have a River 2 Max and it has a 3rd prong that has continuity with the negative connector - I've never seen an XT60 with this before. Is this something you've run into before? I can't get my River 2 Max to charge using my solar panels because I don't have an XT60 connector with this extra ground pin and I can't find one anywhere other than directly from EcoFlow.
For charging my e-mountain bike (2 wheel drive, 2 batteries) at the end of the day in hunting camp I am getting an ECO FLOW River 2 Pro and to charge it a 220 watt OFF GRID TREK solar "blanket". Both appear to be technically and quality wise at the top of their respective categories.
I do wonder why the RIVER 2 series CANNOT use a 2nd backup battery. ?? That is why I want the extra juice of the very recently released RIVER 2 PRO.
@HOBOTECH When you tested the UPS functionality on the River 2 the battery was at 60% so the Inverter was active already. When you tested the River 2 Max as a UPS it was fully charged so the inverter was off and AC pass-through was in effect, needing time to switch form AC pass-through to inverter use. Please retest properly and let us know. Looking forward to buy the River 2 Pro when available again. Thanks for what you do. Update. Never mind, I see they fixed it anyway...
In your opinion would the ecoflow river2 be a sufficient power source to run an ICECO TR-45 portable fridge/freezer with 55W compressor (unsure of amps) for 6-8 hours ? In most cases I would be prechilling cooler at home before moving to portable power supply .
Thank you for your video. It helped in deciding what I was going to get. However, when I had the ecoflow2 connected to a 12v to charge, and at the same time, I had my laptop and a mini fridge connected, the 12v plug charging the ecoflo2 melted Unfortunately, I can't send pictures here. I couldn't get just the car charger because this is from China. I had to send the whole unit back. I had the unit for only a few weeks. The mini fridge drew 35W, and my laptop was 24W. You think I had a defective unit or was that too much to be connected while charging? I tested that mini fridge and when plugged in to the ecoflo2 the plug to the fridge got really hot 119°.
If you could explain that, it would be great. Thank you.
any updates on the R2 max UPS/EPS and its the river 2 series efficiency... Ive seen 85% claims but you got ~75% which is pretty lackluster. thinking of picking up a river 2, river 2 max or bluetti eb3a which seems more efficient, comes with more cables, etc.
Does charging laptop from 100w USB type-c output (DC->DC) more efficient, than from AC output + laptop charger (cose no additional convertion DC->AC->DC)?
My Ecoflow river 2 was powering my PlayStation 4 as a ups and unplugged the river 2 from the wall and still charged it
Can you run window a/c w the 512
Can you retest the River 2 Max? Since the firmware is probably update by now. Thanks for the reviews. You provide some very real world use information.
MEH…
Hi tom, I wondering if you're going to be reviewing the River 2 Pro anytime soon ? As always I enjoyed the review of the Ecoflow River 2 and the River Max. I need something with more power and now that Ecoflow uses LFP batteries I am interested in this product.
Hey prof, have you heard of Powerarq? They seem to be a Japan-only brand of power station that are really "mix n match". They do one that looks exactly like a Jackery, one that looks like a small Ecoflow, and their biggest one looks like a Bluetti AC300 but with the capabilities of the AC200P (it even has the Bluetti interface on the screen).
Interestingly, they do one that looks like the small Ecoflow, but it has swappable battery packs.
checked my river 2 max (EU version, 230v) - relay in it is fast and able to keep my laptop without battery on
I have the "new river 2" small unit, says that solar input max is 110, if I use a 160w panel will the ecoflow allow for this and only input 110w max or will the panel be useless. Panel would be ecoflow 160w. Any assistance would be appreciated.
I just had my River 2 delivered and, watching this, I’m glad I did….Very scientific and useful report….Actually, I wanted a slim power station for the car but none of them used LFP batteries.
Question. Could I use this kind of like a surge protector? I have a Visio tv that has fried twice due to lightening. So I unplug it everytime a storm comes in. Also, it would be nice to still have my tv and internet running even if the power goes out. You da man, Hobo!
None of these power stations include surge protection, just battery backup.
@@HOBOTECH thank you
Will river 2 be good for power outage back up of my wifi router and cable modem which consume less than 40W?
Prof Hobo: "Here are the results of the quad fisting....."
Me: "I think I clicked the wrong channel...I never knew that quad fisting could be so...err....scientific"
Great review! I was going to get a lithium battery for my little travel trailer but they quite expensive and I would have needed to get a new converter. Why bother when I can get one of these? It would be good to get one powerful enough to run my microwave but that's not really that important. Do you think the river 2 would be strong enough to run the fan on my heater? That and the lights is really all that matters. Which do you think is best? The river 2 or the bluetti ac50s? Thanks
My jackery that I've had for nearly 3 years just recently died on me and I'm looking at getting a new product to replace it. Somehow I came across these guys and am planning on getting one of them.