Anker’s Discounted Power Station Can Power Your Next Camping Trip
As winter fades into the rearview mirror, it’s time to get outside again. After hibernating for most of this dreary winter, I’m looking forward to getting back into the great outdoors. But I take my creature comforts with me, so I need portable power to keep them going on road trips and camping adventures.
The Anker Solix C1000 is my pick for the best portable power stations for camping because it has the capacity to keep your phones and tablets charged, perhaps run a small refrigerator or cooler for a weekend, and has a handy light bar for a soft glow at night.
I’ve always liked Anker’s power banks, so I was thrilled when the company released a Solix line of larger portable power stations. This category is growing in popularity as people want to go off-grid, but take power with them, and Anker’s Solix offerings are some of the most refined and reliable.
The Anker Solix C1000 packs a LiFePO4 battery that should last at least a decade of use. The 1,056 watt-hour capacity (which can be doubled with a BP1000 extender battery) is enough to keep your gadgets online over a long weekend. Most power stations are dull, so I like the charcoal and gray design with blue highlights and the silver power button. The built-in handles make it relatively easy to carry, although it weighs just under 30 pounds, so I wouldn’t carry it too far. It has tons of ports.
If you’re worried that the limited capacity and maximum power mean this is only suitable for charging small gadgets, you’ll be happy to know that I’ve also tested it with a small fridge, a TV, and an electric drill, without any issues. It can comfortably handle 1,800 watts of power with a surge mode that can handle 2,400 watts.
I used the Solix C1000 quite frequently, putting it in the car for road trips, taking it camping, and relying on it when I rewired my house and had the power out for hours each day. It can quickly charge most phones, charge your tablet or camera, and power your laptop. If you want to use it for something bigger, consider getting a foldable solar panel to complete the whole thing. It has an XT60 input for solar panels or charging from a car socket (cables included).
The Solix C1000 can also operate as an uninterruptible power supply with a 20 millisecond delay. But perhaps my favorite feature is fast charging. I forget to charge things too often, but you can fill the battery here in less than an hour, so it’ll be ready to go by the time you’ve packed and loaded the car.
