EcoFlow River 2 PRO 800w LiFePo4 UPS Power Station Solar Generator Review

Watch The Video On YouTube 

The Professor reviews the EcoFlow River 2 PRO portable LFP lithium battery power station solar generator and discovers significant improvements.

WATCH IT HERE

Intro:

• Last fall I reviewed two of the new Ecoflow River 2 series power stations but the largest model the “Pro” wasn’t yet ready for prime time. This product has now hit the virtual retail shelves and it’s time to see, is it any good? Let’s find out!

Features:

• For clarification, the River 2 series consists of 3 different products. The base 256wh River 2, the 512wh River 2 Max, and the 768wh River 2 Pro. Since I’ve already reviewed the smallest two models we’re solely focusing on the Pro version today.

• Battery Capacity/Tech/Cycles: The River 2 Pro sports a 768wh LiFePO4 battery rated 3000 cycles to 80% capacity

• Size/Weight: Approximately 11×10x9 inches @17lb

• Design/Display: Has a basic black and white LCD display that shows input/output watts, battery % with icon, and time to charge/discharge

• Inverter Size/Type (constant/peak) and #outlets: The Pro sports an 800w pure sine inverter with 4 outlets and offers Ecoflow’s proprietary X-Boost feature that allows you to run some appliances up to twice the rated wattage of the inverter. It does this by dropping the voltage to allow higher amps. It is not recommended to use this feature on appliances that are computerized, run a high draw electric motor, or a compressor. Fortunately, X-Boost can be easy disabled within the app.

• Ways To Charge (and times for each): This unit offers 4 ways to charge. AC charging at up to 940w claims to top up the Pro from dead to full in just over an hour. The Pro supports up to 220w of solar from 11-50v and will charge this model under perfect conditions in about 4 hours. 100w max of 12v car charging means zero to full in about 8 hours . Last but not least, you can charge the Pro via 100w USB-C PD charging. This too will take about 8 hours from empty. Note that both the AC charging and 12v car charging maximum speeds are selectable within the app.

• 12v Output Types: The Pro version offers a 10A vehicle accessory socket along with a pair of 5521 barrel plug outputs rated 3A each with all outputs regulated at 12.6v. The max output for all 3 combined is 126w.

• USB Output Types: The Pro sports 3 standard USB ports good for charging up your dinosaurs and a single 100w bidirectional USB-C PD port.

• Other Features: All River 2 series supports the EcoFlow app for remote access which allows the user to adjust charge rates, timeouts, and enable or disable the X-Boost feature. I’ve covered this app in detail many times in the past. Here’s a quick peek.

• Warranty: Ecoflow offers a class leading 5 year warranty across the board on all River 2 series products.

Testing: 

• DC Battery Capacity Test (time lapse): This unit scored 670wh/768 for an impressive 87%

• AC Battery Capacity Test (time lapse): We were able to pull 640wh/768 for a respectable 83%

• So I’m pretty blown away by these numbers because both the River 2 and River 2 max scored quite poorly on both of these tests with results in the low 70^th percentile. We’re seeing a 10-15 point increase in the Pro probably due to 6 months of firmware updates. The River 2 and River 2 Max were first production models and I even said in that review there was a possibility that Ecoflow would fix the capacity issue via firmware and it certainly seems they have. Kudos Ecoflow!

• Sine wave check under load: 119v/60hz @600w

• Inverter capacity test (max): 1000w <5s

• Cooling ability test (rated @ 5mins): 830w pass

• Inverter fan noise db: 46

• Max Charge Rate @ watts/volts: AC 900w, DC 12v 96w, 19v 150w, Max 50v 218w

• Charging fan noise db: 45

• Simultaneous charging ability: none

• Pass thru / UPS: UPS passes laptop test. Measured @15ms

• DC Output(s) Max Rate: 10A

• 12v output(s) regulated: 12.6v

• USB output rate check: 100w pass

• Amp interference test: fail

What do I think about it? :

• We’ve seen massive improvements in both battery capacity and fan noise in the current Pro model. Unlike the River 2 Max in my previous review, the Pro model passed the UPS laptop test with flying colors and with a real world measured 15ms switchover time – and to all the haters it was done without the battery being full. It’s much better than the 30ms “EPS” Ecoflow claims. You can legitimately use it as a low latency UPS to keep a computer online regardless of the stability of the grid power coming in.

• With the Pro there’s not much to gripe about feature wise except the lack of USB quick charge ports and no wireless charging pad. These are things you’d expect on the top of the range model. They wasted no expense on a SOS flashlight so no flagging down our little buddies upstairs. It is a minor bummer that the Pro fails the amp interference test and doesn’t support any kind of simultaneous charging. I hoped to see improvements there for something they are calling a “Pro version”.

• Let’s get something straight. Ecoflow isn’t an entry level brand. You can find models around this size all day long on Amazon, for hundreds less from fly by night brands you can’t pronounce. However, there is serious bang for the buck here since the Pro offers a 10 year battery that charges crazy fast with a 5 year warranty at a reasonable price. Ecoflow also seems to have the least complaints of the “big three” when it comes to customer service.

Pricing and competition

• Product Price with current discounts:

  • The retail price for the 800w River 2 Pro is $599 but of course I have an exclusive discount code that will knock off a chunk of change for viewers of the channel. The link and code are below.

• Who’s It Aimed At? (market focus):

  • These small sogens are meant mostly for portable power while camping or to supply power to small devices like laptops or televisions during a blackout or at a location without power. These are not meant to run residential refrigerators, air conditioners, or heaters although the Pro can handle those for a limited time if they are smaller appliances. The Pro should have no problem handling most personal computers, TV’s, and other midrange appliances under 800w. Certain appliances over 800w such as coffee machines and hot plates can also be run if you activate the X-Boost feature, but use it at your own risk.

• Recommended Solar Panel Type/Size:

  • The Pro supports up to 220w of solar. Your best bet since these are portable products is to get the appropriate Ecoflow folding solar panel to match. The 220w bi-facial is a fantastic, if pricey, choice. You can use 3^rd party panels but be aware that none of the River 2 series includes a MC4 to XT60 adapter. I do have those available on hobotech.tv/amazon under solar adapters. If you want to check out other less expensive options for solar panels you can click on “solar kits” on the same site to see what I have there.

• If you’re interested, use this link and code EFHOBOTECH8 at checkout for the best price online!