For content creators working in the field (or even just on location, yet away from an outlet), a power station can be an invaluable accessory. In this review, I’ll be taking a look at the Bluetti Elite 200 V2, a battery pack with over 2,000 Wh of capacity, and showing just how useful it can be to power all the camera, video, and computer gear you might want.
Specifications
At the heart of the Elite 200 V2 is 2,073 Wh worth of batteries, composed of automotive-grade LiFePO4 cells. Wrapped in the ABS casing, there’s also a status screen, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi radios, and a range of connectors.
The Elite 200 V2 is capable of putting out 2,600 W of AC output, providing power via 2 USB-A (15 W), 2 USB-C (100 W), 4 AC outputs, and 1 cigarette lighter port. For “pure resistance” loads, like heaters, the unit can push up to 3,900 W of power. What this all translates to is a unit that can power just about anything you plug into it, including multiple appliances, lights, or computers at once.
Compared to the lithium-ion chemistry used in something like your camera’s battery pack, the LiFePO4 cells used in the unit trade a bit of energy density (how much energy can be stored in a given volume) for greater safety and far greater cycle life. Thanks to the cell setup, the Elite 200 V2 is rated for 6,000 cycles before falling to 80% capacity (an industry-standard measurement for lifetime), which equals 17 years of lifespan with daily usage. If you’ve considered other battery stations but have been hesitant to “waste” battery cycles, there’s certainly no worry about that here.
The Elite 200 V2 is certainly on the high end of capacity for regularly portable battery stations, resulting in some crazy endurance or recharge figures for common content-creator applications. For example, you could recharge big drone batteries or laptop batteries 22 times, run a portable refrigerator for film for 26 hours straight, or use a 100 W continuous video light for over 14 hours.
Despite that crazy capacity level, Bluetti managed to keep the Elite 200 V2 reasonably compact. While it’s certainly not feasible to hike out into the woods with, at about 50 lbs, it’s easy to move around a car, campsite, or shooting location, particularly thanks to the two integrated handles and “grippable” weight distribution.
Bluetti says it’s 40% more compact than its predecessor, and I’d probably describe it as “a bit bigger than a 5-gallon bucket,” particularly because of the squared-off form factor. If you do need a more portable option for hiking, consider something like the Bluetti Handsfree1, which integrates a power station right into a 42 L backpack and pushes the weight down to just 11 lbs total (albeit with just 13% of the battery capacity).
When it comes to recharging that capacity, Bluetti gives you a couple of options. Wall charging can pull back up to 1,800 W. You can also charge via solar, with the XT60 industry-standard connector supporting a range of solar panel options and input of up to 1,000 W. If you’re in a real rush, you can use the innovative Boost Charging, which combines both AC from a wall outlet and DC from solar to fill the batteries at 2,400 W and get 80% charge within an hour.
Why Is a Power Station Useful for Creative Applications?
I’ve grown to appreciate the convenience of continuous lights for shoots, but stringing extension cords across a space or setting up a generator can be a no-go. Having a power station eliminates any concerns about power access on location: I know I have outlets for recharging drone batteries, powering lights, or anything else I need. The unit is very discreet, with professional branding and industrial design. It’s also very quiet. It’s rated for 16 dB under light loads, with a maximum noise level of 50 dB during heavy use. In my use, I could never hear the unit from even a foot or two away, as anything drawing enough power to ramp the fans would be making noise of its own.
If you’re camping or just away from outlets, a power station also guarantees you can remain powered up and connected. Between this unit, some solar panels, and Starlink, you can be creating, uploading, and recharging from the middle of nowhere, all from a kit that fits in the trunk of even a small car.
As a bonus, it also feels safer and cleaner than toting around a generator: between no pollution at the point of use, no need for combustible fuels, and cells that are the “industry's first CNAS-certified automotive-grade LFP battery, which meets 33 stringent automotive battery standards,” I felt very confident bringing this unit around. Just make sure it’s secured in your car—it’s heavy!
Also, Bluetti has done a good job locating the cooling vents higher on the unit, along with covering vulnerable ports with rubber gaskets, but still, watch it around water and treat it with the same care you’d give any high-power electrical equipment.
As for actually using it in the field, the spread of outlets gives you a lot of flexibility. You have 4 regular AC outlets with support for grounded plugs (and a grounding terminal to keep things grounded). Those outlets support up to 25 amps of draw, so even high-powered lights won’t cause this unit to break a sweat. I was running a couple of 500 W+ lights with no issues at all.
DC output via USB-C and USB-A also worked great, with devices like my MacBook Pro easily negotiating the highest USB-C charge rates they could handle. The only port that is missing for creatives is DJI’s proprietary DC drone fast charge implementation, the SDC or Smart DC port, which offers about another 50 W of charging compared to the USB-C charging hub you could use with the Bluetti power station.
Lastly, the Elite 200 V2 is still useful at home. As a UPS, the Elite 200 can switch over in 15 ms, just inside the ATX spec for switch-over times at 16 ms. By keeping your desktop or NAS hooked up to the Bluetti, you can reduce the risk of data corruption or loss due to unexpected power losses or even leverage the time-control or PV priority modes to save a bit on your power bill. While normally this would seem like a costly choice given the cycle life of a lithium-ion portable battery station, remember that the 17-year life for LiFePO4 is measured from daily discharges. The inverter inside is pure sine wave tech, too, making it an even better match for sensitive loads than many UPS units available at big-box retailers.
Overall, I think the technology behind portable power stations has really hit that point where they are a great option for content creators. As a creator passionate about shooting out in nature, they’re a great way to eliminate any charge anxiety when flying my drone or shooting videos and timelapses. For commercial work, it’s not only replaced generators for my location shooting but also that sometimes-awkward ask of the manager or event staff for outlet permission (plus reduced liability from shorter cord runs).
The Elite 200 V2 is Bluetti’s latest, greatest, and among the biggest, but if you don’t need all that capacity, there’s a range of smaller capacity options that use many of the same great technologies. The AC2A is a tiny box with 204 Wh of capacity, perfect for pairing with a laptop or drone batteries to offer a recharge or two in the field. Moving up the stack, the AC50B has 448 Wh, while the AC180 has 1,152 Wh. All these units feature that great LiFePO4 technology, along with support for USB-C and regular AC outlets, making them great pairings for creators depending on your battery capacity needs.
One thing to watch is pricing: at the time of writing, Bluetti was offering excellent Black Friday pricing on these units, but looking at the price history, 30% to 50% pricing swings are common, along with significant coupons. I’d suggest timing your purchase to catch these units on their almost monthly markdowns, with a benchmark of 50 to 60 cents per watt-hour appearing to be a good deal.
What I Liked
- Great selection of ports
- Class-leading capacity, charging speed, and discharge ability
- Cell choice makes this a reliable investment for years to come
- App is sleek and mostly unobtrusive, with support for local connections (no need for cloud connections)
What Could Be Improved
- Side vents for cooling could include optional deflectors/guards to ensure they don’t get blocked
