Bluetti PV68 68W foldable Solar Panel Review

(Last Updated On: March 21, 2023)

Solar panels come in different sizes and with different charging power. The higher the wattage, the more expensive the solar panel will be; of course, you have to consider what you will use the solar panel for. A 300W solar panel wouldn’t make sense with a mini power station with only a 100W max solar recharging speed. Even low-wattage solar panels have their place.

In this review, I’m looking at this Bluetti PV68 solar panel. As you can probably tell by the name, this Bluetti solar panel has a 68W power output, and that may not seem like much, but in my testing, I found this PV68 panel to be incredible when it comes to recharging a mini power station. I recommend not sleeping on these smaller panels, especially with one with good solar efficiency.

Solar Charging Power

The sun exposure on the panels matters most when it comes to using solar charging. A clear sky day with total sun exposure on the panels is an ideal condition to let you use the most power from this Bluetti PV68 solar panel; a cloudy or partly cloudy day will leave you with lackluster results. However, the same can be said for any solar panel.

With that said, for my testing, I had a great clear sky day with the full sun hitting the panels for the most part. I had periods where tree branches blocked the sun, but the test went smoothly.

I used the Bluetti PV68 solar panel to recharge an EcoFlow River 2 power station; yes, this panel is more marketed towards charging Bluetti’s EB3A and EB55 power stations, but you can still use this PV68 for charging nearly any power station on the market.

The compatibility of this PV68 is great because it uses an MC4 connection, and since the River 2 power station uses an XT60 solar input port, I used an MC4 to XT60 charging cable.

I started my testing at about 12:30 pm; the River 2 was at about 7% of battery power, and with the full-on sun hitting the panels, the River 2 power station could recharge at 55W. A 55W recharging speed for a 68W solar panel is excellent.

So I left out the PV68 panel to keep the River 2 power station recharging, came back at about 3:00 pm to check the charging status, and the power station was at 53%. The most notable part is that the PV68 panel was recharging the River 2 at 66W, so this Bluetti solar panel nearly used the full 68W it’s rated for. I was impressed.

Finally, the test ended at about 6:30 pm with the sun going down and only a little sunlight on the panels, and River 2 was at about 87%; the little sunlight hitting the panels was recharging the power station at about 15W.

Although this Bluetti PV68 solar panel only has a 68W power output, it’s incredibly useful for charging a mini power station such as the River 2, which has a 256Wh capacity.

Design

This is a pretty small solar panel, with the PV68 having a length of 19.7 inches when folded and a 21.6-inch height; when unfolded, the length of the PV68 is 35.6 inches. So even when the panel is unfolded for sun exposure, you don’t need much space. Also, the panel is easy to carry because it only weighs 7.5 pounds and has a large handle that makes portability easier.

The panel uses an adjustable kickstand with buttons to change the angle. There are also buttons to hold the kickstand down when you’re not using it and buttons to hold the solar panel together when it’s folded. Also, at the back of the panel, you’ll find a pouch where the MC4 cable fits, and you can likely fit a few other cables into the pouch, too.

Bluetti nailed the design of this solar panel; everything feels so compact, lightweight, and easy to use.

Build

Even though this is a very simple solar panel, it doesn’t feel like it. Bluetti is a top brand for solar portable power sources, and they wanted to ensure this panel was built well. The PV68 panel has an IP65 water-resistance rating, meaning the panels are splashproof but cannot withstand water submersion.

This is a monocrystalline panel with an ETFE film layer, which gives the panel excellent efficiency and a good build in terms of rigidity.

	Bluetti PV68 68W foldable Solar Panel Specs
Power	68W
Lamination	ETFE (Ethylene tetrafluoroethylene)
Cell Type	Monocrystalline Silicon
Cell Efficiency	Up to 23.4%
Open Circuit Voltage(OCV)	24.6V
Short Circuit Current(Isc)	3.6A
Connector	Standard MC4 Connector
Weight	7.5lbs / 3.4Kg
Dimensions (Unfolded)	35.6 x 21.6 inches
Dimensions (Folded)	19.7 x 21.6 inches

Conclusion

The Bluetti PV68 solar panel may not offer the most charging power, and that’s fine. If you have a mini power station that can recharge from a solar panel, this PV68 is a great choice. It is efficient when dealing with full sun exposure, and the design is small and well thought out. If you don’t require too much solar power, you can’t go wrong with the PV68.