Review: Wagan (EL2547) Solar e Power Cube 1500 Plus

Wagan (EL2547) Solar e Power Cube 1500 Plus

8.6

Power

10.0/10

Design

8.0/10

Build

8.0/10

Reliability

8.5/10

Pros

  • Has a Very High Power Capacity for Charging and Powering devices for quite a while
  • Can power appliances with its AC Outlets and also its 12V Outlets
  • Has 3 Recharging Options

Cons

  • The Plastic isn't built too well on the power supply
(Last Updated On: December 7, 2018)

Portable power sources are devices that go beyond just any normal power bank and the reason for that is because these types of chargers have very high power capacities that are within the 6 figure range and another thing is that they have many paths of powering and charging devices.

These aren’t meant for taking out during your days because they can weigh into the hundred-pound range and are very large.

With that said, these power sources still hold their place for a purpose and that would be the fact that they’re able to offer so much power and charging capabilities when you’re away from a stable source of power.

That is why this Wagan Solar e Power Cube is very useful to have if you want a power source that you can take with you where there’s no stable source of power as this one has Solar panels that are able to recharge it and you have lots of devices that are being powered and charged.

Let’s take a closer look at what this power source has to offer and if it’s worth the price tag. Check out the price on Amazon.

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Power

Power Capacity:

The power capacity of this Wagan Solar e Power Cube is on the same level as other portable power sources when it comes to its capacities such as the Goal Zero Yeti 400 and the Anker PowerHouse, since this Wagan power source has a power capacity of 100Ah and that basically converts to 100,000mAh.

That said, that’s just an initial power capacity that the power source has and the Output power capacity that you’re going to receive is going to be lower depending on the way that you’re using the charger.

As there are lots of powering and charging options that the portable power source has such as AC, and 12V Outlets and also USB ports. So if you’re using the AC Outlets heavily then that could result in a lower Output power capacity because there’s a possibility of using lots of Wattage power.

While using only the USB ports is going to result in a lot better of a conversion because the charging speeds are not too fast to make the conversion bad.

3.7 x 100,000 = 370,000 / 5 = 74,000

Capacity for Smartphones

The Average Output power capacity that you’re going to receive is going to 74,000mAh and that is still a lot of power that you’re able to utilize. Smartphones are going to be able to charge to full power many times.

As smartphones such as iPhone with its 1960mAh can charge to full about 38 times if you were solely just charging it with the Wagan Power Cube. Or a higher capacity smartphone such as the Galaxy S8 with its 3,000mAh capacity can charge to full power about 25 times.

Just remember that these full charge estimates are based on charging these certain devices at a single time only and not in tandem with another device.

Capacity for Tablets

Charging tablets with this power source is easy also as Mini tablets such as the iPad Mini 2 or the iPad Mini 4 can charge to their full power about 11 times. A full-sized tablet like the iPad Air 2 with its 7,340mAh power capacity can charge to full power about 10 times.

Wagan (EL2547) Solar e Power Cube 1500 Plus
(Output Power Capacity = 74,000mAh)
Phone CapacityWagan (EL2547) Solar e Power Cube 1500 Plus Left Over Capacity after One Charge

Number of Full Charges for the Device
iPhone SE74,000mAh1,624mAh72,376mAh Left Over

45.5 Full Charges
iPhone 674,000mAh1,810mAh72,190mAh Left Over

40.8 Full Charges
iPhone 6 Plus74,000mAh2,915mAh
71,085mAh Left Over

25.3 Full Charges
iPhone 6s74,000mAh1,715mAh72,285mAh Left Over

43.1 Full Charges
iPhone 6s Plus74,000mAh2,750mAh71,250mAh Left Over

26.9 Full Charges
Samsung Galaxy S674,000mAh2,550mAh71,450mAh Left Over

29.0 Full Charges
Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge74,000mAh2,600mAh71,400mAh Left Over

28.4 Full Charges
Samsung Galaxy S774,000mAh3,000mAh71,000mAh Left Over

24.6 Full Charges
Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge74,000mAh3,600mAh70,400mAh Left Over

20.5 Full Charges
Apple iPad Mini 274,000mAh6,470mAh67,530mAh Left Over

11.4 Full Charges
Apple iPad Mini 474,000mAh5,124mAh68,876mAh Left Over

14.4 Full Charges

Capacity for Laptops

Then of course, since this portable power source has the capabilities of charging laptops you’re going to be want to charge laptops with it.

The Wagan Solar e Power Cube does a great job when it comes to charging laptops as well because MacBooks and similar laptops basically have the same power capacities that tablets have. So that means if you’re solely charging laptops with this portable power source, you’re able to charge them to full power multiple times over.

Wagan (EL2547) Solar e Power Cube 1500 Plus
(Output Power Capacity = 74,000mAh)
Phone CapacityWagan (EL2547) Solar e Power Cube 1500 Plus Left Over Power Capacity

Number of Full Charges
MacBook74,000mAh5,020mAh68,980mAh Left Over

14.7 Full Charges
MacBook Pro 15"74,000mAh5,500mAh68,500mAh Left Over

13.4 Full Charges
MacBook Pro 17"74,000mAh6,400mAh67,600mAh Left Over

11.5 Full Charges

USB Port:

There are two USB ports on the Wagain portable power source and each of the ports has a different charging speed. One USB port has a charging speed of 5V/2.1 and the other port has a charging speed of 5V/1.0A.

These are rather slow charging speeds and we honestly expected more from something that has such as high power capacity and so many powering capabilities.

You’re going to want to use the 2.1A USB port first because it offers the faster charging speed and you should only use the 1 Amp charging port if you’re charging two devices at once, as the 5V/1.0A port has a slow charging speed.

The charging speeds are nothing great but you’re at least able to charge two devices at once.

AC Outlet:

There are two AC Outlets on the Wagan e Power Cube and the Output Voltage combined between both of them is 115V AC, 60Hz. The wattage power that’s available between the two outlets is 1,500Watts Continous at a 3,600Watt Surge peak. The AC Output waveform is a Modified Sine Wave.

Overall, the AC Outlet power that the Wagan provides is basically on the same level as the wall AC Outlets inside of your own home.

So you can power appliances such as mini fridges, blenders, radios and even TVs if the wattage is within the 1500Wattage range.

So the AC Outlets are capable of a lot and you should first take a look at what you want to power with them before actually purchasing the Wagan Solar e Power Cube because you want to be able to use its powering capabilities and not be left with disappointment.

DC 12V Outlets:

There are two DC 12V Outlets and of course, they’re capable of Outputs of 12V/15A. This is enough to charge most laptops on the market at their max charging speeds and it’s also enough power for any other powering/charging needs that you have.

Input Charging:

The recharging of the Solar e Power Cube can be done by 3 ways.

AC Input:

The AC Adapter charging speed is 12V-15V/5A and the full recharge time when using the AC Adapter method of recharging is 24 hours. You’re going to be using this charging method when you’re close to a Wall AC Outlet most likely in your own house.

DC Input:

The DC Input allows you to recharge the Wagan portable power source the same way that the AC Adapter lets you recharge it. It’s just that this type of recharging method lets you recharge the Wagan Power Cube when you’re inside a car by using your vehicle’s 12V Outlet.

The DC power adapter has basically the same charging speed as the AC Adapter which is 12V/5A and you’re going to basically have the same full charge time as the AC Adapter and maybe a little longer because a vehicle is not able to keep the same power output constant nearly as much as an AC wall Outlet is able to do.

Solar Recharging:

The most useful recharging method that this Wagan Solar e Power Cube offers is right in the name and that would be through its Solar Chargers. The Wagan has a total of 5 Solar Panels and each of the panels is capable of an Input of 16Watts and since there are 5 Solar panels that result in total Input power of 80Watts.

If the Solar panels have 18 hours of direct sunlight then that would result in a full recharge of the Power Cube.

Of course, you’re not going to be getting 18 hours of direct sunlight continuously because that’s literally impossible but with so many Solar panels being used, you’re still able to charge the Solar e Power Cube up to a good point with enough constant direct sunlight if you take this portable power source into the wild or out for a picnic day.

One of the best features when it comes to the Solar recharging is that you can add additional Solar panels because there are Positive and Negative ports at the bottom that allow you to connect another Solar panel to make recharging this power source even faster. This is one of the strongest and most innovative points that it has.

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Design

Size and Weight:

Of course, this power source is going to be very large and heavy. Not something that you’re likely going to be able to pick up. It has a length and width of 53 inches and a thickness of 37 inches.

The weight of it is 122 pounds. That is why the power source has wheels at the bottom of it and it also has extendable handle behind that allows you to simply roll it across the floor and not have to pick it up at all.

For the weight that it has and the way that you’re able to be portable with it, the ease of portability is quite good as long as you don’t plan on picking it up and just rolling it around with the wheels.

Functional Components:

At the front is where there are most of the functional parts of the power source and the bottom right portion is what I’m talking about the most. As that’s where you’re going to find the:

  • 2 AC Outlets
  • 2 V12 Outlets
  • 2 USB ports
  • the Inverter Switch
  • The Active Buttons of the Inverter with one that says “Fault” and another one that says “Power”
  • There are two Solar Terminals at the bottom right with the Red being the positive and the Black one being the Negative. You’d use this Solar Terminal to add another Solar panel for faster recharging.
  • There’s a VoltMeter to the top left that shows you the Voltage and there’s a display button that you can press to active the VoltMeter

Another thing that’s at the front is the Battery Disconnect Switch and you can turn it “ON” and “OFF”.

At the top of the power source is where there are 5 Solar panels that are foldable into the power source and you’re able to unfold them and have them all facing out. That way, the Wagan is able to make the most out of the solar rays that it gets to recharge itself.

At the back is where there are two battery terminal connectors and that’s where you’re able to connect other batteries to the portable power source. So you can basically add more power capacity to the current 100,000mAh power capacity. Also at the back is where you can extend a handle and roll the power source with you.

Build

Structure and Material:

The build quality of the is good on the surface when we’re talking about the structure but it does have its faults. That’s because the body is made out of plastic and the plastic isn’t very durable at all and so if you were to hit it or to bump it anywhere then the plastic is able to crack.

Tech:

On the tech side, the portable power source is a lot more stable and well built rather than its plastic structure, as it has lots of safety tech features to keep everything stable and to keep your devices safe when you’re charging or powering them.

Reliability

The reliability of this Wagan Solar e Power Cube is really good because of its amazing powering capabilities as it’s able to offer lots of powering and charging options.

The AC Outlets are able to power appliances and the powering capabilities of the AC Outlets are basically just as powerful as the ones inside of your house. Also, the DC ports are can be used to charge laptops. The USB ports could use an improvement with their charging speeds though.

Another highly reliable part of this portable power source is its extremely high power capacity and the fact that you can extend it even further by using its Battery Terminals that are on the back.

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Summary:

Power:

There are lots of powering and charging options that are able to charge devices multiple times to full power and this power source can even power appliances that your wall AC Outlets are able to power.

Design:

It’s a very large and heavy portable power source, but its handle and wheels make portability with the power source a lot better to use.

Build:

The plastic used on its structure isn’t too durable but the tech of the power source is a lot better.

Reliability:

There are so many avenues of power when it comes to this power source that you’re able to take advantage of it.

As it has a high power capacity that’s extendable, a solar recharging method that includes 5 solar panels and the options to add even more power capacity and there are lots ways to charge and power your devices with what it offers.

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Specs of the Wagan (EL2547) Solar e Power Cube 1500 Plus:

  • Capacity:            Advertised: 100,000mAh            Output Capacity: 74,000mAh
  • Output:

USB Ports:    USB Port 1: 5V/1.0A | USB Port 2: 5V/2.1A

AC Outlets: 115V AC, 60Hz | 1,500Watts Continuous 3,600Watts Surge Max

12V Outlets: 12V/15A

  • Input:

AC Input: 12V-15V/5A

DC Input: 12V/5A

Solar Input: Each Solar Panel: 16Watts | Altogether: 80Watts

  • LED Power Indicators:
  • Size: 53 x 53 x 37
  • Weight: 122 Pounds

Conclusion:

Overall, the Wagan Power Cube is a great portable power source and it has its reason for being so large and heavy and that would be because of the fact that it uses 5 Solar panels to recharge.

So if you plan on using it where there’s going to be lots of sunlight, then this is the best portable power source to own.

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