The device works great for its intended use which is to run my work-from-home setup during loadshedding. It can run my laptop, monitor and a network switch for just under 4 hours (about 25 - 30 watt load). Gaming is also possible with this unit but it depends on your hardware... Xbox Series S and a monitor requires around 80-90 watts during gameplay. A larger console or gaming PC will reduce this time because they use a lot more power. You can recharge while you operate using any of RIVER 2’s four charging methods — including solar panels. Can I Connect Two RIVER 2s Together in Parallel? All of these ports make RIVER 2 the most versatile 7.7 lb (3.5 kg) PPS on the market. But every port is also an opportunity for water to make ingress into your PPS. While your RIVER 2 will surely survive a slight sprinkle, don’t leave it outside in the rain — and don’t immerse it in the water! The other crucial determining factor in what appliances a portable power station can run is its AC Output. RIVER 2 offers 300W (running wattage) and surge power of 600W (starting watts) thanks to X-Boost. The additional starting wattage gives you the flexibility to run up to 99% of consumer electronics. Can the RIVER 2 Be Used as an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS)? The rated power of the 110W portable solar panel is perfectly matched to the solar input capacity of the RIVER 2. But, due to the factors outlined above, you won’t achieve 110W of electricity generation consistently. However, you also won’t pay for electricity generation capacity that doesn’t get used.

The 220W PV panel comes at a higher price, and some of the energy it captures will likely go to waste… However, just because the RIVER 2 is among the most durable portable power stations on the market doesn’t mean you should drop it in the ocean. For one thing, RIVER 2 has multiple AC, DC, USB-A, and USB-C ports so that you can charge all your devices at once. Many appliances list their power requirements in volts or amps. You can easily calculate the watts by multiplying the volts and amps together:In ideal storage conditions, a RIVER 2 will only lose 2% of its power each month after it’s fully powered and unplugged. However, EcoFlow portable power stations don’t support 0ms switching. For most electronics, a 30-ms interruption in power is negligible. You may not even notice it. However, there IS an interruption — unlike with a UPS.

If you need more power, consider upgrading to other RIVER 2 series devices, such as the RIVER 2 Pro or RIVER 2 Max — each of which offers greater AC output. RIVER 2 Pro offers 800W running watts and up to 1600W starting watts (surge power) using X-Boost. It’s essential to keep in mind, though, that a solar panel rarely produces its rated power output in the real world. This is due to numerous factors outlined in the posts linked above. A good rule of thumb for estimating average electricity output is to assume your panel will produce 75% of its rated power during peak sunlight hours. You must store it at temperatures between 20ºC (68ºF) to 30ºC (86ºF) and completely turn it off after it reaches full charge. If you plan to power multiple appliances simultaneously, you’ll need to add up the sum of their wattages.Any EcoFlow PPS can serve as an emergency power source (EPS) with a 30-millisecond switch time when using power from an AC wall outlet. Once connected, the WiFi indicator will pop up on the screen as well and the app is fairly straightforward in allowing status indicators at a glance, in addition to controlling the various outputs and inputs. Not pictured in the GIF above is a time chart for charging and discharging power levels, which shows how long the various charging inputs have been on for and how efficiently at that—quite handy for solar charging should you need to see whether to move portable solar panels around to better face the sun. The connection is over WiFi, so you can theoretically monitor the power station from a good distance away, which is handily paired with pre-set alarms that will pop up as notifications. The settings menu has plenty of other options, some of which are shown here. In particular, I appreciated the ability to set the maximum charge level, which can be useful even on this LiFePO4-based battery unit that is good for 80%+ capacity after 3000 cycles compared to the Li-ion RIVER Pro, which only had this 80% rating for the first 800 cycles. As such, you can be rest assured about using the RIVER 2 daily for years at a time, and this is also why EcoFlow has increased the warranty period to five years on the RIVER 2 lineup from the two years previously offered. You can also select the maximum charging levels in each mode, limit the output as deemed necessary, and have firmware updates done to the unit that can add more features or resolve any bugs typically seen early in the product life cycle. This app removes the need for an onboard menu with touch screen or navigation buttons, keeping the unit physically smaller and providing more customization, control, and monitoring—a very useful selling point in itself.

Capacity (Wh) / DC input rate (W) = Charge time (h). How Long Does RIVER 2 Take to Fully Charge Using the USB-C Input? Remember that even if you attach a 160W solar panel, the maximum electricity it can generate when connected to RIVER 2 remains 110W. It’s crucial to understand that solar panels (from any manufacturer) rarely reach their total rated power output due to environmental conditions like temperature and other factors. Keep in mind that all EcoFlow portable power stations offer solar charging. Connect a 110W portable solar panel to the RIVER 2, and you can keep your smartphone and laptop charged off-grid indefinitely. What Kind of Solar Charger Can Charge the RIVER 2 Solar Generator?RIVER 2 uses LiFePO4 batteries, a newer subset of lithium-ion batteries. Compared to other lithium-ion batteries, batteries with LiFePO4 (lithium iron phosphate) chemistry require no maintenance, are safer, and have a longer lifespan. However, if you’re powering something like a lightbulb at 60 running watts, you could get over 4 hours of power. It’s the perfect PPS for portability and charging your essential personal devices. But if you want to operate even relatively low-wattage camping appliances on extended trips (more than a day or two), RIVER 2 Pro or DELTA 2 is likely a better option.