Meet Growatt’s new VITA 550 portable power station [Video]

Published

2 years ago

January 11, 2023

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Power storage and solar experts Growatt have just debuted the VITA 550 Portable Power Station after the success of its INFINITY 1500 and optional solar panel arrays. The compact model is being sold at a special introductory price until January 31. Get $130 off for a limited time with coupon code “GroVita550”.

Read on to learn more about this small device that offers big possibilities for charging a wide array of appliances.

VITA 550 Portable Power Station

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Easy-to-carry battery-powered portable power stations are typically lighter than traditional generators, and they’re safe to operate indoors, unlike gas-powered generators. They’re ideal for camping and road trips and provide home backup during power outages. They can also be used for DIY and off-grid living.

All Growatt portable power stations, which are equipped with AC outlets, DC ports, and USB ports, have handles so that you can take them wherever and whenever you want.

Growatt debuted the VITA 550 Portable Power Station on January 5 at the US CES. The Growatt VITA 550 is a portable power station that can supply all your small device needs, and much more. The station houses 11 output modes:

3x 110v AC Ports
2x USB-A 2.4a Ports
1x USB-A 18w Max Port
1x USB-C 100w Max Port
1x 12v DC Port (Cigarette Lighter)
2x DC Barrel Jack Ports
1x Wireless Power for Compatible Devices

Weighing in at just 18.5lbs this small power bank incorporates a bi-directional inverter and 538wh of LiFePO4 capacity. The bi-directional inverter increases the charging speed and save the users from bringing the bulky adapter. The recharge speed of the VITA 550 is spectacular, as it’s able to fully recharge in 1.6 hours. To give you a comparison, it’s common for electric bike batteries of this size to recharge in 4 hours.

If it’s hooked up to 100W or 200W Growatt solar panels, then the VITA 500 can charge in 2.5 hours under full sunlight with a 240W solar input. At 2.5H, Growatt’s solar panels are some of the best in the industry: They have 99% MPPT efficiency and almost no energy loss occurs. Pairing solar panels with your battery is a must, as that ensures you can always get power from the outdoors and don’t have to rely on the grid.

Easy to read, and use

The display on the VITA 550 is incredibly easy to read and understand. The charge level is front and center, and the output levels are shown both in watts, but also in time remaining. This offers easy to read answers for those of us who don’t want to face off against math class every-time we plug in a phone.

Actually using the device is pretty much plug and play. With the press of a button the ports will instantly provide power to whatever is plugged in, and the display will show how much time you can continue until the battery needs to be recharged. Super simple. With a total of 600W of output, you can use a much wider array of power needs all at once. There are limitations. For example, I plugged in a space heater that was over 600W, and the VITA 550 simply shut down for safety. While it doesn’t offer much in terms of burst power or heavy needs, it’s a great way to put a toe into the water, and even expand into a high-efficiency solar array (100W or 200W) from Growatt.

A wealth of features

On top of the device is a wireless power transfer platform, allowing for seamless charging for compatible phones and devices. If that wasn’t enough, it also includes a steady and SOS flashing LED light. In a tight spot or emergency, it’s good to know the light can be flashing for help. Controlling the device is incredibly easy, but with the My-Gro app, it’s even easier. The VITA 550 has both bluetooth and wifi connectivity, allowing the unit to be monitored and even controlled directly from your phone.

About Growatt

Growatt is a top global power storage manufacturer with 11 years of experience in residential energy storage and solar energy solutions. Its battery storage products feature built-in bidirectional inverters, super-fast AC and solar charging speeds, and 99% MPPT efficiency.

The company, which is an expert in the clean energy solar and storage field, is recognized across Europe and the United States for its top-quality solar and battery storage product performance. It’s provided quality products to more than 3 million families and individuals.

Buy a VITA 550 Portable Power Station now with a $100 off and an extra $30 off with coupon code “GroVita550” during the early-bird pre-sale to bring the price down to $399.

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Environment

Cybertruck backlog runs out, Model S gets stuck, GM hits a sales milestone

Published

3 hours ago

November 5, 2024

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Cybertruck backlog runs out, Model S gets stuck, GM hits a sales milestone

On today’s episode of Quick Charge, Tesla’s Cybertruck is now available in Canada – and, like in the US, there’s no waiting! Plus, we’ve got an “actually” smart summon Tesla that’s actually stuck, GM reaches a sales milestone, and we get a brand-new title sponsor!

Today’s episode is the first with our new title sponsor, BLUETTI – a leading provider of portable power stations, solar generators, and energy storage systems.

Source Links

Prefer listening to your podcasts? Audio-only versions of Quick Charge are now available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, TuneIn, and our RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

New episodes of Quick Charge are recorded, usually, Monday through Thursday (and sometimes Sunday). We’ll be posting bonusLucid proves than an EV company can keep its promises while Xiaomi teams up with Chevrolet and Honda to prove – at least conceptually – that records are made to be broken. audio content from time to time as well, so be sure to follow and subscribe so you don’t miss a minute of Electrek’s high-voltage daily news!

Got news? Let us know!
Drop us a line at tips@electrek.co. You can also rate us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show!

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Environment

This ‘supercharger on wheels’ brings fast charging to you [update]

Published

5 hours ago

November 4, 2024

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This 'supercharger on wheels' brings fast charging to you [update]

Mobile car care company Yoshi Mobility launched a DC fast charging EV mobile unit that it likens to “a supercharger on wheels.”

November 4, 2024 update: Yoshi Mobility will only be charging EVs on the side of the road now – it announced today that it’s selling its fleet fueling operation to EZFill Holdings (Nasdaq: EZFL).

It was originally founded as a direct-to-consumer, mobile fueling business in 2016, but now it’s going to focus on mobile EV charging, virtual vehicle inspections for partners like Uber and Turo, and onsite preventative maintenance.

Bryan Frist, Yoshi Mobility’s CEO & cofounder, said, “By spinning off our fuel business and focusing all of our energy on solving hair-on-fire problems that fleet owners face, we are meeting the changing needs of enterprise customers while making the future of transportation safer, cleaner, and more sustainable.”

May 22, 2024: Yoshi Mobility saw that its existing customers needed mobile EV charging in places where infrastructure has yet to be installed, so the Nashville-based company decided to bring the mountain to Moses.

“We recognized a demand among our customers for convenient daily charging, reliable private charging networks, and proper charging infrastructure to support their fleet vehicles as they transition to electric,” said Dan Hunter, Yoshi Mobility’s chief EV officer and cofounder.

The company says its 240 kW mobile DC fast charger, which can turn “any EV” into a mobile charging unit, is the first fully electric mobile charger available. It can provide multiple charges in a single trip but doesn’t detail how they charge the DC fast charger or who manufactured it. (I asked for more details, and they replied that they won’t disclose client names or the manufacturer of its DC fast charger yet.)

Yoshi is launching its mobile charger on two GM BrightDrop Zevo 600s and will introduce additional vehicles throughout 2024. It aims for full commercialization by Q1 2025. (I wonder if the Zevo 600 ever charges itself? Yes, I asked that too.)

Yoshi Mobility says it’s already deployed its EV charging solutions to service “major OEMs, autonomous vehicle companies, and rideshare operators” across the US. Its initial customers are made up of large EV operators managing “hundreds” of light-duty vehicles requiring up to 1 megawatt of energy per day that don’t yet have grid-connected EV chargers. I’ve asked Yoshi for details of who it’s working with, and will update if they share that info.

The company says pricing is based on location and enterprise charging needs. Once under contract for service, the service will be deployed to US-based customers within 10 days.

To date, Yoshi Mobility has raised more than $60 million, with investments from GM Ventures, Bridgestone, ExxonMobil, and Y-Combinator in Silicon Valley.

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Environment

Marqeta shares plunge more than 30% on big forecast miss

Published

5 hours ago

November 4, 2024

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Marqeta shares plunge more than 30% on big forecast miss

Marqeta celebrates its initial public offering at the Nasdaq on June 9, 2021.

Source: The Nasdaq

Marqeta shares tumbled more than 30% in extended trading on Monday after the company issued weaker-than-expected guidance for the fourth quarter.

Here’s how the company did compared with Wall Street estimates, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:

Loss per share: 6 cents adjusted vs. a loss of 5 cents expected
Revenue: $128 million vs. $128.1 million expected

While third-quarter results showed a slight disappointment on the top and bottom lines, Marqeta’s forecast for the current period was more concerning.

The payment processing firm said revenue in the fourth quarter will increase 10% to 12% from a year earlier. Analysts were looking for growth of more than 17%, according to LSEG.

Marqeta, which primarily functions as a card-issuing platform, attributed the guidance miss to “heightened scrutiny of the banking environment and specific customer program changes.” The company has been struggling for a while, and its stock is now down more than 80% from its peak in 2021, the year it went public. The stock was down 15% for the year prior to the report.

Total processing volume of $74 billion was up more than 30% from a year earlier. Net revenue and gross profit were up 18% and 24%, respectively.

Marqeta’s digital commerce business sells payment technology designed to detect potential fraud and ensure that money is properly routed. It also issues customized physical cards that look like a credit or debit card that can be used for point-of-sale purchases.

The company has been trying to break into the buy now, pay later business with a recently launched product called Marqeta Flex. The service brings BNPL from lenders such as Affirm or Klarna to any credit card wherever Mastercard and Visa are accepted.

“It’s an orchestration layer, but it’s tied to issuing and processing and disputes and chargebacks,” CEO Simon Khalaf told CNBC at Money2020 in Las Vegas last week. “So it is not actually a Wild West in BNPL. It is actually very well established. And there is a reason why a lot of people are jumping to it.”