- Best known for its drone, DJI has started selling its Power 1000 and Power 500 portable power stations beyond China’s borders.
- Now available in the US and Europe, DJI’s LFP batteries could power small appliances but seem to be aimed at owners of its drones.
- The Power 1000 costs $1000 while the Power 500 costs $500 in the US.
Loadshedding continues to remain suspended in South Africa, as it has been for the last 23 days. Despite the continuous power, South Africans are waiting for the shoe to drop and for loadshedding to return, especially as the Mercury drops.
As such, folks may want to prepare for potential powercuts in the future and a new player has joined the backup power supply market – DJI.
Best known for its drones, DJI this week announced its Power product range which is currently comprised of the Power 1000 and Power 500 portable power stations, would be heading to the US and European markets. The products were launched in China last year according to an Engadget report and now the firm looks to expand into other markets.
Both the Power 1000 and Power 500 house lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries which tend to last for more cycles than lithium-ion batteries.
Taking a closer look at the Power 500, it features a maximum AC output of 1 000W and features a bevvy of outputs including USB A, USB Type C and plug sockets. The maximum charge rate is 540W but this can go up to 1 000W when needed. DJI claims that the Power 500 will maintain 70 percent capacity after 4 000 charge and discharge cycles.
The Power 1000 meanwhile is a beast of a power supply. The power station boasts a maximum output of 2 400W which could power most small appliances in a home much as a Gizzu Hero Pro can. Charging the 1024Wh battery to full can be accomplished in 70 minutes thanks to a maximum input of 2200W.
As for the price, in the US the Power 1000 will cost $1 000 while the Power 500 will cost $500. While direct conversions aren’t a good way to gauge local pricing, we suspect that if DJI brings these solutions to South Africa, they will cost around the same price. We say this because portable power station buyers are spoiled for choice at the moment.
From Gizzu to EcoFlow, battery backups are a convenient solution that can also serve as a base for solar power. While DJI hasn’t said anything about bringing these solutions to South Africa, it will have to offer more than the likes of the aforementioned brands.
That’s not something we’re getting from these DJI products so we’ll just have to wait to find out if the brand wants to enter the local market. With that having been said, per Engadget’s report, these power stations are being billed as an accessory for DJI drone owners so it may depend on how large that market is whether we see these power stations arrive locally.
