I’m in Boston and shoot iGUIDE tours, often two or three properties back to back, and I’ve been thinking about a larger portable power station for days when outlets are scarce or the homeowner isn’t comfortable with me using their power. I keep coming across the Anker SOLIX F3800 Plus in discussions about home backup, and the capacity looks like more than I need, but I’m unsure whether something that size is practical to haul between listings. My main concern is weight and setup time versus just carrying smaller batteries and charging in the car. I haven’t used a unit like this myself and am only going off what I’ve read online. For anyone running iGUIDE gear on long days, is a big station worth the hassle, or do smaller packs cover it? Curious what has actually worked for you.
Hi Nathan, I use the Anker C2000 with the external battery backpack, it is more portable for in the car, on the go charging. I can power/ charge multiple items, I purchased it primarily to charge my drone batteries, when doing multiple on the go projects, but it powers laptops, charges camera batteries and my iGuide cameras, all at the same time. I like being able to monitor the stats from my phone through Anker’s power App, I am happy with it.
Which iGuide camera are you shooting with? Do you find that you run low on power shooting 2-3 properties in a day?
I fully charge my Planix Pro overnight before shoots and have shot as many as 6-7 properties on a given day and didn’t need to recharge the battery. I did buy a second AC adapter that stays in the camera case, just in case. That would let me use a power inverter in my vehicle as I drive between shoots to top up the battery – but I’ve never needed to. If I had a Planix R1, I would just buy additional batteries for peace of mind.
For charging phone, laptop, or drone batteries I use a 12V USB-C adapter with PD in my vehicle as I drive.
I’m a fan of Ecoflow battery products. I’ve used a Delta 1 and Delta 2 for years, and recently bought a River 3 for portability. But I use those for other purposes, not for recharging iGuide cameras. Anker, Jackery, and Bluetti are all established manufacturers that offer similar product lines.
Hey Leroy, the Anker C2000 setup I use is mostly for my drone batteries as I do commercial roof inspections and it is usually cold when they get me to come out and fly. I have 8 flight batteries for uninterrupted flight and cycle through during an operation. I have the IMS-5 that I still use from 2020, I put a few 100 tours on it. I have killed the shutter once and had it repaired and it is still going strong. My shooting procedure is all batteries are always charged before I leave for the shoots, I also have car adapter USB -C charger and inverter in the car but the C2000 has 6 outlets, 3 USB-C and 1 USB A slot, So I can power many devices as needed for 4 - 5 hrs this unit can handle the draw. but there many good power bank option out there, this is the one I have settled with and found works well fore what I put it through.