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May 12, 2023

Bluetti AC60 Review: Rugged, Expandable, Portable Battery

Versatile, portable, and durable—the AC60 and B80 are your ideal companions for

Versatile, portable, and durable—the AC60 and B80 are your ideal companions for off-grid living and adventures.

The Bluetti AC60 and B80 are your perfect companions for a wild camping trip or an off-grid campervan lifestyle. With a compact form, decent power output, and the flexibility to expand from 400Wh to an impressive 2000Wh, IP65 splashproof rating means you needn't worry about leaving them out in the rain. The limited solar input shouldn't be a problem as you're unlikely to be lugging around more than one small solar panel.

Use the code MUOAC60 for an extra $20 discount on the early bird pricing!

Bluetti are masters of portable solar generators, and I really love the AC300 and B300, which I reviewed last year. We use them daily to cook and boil water, with 1000W of solar input to keep them topped up. The AC60 and B80 superficially look like tiny versions of those. They're extremely portable, expandable, and have one killer superpower: they're IP65 splashproof. Is this the rugged, outdoor, expandable, AC-capable portable power station you've been looking for? Quite possibly.

Both the AC60 and B80 have one surprise: IP65 splashproof rating. That means they're protected from light water jets and dust ingress from any direction. I wasn't going to demonstrate this with an AC appliance plugged in (because that's universally stupid), but if you do happen to leave the unit out in the rain, it means you shouldn't have a problem. I threw some soil at the AC60 then hosed it down from all sides, and sure enough, it turned on fine afterward. That's a pretty big superpower, and definitely a key point if you're regularly using this outdoors.

As for AC power output, the AC60 can achieve 600W continuous output with 1200W peak. That's not a lot, but smaller appliances or simple medical devices like a CPAP machine would be fine. It's not enough to run my induction hotplate, though, so no bacon and egg bap for me. However, the AC output can be boosted to allow high inductive load appliances that would normally draw 1200W. For instance, a mini kettle or small power tool—something with a strong motor or heating element. This is different to the peak load which is a very temporary higher amount of power that an appliance can draw when it first turns on. This AC boost mode (or Power Lift as Bluetti calls it) works by lowering the voltage supplied, so effectively it runs the devices at a lower speed or slower heating. It's something that is increasingly common nowadays; the Ugreen battery I looked at last week had this as well, though I first saw it on EcoFlow batteries a year or so ago.

Moving on to capacity, following convention and Bluetti's own product line-up, you'd be forgiven for thinking the AC60 would have a 600Wh capacity. Als, this is another case of my pet peeve with the battery name not reflecting the capacity but rather the total power output. Instead, it's a mere 403Wh battery, which you'll deplete pretty quickly regardless of what AC device you have plugged in. Especially when you consider it's only 85% efficient at converting to AC (that's not unusual by the way, it's true of most batteries). That means that you have 340Wh to draw from the AC socket. So your 100W device is only going to last 3 hours and 40 minutes, or your 500W device will only last two-thirds of an hour.

The AC60 is quite small at 29 x 20.5 x 23.4cm (or 11.3 x 8.5 x 9.7 inches), and the handle folds over for more convenient packing into the trunk of a car. It also features some soft padding on the underside of the handle, which really helps with ease of carrying. Considering it's only 403Wh, the overall weight of 9kg or 20lbs is quite heavy for the capacity. You'll find 1000Wh batteries that weight 11kg, more than double the capacity for only a few kilograms more.

So, this is strictly a portable unit for relatively short burst of high power needs.

You'll find the two AC ports with one power button for both, then all the DC and USB options are grouped together. That consists of a 12V car cigarette lighter, 100W USB-C, and two USB-A 15W ports. It's not a huge selection, but considering it is only 403Wh of total power on just the AC60, perhaps it's enough for your handful of electronics gadgets on the go. You'll also find a 15W wireless charging pad on top, which should free up one of the USB ports.

Lastly, one feature I appreciate is the large LED panel area light on the back. On a portable battery designed for camping, these should be mandatory. You do need to ensure DC output is activated before turning the light on, but it's bright and practical.

The display on the front is quite basic, with input on the left, output on the right, and percentage remaining in the middle, and a handful of other random icons.

One very minor thing that just feels bizarre to me is the battery indicator around the percentage. For a start, it's circular, but only a semicircle, which isn't obvious—it seems like it would have enough room to go all the way around. Each individual segment is also confusing, with the third and eighth segments featuring a small line that extends outwards, for reasons I can't fathom. Every even segment then features a small zap mark in the middle, for ... reasons. It's a weird UI choice and one which might have been best left on the design board.

The AC60 can connect to the Bluetti app over Bluetooth or Wi-Fi for more detailed stats—though not individual port power usage. Other than enabling the Power Lift mode for 1200W rated inductive-load appliances, there isn't an awful lot of configuration or advanced features you can do with the app.

Just like its older sibling (the AC300 and B300), the capacity of the AC60 can be expanded. To my knowledge, this is the first sub-1000Wh Bluetti battery that can be expanded in this way. By quite a lot, in fact—a maximum of two B80 units can be connected, each bringing an additional 806Wh of power capacity. With one B80 connected, the capacity goes up to around 1200Wh, and with two, you get a whopping 2000Wh.

The B80 is strictly a battery unit, though, and not an AC inverter. However, it can be used somewhat independently, with a single USB-C and USB-A port, as well as a 12V cigarette lighter port. It can also be charged separately from the main unit, with AC or solar, as outlined later.

As for size and weight, the B80 is only about 3cm shorter and weighs about the same.

Connecting the two together is easy and features locking collars, but it does result in an ugly cable sticking out of the side. Both the ports and the cable have a secure rubber cap tethered to them, which you'll want to ensure you place back to maintain the waterproofing when not in use.

Once plugged in, the percentage remaining automatically adjusts to reflect the fact that you have an expansion added.

The benefit of having an expandable system like this is two-fold. First, it's cheaper to buy one piece at a time and then upgrade later if you need it yet. But it also means you can have up to 2000Wh without sacrificing the ease of portability. Perhaps the 600W output limit doesn't matter to you; you just want more capacity—then this is ideal. It's a lot easier to transport a number of smaller boxes than one larger one, after all. You don't need to take the expansion battery on trips if you don't need it. Keep that in the camper van, plug it in just for your appliances, or bring it out if needed.

The AC60 and the B80 both support independent solar charging of up to 200W, with a 12-28V 8A panel possible on each. This is quite low and won't suit any larger static panels, but it does match up with its very portable nature. A suitable MC4 to 8mm DC input cable is provided.

If, in theory, you have 200W going in, it would take just over two hours to charge the AC60. In practice, even in good weather, a 200W rated panel will not produce 200W, and you might find the 8A current limit lowers that too. For instance, while I don't have a Bluetti 200W panel, I tried to charge with the SC200 panel from Ugreen with nearly identical operating specs. It produced nine amps in bright sun, and I got about 120-150W into the battery. So you'll probably still need at least four hours for a full charge from empty (and a whole day for the B80).

From AC, you can also charge at a maximum of 600W, so it's quick to recharge if needed once at base camp.

Five main features define the AC60 and B80 units.

For these reasons, the AC60 and B80 are ideally suited for wild campers and those living the off-grid campervan lifestyle. They're also perfect for those with higher power needs while traveling to the beach or other places where a conventional battery would not usually be carried for fear of water damage.

If you're traveling light, even in a van, it's unlikely you're going to take more than one small portable solar panel, so the limited input there is fine. You can always connect a second smaller panel to the B80 expansion separately. You might have varying capacity needs, and the ability to expand capacity while in the campervan or go more minimal while camping by just taking either the B80 (if you just need 12V and USB) or AC60 (if you need a bit of AC power) is immensely versatile. Perhaps you're starting off with small capacity needs but think you might want to grow over time without replacing the entire battery. If you want something long-lasting that can handle daily use for many years, then this could be your solution.

While it's a little more niche than most batteries I review, I can't fault it if these are your needs.

Bluetti offers a six-year warranty. Thanks to the LFP (lithium iron phosphate) cells, you can expect around 3000 full charge cycles before the battery is degraded to 80% capacity. That's the best lifespan you'll find in any portable battery.

You'll find both the AC60 and B80 in an early bird pricing bundle for just under $1200, which works out as precisely $1 per watt-hour (less, if you use the code MUOAC60 for an extra $20 discount!). It is good value for the set, although the price is set to increase to $1400 soon. Early pricing on the individual units is $600 each, and for the 400Wh AC60, that works out at $1.50 per watt-hour. It's a fair premium, though it's to be expected given the larger inverter and weatherproof features.

However, I wouldn't recommend buying just the AC60 if you just wanted a small power station. It makes more sense to get them both, have the versatility of a larger capacity when needed, and perhaps even consider adding another B80 if the budget allows during the early bird pricing. Though at that point, you also need to consider if you want a larger unit rather than two semi-independent separate expansion batteries.

James has a BSc in Artificial Intelligence and is CompTIA A+ and Network+ certified. When he's not busy as Hardware Reviews Editor, he enjoys LEGO, VR, and board games. Before joining MakeUseOf, he was a lighting technician, English teacher, and data center engineer.