EF ECOFLOW RIVER 3 Plus Power Station with EB600 Extra Battery

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1. Should You Buy? Ecoflow River 3 Plus EB600 Extra Battery Verified Buyer – 23 September 2024

   I had been buying, using, and recommending power stations for over 6 years now, including those from Goal Zero, Jackery, Bluetti, EcoFlow, and many other brands. EcoFlow really surprised me with their Delta Pro that I bought a few years ago for our vacation home due to many of its innovative features. In fact, a Goal Zero representative I spoke with at a conference was surprised by EcoFlow’s engineering chops that year. It put the company on my radar as one of the top power station manufacturers I could recommend. Thus far, I had bought, tested, and compared EF’s Delta Pro and Delta series batteries, and I was curious about what the River line was targeting. Jackery and Goal Zero did not distinguish their products much: Jackery has the Explorer/Explorer Pro, and Goal Zero the Yeti X/Yeti Pro. What I learned was that River offered lower-capacity batteries (up to 286Wh or 858Wh with expansions) for portability and low-powered devices like laptops and cameras. Delta was designed for larger appliances and tools, for extended runtime (with battery capacity between 1,000Wh and 12,000Wh), or even to power a home or RV. If you do not know what “Wh” (Watt-Hours) and “W” (Watts) mean, do not worry. I will go over the basics later on in this review. For now, know that Watt-hours measures the battery capacity — how long something can run for — and Watts measures how much power is used or produced. When shopping for batteries, you will also run into terms like “Lithium-ion” and “LiFePO4”. In fact, many people are confused about what they are. We will go over them in more detail later, but know that EcoFlow’s batteries all use LiFePO4 now (as do Bluetti’s). Jackery and Goal Zero only recently switched to LiFePO4. This battery chemistry’s greatest benefit is longevity: lasting at least 10 years with normal use. ANALYSIS The EcoFlow River 3 Plus (or “Max’) is a compact, portable battery designed for everyday use with lower-powered devices like cameras, phones, laptops, car freezers, and home network equipment that keeps the internet running. Where EcoFlow shines compared to competitors is its embrace of modular designs. The River 3 Plus (286Wh capacity) can be expanded with an extra battery that doubles (572Wh) or even triples (858Wh) its capacity, depending on which Smart Extra battery you pair with. With 572Wh, a car freezer could run for a full day, and with 858Wh the same appliance can run between 1.5-2 days, depending on how warm the ambient temperature is. In cold weather, the car fridges can last even longer. River 3’s naming convention is a bit odd: the base, River 3 Plus (286Wh), becomes River 3 Max (572Wh) by adding the Smart Extra Battery EB300 (286Wh), and turns into River 3 Max Plus (858Wh) by adding the Smart Extra Battery EB600 (572Wh). In other words, all 3 “models” share the River 3 Plus as their base. Sweet Spot: The 1,000Wh battery capacity hits the sweet spot for many consumers, including this author, who are looking for the right balance of power and portability. But when it comes to home integration, the more Watt-hours a battery ecosystem offers, the longer one can power a home for during a blackout. The River 3’s advantage with the lower capacity (286Wh, 572Wh, or 858Wh) is portability where space may be at a premium. Plus, they are far lighter to carry than 1,000Wh or larger batteries. EcoFlow, Goal Zero, Jackery, and Bluetti power stations can be used while simultaneously charging themselves. WHICH MODEL IS BEST? Which power station to get depends on your needs, and for that, I recommend you read the “CONTINUOUS VS PEAK OUTPUT” section of this review, then check the “CALCULATIONS” part to figure out what size battery to get. BATTERY TECHNOLOGY As I previously stated, the River 3 uses LiFePO4 (Lithium Iron Phosphate) whereas older Jackery and Goal Zero batteries used Nickel Manganese Cobalt (NMC). The latter is also used by today’s cellphones from the likes of Apple and Samsung. Where individuals are often confused is that some consider LiFePO4 to be better than Lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, but in reality, both NMC and LiFePO4 are Li-ion. I found many incorrectly referring Li-ion to be NMC and not LiFePO4. Regardless, what are the differences between NMC and LiFePO4? LiFePO4 is bulkier and heavier than NMC, yet most power station vendors now use LiFePO4. Here is why LiFePO4 is better than NMC: – Safer, less volatile, and thus cheaper to manufacture – Charge cycle: 1500-2000 (10+ years) — NMC: 20-25% capacity loss after every 500 cycle (6-10 years for up to 2000 cycles, after which capacity is vastly diminished) — EcoFlow claims 3500 cycles before dropping to 80% of original capacity and 6500 to 50%. – Usable in more extreme temperatures (-4F/-20C to 176F/80C). NMC: only 140F/60C max – Holds 350-day charge. NMC: 300 LiFePO4 batteries are less volatile (safer), more usable in extreme temperatures, and have a higher charge cycle count (battery lifetime) than NMC. You can see from some of my pictures that the River 3 Plus (286Wh LiFePO4) is nearly the same size as the Goal Zero Yeti 500x (497Wh NMC). Again, LiFePO4 has many advantages, but it is heavier and bulkier than NMC batteries. The River 3 Max (572Wh) is vastly larger than the Yeti 500x and adds just 75Wh of capacity. CAUTION: Lithium-ion batteries do NOT like to remain discharged at 0% for prolonged periods of time. If you let your battery stay at 0% for too long, you may not be able to charge it again without specialized equipment. CONTINUOUS VS PEAK OUTPUT It is important to understand the difference between Watts and Watt-Hours. How much power is used or produced is measured in Watts, and how much energy a battery can store is calculated in Watt-Hours. See the “CALCULATIONS” section below for more details. – AC Inverter: Converts battery (DC) power into AC — River 3 Plus provides 600W continuous output with a 1,200W peak – Peak/Surge (Starting): Nearly every device initially draws extra power to turn on. The highest amount it pulls is the Peak. As long as that number is below 1,200W, it can be STARTED. Examples… — Turns on OK (PEAK under 1,200W): — Freezer starts at 400W (peak), runs at 150W once on — Will NOT turn on (PEAK over 2,700W): — Home AC starts at 4,000W (peak), runs at 1,000W once on Most devices power on at a higher (Peak) wattage than when they are already on (Continuous). Therefore, if its peak exceeds the power station’s max, it may not be able to start – Continuous Output (Running): Once devices are on, as long as they keep drawing less than 600W total, they will stay ON until the battery runs out — CONTINUES running (under 600W) — 100W TV + 60W laptop = 160W — COULD STOP running (over 600W) — Temporary overdrawing beyond 600W for a few seconds is okay. A quality BMS will protectively shut down the battery if the surge does not end after a while. Regularly going over for a prolonged time can ruin the battery in the long run — 450W appliance (600W peak) + 100W laptop (120W peak) = 550W (less than 600W). This will run fine —- Add a 100W TV (130W peak) = 650W. Probably will stay on for a short period —- Add another 60W laptop = 710W (over 600W). Battery will definitely shut down CALCULATIONS The below calculations are rough ESTIMATES as conditions, battery quality, and age can vary. [SORRY: I had to shorten my original review by a LOT (including many calculations) so it could fit here on tugapower.net.] Time to Charge the River 3 Max (572Wh) – Calc: Hours to charge battery = Battery capacity (Wh) / Input Wattage — As battery approaches 75% full, the input charge will increasingly be slowed down to prevent overcharging – AC Wall: 380W @ 90 mins [572 Wh / 380W] – 12V Car Charger — 120W @ 4.8 hrs (at 10A, if car supports it) — 220W @ 2.6 hrs (at 18A, if car supports it) Charge Time with Solar – Calc: Hours to charge battery = Battery capacity (Wh) / (Panel Wattage x [0.5 or 0.75]) — In a perfect lab, solar panels charge at the listed wattage — Expect to only receive 50-75% on a good, sunny day (ie. 75W – 113W for a 150W panel), depending on panel’s age, component quality, and weather – 200W solar panel: as fast as 3.8 hours [572Wh / (200W x 0.75)] – Underproduction: If a panel is not making enough, adding extra ones can generate a higher, combined output – Overproduction: If the panels make more than the maximum the power station charge port can take, only the max will go through Watts Used/Produced by a Device – Calc: Watts used or produced by device = Voltage x Amperage – Vacuum with 120V @ 9.5A uses 1,140W – Solar panel with 12V @ 10A can produce up to 120W Ideal Battery Power Station Size – Calc: Battery capacity (Wh) = Watts used by device x Hours needed for / 0.85 — 10-15% of power is lost during power conversion – 45W car fridge needed for 8 hours: Minimum 424Wh power station (45W x 8 / 0.85) OTHER TOPICS – Mobile app control via WiFi or Bluetooth – Near-instant auto-switching between AC and battery power — Makes it suitable for use as a Standby Power Supply (SPS) during a blackout – Expansion options — Battery capacity expansion to a total of 858Wh with the Smart Extra Battery 600 (+572Wh) or 572Wh with Smart Extra Battery 300 (+286Wh) — Connectivity with solar panels – 5-year warranty – NOT quite waterproof at IP54: protected against dust intrusion and water splashing from any direction, but do not leave it out in the rain FINAL THOUGHTS EcoFlow thoroughly impressed us with their Delta Pro power station and quickly added the company to our list of recommended battery providers. Their newest Delta 2, now a LiFePO4 product, further surprised us with 1,200W rapid-charging that took the battery from 0 to 80% in a whopping 50 minutes! Had we not seen that in person, we would have dismissed it as a marketing gimmick, but we were proven wrong. The River 3 Plus has continued with its engineering chops with solid specifications and performance, especially with its modular design where one can decide how much capacity to add to the base River 3 Plus unit.

   

2. Jerie L Greene Verified Buyer – 22 February 2025

   The River 3 Max is a solid system. With the additional battery I feel like I’m in a good worrisome should I lose power.
   The APP is easy to use, once it’s connected there is so much information and function that is truly awesome. We’ve been testing it and are in awe.
   We are actually getting another set for our travels.
   Spectacular company and solid product!
   

3. SubSailor Verified Buyer – 13 March 2025

   This is my 3rd River 3 Plus and this one is a fail which is typical for me from Ecoflow. Ecoflow has the best APP and the best power stations WHEN THEY WORK. I bought the first River 3 Plus for the computer and it is fantastic. I’ll never need to buy a UPS again! The Second powers the CPAP and a few other things on the nightstand. This 3rd is the only one that I ordered with the extra battery. I received it just before going away for 2 weeks. I set it up to power a shed that only has lights and a few low power items totaling less than 100 watts and I’m solar charging the River 3 Plus. Even though I had everything in the APP set to never turn off, the AC output keeps turning off at random times. This is one of those items that tugapower.net doesn’t allow returns on. I’m in touch with Ecoflow support now trying to get a refund from them. I don’t want a refurbished item to replace this brand new one.
   

4. D Behrens Verified Buyer – 22 March 2025

   Already a happy EcoFlow user, so when this was offered with the added UPS feature I purchased this without hesitation to be the UPS for my desktop computer. Already experienced three power outages – and as a UPS it worked flawlessly! Highly Recommended!!