Jackery Explorer Portable Power Stations and SolarSaga Solar Panels - Holiday Deals

[CowboyTaco]

I have reached out to Jackery and they have agreed to do a Group Buy for the Jackery Explorer Power Station and SolarSaga solar panels (pending enough interest). To get the numbers needed, I am also running this on TacomaWorld, t4r, and ToyotaOff-Road.


Jackery Explorer 240: Jackery Explorer 240 Portable Power Station
(Currently out of stock, but expected back within 2 weeks)
Current Price: $249.99
Group Buy Price: $229.99

Jackery Explorer 300: Jackery Explorer 300 Portable Power Station
(Available Sept. 1, 2020)
Current Price: $349.99
Group Buy Price: $299.00

Jackery Explorer 500: Jackery Explorer 500 Portable Power Station
Current Price: $499.99
Group Buy Price: $449.00 $429

Jackery Explorer 1000: Jackery Explorer 1000 Portable Power Station
Current Price: $999.99
Group Buy Price: $899.00

SolarSaga 60W: SolarSaga 60W Solar Panel
Current Price: $179.99
Group Buy Price: $169.99

SolarSaga 100W: SolarSaga 100W Solar Panel
Current Price: $299.99
Group Buy Price: $289.99

If you search for "best portable power station" on google, you will find several articles that point to the various Jackery systems.

Here are the top 4 results of my Google search:
The best portable power stations
The Best Portable Power Station (<-- this article doesn't list the 240, but has the other 3 popular Jackery power stations listed)
The 5 Best Portable Power Stations for Outages and Outings
Amazon.com : Best Portable Power Station

Before searching, I had never heard of Jackery. Since they kept coming up in searches, I figured they might be one of the go-to companies in the portable power bank industry. I also looked into several of their competitors and some of the lower priced offerings on Amazon.

There are several things that I like about the Jackery.

1. It has a 2 year warranty.
2. It has a power output reading, so you know how much power you are pulling at any given time. I believe this is for AC and DC, where many of the competitors only have this readout for AC.
3. AC adapter and car charge included. I actually found some on Amazon that only offered a wall charger and charged extra for the car charger.
4. Pure sine wave AC outlet
5. Pass-through charging. This one was big for me, as I want to be able to power a fridge whether the truck is running or not. I found conflicting information on many of the competitors.

In researching 12v fridges, I found that many people are using portable power stations instead of dual battery setups since it is much more cost effective and ultimately more portable. I started seeing more and more posts on forums and youtube videos where people were using some form of a Jackery power station with positive reviews.

#5 above was pretty important to me, as I want the fridge to run whether I'm driving or parked. (Note: while is supports pass-through charging, I did find some info on the internet that suggests pass-through charging can have negative effects on battery life. I do not know to what extent or the likelihood of that happening)

For reference, @SharpeCat recently performed a test powering his ICECO 12v fridge (60w compressor) with a Jackery Explorer 160 using AC power and found that the power station lasted approximately 8.5 hours with the lid of the fridge being opened with normal use. (Fridge set to 32* and ambient temperature was 80-85*) He stated that the first 5 hours used approximately 50% of the battery life and he did not open the fridge during that time. That being said, it seems reasonable to expect the 240 to power the same fridge for 12+ hours (Though the listing on Amazon suggests 18 hours, which is probably realistic if the fridge is not opened).

 

[CowboyTaco]

List of interest:

Jackery Explorer 240 (min. 10)

Committed:

Interested:


Jackery Explorer 300 (min. 10)

Committed:

1. @Blackbeardshead

Interested:
@GeneralPencil

Jackery Explorer 500 (min. 10)

Committed:
@Miloslavich

Interested:


Jackery Explorer 1000 (min. 10)

Committed:

Interested:


SolarSaga 60W (min. 20)

Committed:

Interested:


SolarSaga 100W (min. 20)

Committed:

1. @Blackbeardshead

Interested:

 

[SharpeCat]

I can confirm that the output and input charge/discharge wattage display/meter works for both AC and DC (which includes USB and 12V outputs).

Pass through charging is VERY important. Without it, you have to charge the power bank, and then UNPLUG IT before it can charge other things/power your fridge. That leaves a big gap where your fridge/devices are unplugged, and requires your input quite often to make the swap between charging your power bank, and using your power bank to power other things. Pass-through charging is a “Set it and forget it” solution, meaning you plug the fridge into Jackery and Jackery into your cars 115V and call it a day. Occasionally you may have to hit the button to turn the AC outlet back on if it drains completely dead, but that’s unlikely if you drive your car every day.

The only thing that pass through does not work on (for my 160 model) is the 12V, meaning that the 12V is disabled when Jackery is plugged in/charging itself; everything else including the 110v and usb outputs will work while Jackery is charging itself. The display will show you total input/recharge rate, and total output between all outlets.

Can also say that if there is such an effect on battery life when using pass-through charging feature, that it must be happening so slow that I haven’t noticed it. I use my Jackery 160 every day to charge things via pass through, as the Jackery is plugged in pretty much all the time.

Here are the full 8.5 hours of the live stream where I tested my VL45 power consumption with the Jackery 160, to see how long 100% charge lasts. I did not use fridge in first 5 hours/50% of Jackery, and opened lid about 10 times during second 50%/3.5 hours.

 

[SharpeCat]

Also, I have been paying attention to Jackery prices throughout the year, and I’m confident we can get better prices.

- For 4th of July they ran 20-25% off on a couple models.
- Occasionally the 250 drops to 200, and 160 to 110 through their amazon store. The 500 and 1000 I don’t see discounted as much, just 50-100 like we see now.

I don’t think it would be unreasonable to ask them for at least 20-25% off on smaller models, and ask them how much volume we need for that price; from there we focus on spreading the word/fulfilling that volume. My mom always tell me (when talking about my parents wholesale business) that we always wait for the right price before we buy. At this price even I am not ready to jump on board, which means I won’t be ready to recommend it to other Mudders as well. Everything about the Jackery I love though, and if we can get the price down just a tad bit lower, I am confident we can move quite a few and make a lot of members happy; both on mud and neighboring forums.

 

[CowboyTaco]

Also, I have been paying attention to Jackery prices throughout the year, and I’m confident we can get better prices.

- For 4th of July they ran 20-25% off on a couple models.
- Occasionally the 250 drops to 200, and 160 to 110 through their amazon store. The 500 and 1000 I don’t see discounted as much, just 50-100 like we see now.

I don’t think it would be unreasonable to ask them for at least 20-25% off, and ask them how much volume we need for that price; from there we focus on spreading the word/fulfilling that volume. My mom always tell me (when talking about my parents wholesale business) that we always wait for the right price before we buy. At this price even I am not ready to jump on board, which means I won’t be ready to recommend it to other Mudders as well. Everything about the Jackery I love though, and if we can get the price down just a tad bit lower, I am confident we can move quite a few.

I did ask about steeper discount with more volume and was told that the current offered price is close to the "break even" point for them. The rep did tell me that occasionally you will see a promotional price, most often associated with Christmas sales. If you can't, or don't want to, wait for the possibility of a promotion, this seems like a reasonably solid deal to me.

 

[CowboyTaco]

Also, I have been paying attention to Jackery prices throughout the year, and I’m confident we can get better prices.

- For 4th of July they ran 20-25% off on a couple models.
- Occasionally the 250 drops to 200, and 160 to 110 through their amazon store. The 500 and 1000 I don’t see discounted as much, just 50-100 like we see now.

I don’t think it would be unreasonable to ask them for at least 20-25% off on smaller models, and ask them how much volume we need for that price; from there we focus on spreading the word/fulfilling that volume. My mom always tell me (when talking about my parents wholesale business) that we always wait for the right price before we buy. At this price even I am not ready to jump on board, which means I won’t be ready to recommend it to other Mudders as well. Everything about the Jackery I love though, and if we can get the price down just a tad bit lower, I am confident we can move quite a few.

FWIW, camelcamelcamel shows the low price of the Explorer 240 is $174.99 and it looks like that was around Black Friday last year. Wish I'd have known about it back then.

 

[SharpeCat]

I did ask about steeper discount with more volume and was told that the current offered price is close to the "break even" point for them. The rep did tell me that occasionally you will see a promotional price, most often associated with Christmas sales. If you can't, or don't want to, wait for the possibility of a promotion, this seems like a reasonably solid deal to me.

It’s not a possibility, it’s a matter of time before it happens. I have been keeping an eye on their prices as I have been trying to figure out if we should try and make it work with Jackery, or start looking at Chinese alternatives that offer 2wHs per dollar as opposed to Jackery’s 1. I haven’t started looking because I have not given up on Jackery.

Our forum members rely on us to lead them down the path that is the best balance between brand name quality and affordability. Asking for 20-25% is asking Jackery to meet us in the middle of Jackery prices and Chinese prices. I know it’s possible because they discount it that much through their own site and it’s not that uncommon.

Maybe my expectations are too high and maybe that’s why I haven’t scored us a good deal with Jackery, but if it was me in your shoes, I would respectfully tell him and Jackery that we will either wait for the right discount, or we will begin the long process of picking out the best one out of hundreds of Chinese alternatives.

 

[SharpeCat]

FWIW, camelcamelcamel shows the low price of the Explorer 240 is $174.99 and it looks like that was around Black Friday last year. Wish I'd have known about it back then.

Good insight, compile these prices and send it to the rep. He’s not about to tell us that they were willing to take a loss on Black Friday, trust me.

With how many members we can send his way that he will get the sales credit and commission for, that even if he only made 1% profit then he will be well off. Better to make a living and have customers always come back to you, than to make a killing and never see them again, as soon as someone points them to a better alternative.

The times are tough bro and people deserve the most modest prices. I say this with all due respect to both you as well as the Jackery team, so please don’t take it the wrong way. I do appreciate all the effort you and Jackery are putting into this, and I have my fingers crossed and hope that we can make this work.

 

[GeneralPencil]

i am interested in the Jackery Explorer 300. been using their 160 for long time and it is performing good. but i need a bigger one

 

[CowboyTaco]

i am interested in the Jackery Explorer 300. been using their 160 for long time and it is performing good. but i need a bigger one

Thanks, General. Got you added to the list.

Since I'm running this on 4 different forums, I'm only going to add Mud Members to the list here, but am using the list on TacomaWorld as the master.

Group Buy (Closed): Jackery Explorer Portable Power Stations and SolarSaga Solar Panels

This Group Buy is Closed. We will need 10 participants to start a new one. Jackery Explorer 240:...

www.tacomaworld.com

@SharpeCat , They have, for the time being, lowered the price on the $500 for us as Amazon is doing an Amazon promotion on the E500 right now. So instead of the $50 off, it is now $70 off. Not the 20-25% we were hoping for, but better than nothing.

For anyone who might be interested in the 500: In addition to the increased discount, we have 9 on TacomaWorld, so 1 more person would make the deal "go live."

 

[SharpeCat]

70 off 500 is decent.

Does that include tax and shipping?

 

[CowboyTaco]

70 off 500 is decent.

Does that include tax and shipping?

We have 10 on TW, so I'm considering this live for the Explorer 500. First member on TW confirmed no tax and free shipping.

I believe Jackery is located in CA, so California residents will likely have to pay tax. The TW member who ordered is in PA.

 

[SharpeCat]

We have 10 on TW, so I'm considering this live for the Explorer 500. First member on TW confirmed no tax and free shipping.

I believe Jackery is located in CA, so California residents will likely have to pay tax. The TW member who ordered is in PA.

Good to know, thanks! Is it a call in to order thing, or is there a coupon code through one of their platforms? What does “live” mean and how long is the window?

 

[CowboyTaco]

Good to know, thanks! Is it a call in to order thing, or is there a coupon code through one of their platforms? What does “live” mean and how long is the window?

You order through their website with a coupon code that I have been asked to share via PM only. I have not been given a time period, so it is good "until."

Let me know if you want in and I'll send you the code.

 

[Blackbeardshead]

You order through their website with a coupon code that I have been asked to share via PM only. I have not been given a time period, so it is good "until."

Let me know if you want in and I'll send you the code.

I definitely am in and want the 300 and the solar panel

 

[CowboyTaco]

I definitely am in and want the 300 and the solar panel

Currently, the group buy is only live for the Explorer 500, but I will add you to the list for the 300. I have asked the rep if we can open it up to all models since we have 10 overall participants. I do not expect to receive a response until Monday, but I will let you know as soon as I hear something.

 

[CowboyTaco]

I definitely am in and want the 300 and the solar panel

I put you down for the 100W panel since that seems to be the one generating the most interest. Please let me know if I should move you to the 60W panel instead.

 

[CowboyTaco]

Also, in case I forgot to mention it here, Jackery will refund the discount if you place an order for SolarSaga panel prior to reaching the minimum of 20 buyers.

 

[SharpeCat]

I had the 60W and returned it to save for the 100w. Remember that you never get the full wattage, so 60 watts panel may only get you 30-40 even under ideal conditions. For that reason I’d highly recommend going up to the 100 if you want to make the most of/max out your Jackery’s recharge rate, which is usually the limiting factor when recharging/using portable systems.

 

[Blackbeardshead]

Currently, the group buy is only live for the Explorer 500, but I will add you to the list for the 300. I have asked the rep if we can open it up to all models since we have 10 overall participants. I do not expect to receive a response until Monday, but I will let you know as soon as I hear something.

I actually changed my.mind and was convinced to get the 500 to better fit my needs