Xantrex PROWatt 2000 Inverter, Model# 806-1220

• Provides true sine wave AC current with high surge capability that provides necessary current at startup
• Dual GFCI AC receptacles and innovative USB power connection

My Xantrex Prowatt SW2000 true sine wave inverter works well in my application but there are several details you may want to investigate.

1.) In order to handle heavy loads, high-power inverters require high-capacity battery banks and low resistance wiring and connections.

2.) Even the recommended battery/wiring system may not supply the specified voltage to the inverter for the inverter to supply its maximum rated output.

3.) The maximum rated inverter output is lower for motor loads, which are inductive.

4.) You are faced with high current surges associated with motor starting.

You may be familiar with some or all of these considerations but I'll give some details.

The SW2000 does produce a true sine wave as observed on an oscilloscope. It also maintains the 120 Volts under varying loads.

My main application is to provide minimal emergency back up power when the utility electrical service is interrupted. During a worst case scenario test we found that our SW2000 can power our natural gas central air furnace igniter and fan motor, refrigerator, lights, bathroom exhaust fans, and computers -all at the same time. But, all this does not fully load the inverter -it only takes it up to about 1200 watts. During an actual emergency, we would not do this -we would use the appliances sparingly.

But, whatever the load conditions, the user's battery supply would need to keep the input terminals of the inverter up to 11 volts to avoid the "low battery" alarm from beeping or, at very least, up to 10.5 volts to keep the inverter from shutting itself off -these features are designed into the inverter to prevent the battery charge from getting too low.

Therefore, to keep the inverter input power terminals above those minimum voltage levels under heavy load conditions, the owner's guide recommends a bank of four 12-volt deep-cycle batteries, size AWG 0 wires no more than 6-feet long, terminal lugs that are crimed super tight onto the wire ends, good condition batteries that are fully charged, and all connections tight.

In my own case, I could never expect the inverter to operate near the full, advertised load (1800 watts) because I am only using two batteries and smaller size AWG 2 wire.

But, here's a test using a heavier load than what I need: When I start with fully-charged batteries and plug a 1500-watt electric heater into the inverter, my battery/wiring system will only supply 11.4 volts to the inverter power input terminals. After about 15 minutes, the voltage drops down to the 11-volt level and the inverter beeps its "low battery" alarm. After a little while longer, the voltage drops down to 10.5 volts and the inverter shuts itself off.

This is important: when the "low-battery" alarm beeped, and later when the inverter shut itself off, THE BATTERIES WERE NOT ACTUALLY LOW and THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE INVERTER. The problem is that my battery/wiring system is not sufficient to support the heavier, 1500-watt load for very long. The specific gravity of the battery acid did not indicate a low charge in the batteries. The inverter was not defective.

The inverter only did what it was designed to do. My undersized battery/wiring system only made it look as if there might be a low-battery or inverter problem. The 1500-watt heater overloaded my battery/wiring system. The inverter is OK. The batteries are not low. I can use our inverter-battery system successfully with our usual, smaller load -like the essential home appliances that I mentioned previously.

All of the above is not to say that there can not be hardware problems or exaggeration in advertising. I only mean to help users by conveying some of the pesky details needed to get good results.

I wish it were not so ... but ... if I needed the absolute full capacity (1800 watts) of the SW2000, I would not only buy two more batteries and larger wire, but I would buy a different model inverter with an even greater capacity -maybe 3000 watts continuous.

Here's why. The devil is in the details. On page 17 of the owner's guide, the 1800-watt rating is shown in the power output chart along with an input of 13 volts! Wow! Their test facility must have a monster power supply to maintain the specified 13 volts at the inverter power input terminals while loading the inverter with the specified 1800-watt resistive load and while delivering a minimum of 140 amps (1800 watts divided by 13 volts = 140 amps).

Sorry, but I have no reason to believe that, even with the recommended bank of four batteries and large wire size, I could ever provide the specified 13 volts needed to produce the specified 1800 watts from this inverter. I would expect my real-world, four-battery power supply voltage to sag down well below the 13 volts due to resistances in the wires, fuses, and connections, as well as the internal resistances of the batteries.

But wait ... there's more. In the same chart on page 17, they say that the rated 1800 watts only applies to resistive loads like incandescent bulbs [and heating elements]. But, what if you need to run motors? Then the limitation is 15 amps maximum. If you multiply the output of 15 amps by the output of 120 volts, you get 1800 watts -but only into a resistive load.

However, if your load is composed of one or more motors, you have an inductive load. When you multiply the 15-amp maximum by 120 volts, you get a maximum output of 1800 volt-amps apparent power. If the motor load has an 80% power factor, the maximum real power (to produce work) would only be 1440 watts. Also, motors usually produce a momentary current surge at start-up -a further demand upon the inverter/battery system -which it may not be able to supply.

I can see why many people are disappointed with their inverters: faulty hardware, misleading specifications, difficult applications such as motors, and inadequate input power supplies (battery/wiring).

My personal conclusions: pay really close attention to installation details and buy a substantially over-sized inverter.

Good luck.

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I see a few complaints in the reviews about having trouble with high-load applications of this inverter. I bought one about a year ago, with the intent of using it to get solar-powered air conditioning in my RV. I made it work, eventually, and the problems I encountered had nothing to do with the inverter (which supplied 1500 watts sustained load and handled the surge of starting the AC, once I got everything else working).

First of all, wiring: Everything will tell you that 4 gauge should be more than big enough: Not even close. I tried 4-gauge. Then I tried 0-gauge. Then I tried making the wire runs shorter. Then I started doubling up wire runs in parallel. By the time I was through, my battery interconnects were double and triple 4-gauge in parallel, and the connection to the inverter (coming from the center battery of 5) was 000-gauge (also known as 3/0). Connecting that to the terminals on the inverter required taking an industrial terminal block normally used for substation wiring and drilling a 3/8" hole to connect it to the terminals. Finally I had something that wouldn't drop 2+ volts over the wires when drawing 125 amps. When they say 4 gauge can pass 200+ amps, they mean that it won't melt the wire, not that it will give you a usable voltage.

On top of that, batteries: Lead-acid batteries may say they can deliver huge numbers of amps, but not without huge voltage drops. In practice, for every amp you're drawing you want at least 2 pounds of battery (so, minimum 4 size 27 batteries to deliver 125 amps needed for 1500 watts). Try to power your space heater off something you can pick up assisted, and you're just going to get a lot of annoying beeps.

And don't forget that after you've drawn off half of the amp hours theoretically available in your batteries, your *maximum* voltage will have dropped to around 11.8 (so battery load and wiring losses will be working from a lower baseline). With 5 type 27's, I could run the original rooftop air conditioner for no more than 1.5 hours before they were too far down to provide 11.0 volts under load. So I figured out a way to mount a modern, high-efficiency unit that provided the same cooling for half the power.

The point here is that with a really big inverter, you're pushing 12V right to the absolute limits, and you have all *kinds* of weak points that will keep your system from working properly. These are really intended for big residential solar systems with batteries in the thousand-plus pound range. This inverter works *fantastically* well, now that the rest of the system is properly supporting it, but even for an experienced electronics tech getting all that arranged properly was quite an education.

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I have been running A 1 Kw solar plant to run a 1500 watt 19 gal water heater or 2 515 watt Air Conditioners (window units). The Xantrex 2000 inverter easily runs the water heater and 1 AC unit at the same time or the 2 AC units by themselves. It won't handle the startup load of both AC units at the same time though, so I added a time delay relay to one of the AC units and now the inverter easily runs both. I am very impressed with this product after having a Sunforce 4500 watt inverter for almost 2 years now. The Xantrex is way more efficient than the Sunforce with only .8 amps of overhead. It's quiet, well built, and so efficient I can leave it on continuously. I am very pleased.

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I use this inverter to power my small mountain cabin. Powered by 800w of solar panels and 4 Trojan t-105 batteries, it runs my Grundfos SQF well pump, lights, microwave and what ever hand power tools I need (not all at the same time). It will not start my radial arm saw, but I wouldn't expect it to. My 4kw generator struggles with starting that saw. Lots of people complaining that it's only rated for 1800 watts continuous. A thousand dollar honda eu2000, 2000watt generator is also rated for considerably less than 2kw continuous loads, both will however put out 2000 watts for motor starting surge etc. This is an industry standard. You should know your needs and research the product before you buy. It's been my experience that lack of power to the inverter (low batteries)is more of a problem than the inverter itself. If you get an alarm there is a reason, Most likely the inverter is doing what it is designed to do. The GFI is a nice feature that could save your life. My only complaint is that the shutdown voltage is so low (10.5v), at that voltage you have shortened the life of your batteries and they are far more expensive than the inverter. Note: 1800w at 12.1v (50%charge on my batteries)is more than 148 amps. That load will kill a car battery in a few minutes and you'd better have some heavy duty cables.

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The Xantrex Prowatt SW2000 is an excellent product some of the reviews here claim the unit does not deliver the power claimed... well if you have a good power source and 12 volts DC at the rear terminals the unit *WILL* start a 6000 BTU window air conditioner with an additional 100 watt light bulb connected to it. I measiured 26 amps surge power with a calibrated clamp-on amp meter set to peak hold that is 3100 watts output! (Spec is 3000 watts surge). I also tested 1600 watts continuous no issues there either (1500 watt hot plate + 100 watt light bulb).

The unit also regulates AC voltage very well too the light barely dimmed when the AC compressor started (26 amp surge).

Users that are having issues with low power output have one of the 3 problems (Not the inverter):

1) Batteries are not able to supply the power under load

2) DC cables are too long

3) DC cable wire size is too small

Measure your voltage AT the inverter terminals and at the battery under load that will reveal where the problem is.

I used 8 cells of Lithium Iron Phosphate in a 4s-2p configuration and the cells are 100 amp hour each with under 2 milliohms ESR.... Short circuit current is north of 3000 amps! The wire was less than 1 foot long on each and thru a 120 amp circuit breaker. With 1500 watts load I still have 12.8 volts at the inverter with the batteries measuring 13 volts.

The unit is well built not some cheap design or poor construstion and should provide years of reliable operation. This is why I give it 5 stars.

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SKIL 2354-01 iXO 4-Volt Max Lithium-Ion Palm-Sized Cordless Screwdriver

• Max power of 4-volts with 20-percent longer run time
• Compact, powerful, and lightweight
• SiteLight LED work light for better visibility
• Forward and reverse LED indicator shows drilling direction
• Lithium-ion power battery holds charge up to 18-months

Let me start by saying that I loved my original Ixo. I still have it and use it. The battery has worn down so low and I needed a second one anyway... so I went ahead and ordered two of these for my shop.

The old version came with a charging cradle that held a selection of 10 various bits. The new version comes in a blister package that is a nightmare to open. It doesn't have a cradle. It just has a wall-wart charger that plugs into the bottom of the tool. It also only comes with 5 bits. Bits are not an issue, as they're cheap enough. The charger is inferior in design, however. Same output power and charge time, but just not as classy as the original.

The old Ixo was made in Maylasia. This one was made in China. They kept the price point the same, but eliminated accessories and moved production to a cheaper plant. Typical business in production these days.

That said, the overall build quality appears the same from the outside. I don't know if it will run for 5 years or so as the old one did. I certainly hope so. I will come back and update my review if I have any issues with this newer model. It certainly doesn't feel like some of the cheap crap we've been seeing these days coming from over there.

Performance of these little drivers is pretty incredible. I've used them to drive wood screws a couple of inches, self tappers into aluminum, etc... I make primary use of it as a string winder for guitars nowadays. (heavy usage)

The slow speed of it makes it very torquey and yet easy to control. The battery lasts for a long time from light usage. It will suffer if you use it for heavy driving, though. The Li-Ion battery in my original one went for a couple years before showing substantial degradation in performance.

I opened up my old one and found the battery to be the very typical 18650 Li-Ion battery which is widely used in small tools and remote control cars, etc... These can be ordered online for less than $10 each and soldered into the Ixo if you are competent enough at that stuff. I will be replacing the battery in my original one and continue to use it in the future.

If these new ones start to degrade, I will swap those batteries as necessary. The motor, gears, electronics, switches, etc... all seem to hold up really well.

Compared to the Ryobi Tek4 mini driver, which I have used extensively, this one is far more compact and delivers the same performance. They use the same battery (although the Tek4's modular batteries are sealed in plastic and not replaceable, and likely similar motors. The Ryobi comes with a clutch, but it makes the tool clunky. The Skil delivers with something that you can actually stick in your back pocket and no frills. The Ryobi looks more like a power tool and this one looks more like a toy. I prefer the tiny size and same power, though.

I recommend this tool to everyone. Even with my complaints as stated, buy it.

Bring back the cradle, Skil (Bosch)!!

UPDATE: Swapping batteries in mine with LG Chem Li-Ion 18650 Cylindrical 3.7V 2800mAh has made these things amazing. The stock battery is 1300mah, so the speed and power feels like double with the upgraded battery. It holds a charge a lot longer, too. (these seem to die too quickly)

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I've been in the cstr biz for 25 years and bought more tools than I can recount (thousands). I personally own perhaps 10 different drills, and have handled many dozens more of all styles and makes.

I recall a small drill I bought for my mother 25 years ago one of the first small battery operated drills what a joke could barely turn a screw and battery life was a joke quickly ended up in the garbage (before we learned to recycle batteries).

As such, I stayed clear of these small "personal" screw drivers all these years. But knowing battery advances in the meantime, decided to pick this little guy up on a whim price was reasonable and could always return it.

To my surprise, found this little guy perfect for the odd job around the house, where I wouldn't bother getting out a larger, more powerful cousins and instead use an ubiquitous screw driver that is slow, but gets the job done.

Did a bit of painting recently, and found it very handy to dissemble some large furniture (the led light was actually quite handy) and to take off wall switch plates. Drove 3/4" screws into dense wood with a surprisingly torquey motor using low speed. And the battery life is very good on my second charge after being around the house a month.

For what it is, this little screwdriver does its job quite well. 5/5

Yes, less than ideal charger, but hey, for $35 what do you expect? One thing I'd have preferred is a slot to store bits on the driver, or at least supply several reversible bits (flat/phillips combo etc)

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I was looking only for a handy-dandy little tool which could be stuck in a pocket for those "mobile" repair jobs. This little tool is all that and more. Not only it is handy as can be, its battery life is astonishing. Last week I was able to use it as my sole driver to assemble 4 36" kitchen base cabinets (each requiring roughly 65 screw insertions and tightenings. Power lasted to the last and probably could have gone further but I ran out of cabinets.

The only problem I have is the directional switch is positioned right under where it is most comfortable/practical to put an index finger when using the tool. And it's easy to inadvertently push the switch while exerting drive pressure. Takes a while to get use to that, and even then it's not 100%. A redesign should relocate the switch away from the gripping area. But I can live with that little fault given the overall utility.

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I am giving this as a gift as I currently own one and it works great. However, Amazon is not accurate on the description of "what is in the box" as it says "The SKIL 2354-01 iXO includes one iXO SGK cordless screwdriver, one right-angle attachment, a ten piece bit set, one soft case, and one charger." There, in fact, is no right-angle attachment, a 5-piece bit set, and no soft case.

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I researched all of these, including the B&D. i ended up going with this one, at lowes, and got it for 30 bucks. and picked up a screwdriver set for 6 bucks. great deal, holds a great charge. good construction. i am very happy. i already used it to assemble a piece of workout equipment, and it didnt falter once

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Battery Mart 12 Volt, 7 Ah Sealed Lead Acid Battery with F2 Terminals

• Model: sla7-12/T25
• Sealed Lead Acid Sealed Lead Acid Battery For 12 Volts / 7 Ah

Update 1 year later: My FIOS BBU is beeping again, indicating that the backup battery is not holding a charge. This battery lasted less than a year but only has a 90-day warranty, so I'll be looking elsewhere for a replacement.

(original 5-star review below:)

This is an exact replacement for the original FIOS BBU battery, but at about 2/3 the price of others I've seen. Switching the batteries takes 5 minutes or less and can be done without turning off the power or the FIOS router. If your FIOS BBU is beeping, this is the cure!

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Like many people in our neighborhood, our Verizon Fios back-up power unit battery went dead after about 3 years. This battery works as a replacement, and we've had solid results so far after about 3 months of continuous use.

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This battery was dead on arrival. Seriously. Dead as a doornail. Would not buy this again and would not order from the merchant again. I should have spent the time to get a return, but I just never got around to it. You can get *charged* units like this from your local Radio Shack, I've discovered... AND, if you are using this to replace your Verizon FIOS unit, try calling Verizon first. They came out and replaced mine for FREE.

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Ordered and Received this battery for replacement for the 5 yr old Verizon FIOS (Fiber Optic) backup battery mid Aug 2010. It is now coming up on mid Nov 2011. The battery is dead. Terrible life. Terrible battery. Not worth your time. Never again.

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The batteries I ordered were packed well and arrived safely and quickly. I'd definitely buy from them again. Thanks!

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2 PCS GREEN LED BULB LICENSE PLATE CORNER INTERIOR SUPER BRIGHT LIGHT LAMP

• Fitment:Universal Design, Fit for Most Kinds of Cars
• Include : 2x 12V LED Car Light Bulbs
• Feature :These Lights are suitable for Replacement of Side Marker Light, Corner & Bumper Light, License Plate Light, Instrument Cluster Light, Gauge Light and etc.
  Be compatible with T10 W5W 158 168 147 152 158 159 161 168 184 192 193 901 904 912 916 917 918 920 921 922 923 926 927
• Size :Length:28mm Width: 11mm w/ 5 SMDS
• Operating Voltage :12V DC Only

I replaced my high-mount tail lights with these suckers, as every 6 months a few of my bulbs would burn out. Replacing the rear bulbs with these was relatively easy as they were a good fit, but the lower plastic housing slipped right off when I was installing them. What junk, I had to discard it, but the negative lead on the led is very soft, some sort of junky recycled metal. 4 Stars for cost, shipping and relative use, but the bulb is low quality, and does not emit a huge amount of light. Expect a bit less than your typical incandescent.

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Lights illuminated brightly! I recommend these to anyone looking for crisp clean lighting. They may or may not fit your license plate area as they are long!

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Works as advertized. Perfect for my application as running lights but I did have plenty or room.

Be aware: these seem a bit longer than stock bulb in my vehicle.

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Not as bright as I had hoped but it does save energy if we have to use our in house batteries.

This product is great. Installation was very easy and they shine much brighter than the regular halogen lights that was in the car. My car looks much better now.

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Dual Electronics XGPS150 Universal Bluetooth GPS Receiver for iPad 2, iPad, iPod touch, iPhone and O

• Wirelessly adds GPS to iPad 2, iPad, iPod touch, iPhone and other Bluetooth-enabled smartphones, tablets and laptops
• Allows your device to be used with most apps that require GPS, including apps for car and marine navigation, golfing, geocaching, hiking, GPS tracking, cycling, running, social networking and more.
• Rechargeable battery lasts up to 8.5 hours of continuous use and charges via the included USB cable
• Small portable design. 2.25" x 2.25" x .75". Works anywhere in the world.
• Includes 12V car charger, a non-slip pad for use in a car or boat, and an adjustable strap to attach to a backpack or to use as an armband

The XGPS150 is a small (2"x2"x0.5") self powered device. It is small enough to fit easily into a pocket. It works with all iOS devices that have Bluetooth. To use it, you just turn on Bluetooth in the General Settings. It takes just a few seconds to discover the XGPS150. Click on its name in the list to pair with the device.

When the GPS is paired with your iOS device, you will get a message asking if you wish to download the app required to use the accessory. Click yes to launch the App Store and download the Dual GPS Status Tool. The Status Tool is worth getting. You can use it to display the signal strength of each GPS satellite just like you can with a stand alone GPS receiver. This screen is extremely helpful if you want to use the GPS indoors or in some other location where reception can be challenging. I know I will use this feature when I am on an aircraft.

One accessory that comes with the XGPS150 is a rubber dash mount. The mount uses simple friction to keep the GPS on your dash board. It is soft rubber so it will mold to any shape. It stayed on my dash for several drives without moving at all.

The XGPS150 has numerous advantages over the built-in GPS on an iPhone or iPad 3G. First it seems to get much better GPS reception. I can easily track my location on an aircraft, in a car or even in my house with the XGPS150. In fact I typically get 10 satellites showing almost full bars indoors. Of course there is no way to know what reception my iPad is getting but being able to see the signal strength of each satellite is another advantage of the XGPS150. The really remarkable thing about using a Bluetooth GPS is how little power is required for an iPod Touch to track your location. If Scenic Map is tracking your location in standby mode (GPS centering turned on with the screen turned off) it can run all day long and still have a full power bar. The XGPS150 has about ten hours of battery life. You charge the XGPS150 with a standard mini USB cable and it comes with a cigarette lighter adapter for your car.

I only have one small complaint about the XGPS150. To turn the unit on or off, you have to press and hold the center of the circular red pad for several seconds. Unfortunately the power icon is near the edge. It is very difficult to turn on the device if you press directly on the power icon. The device makes a plastic crunching noise if you try and it may even be possible to damage the device if you push too hard or too near the edge. If you press the center of the pad (where there is no icon) it is quite easy to turn on or off. Dual should move the power icon to the center or have some other indication of where you should press to turn on the power since there is no visible switch.

Combined with the XGPS150, the iPod Touch becomes an extremely capable GPS receiver. With a high quality mapping app such as Scenic Map, the utility of the Status Tool plus all the other great iOS GPS apps, it is easy to say that the iPod Touch is the best GPS money can buy. It costs a lot less than a high end mapping GPS receiver and you won't have to pay hundreds of dollars more for additional maps.

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It's simple and it works for everything, Laptop, IPad, IPhone. I like the non slip dash mount it comes with, seems to get good signal from weak areas. I bought it for use with Foreflight and I just used it for a 3 hour flight. It worked great even during steep turns of 60 degrees. I like that it has a simple push on/off button and an app to see how many satellites it is picking up. Great little device. Included car charger works with 24 volt systems and the device turns on automatically when it gets power.

I've used the GNS5870 and found it to turn off when I didn't even press any buttons then when I finally got it on I couldn't turn it off... The GNS5870 is sleeker and smaller, but this Dual Bluetooth GPS just works right!

The bad elf GPS looks pretty good, but I think i'd break it with it attached to the bottom of my ipad all the time.

This is the #1 way to go for Foreflight.

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I just purchased this last week and have been very happy with it. I use it with a WiFi only iPad. It picks up the satellites quickly and hasn't dropped the signal yet. I am a pilot and use it with ForeFlight for in-flight tracking and have been very pleased with its performance. It's a nice compact size too. I like the non-slip pad that it comes with. I recommend it!

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I got this handy little device because I'd had reliability problems with the built-in GPS on my iPad-3G. It works well, allowing me to locate the GPS sensor up on the dashboard where it can see the satellites and position the iPad or iPhone wherever I'd like. With Navigon app it has proven a complete substitute for my Garmin GPS as well.

Only dislike I have is that it automatically syncs to the last bluetooth device that used it, so sometimes I need to go get my other device to turn off bluetooth in order to use it with the one I'm holding. It would be nice if there was a simple button on it to ask it to be receptive to an active bluetooth request. It also can take a minute or so to get position lock and in the meantime you'll get false data in some apps. Not really a fault of the device, all GPS requires a bit to lock on. Just something to watch out for.

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I had wanted this GPS device ever since its debut. Fortunately for me I found an awesome deal for $50 so it was a no brainer. When I first opened the box, for some reason the unit appeared much larger then I had expected, but it is still small and manageable. The description stated 2" X .5" and that would be accurate.

When you turn the unit on the acquisition time is blazely fast. In fact it is faster than any other GPS unit that I had ever used, and I own a lot of units which mostly are Garmin's with the SIRF chip. The chip in this unit is scary fast and is even faster than the DUAL XGPS251 which I wrote a separate review on in 03/11. When I first turned the unit on which was in-doors from a cold boot it had acquired 7 or 8 satellites in less than one minute, and DUAL claims 30 seconds for a lock regardless of a cold or warm startup. I tend to believe there claim as the unit uses a -65-channel SkyTraq GPS chipset-. That is phenomenal. The unit appears to work with every GPS application that I have thrown at it so far. I am using the device with a 2nd GEN iTouch. Setup was a breeze which is primarily the Bluetooth pairing. If you plan to use the unit with an apple device be sure to download the DUAL utility from the app store. The utility only has 2 stars, but I have no found a problem with the utility and it does exactly what it was designed to do, which is to provide status on the device and signal strength. I think most people have give the device two stars because they expect a full blown navigation utility, but that is not what it was designed to do.

Some of the review that I wrote for XGPS251 can be applied here which include several free GPS applications that can be used with this device. Unfortunately the device does not include a microphone, speaker or the ability to charge your device like the XGPS251, but they are two entirely different devices. I had also looked at the Bad Elf unit, but I decided against it for reasons that I won't state as I don't want to impact sales one way or another for something that I do not own. Another plus is that the unit is firmware upgradeable by the end user, unlike the firmware issues that plague some user of the XGPS251. If your XGPS251 does not have the 10/10 firmware and you are using an iTouch 4 then your investment just got a whole lot more expensive since a upgrade to the firmware will be required, which is another $60 +/-. I got extremely lucky when I purchased my XGPS251 from Amazon in 03/11 and I don't even have an iTouch 4 model. In my opinion it is not worth rolling the dice on the XGPS251, and that is exactly what you would be doing until someone announces that their units are the new 10/10 firmware. I would suggest this unit or the Bad-Elf as a better option for future compatibility with your Apple or in the case of the XGPS150 model your non-Apple products as well.

Now for the quirks:

Quirk #1:

For some reason the outsourcing that DUAL does with this type of hardware provide several quirks. The quirks are mostly with the I/O of the power source and on and off switch. There are quirks with the XGPS251, and there are to a lesser extent quirks with the XGPS150. As others had mentioned the on and off button is buried under the RED top of the unit, and it can be difficult to accurately press the button to turn it on or off. Although when the unit is plugged into a power source it comes on automatically. The unit should have been designed so that the power button actually comes through the red top where the on/off symbol is. It would not have been difficult to do with the existing switch and no hardware modifications would have been need as all that would have been needed is an extended button preferably made of dense material (plastic, silicon or rubber)r to require less energy to push.

Quirk #2:

OK the dash mat that is included with the unit is nice, in fact very nice. But for the love of humanity why wouldn't the manufacture design the dash mat with a hole in it so that you can plug a car charger into it. DUAL include a car charger, but the only way to charge the unit is out of the Silicon dash mat. So you have to insure that the unit is charged prior to your trip or keep the mat out of the unit while charging. Go figure, this is a huge oversight in my opinion. There are issues with the XGPS251 ability to charge in the car as well which again is in a separate review. Even worse is that even if I cut a hole in the mat I still wouldn't be able to charge the unit while it is in the mat, because there is a plastic door that covers the USB port and the operating mode switch. The door swings out of the way to access the USB port, but once the door is swung out of the way the GPS won't fit in the mat until the door is closed. The door is necessary I suppose for boating and or outdoor sports, and it is not easily removed.

In order to resolve the USB port accessibility I am going to attempt to punch a whole into the silicon mat using a paper punch. This may not work because I would expect that the silicon would just stretch instead of punch out. If it does not punch out I will be using an exacto knife most likely. To remove the door I will have to take the unit apart and collapse the door keeper from the inside. I suspect that just like the XGPS251 there will be a screw under each rubber plug on the bottom of the unit. Four screws total.

All in all a fantastic unit, but DUAL come on please pay more attention to the user's I/O needs of your devices.

Update: 07/16/11:

I was correct that there is a screw on each of the four corners under the plugs. I removed the plugs and the four screws and the top came right off. Once I was able to remove the top I removed the USB cover and cut a small piece of tape to cover the pass trough hole for the cover. the tape was not required, but I figured why not since I had it apart. I then put the top back on, the four screws and the rubber plugs. All in all took less than 5 minutes. If attempted just insure that you don't rip the rubber plugs when removing, as there is mild adhesive on the bottom of each plug. I recommend a small screwdriver, and be sure that the plugs go back in adhesive side down. You may ask why the rubber plugs are even used and should you put them back in. I would answer by suggesting that they are used for three reasons:

Reduce the amount of moisture exposure that could make it's way past the screws (remember that this unit is not water proof and is even less moisture resistant if the plugs are left out and the USB door is removed. This is not a problem for me since my unit won't be subjected to moisture. Give careful consideration if you plan to use the unit in harsh environments. I'll stick to my Garmin for those type of environments. My unit will be primarily used for vehicle navigation.

Conceal the location of the screws to keep someone like me from taking the unit apart

To keep the fours screws from falling out if they should happen to become loose for any reason

The paper hole punch worked flawlessly. Actually I was surprised at how easy the unit punched through the silicon. Just make sure to take your time and get that hole position correctly for the USB port. The hole should be on the same side as the embossed word "DUAL" What I did was just put the GPS into the dash pad, and feel with your finger where the USB port of the unit is, and mark the spot with a Sharpie marker. Once you have done that just take your time and align the Sharpie mark with the punch of the paper puncher. You only get one shot so do it right the first time. Once done you will be able to charge the GPS unit via the USB port while the unit is located in it's dash mat.

Save the USB door and the silicon that was punched out. I would put them in the unit's retail box if you still have it. The modification made to the GPS unit is totally reversible if needed by repeating the steps outlined above to reinstall the USB door cover. As for the reversal of the dash pad the only thing that you can really do is re-glue or tape the punched out piece, which I would do from the inside of the dash mat, not the outside.

I can't think of a reason to reverse the procedure but the option does exist.

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12V 18AH Sealed Lead Acid (SLA) Battery for D5745

• 12V 18AH Sealed Lead Acid Battery with Nut and Bolt Terminals
• 7.15in (length), 3.03in (width), 6.59in (height); 13.11lbs
• 18-Month Warranty, 60-Day Money Back Guarantee
• Sealed AGM design makes batteries leak free.
• Maintenance free high performance Sealed Lead Acid (SLA) batteries.

Good product, I use in a Harbor Freight 16hp 7000w generator. Starts great, runs great very happy with the purchase. Shipping was super fast, no complaints here.

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Odyssey PC925 Automotive and LTV Battery

• Cold Crank Amp (CCA)- 380; Better warranty: Limited 3 and 4 year full replacement warranty - not pro rata; Longer service life: With 3-10 years of service life, ODYSSEY batteries save consumers time, money, and aggravation
• Longer cycle life: 70 percentage longer cycle life compared to conventional deep cycle batteries, up to 400 cycles at 80 percentage depth of discharge- high stable voltage for longer periods of time
• Faster recharge: The highest recharge efficiency of any sealed lead battery on the market, capable of 100 percentage recharge in 4 - 6 hours; Mounting flexibility: Non-spillable design
• Vibration resistance- design protects against high impact shock and mechanical vibration; Extreme temperature tolerant- Operating temperatures from -40 degree Celsius (-40 degree Fahrenheit) to 45 degree Celsius (113 degree Fahrenheit).
• This item is not for sale in Catalina Island

best product since sliced bread opened up a new world of support for my winch. Now i can operate my winch on my can am commander with out having the engine running. highly recomended for the terrain challenged riders like my self

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I have used these for years in a Porsche Turbo that I track and street. Weight is an issue so the 25 lb saving with a 925is welcome. Plenty of cranking power.......lasts for two seasons, maybe longer. Good batts!

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Used this to replace my cheap 30-40 batteries that I buy every other year. This battery won't leak and has no lead terminals. If it lasts 8 years as claimed, it will be a great value as I won't need to replace all the time and be stuck in winter w/o a battery.

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Thanks again, Amazon, another A+ transaction!!! The Odyssey battery was the best price anywhere and I was able to take advantage even further by enjoying free shipping! The product arrived three days earlier than advertised. What a very pleasant surprise! Thanks also to MotoGroup for offering such a fantastic deal on Amazon!

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Purchased this battery @6/18/2012, after its arrival we installed it in our UTV and used it all fall. Used the UTV off and on during the winter to plow snow but it sat for @2-3 weeks before we wanted to remove the plow. The UTV wouldn't even turn over then nor would the dash warning lights light up .Original battery lasted 4 yrs before replacing it with the Odyssey. I reinstalled the original after its sitting in the garage since June and it started the UTV right up. Voltage indicates half the cells are dead in the Odyssey thus voltage below 8v. The manufacturer won't replace nor will Amazon accept the return of it.

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BlackBerry Torch 9800 Combo Rapid Car Charger + Home Wall Charger + USB Data Charge Sync Cable for B

What can I say not said by the title and star rating? I have no complaints and use all three.

Two stars because They lasted for two months....the car charger wasnt rapid charging and connector broke. The wall charger just died during travel....get an original.....cheers

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Car charger, house plug, and data cable all work with the blackberry torch. All for cheaper than most stores want for just one item.

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The items are a good buy and very useful and convenient to have. The USB cable is a bit loose and pulls out easily.

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the car charger I Orderedfor my wifes Blackberry is exactly what I ordered. we travel alot so it is very useful.

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6 Piece Value Combo Accessory Bundle Kit: Black Silicone Skin Case Cover + Car Charger + Travel Char

• Package comes with 6 essential pieces of accessories for your Sony Walkman
• Include: One black silicone skin, One USB data cable, One travel wall charger
• One automobile car charger, One adjustable armband, One belt clip

I bought this kit for the case and figured anything else that came with it would be cheap or barely usuable. Surprisingly, the whole kit is a real value. The case is a snug fit and provides needed protection for my NWZ-A728 Walkman. The two chargers (AC and car) are very handy since I don't have to boot up my laptop each time to charge the Walkman. The extra USB cable is great since I can now leave one at home and one at work. I use the armband for those times I'm using the Walkman on a treadmill.

The only item that is so-so in the bundle is the beltclip. For some reason, it's white everything else in the kit is black. So of course, the clip clashes with the black case. The only thing missing from this combo kit is a screen protector but you can't have everything. And since Sony tends to use proprietary ports, it's not like you'll find a lot of options for generic, compatible cables elsewhere. So all-in-all, I'm quite pleased with the purchase. Recommended.

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teenager was very happy and we all know that is a hard thing to do. He use it every day.

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Very happy with all items from this combo. It has been very helpful to have back up charges and cables for the walkman since I travel for work quite frequently.

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The sole reason I bought this kit was for the battery charger...which happens to work just as I had hoped. The other items I really didn't need.

I couldn't beat the cost either...Sony charges 3 times for a charger alone, so the cost was well worth it.

Both the hard and soft cases are basically junk. Either they shipped the wrong ones ? or these are poorly designed. Only half the buttons are accessible with the soft case. The hard case does not secure the Walkman, it just slides around inside and the lower half of the control buttons are covered.

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HD 720P 2.5-inch LCD Monitor CAR Dash Dashboard CAMERA Cam VEHICLE VIDEO Accident RECORDER DVR Suppo

• HD 720P 2.5" LCD Monitor CAR Dash Dashboard CAMERA Cam VEHICLE VIDEO Accident RECORDER DVR Support SD/MMC Memory Card : Up to 64GB
• HD720P Portable DVR-007 Car Camera is another "eye" in you car.
• It can capture high definition(1280 x 720P) pictures & display it on its 2.5 inch TFT LCD Screen
• WXGA: 1280 x 720 Pixels, 30fps ( can set 1280*960,but it is not Full HD.Recommend 640*480)
• Support SD/MMC Cards: Up to 64GB (Note: SD Card is not included in the package !)
• At the same time, this DVR007 car camera will record automatically &save the video files in the SD/MMC memory card.(memory card not included).
• Files can be saved per 2 minutes/ 10 minutes/ 15minutes- with recyle recording.
• With the camera holde/ mount, you can fix it on the car dashboard or car windshield very easily.

Night video leaving a gas station. Not too great quality wise but I guess if you were involved in an accident, I guess it would be better than nothing. As you can see in the video, unless you're close to light sources or other cars, you'll just get blobs of light, can't really tell what's what.

Pros:

*Suction cup mount for windshield holds pretty tight (better than my GPS mount, which would fall often), even tugging at it wouldn't budge it.

*The actual camera screws into the mount, like a digital camera does onto a mount.

*Once memory is full, it overwrites older data.

*Car charger cord is pretty long; I can probably run it through my headliner into the dash so its not in the way.

*3 recording options: 2 minutes/5 minutes/15 minutes

Cons:

*Not true HD on highest setting.

*Highest setting results in choppy recording\playback.

*Night time recording not very good, unless you're close to other cars or in well lit areas.

*Not too many options (Just video size, light frequency, audio record, timestamp).

*All video resolutions can't record little details such as license plate number, car make\model badging.

Overall, the camera is decent. Daytime is alright. You can't really see license plate numbers or signs during the day, even on the highest quality setting. Those little details get blurred out. Even when behind a vehicle at a stoplight, I found it hard to make out the license plate number from the LCD and video. Zooming in would further worsen the quality and made the license plate impossible to read.

The highest setting isn't true HD (everything is still blurred\pixelated, just a bigger picture size), and playback is slow while on the setting which makes it pretty useless. Every other second, you see the lag while it records, and it shows when you play it back.

Another issue is the lens; there is too much fisheye effect at times. It might be my placement, but I will try different configurations and edit the review as necessary. But in a nutshell, cars\bikes that have been dangerously close look like they're much farther away.

The microphone is a bit sensitive; it catches many noises as you can hear in the video. The video is with the windows up, and with the A/C on low setting. Much worse with the windows down. I don't think it can record a conversation without being obscured by background noises very well.

The seller I got the camera from included an SD card reader with my order. It did not work very well on my laptop (Windows 7) but it worked better on my XP. I instead, plugged in the camera through the USB to my Windows 7 laptop and was able to view\upload videos from the SD card that way without hassling with the SD card reader.

Overall, its a neat little gadget. Its not the best, but the quality for daytime recording is acceptable. I plan to keep it and use it daily until I can find a suitable replacement.

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I watch a lot of video on similar products before purchase, most of the video are good, but I can not find any video of camera facing sun, so here is the one for you.

The video is acceptable for the price, but I don't think is in real HD mode. the 2 minutes video clip is about 80 MB, 4 GB SD card can do the job.

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i took a chance on this camera, both based on the reviews and the fact that i have other chinese security cameras that work well. first let me say, all of these chinese cameras have horrible directions. they are often wrong and hard to read, so you basically have to figure it out yourself. however, after i got the camera set up, the video is pretty good. it gets a little choppy at times but i like the camera and may buy another. you can also set the mode to be a camera, up to 15 mega pixels and it will take still photos. the camera says it has audio with a built in microphone, i tinkered with this only a few minutes then decided to turn off the audio. i couldnt hear anything in my test videos, so the audio may or may not work. i have only had the camera a day so i will update my review if i find any issues. here are some helpful tips for you to set up the camera:

1) first, change the language to english, it is in chinese by default. hit the buttons in this order:

menu > mode > down > down > menu > then up/down to find english. hit the menu to save.

2) the mode button switches between video, picture and playback.

3) also, the resolution in the manual is wrong. the camera lets you pick vga, qvga and sxga resolution, in that order. one would think that vga is the best or least, and then qvga is the middle. however, upon my testing, here is how i believe the order is, and their resolutions:

qvga 320x240, smallest and less choppy

vga 640x480, medium and more choppy

sxga 1280x1024, highest and very choppy

i have my camera set to qvga and the videos seem small but very watchable to me.

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Video & Audio Quality is pretty decent. However, the unit stopped working after 4 months. One day, I noticed smoke coming out of the case, touched the camera and it was very hot, that was the end of the camera. Cheap electronics.

I got my camera today, i was very excided, but when i open the box, i knew this was a return item, some of the cables were not inside the plastic bag, the suction cup was dirty and the camera had some marks outside. When i turn on the camera the menu was in chinese, Them i try to go thru the menu and see if i could change it to english but the rec/snap button didn't work and the down button either. Of course i can't say this is a crappy product 100% because the image on the screen look good, and the accessories looks good too, but the camera itself is crappy. The price said it all, but it does what it supposed to do. Maybe if the product were brand new i wouldn't have any problem. I already print a return label to send it back, i don't if i would get the same camera again.

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GTMax Black GPS 5.1-inch Eva Pouch Carrying Case + Mini-USB Car Charger Vehicle Power Adapter for Ga

• Compatible with Garmin , Magellan, TomTom GPS Devices that not exceed 5.1-inch
• 1 x GPS 5.1 Inch Eva Case - Black
• 1 x Mini-USB Car Charger - Regular Black

This is what I expected and I am pleased with the quality of the case. It was a good buy!

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EVERYTHING AS MENTIONED.. excellent

Don't hesitate to go with this product from this company.

I used it in north america..It is perfect but not in Europ yet.

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Goal Zero 29005 Escape 150 Adventure Kit

• The Escape 150 stores 150 Watt Hours of power
• Built-in temperature control and fuse systems to ensure safety and long-term performance
• Conveniently use the stored power through the AC, 12V DC or USB outputs
• Kit includes the GOAL ZERO Escape 150 Power Pack and Boulder 15 Solar Panel
• Solar panels can be linked to other panels for maximum energy

The Boulder 15 Solar Panel is most often sold with the Escape 150 battery pack (the Coffee Maker looking battery), such as in this "kit". The advertisement above says to expect to fully charge the Escape 150 battery from empty charge in about 15 hours using the panel. When I bought the two together I charged the battery to full and then ran it down to empty. The next morning at sun up (I live in the California desert mountains . . so I'm high above the haze layer and have 100% crystal blue sky and sun) so I faced the panel directly at the sun for 11 hours solid. At the end of that time I was knocking on the door of 80% power (75%??) according to the battery charge indicator, and took the next day for another 3 hours (total of 14ish hours) to get the Escape 150 fully charged. Recommendation: if you're going to run the Escape 150 down to empty during the day/night (for laptops, etc.) then you'll need two (2) Boulder 15 solar panels (daisy-chained) to fully recharge the battery the next day. NOTE: Also, I did run the battery to empty off 3 of their LED lights (which are outstanding at 207 illumens 3-watt, "Light-a-life" as they're called). Manufacturer states to expect getting 16 hours of light (with 3 lights daisy chained). I got 17 hours 10 minutes with the Escape 150 battery.

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Absolutely love Goal0 and recommend it to my friends that hike, bike, ride, and boat.

Brought this out while primitive camping out in Joshua Tree National Park for 8 days. We had 2 DSLR cameras, 2 iPhones, 1 ipad, 1 laptop, 1 GoPro camera and never ran out of power. We charged the Pack up with the Boulder 15 Solar Panels during the day while we were out climbing and would charge all of our electronics at night and would still have 20% charge left over.

Obviously when hiking in several miles to set up a base-camp every ounce counts. The panels and battery pack fit perfectly and easily into my pack with my clothing and honestly, I forgot I was even carrying it.

I don't mean to sound dramatic but having portable power has become life changing. I planned on only spending 4 days of my vacation in the woods doing video and night photography and with the constant power available I was able to constantly dump and edit photos and charge batteries and edit time-lapse videos with out worry.

I highly recommend this for anyone that enjoys time away from the grid, but still enjoys the convenience of electronics.

I also bought the Nomad 7 and charge that right on my backpack, or on my car dashboard depending where and what I'm doing.

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We took the battery to England to use for my husband's CPAP machine during the night. We were on a canal boat and the power was turned off during the night. Therefore, we charged the battery during the day. It worked really good though the battery lasted for only 5 1/2 hours before needing to be re-charged. We were concerned about taking the battery on the airplane but had no problemd taking it through security as a carryon piece.

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I purchased this little power pack locally. Included the LED lamp and solar panel. This thing is SO useful. Not just for camping, but for an out of juice camera battery just grab it and go and charge whatever you need while you drive. It's small and not nearly as heavy as my marine battery with converter. I just love this thing. I never lug around my marine battery anymore when camping. You can plug stuff into it via a regular 2 prong outlet, 12 volt outlet, and usb. I have yet to have to recharge during a weekend. It's perfect for keeping air circulating in a tent or camper via a 12 volt fan. AWESOME. I'm going to test the limits in terms of how long it will run til it quits and test various appliances ...

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Fully charged, the power pack can supply : 1 netbook (asus), 1 kindle, 1 cell phone in one go.

With exposure to direct tropical sun for part of the day (shade thereafter), I am able to get a mostly full charge in 1 week. If I had exposure all day, or got additonal panels, I could probably cut it to a few days.

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Schumacher XI41DU DC to AC Digital Display Power Inverter

• 820 watt peak and 410 continuous watts
• Two 120 volt AC household outlet
• Digital display is easy to read
• Built-in high speed cooling fan
• Low battery alarm and cut off

I run this inverter off a 18AH AGM sealed lead acid battery to power a boombox at the beach. I've used it every weekend for two summers and never had a problem. It gets packed and unpacked with the other beach gear and dragged 1/3 of a mile to the water's edge each trip. I haven't had a problem with sand or summer heat. I do keep it in the shade to keep the sun from heating it up.

The digital display is very useful watts out to the boombox and battery voltage. I've compared the unit's dc battery voltage display to an external volt meter and they are in sync within 0.1 volts so the unit is fairly accurate. It shuts down at a low battery voltage of 10.5 volts exactly as it should. The boom box normally draws about 30 watts (2.5 amps @ 12 volts) and maxium of 60 watts (5 amps at 12 volts). It powers the unit most of the day a function of the battery's capacity. The fan only comes on when needed for cooling so users with a light load like mine won't have annoying fan noise. I have had the fan turn on automatically on heavier loads.

The first thing all users should know all the dual outlet power inverters can only supply half the power rating to each AC receptacle. That is, a 400 watt unit can only power 200 watts to each receptacle. This fact is not usually stated except, perhaps, in the manual.

The second thing all users should know never reverse the plus/minus connections when attaching the battery. Yes safety fuses will blow, but damage will likely occur anyway to sensitive circuits inside and the unit will die.

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When using the vehicle's 12 volt accessory port, this inverter is designed to supply 60 to 70 watts when the vehicle is not running. With the vehicle's engine running, it can supply up to 100 watts. To use the full output, you must connect the inverter directly to your battery.(straight out of manual). Inverter works great for us we have 20 trucks and 20 inverters.

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I have had mine for well over a year now and it has always worked well. How much watage you can get from it when using a lighter socket is a function of your vehicles wiring the unit does not know what it is plugged into. if your load is more than about 100 watts, you should connect it direct to the battery.

Some cheaper units do not shut down the inverter if they detect low voltage. This unit will shut itself off when it detects low voltage. This can be annoying if you are powering something that doesnt care about the quality of output power but for many electronic devices, this feature can save from damaging what you have plugged into it. Again, the detected voltage at the lighter socket has to do with your car's wiring not the inverter (other thah the fact that it has a low voltage shutoff circuit).

I gave it four stars instead of 5 because when it does detect a low voltage condition and shuts off, it doesn't turn itself back on when the voltage returns to normal. For me, this happens when I start the car with the inverter connected directly to the battery. While starting, the voltage goes low for a moment then returns to normal. This means that I have to get out of the car (I use the inverter while parked and keep it undet the hood, connected to the battery), open the hood and press the power button. Perhaps this wouldn't be required if this just had a simple on/off toggle switch.

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It's a little big but well worth it if you need the power. Like the digital display showing amount of power it's supplying to your electric device.

If an inverter can't take 400 watts like it says, don't lie. It can barely handle 150 watts before quitting and screaming at me with that icessive squealing noise. At the very least, don't make it do that infuriating scream.

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Kawasaki 840056 Black 19.2-Volt 4-Piece Cordless Combo Kit

• 2 Batteries-included
• Carrying Case-included
• 3-5 Hour Charger
• Great 4-piece kit for homeowners
• Includes drill, two saws, and work light

I bought these just because I needed some basic tools for a project I was working on.

I didn't expect much for the price (or after reading other reviews).

After using these tools for awhile I'm pleased with them.

The drill is good quality with enough power for everything I've thrown at it. The battery hasn't died on me during a job. A single charge lasts long enough.

The circular saw isn't the best, but it gets the job done. It seams to drain the battery pretty quick. But for small jobs it's great. The project I was working on required 1/8 1/2 inch wood and it did a great job with that. Larger pieces aren't a problem but the battery won't last long.

The saw seams to be of good quality. I've only used it to cut a few pieces of schedule 40 pipe but it worked great for that.

The flashlight drains the battery fast. It's convenient in some places with the rotating angled head, but it's very bulky for most applications. At first I couldn't figured out what was rattling inside, but it turns out there's an extra bulb inside the flashlight, which is nice.

The charger is my biggest complaint. It's not a smart charger so you have to be careful not to leave the battery in there for more than a couple of hours.

The case is also annoying. I've never been able to get all the tools back in the case. The saw just doesn't fit anywhere once you have pulled it out.

Overall it's a decent low price kit. Don't expect to build a house with these.

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Early on, the batteries seemed to struggle to maintain a charge or to deliver power to the three "main" tools. Over the past two months, however, I've been pleased with the set. Using the reciprocrator, I was able to fully modify a steel bike frame and cut down a large bush on one charge. I've used the drill on a variety of jobs, mainly installing deadbolts and mortise locks on several doors, as well as many smaller jobs with no problems. The circle-saw is pretty good as well, and has successfully cut through 2x4s without trouble.

I can't explain the early problems, but they seem to have disappeared completely.

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I purchased this set over 2 years ago for a deck rebuilding project. the drill and radial saw and flashlight have been excellent. the batteries hold a charge for a decent amount of time, and having a 2nd battery means you never are down while waiting for a recharge. great value for the home do it yourselfer.

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***This review is based on only the drill and battery pack***

Bought only the 19.2v drill from Costco some time back, thinking the Kawasaki name should be good for something, and I wanted a lightweight auxillary drill so I can minimize bit swapping. Soon after I bought it, the company (Alltrade, not Kawasaki) issued a battery recall notice. No problem, as my serial numbers were not listed.

However, in actual use, the drill is very underpowered, even with 19.2 volts. It can not drive a 1/2 inch spade through a 4x4 pressure treated post. I ended up finishing the job easily with my trusty DeWalt (rated at 14.4 volts), which cuts into the material like butter (literally!).

Then there's the issue of battery life. I expected way better than what I got, even though I knew it wasn't a professional-level power pack. The batteries have to be charged very frequently, even with light use.

The drill is light and is comfortable to hold and use, if a bit large, and the chuck is wobble-free, making it good for precision work. But the drill is not appropriate for heavy-duty use or for those occasions when you really need the extra power or torque.

Most disappointing was the fact that, even with light use, the drill failed completely within months (probably due to a faulty trigger assembly).

In sum, this set of tools will likely disappoint, as most people will use the drill most often. Based on my experience with the drill and battery system, I would not recommend this set. You will be way better off spending more and getting a good combo from one of the established tool companies (DeWalt, Makita, etc.). It can be much more expensive ($400 on up for similar tools), but in the end you'll have something that'll last and get the job done with less frustration.

There is no replacement for corded power tools when you are doing a big project or working with heavy lumber and such. Even the professional cordless units have their limits. Unfortunately, when you have to haul out four cases of equipment (circular saw, drill, saws-all, lights) and then haul out heavy extension cords, the work area can get pretty messy. The cool thing about this set-up, is you only have to haul out ONE case and all your tools are there. For the typical needs around the house, this is fine. What's funny about why I bought it, is I already owned the drill. I've used it for a couple of years on dozens of projects without any issues except one of the battery packs is getting a bit weak. So, since I was probably going to have to buy another battery pack, I bought this set-up. It gives me two more of the same battery packs, a back-up charger (or I can charge two packs at once) and a back-up drill in addition to the other tools. I used it the other day to build a potter's bench and enerything worked well and it was powerful enough for the 2x4 construction.

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HI-CAPACITY B-CHU1PK ChargeSmart 2200 External Charger for Phones (Pink)

• 2200 mAh Lithium-Ion Battery
• Slim and cylindrical design for portability
• LED charging indicator
• Short Circuit Protection

Absolutely the greatest gadget ever!!!!! Has saved my phone many times. Would not be without it and I would recommend that everyone have one

Buy HI-CAPACITY B-CHU1PK ChargeSmart 2200 External Charger for Phones (Pink) Now

I put this cordless iPhone charger in my purse or diaper bag and use it on the go. It came in handy at a wedding this weekend when my iPhone died and I needed to take pictures! I charged it for a few minutes and then I was good to go.

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