REVIEW – Keeping food from spoiling has been the bane of human existence since the cavemen. Smoking and dehydration were the only ways to preserve anything for longer than a few days until the 1800’s when refrigeration was invented. This new fangled technology caught on quickly and allowed for meat and drinks to be stored below room temperature. Nowadays most of us can’t even stand to have a drink if it isn’t chilled to perfection. This has lead to the invention of portable refrigerators. The ACOPOWER LiONCooler Pro Portable Solar Fridge Freezer is something our poor caveman ancestors would have loved to have with it’s external battery pack and solar panel compatibility.
What is it?
The ACOPOWER LiONCooler Pro Portable Solar Fridge Freezer is a batter powered cooler that uses an external battery to keep your food and drinks at or below 40°F. Please note that this review is for the 40L model with the included battery pack. Other options are available and may vary.
What’s included?
- Fridge Freezer
- DC power cord
- AC Adapter
- Solar charge cable
- Plug adapter
- 52000mA battery
- User manual
Tech specs
– Fridge Freezer 40L
- Rated current for DC: 3A
- Freezer running time with power bank: 5-12h (12H at 32’F/0℃)
- Car charging input: DC 12V/8A
- Solar panel charging input: DC 12-36V/10A
- USB output: DC 2.1A
- Lowest temperature: -4℉/-20℃
- Weight: 32.8 lbs/14.9 Kg
- Dimensions: 25.1 x 15.9 x 20 in/638 x 405 x 509 mm
– Battery
- Capacity: 52000mAh/192.4Wh
- DC In: DC 11-30V 5A max
- Type-C: PD60W
- PV In: DC 12-30V 5A max
- DC Out: DC 12V, 16V, 20V, 24V 5A max
- USB 1 & 2: QC3.0 18W max individually, DC 5V 3.5A max used together
- Fridge Freezer Out: 12-16.8V 10A max
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Solar Charging: Full Charge in 4 hours with 105w/Foldable Solar Suitcase
Design and features
The battery is a nifty little guy. On one end it has an LED light and copper contacts that connect to the cooler while on the other is the display, input and outputs and the power button. The LED has two modes, standard and SOS. Double tapping the power button will turn on and off the LED while double tapping then a short press will turn on SOS mode where the light will flash SOS in Morris code.
On the front of the battery it has a DC in, DC out, USB C and two USB A ports. The display tells you what the battery percentage is as well as the volts out or watts in. It also tells you whether it is receiving power or distributing power. There are a few options for both. You can charge the battery inside the cooler, DC in or USB C and the screen will display IN in the top left corner. The battery has a few fancier features to power things, OUT2 is used to indicate it is powering the cooler while OUT1 is designated for the ports on the front. The DC out port is capable of adjustable voltage if need be from 12V to 24V in increments of four.
The design of the cooler is pretty simple. There are two divots on the top for holding cans or glasses and a rubberized grippy area to set things down. The lid is removable for easy cleaning as well.
The sides have plastic molded handles making it simple and easy to pick up when wheeling it is not an option. The wheels themselves are solid metal hubs with hard rubber tires. The right side of the cooler has the DC plug and the solar panel port.
On the back is a telescoping handle, a metal bottle opener and plastic clips that allow for attaching extra accessories such as water bottle holders or pouches. The plastic hooks on the sides of the telescoping handle correspond with the two metal hooks on the front base so you can use bungee cords to attach blankets or other items on top of the cooler as well.
On the front right is the flip door for the battery access. Just slide the batter in and it will click into place. To release the battery push down on the dark gray lever and pull it out.
Inside there is a light that automatically comes on as long as fridge freezer has power and a drainage hole.
One design flaw however is the latch on the lid. Opening the cooler is no problem, just pull the latch forward and lift, it’s closing the cooler that is the issue. Most of us just drop the cooler lid when done expecting it to close all the way, however this is not the case. The lid is just too light to latch no matter how much force is used to throw the lid down. In order to fully seal the cooler, you must pull the latch then close the lid. I guarantee this detail will be missed and the effective running time will be decreased.
The control panel on the top features the power button, settings, plus and minus buttons along with the display and a USB A out. The USB A is a low power 5V/2A port but it would easy charge a Bluetooth speaker or lantern. The display will flash between the set temperature and the current temperature. It also displays the current voltage and the battery percentage if the battery is currently installed.
There are two modes the the cooler can run on, ECO mode and MAX mode. ECO mode will help conserve battery and is the advised mode to run on while MAX mode is used to quickly cool it down to reach the desired temperature. The cooler also has a built in surge protection with three different levels; low (9.6V), medium (10.8V) and high(11.3V) indicated by an initial on the left side of the display. The factory default is low and it is advised to set it to high when it is being powered by a car.
Assembly, Installation, Setup
While I am including the companion app in this review, it is important to note that despite the box and the website touting about the app, no where in the instruction manual was it mentioned. I had to search the app store to find it and then look online for instructions on how to connect my phone to the cooler.
The app itself is simple. It allows you to view the current temperature, set temperature, battery percentage and voltage. You can also control the set temperature, turn it off and on, change the running mode and temperature unit. In all honesty, no new features are provided in the the app that you can’t do using the control panel on the cooler. In a world where everything has an app, I just don’t think it’s necessary. Also it’s a Bluetooth app, so if you are in range of the cooler for the app to work you might as well just get up and check the cooler.
Performance
The cooler itself is very simple to operate, simply power it via plug, battery or solar panels and push the power button for three seconds. Once turned on, set the desired temperature using the plus or minus buttons and let it run. It is important to note that the power button does not automatically turn on the battery. They are completely separate entities and each have to be turned on separately. I made the mistake of not turning on the battery and I couldn’t figure out why the fridge freezer wasn’t working until I turned on the battery.
The fridge freezer cools down super fast. It only took half an hour to get from 70℉ to 4℉ and this was it empty. When it was filled with pre-chilled food, it only took 15 minutes. When running, the cooler is pretty quiet. In a silent room it is noticeable but hardly affects conversation. In the car on a long road trip, the road noise was louder than it was so I couldn’t even hear it.
At 35℉ powered by the battery, the fridge freezer ran for 16 hours. However, this was under optimal conditions in my spare bedroom fully stocked with pre-chilled items and wasn’t opened. When I ran the same test at 5℉ with frozen food it lasted 6 hours. I did more real world testing by taking it on a day trip where I went hiking first followed by grocery shopping. I kept it at 35℉ empty all morning then loaded my groceries in it and drove home. The car got quite hot sitting in the parking lot as it was 85℉ that day outside but the fridge freezer didn’t seem to mind. I did have it plugged into my car while driving but the battery was still a little over 40% by the time I got home.
What I like about the ACOPOWER LiONCooler Pro Portable Solar Fridge Freezer 40L
- Battery is designed for it yet is able to be used by itself
- Quiet operation
- Stays cold and does its job
What needs to be improved?
- Include instructions about the companion app
- Auto close lid latch
Final thoughts
With summer wrapping up in the Midwest, people out trying to enjoy the weather. Whether it’s hiking, biking or boating where there are people, there is food. While ice works to keep things cold, it also drips and gets everything wet. The ACOPOWER LiONCooler Pro Portable Solar Fridge Freezer not only keeps things cold, but has the ability to keep things frozen. The portable battery and optional solar panels mean that no matter where you are, your food will stay nice and chilly for your next outing.
Price: $758 40L with battery, $538 40L without battery
Where to buy: AcoPower and Amazon
Source: The sample of this product was provided for free by AcoPower. AcoPower did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.