Bluetti EB70S Power Station Review: Good Value, Minor Issues

Once a bulky and expensive way of keeping electrical devices running, portable power stations have become smaller, sleeker, and more affordable for everyday users in recent years. No longer only for backwoods campers and preppers, they’re now available in a wide variety of sizes and capacities, with a range of features and prices.

Bluetti is a good example of that, offering over a dozen different models that range in power from 300W all the way up to 2400W. For this review, we’re looking at one of their mid-range options: the 800W EB70S portable power station.

I tested the power station over the course of a few months, putting it through its paces both around home and outdoors. I didn’t get a chance to take it on a full-scale camping trip during that time, but will update this review when that changes.

Here’s how it fared in my testing, and what I found the pros and cons to be for this particular unit. I’ll go through its most notable features, and at the end, the kinds of uses that I think the EB70S is most suitable for.

Right, let’s get started!

Features and What’s In the Box

First, let’s cover the basic features and what came in the box.

The BLUETTI EB70S has:

• 4 AC outputs (120V/20A)
• 2 USB-A outputs (5V/3A)
• 1 car charger/accessory port (12V/10A)
• 2 DC outputs (12V/10A)
• 2 USB C PD outputs (100W)
• 1 Qi wireless charging pad (15W)
• 1 LED light with full, half, and SOS flash modes

It measures 12.6 x 8.5 x 8.7 inches, and weighs 21.4 pounds. That’s pretty standard for a power station with this capacity and output, although not the smallest or lightest I’ve come across in this section of the market.

Almost everything of interest is on the front: the only exception is the wireless charging pad on the top of the unit, in front of the fold-out carry handle. The LED screen conveys basic information like battery capacity and input/output power.

What came in the box: 

• BLUETTI EB70S portable power station
• AC adapter and charging cable
• Car charging cable
• Solar charging cable
• Manual and warranty card

Note that although you get a solar charging cable in the box, the standard version of this power station doesn’t come with solar panels. You can add a 120W or 200W kit at purchase at a discounted rate, or buy one later if you need it. It uses a standard MC4 connector.

The unit holds a 716Wh LiFePO4 battery, rated to last 2500 charging cycles while still retaining 80% of its maximum capacity. The specs say it charges in 3-4 hours from a 200W charger, which is consistent with my testing: from a typical home outlet, the battery charged from empty to full in three hours and 40 minutes.

You can expect it to take a little longer from those optional 200W solar panels, around 4.5 hours, and 7-8 hours if you’re charging from a 12V vehicle output. That might sound like a while, but it still means you can get a full charge into the EB70S during a day’s driving, and then use it to power your gear that night.

What’s Good About the EB70S

Visually Appealing Design

I like the look of all of Bluetti’s products: they’re sleeker and smoother than those from many other brands. The power station I was sent came in a soft baby blue color, which is more attractive than the emergency bright orange and harsh edges of other brands.

This unit also comes in teal green and plain gray versions, the latter of which in particular is nice and neutral if you’re planning to use this regular inside your house and would prefer it didn’t stand out too much.

Keep in mind though that no matter the color you choose for the unit, if you also have solar panels, the handles on those will always be baby blue.

Lithium-Ion Phosphate Battery

All of Bluetti’s power stations, including the unit reviewed here, use a lithium-ion phosphate (LiFePO4) battery. This is in contrast to the lithium-ion batteries used by other brands, especially in cheaper models. 

LiFePO4 batteries have a notably longer lifespan, making them better suited for power stations like these that are likely to be used for many years. The battery in the EB70S is rated to last for more than 2500 charging cycles while retaining at least 80% of its max capacity.

 The only real downside of this type of battery is that it’s not as energy-dense as lithium ion, which means that devices using it tend to be a bit bigger and heavier than they would otherwise be.

That’s much less of a problem with a portable power station than, say, a phone or tablet: I’d much rather it lasted years longer than it being slightly smaller or lighter. Bluetti has made the right choice here.

Mid-Range Price Point

When it comes to the price tag, Bluetti’s products are mid-range compared to other portable power stations I’ve reviewed.

The price point isn’t as high as the market-leading devices from Jackery nor as low as the affordable power stations from GRECELL. The EB70S costs around $650 if you pay full price, but it frequently goes on sale.

If you’re in the market, keep an eye out for deals on Prime Day, Black Friday, and Boxing Day in particular. For example, on Prime Day this year, this particular unit was nearly half price, selling for $369. 

What’s Not So Good

Battery Level Display

The LCD display looks okay and is easy enough to read and understand, but it only shows a few bars of battery life rather than the exact percentage remaining. 

Remaining battery life is split into five bars: 20, 40, 60, 80, and 100%, with nothing in between. At 100%, it doesn’t matter so much, but the display makes it difficult to understand how fast the battery is draining.

The last bar is the worst, as you have no indication of where battery power is between 20% – 1% before the power station dies.

The display light also turns off after only 20 seconds—a bit soon for my liking. Other units I’ve tested dim first to conserve battery power, but the display doesn’t go completely black right away.

That said, I may have noticed this more because I was in the middle of recording various input and output ranges for testing purposes. Pressing any button turns the display light back on.

Front-Facing Flashlight

The front-facing flashlight is an unusual choice, and not great from a user experience standpoint. The light itself works well, at least, with two brightness settings and a flashing SOS function for emergencies.

The problem with having the flashlight where it is that it makes it very unwieldy to use when you’re carrying the unit, since the handle on the top of the unit runs horizontally along the top of the unit.

A side-facing light, like you’ll find on most other portable power banks, lets you carry the power station by its handle at your side with the light facing forward in the direction you’re looking. It’s a far more sensible approach for the kinds of things you’ll actually be using a flashlight for.

Additionally, having the light mounted on the front like this means it shines directly in your eyes whenever you turn it on. It’s not the end of the world, but again, it’s a problem that could have been avoided.

Other Bluetti Options

An interesting aspect of the Bluetti brand is the sheer number of portable power station options they have: at time of writing, the 800W EB70S is one of 13 different models they carry. 

Starting at the low end, they have a 300W model that sells for under $300 at full price (again, it’s often on sale), and even that contains one of the long-lasting LiFePO4 batteries I mentioned earlier. The other models range in max output from 600W to 2400W, and capacity from 204Wh to 2048Wh. 

That means there’s a Bluetti power station option for pretty much every need, whether whether you simply want something smaller for use around the backyard or in a campervan, or something much more heavy-duty for multi-day outdoor adventures.

You can even swap spare batteries in and out of most of the models, to expand your runtime even further. If that’s something you’d like to do, just double-check that the model you’re looking at supports this feature: all but the lowest-end models do.

Verdict and Final Thoughts

Bluetti’s 800W model is a decent choice for home and backyard use, albeit it with a couple of small niggles that could be improved upon. Give me an exact battery level power display and a side-facing light, and I’ll be happy!

The attractive price point, especially given the frequent website sales, makes this unit an affordable purchase for those who need something simple to keep their smaller devices and appliances running whenever there isn’t an outlet nearby.

Uses I can imagine for this model include:

• Power outages
• Off-grid camping and overnight campervan stays
• Working from your car or outdoors
• Small outdoor events
• Filming
• Powering live music
• Backyard movie nights

Check out our other portable power station reviews, including the Jackery Explorer 1000 and SolarSaga Solar Panels and GRECELL T-1000 Portable Power Station, as well as our outdoor guides on camping gadgets, campervan tech, and outdoor gear.