EcoFlow DELTA 3 Plus 1800W/1024Wh portable power bank – perfect for cyclone season (off-grid review)

10/03/2025
By Ray Shaw
In Reviews

The EcoFlow DELTA 3 Plus is a portable 1800W/1024Wh DC/AC power bank. It is great for emergency home power for the fridge, TV, and internet or wherever you need temporary AC or DC power.

Let’s position the EcoFlow Delta 3 Plus

It is one of many EcoFlow power banks, and it is important that you buy the one that works for you.

This is a DC ‘battery’ bank with an 1800-watt load (can momentarily surge to 3600W and use X-Boost to handle specific devices at 2400W) and 1024 watts hours (fuel in the tank). It has an inverter that converts DC to 240VAC power and AC to DC when charging.

So, let’s use a 100W AC para flood as an example. In theory, it should provide 10.4 hours of power. But in practice, you have:

DC-AC inverter loss/efficiency is not stated, but for a quality inverter, expect between 85% and 90%.
EcoFlow recommends setting the Depth of Discharge (DoD) to 80% of usable fuel (90% charge and 10% discharge limits). It uses LFP batteries, which can handle 100% charge and 0% empty, but battery cycle life suffers slightly in the longer term.
Unit energy use is not stated but expected between 10—20Wh.

In our tests, we got 7.5 hours of 240VAC at 100W, a 73% efficiency rating (reasonably standard for power banks).

The math is simple: We did well at 1024Wh x 80% DoD x 90% inverter efficiency / (100W paraflood+10W system load) = 6.7 hours.

Of course, the inverter efficiency loss is negligible if you have a DC-only load.

Summary: Most power banks have about 70% usable AC capacity—any more is a bonus. In other tests, we noticed that different loads result in various efficiencies – many higher than 73%.

EcoFlow range

EcoFlow has the DELTA and RIVER series. We won’t discuss all models. The RRP is at 7/3/25, and there may be event-related sales and specials on DELTA 2 and RIVER 2 run-out models. See the EcoFlow website.

DELTA

3 Plus (this review) 1800W/1024Wh $1599
3 1500, 1800W/1535Wh $2299
3 Pro 4000W/4096Wh $4999 (Review EcoFlow DELTA Pro 3 4096Wh portable power station – home backup and more)

RIVER

3 300W/245Wh $459
3 Plus 600W/286Wh $499 (review coming)
3 Max Plus 600W/858Wh $899

In addition, some DELTA and RIVER models support expansion batteries.

Why do you need a portable power bank? Hint: You do

First, read our guide Portable Power Stations – power on the go

On 7+ March, Cyclone Alfred caused blackouts for over 300,000 homes, mainly on the Gold Coast. The energy supplier stated that it could take days to a week to restore. You could at least power a fridge with the right-sized portable power bank.

According to Canstar, 4-star fridge watts per hour vary from 40 (400L) to 60 (600L). That is not a major load. The Delta3 Plus has about 750 AC Wh in the tank, or enough to power the 400/600L for 18.75/12.5 hours. Times vary – you will only know how much power the fridge uses when you connect it. Similarly, you may want to keep the TV going, as well as a Wi-Fi router/internet and a laptop. Surprisingly, the TV draws about 100-200Wh, and the laptop/ router about 70-100Wh, so you should get 4-5 hours (more as the laptop has its own battery).

If Cyclone Alfred does not do it for you, there are many more uses than you can imagine. It is essentially portable 240V and DC power in a box that can be recharged by mains power, solar, car socket, or generator. The only decision is fuel—how many watt-hours do you need?

Portable power stations are the next big thing, even if you don’t know you need one. We have three, ranging from 200 to 2000W, and they have saved us many times during blackouts.

Australian Review: EcoFlow DELTA 3 Plus 1800W/1024Wh portable power station

Note that prices are RRP as of 7/3/25

Website	AU Home Page Product page Additional Battery Accessories Manual (Take care that this links to US pages and prices)
Price	EcoFlow DELTA 3 Plus $1599 Extra 1024Wh battery $1399 Bundle including extra battery $2799 Other bundles, including solar panels, are available at approved retailers or online from EcoFlow. Delivery is generally free in Australia.
Warranty	Five years ACL Warranty
From	EcoFlow online, Harvey Norman and Joyce Mayne, Anaconda and specialist camping and off-road retailers. Where to buy select Australia. Do not buy grey market – these have Type I AU plugs and are made for 230V/50Hz.
Made in	China
Company	The EcoFlow mantra is to create the world’s most innovative, eco-friendly power solutions that enable you to live, dream, and explore without limits. In other words, it includes a range of solar generators and panels, portable power banks, portable air conditioners, and power kits.
More	CyberShack EcoFlow news and reviews CyberShack off-grid news and reviews

We use Fail (below expectations), Pass (meets expectations), and Exceed (surpasses expectations or is the class leader) against many of the items below. We occasionally give a Pass(able) rating that is not as good as it could be and a Pass ‘+’ rating to show it is good but does not quite make it to Exceed. You can click on most images for an enlargement.

First Impression – Great design – two handles

This has both front and rear top handles, making it far easier to heft a 398 x 202 x 284mm x 12.5kg device. The large display is informative and easy to read.

I like the layout, which has four generously spaced mains power outlets on the front and 2 x USB-C and 2 x USB-A above that. On the rear are charging ports and DC out ports.

It’s quiet, but you can hear the fans at 1m when charging or under load.

Overall, it is a nice-looking power bank.

Battery – Exceed

It uses LFP(LiFePO4), which has an 80% capacity after 4000 full recharge cycles. The battery is 51.2V/20A/1024W (Wh).

It has an intelligent battery management system providing real-time monitoring and regulation. The battery casing has a thermal runaway and fire propagation protection layer.

See IP rating later – it is not for outdoor use in wet weather.

App – Bluetooth and Wi-Fi

You connect via 2.4GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth (for offline use).

The app has a few interesting features, as illustrated in the screenshots below.

The dashboard shows input and output by source and by graph mode over time*
Depth of Discharge – recommended 90/10%
Charge rate – optimised for battery health, quiet charging, or by wattage
Operating mode: Gives flexibility over how the battery is used. It defaults to 50/50 Backup reserve/Savings mode
Auto time-out
Disable grid by-pass* (ensuring all devices get pure sinewave).
Storm Guard – used the grid to charge and remains 100% for blackout use*

* More appropriate for home backup systems

What is X-Boost

Momentary start-up loads are better handled by the inverter that can go to 3600W for a nanosecond or so). This is not X-Boost which provides up to 2400W maximum for longer use.

X-Boost only operates from the battery. It is disabled when charging, passthrough, or UPS modes are used. It should only be used for one attached device. X-Boost is for resistive devices like coffee machines, heaters, or hair dryers, where voltage or amperage are not issues.

Using OHMS Law of Volts x Amps = Watts, say, 240V X 10A = 2400W. You can double the Wattage by 240V X 20A = 4800W.

X-Boost is finicky and may or may not work on air fryers, coffee makers, kettles, fry pans, hair dryers, electric motor tools, microwaves, and heaters.

Charge Ports

Covered slid-in flap

2 x XT60i 2-pin DC 11-60V Maximum 15A per port to 1500W, (for solar panels 500W per XT60i or 12V/8A/96W car charging) and prioritised over AC
240V 50Hz mains or generator charging
External battery XT150 port connected to EcoFlow alternator charger, smart generator, or EcoFlow Powerstream microinverter for charging. It can also support output. The extra battery increases the Wh – not load capacity.

All ports can combine to the maximum 1500W input wattage.

LiFePO4 battery expansion – convenient

You can extend the capacity (think of this as fuel) by adding an extra 1024Wh battery. It is 398 x 200 x 198mm x 9.6kg and stacks on top of the unit. It doubles the Wh—not other specifications. Cost $1399.

Output ports – 2 x 140W USB-C Exceed

4 x 240V/50Hz combined 1800W or X-Boost
2 x USB-C 140W per port (280W max) supports PD 3.1, QC 3.0 and UFCS (China Academy of Information and Communications Technology CAICT Unified Charging Standard), HID compatible to communicate with a PC and appropriate software
2 x USB-A QC 3.0 Fast Charge 5/9/12V/⎓3A, 36W Max per port, total 72W
12V Car utility socket (12.6V/10A126W shared with DC5521)
2 x DC5521 12.6V/3A/38W per port (126W shared)

Mains Charge – Exceed

Claim: 56 minutes 1500W charge
Test: 1100W input 55 minutes – verified
Charge efficiency is about 93%.

Solar Charge– Pass

EcoFlow has a portable (13kg), four-segment, foldable, IP68, 48V/9.8V EcoFlow portable 400W portable folding panel. Folded 106.8 x 239.0 x 2.4cm x 19kg.

The test results will be in a separate review. We expect it to max out at 300-320W and last around eight hours if moved to face the sun.

There are two types of solar panel combinations

Series: The voltage doubles, and the panel with the lowest current limits the amps (current).
Parallel: The current doubles while the voltage output is the panel with the lowest voltage.

The EcoFlow DELTA 3 Plus has 2 x 500W XT670i sockets, which can support at least two solar panels of different wattages.

Car socket – Not Tested

Caveat: You can drain the car’s battery, so take care and set limits. Charging while driving should have no issues.

A cigarette lighter socket is nominally 12V/10A/120W. The $49.90, 1.5m EcoFlow car charging cable plugs into the cigarette lighter socket and the other end to the PV port, which can handle over-voltage and over-amperage. Some vehicles can be fitted with 12V/20A/240W outlets.

Theoretically, charging at 120W may take 15+ hours, which is more about topping up as you drive.

EcoFlow also has a $799, 800W Alternator Charger that runs off the car alternator. It provides charge, reverse charge and battery maintenance modes and can top up a DELTA battery at 1000W every 80 minutes.

UPS – Pass

A UPS (uninterruptible power supply) means it switches from mains to battery during a blackout. Some take the dirty, polluted “bad voltage harmonics’ grid power and clean it up to pure sinewave; some have particularly low or high-voltage triggers, and many offer customisable parameters to suit the attached device.

EcoFlow is a UPS in that it has a 10ms cutover time (good) and, if set up correctly, can filter the power via the AC-DC inverter and then supply DC-AC from the battery via the inverter. It is good enough for 99% of users.

Noise – Pass+

Noise can be measured at the device, but it is fairer to measure it where it is usually placed. If you put it in a large tent, you won’t hear it, but if you put it in a two-person tent, you will.

We measured 31dB 600W and <44dB 1200W at 2 metres from the device.

IP – Passable but not for outdoor, wet weather

The unit has an IP20 rating, which means fingers and small objects cannot get near the voltage stuff, and there is no protection against water ingress.

We understand the expansion battery pack has an IP 65 rating, as it does not require an inverter or electronics.

Warranty and Support – Pass+

The warranty is 5 years on the unit (not accessories) and is generally ACL-compliant. It requires warranty registration or proof of purchase. It is for genuine Australian-certified products only – the grey market is not warranted.

If appropriate, you will receive a prepaid shipping label. Generally, a replacement is offered after inspection; it may be refurbished and carries the balance of your new warranty.

Support is M-F, 9 AM to 5 PM, via email [email protected] or call 1800 610 248.

Trustpilot AU reviews are generally positive, with a 4-star or higher rating.

CyberShack’s view – Lightweight and compact, the Delta 3 Plus is a great backup power source

I have reviewed several brands and models; the sweet spot is between 1000 and 2000Wh. Remember that is purely the fuel in your tank, and as Harvey Norman says, the biggest mistake is buying something too small for your needs.

LED overhead light 5-10W
Wi-Fi router varies from 10-50W
Laptop varies from 60-100W
USB devices range from 1 to 100+W
Monitors 30W
TV 55-65” FTA/Streaming 100/200+W
Portable fridge 50-60W
Fridge 50-60W
Kettle/jug usually 1000+W
Slow cooker 200W
Air Fryer or multi-cooker 1500-2000W
Microwave 1000-1200W

The EcoFlow DELTA 3 Plus will tell you each device’s wattage as you plug them in, allowing you to calculate a typical load. It also indicates the battery run-time. You may need an extra battery, or conversely, you can use a lower Wh unit.

This looks good, is a fair weight, meets advertised performance parameters and performs well,

Portable power stations are the next big thing, even if you don’t know you need one. We have three, ranging from 200 to 2000W, and they have saved us many times during blackouts. Of course, now that we have rooftop solar and batteries, we will still use these as UPSs and to prolong backup time in backouts.

Competition

EcoFlow has a complete range of sizes and accessories. It is a safe buy.

In our opinion, Bluetti is the only other brand worth considering.

EcoFlow DELTA Pro 3 Plus rating

We will rate it as a camping and outdoors system with occasional use as an emergency backup.

Features: 85—It has many charging options that can be used together. It can also power many 230V, DC, and USB devices.
Value: 85—It is comparable to other reputable brands, but depending on use, you will need a range of accessories and cables at extra cost.
Performance: 85 – It appears to have decent inverter efficiency (90%+) and uses a small amount of idle power. It is rated at DC 1024Wh, but we got closer to AC 750Wh in tests – very good.
Ease of use: 85 – 12.5kg is manageable. Otherwise, the unit is plug, charge and play. The app adds value via firmware updates and to set efficiency parameters. The 5-year warranty is excellent, and the 4000 charge cycle battery (still holds 80%) reflects quality LiFePO4 batteries.
Design: 85 – I like the integrated carry handles and slip-in/out charge cover. Despite my complaining about extra cable costs, at least they are readily available. Something this big needs an overall IP rating.