Powerstation PSX-2 Multi-Purpose Rugged Vehicle Utility Jump Starter review
Why am I reviewing this here? Find out. The Powerstation PSX-2 is a jumper battery for when your car won’t start, it’s a tire inflator for when your tire is shot, it’s a flashlight for when you’re stuck on the side of the road with no juice and want to make sure nobody hits you, and it’s a power source for a cell phone charger for when you need to make that phone call to get help.
You can read my latest adventure with the thing here.
In short, the Powerstation PSX-2 is something you probably should have if you do any sort of traveling with a baby, small child, or just want to not be stranded when you forgot and left the headlights on.
I’ve been a fan of jumper batteries for a really long time now, and I’ve had this one for about three years now replacing my previous one which the compressor broke on, and the one before that which died after years and countless jump starts of various vehicles.
Car is dead
You’ve got a weak battery drained by 12 kids devices plugged into every outlet and your cell phone charger and GPS. Your car is now sitting in a parking lot in the rain and of course your cell phone is dead because that’s 1) how these scenarios go, 2) see 1.
You can go attempt to find a phone, dragging your babies with you in the rain, or you can open the hood, open the trunk, pull the battery out, attached black wire to the black/negative terminal, attach red to the positive terminal, twist the very large comically oversized knob to on, turn the key in the ignition and start your car.
Total time: about two minutes if you know what you’re doing.
Alternately you can go and find a phone, call AAA, inform them you have no call back number because see 1, hope that the tow truck driver can find you, haul your wet children back into the car to sit in the rain, or stand around in a convenience store, soaked, in 70 degree temps.
Tire is flat or low
A flat tire will probably require some fix-a-flat or gunk or a patch kit. I can tell you how to do all of these things at some point having repaired quite a few tires in my time now, but most people are not going to be all that interested in that and quite honestly I’m sick today so typing hurts.
We’ll assume your tires are low. The PSX Powerstation comes with a built-in air pump. Even if you’ve got a leak in your tire you can probably fill up the tire enough to get it to a service station to get repaired.
That or wait on the side of the road, kid in tears because they want to be somewhere, watching as your cell phone battery goes from red to critical.
Cell phone is dead
Plug in a standard car charger into the side of the battery, voila. 700,000mAh phone charger. I’ve had to do this many times with my HTC EVO 4G LTE as the thing can drain randomly depending on where I am day to day.
Bring the power
With the aid of a power inverter, you can basically bring a wall outlet anywhere you go. useful for those children’s toys that simply do not have car adapters.
Get it!
I got mine at Costco, and I think they have them every couple of months. You can get yours there or over at Amazon for $99.99. It’ll pay for itself in the first use generally. I think every one should have something like this, even if it’s not this one.