Roav by Anker SmartCharge Spectrum on Gizmodo

In another instance of the Gizmodo loves Anker series, they just praised the newest Roav car charger and shared a US deal price:

So for you US residents who are in the market for a new car charger, it seems like a no-brainer.

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Yes indeed it’s a great charger. I recently reviewed it and loved it.

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Yes I have this as an early review unit and this is a great charger. The best part is car battery voltage reporting and logging in the accompanying app.

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I wondered about this feature. Would you know how it works?

From what I gathered it reads the voltage of the charging system when you start your car, pulling the volts from the socket and reporting it in the app

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I’m inclined to ask how the voltage correlates with battery health, but it’s just sheer curiosity. I barely understood your first explanation… :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes:

Ok so it rEads the volts when you initially start your car, similar to how a regular volt meter would by registering the current. A weak volt reading could mean a failing battery, or weak charging system

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Battery scientist here :slight_smile:
Lead acid battery 101
A 12V battery is actually 13.2-13.8V when in open circuit (when car is off). On load this voltage will be less depending on load. It provides cranking current to your car’s alternator to crank the engine. After that engine takes over and recharges the battery. So most of the time battery is fully charged or almost fully charged.
A fully discharged lead acid battery will be around 10.5 V in open circuit (even less under load).
This charger reads the battery voltage once your car is on (doesn’t mean engine cranked). This voltage is a very good indication of the state of battery health. If you see anything around 13.2 V and above it tells that battery is in good health (and thus can reliably crank the engine every time). Anything less than 10.5 V is concerning (and will give cranking problems) and battery should be replaced (meaning its not holding the charge anymore).
Important to know that during extreme cold you may experience cranking issue even with good battery. That is just a nature of lead acid battery. This is where having a good battery vs bad battery will make a difference in reliably starting the car…

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A thorough yet fully understandable explanation. I take my hat off for you! :slight_smile:

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I’ve been wanting one of these. Have to grab one now!

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On par with my review a few weeks ago

That’s a pretty cool feature, wonder if the Roav Viva could get this functionality with a firmware update?