BMK POWER INVERTER ~ 12 volts DC to 110 volts AC Power inverter
©
2020 BOB SKIDMORE ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
BOB SKIDMORE
CORRESPONDENT
Have you ever wished that you could use a 110-volt AC powered
appliance in your automobile? Things like a computer, portable DVD player, non-USB
charger, etc. Wouldn’t it also be nice to have USB charging ports and a voltage
readout of your car’s electrical system too? Well a company known as BMK
Bluemickey has just such a device.
The BMK 200W Car Power
Inverter takes 12 volts DC, the electrical power your car produces via its
battery and generator/alternator, and converts it to 110 volts AC at a maximum
load of 200 watts. While I don’t have an oscilloscope to check the output it
does appear to be a pure AC since wave. Sine waves, as opposed to a square waves,
are the AC electrical current standard that sound and video equipment needs to
prevent interference such as hum and video noise bars. This unit will power
virtually anything that is under 200 watts of energy consumption. It’s
important to check the wattage power consumption found on the label affixed to
the device(s) you are powering. Most audio, video, laptops and charging
equipment falls well below the 200-watt maximum draw allowed. You never want to
exceed this wattage amount as it will blow a fuse in the unit or car’s fuse
block and could burn out the inverter. In fact, it’s probably a good practice
not to exceed 90% (180-watts) of the published rating as some devices may not
have an accurate wattage consumption rating.
In addition to the two standard AC ground sockets found on
the top of the inverter, you will also find four 6.2A USB ports on one edge.
These ports can power or charge USB devices such as smartphones and headsets.
An internal cooling fan is part of the design.
(TIP: When not using either of the
two AC power outlets you should always switch them off with the power switch on
the top of the unit. The USB ports will still continue to work. Again, bear in
mind that the combined power draw can’t exceed 200 watts even though you are
using different plugs/ports.)
In addition, the BMK
POWER INVERTER features a handy LCD digital power readout above the two AC
power outlets. This readout shows the actual DC power output of your cars
electrical system. It displays continuously so will display this even when
nothing is plugged into the outlets or ports. A handy way to monitor your
battery’s charged capacity.
The inverter uses a 15A fused cigarette lighter plug that
plugs into your cigarette lighter. I found the BMK POWER INVERTER to work well with many different devices that
meet the power specifications. If your center console allows something to be
hooked on to it, affixing the 3M Command small clear wire wall hooks to the inverter and hanging
the inverter on the console is a neat way to place it.
The BMK POWER INVERTER is a great item at a very great price!
GADGETEER’s RATING: ★★★★★
Available at Retail, Amazon and other on-line
retailers.
Graphic credits: Manufacturer & Google Images
Bob Skidmore is a freelance
writer, who may be contacted at bob.thegadgeteer.skidmore@gmail.com, or
followed at twitter.com/bskidmore for the
latest gadget industry news. He does not represent, or endorse any of the
products he reviews and his opinions are solely his points of view and not
those of the manufacturer, or any legal resource. The manufacturer generally
supplies products and press releases at no cost for the articles and no other
compensation is received. THE GADGETEER
is highly selective as to products he feels worthy of review so as not to waste
the reader’s time, thus the reason for many superior ratings.
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