I like the compact and lightweight features of this unit. It has enough power to start a car with very low charge. However, it only has enough juice for 1 or 2 attempts of starting the vehicle. Maybe I have to recharge the unit a few more times to get peak performance.
One gripe is that there is no cord to an outlet. You have to provide an extension cord to charge the unit. Make sure it's a heavy gauge cord too. Schumacher IP-125 Instant Power Jump Starter With 12 Amp Hour Battery
Extremely compact and well "branded."
The clamp handles touch one another, making their release awkward. (This can be overcome by clipping one higher than the other on the case.)
Two problems with the plug prongs. A larger cutout on the case end would permit the use of a wider range of extension cords. (The earlier comment about a computer power cord is excellent.) The prongs are slightly loose and move inward, so that the connection with the cord is marginal.
I have used this for five months now. I love this little battery. It hold a lot of power and starts my car easily when the battery is run down. The price was great and it is easy to recharge. I took the advise of another reviewer and us a computer cord to recharge. That is the only thing I wish were different. I wish it had its own power cord.
I own 3 of these, and I've bought 5 of them because I've given away two others.
What I really like about this unit are two things. First, you can turn the power off which can prevent accidents. Second, to charge it all you need is an extension cord. I love this because I had two other chargers and I had to have their specific wall plugs to charge them up, I have a LOT of wall chargers and they get lost or you can't remember which one goes to which. With the wall plug is it easy, you can charge it anywhere anyplace. Get a $1.99 computer cord and you can juice it up anywhere.
I purchased a previous version of this (back then the product name was the "Mighty-Mite") although the color (mine is more towards black) and the graphics have changed. I don't believe the product itself has changed much, with the buttons and lights in exactly the same place.
Despite the size, it has worked great over the years. I purchased two back in 2006 and they still work well.
I'm not docking off a star, but there are little things that have to be understood for this product to be more useful. Sometimes the automatic charging system doesn't stop, although the charging current is probably so small that there's little risk of damaging the internal battery. I've found that disconnecting then reconnecting showed a green "charged" indicator in those cases. Since the current draw is pretty small, you can safely use something like a simple household extension cord. Since the plug is recessed, the way I've dealt with it was to use a 2 to 3 prong adapter, which serves as an extension of the plug. The other alternative is to get something like an outdoor electrical cord with an end that will fit in the recessed area. I rather prefer this to the ones with wall-wart adapters, since I can easily obtain replacement extension cords and 2/3 prong adapters on the road and can keep different sets in the house and car. I don't particularly like storing wall-warts in the car, especially given how delicate the thin cable is.
It doesn't come with a male-male cord to recharge off of the 12 V accessory port. You can also use those to maintain the power in a car (like electric presets) when you're changing a car battery. Amazon has it, although Schumacher also sells it directly.
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Starting from the shipping, it was fast and in as-is condition as on the add. I used this little starter may be more than 5 times in the last couple of months and it works like a champ, my car starts within 15 seconds of charging it. So, I really recommend this product for others, and I am thinking to have one for my sis as well.
Seems pretty good. It's pretty small, and you need an extension cord if you want to plug it in. I ended up putting a 3 prong to 2 prong adapter on it, because the end of my extension cord couldn't fit in the little recessed area that has the 2 prongs. But the lights light up telling you what it's doing, and i have some piece of mind that I can jump start my heart if i ever accidentally drain it. Also, i kept it unplugged for a month, and i think that it kept its full charge.
I conveniently broke down in front of a hardware store. I went in and found this product. I opened it up and pushed the battery status button. It showed yellow status (50% to 75%), so I figured it was worth a try.
Took it out to my car and started it instantly. The instructions say to charge it for 36 hours first so I thought it was outstanding that it would start the car with the residual charge from the factory.
Edit: I've used this thing a lot, being that I hardly leave the house and have two cars. It will start a dead as a door nail battery several times before needing recharging. End Edit.
I had a battery that only provided enough power to make a click when turning the key. I ordered this, charged it for a day and hooked it to my battery. Finding the proper grounding spot is critical. I was alerted to the fact that I found a good ground finally after the 2004 Nissan Frontier Pickup's interior lights came on and the ding (key in ignition with open door) started blaring. The truck started right up.
I then later used it to start a battery in a 2000 Mustang. The battery was very drained and the car would not start, similar to the above scenario. Found the ground spot and the car started. After plugging the device back up, in less than an hour it was fully recharged.
I recommend a standard orange extension cord for this. The male end in the charger is recessed and you'll need a cord with an inline female socket that will plug directly in. - Automotive - Jump Start - Battery Booster - Jump Starters'
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