Hi,

I will be disappearing into canadian bush for several weeks with no access to civilization and my car.
MA2 batteries cannot be charged using regular USB power banks.

I have found RavPower powerbank which outputs AC voltage so, theoretically, I can use MA2 power adapter to connect to it and charge MA2 batteries.
The model I would like to purchase is

AC Outlet Portable Laptop Charger RAVPower 27000mAh 85W (100W Max.): Amazon website: https://www.amazon.ca/Portable-RAVPower-27000mAh-Universal-Indicator/dp/B07S7C1N5X/ref=sr_1_13?crid=1P14YJ1BCKBCA&dchild=1&keywords=ravpower+powerbank&qid=1593179439&sprefix=ravpower%2Caps%2C228&sr=8-13

Did any one of you have experience with such powerbanks? Did you use it and does it work well with MA2 power adapter?

Mirek

It should be fine, just try it at home before you go. Cheers

ssylca44 Posted at 6-26 07:02
It should be fine, just try it at home before you go. Cheers

Yeah - I was asking if anybody has checked it - before I buy :-)
Than I will try at home before I go :-).

Mirek

Every DC source which doesn't exceed the max charging voltage should be fine. The sophisticated charging electronics are located in the battery pack anyhow. The only problem would be to find a suitable charging cable to connect to the battery contacts. The contact layout however is printed on the DJI charger and the maximum charging voltage also. If you own the third party charger from i.e. Yx you have 4 fitting cables. You only have to find a suitable power bank with adjustable output voltage. To use an DC/AC upwards transformer in not very efficient because a lot of power is lost by generated heat.

Joe.Mavic.D.HH Posted at 6-26 07:40
Every DC source which doesn't exceed the max charging voltage should be fine. The sophisticated charging electronics are located in the battery pack anyhow. The only problem would be to find a suitable charging cable to connect to the battery contacts. The contact layout however is printed on the DJI charger and the maximum charging voltage also. If you own the third party charger from i.e. Yx you have 4 fitting cables. You only have to find a suitable power bank with adjustable output voltage. To use an DC/AC upwards transformer in not very efficient because a lot of power is lost by generated heat.

Yeah - Good points but I am looking for an easy solution without playing with specialized cables.
RavPower AC powerbank seems like an easy solution.

The question is - does it work well? (can somebody who used it for charging MA2 batteries confirm?)

Also - given power loss through heat during DC/AC conversion, how many times can I expect this powerbank (27000mAh) to fully charge MA2 battery? Theoretically I should be able to charge it 7 times until powerbank is depleted. But this is theory. What is it in practice?

Mirek

Mirek L Posted at 6-26 08:26
Yeah - Good points but I am looking for an easy solution without playing with specialized cables.
RavPower AC powerbank seems like an easy solution.

A rough estimate 50% overall efficiency.

Sorry, I don't know anything about electronics but I read where the RavPower 27000 110 vac outlet can take up to 100 watts of draw.  If you are charging an MA2 battery whether on the hub or single charger, how many watts are you going to be drawing???   I also see RavPower has some 55,000 plus powerbanks, too.  The 57,000 has a 65 watt max draw.

You need a MINIMUM of 100w output.....the one you showed is 85w  ( sorry, I am using P4Pro batteries as example )

I just ordered this:  https://www.amazon.com/gp/produc ... 0_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
There is a $50 coupon that gets it down to 200 bucks..... 298W output.....7.8#

You can charge 2 batteries safely at the same time, your phone, tablet etc...... 80,000 MAH.....  Keep in mind you don't use 100% of your power during a flight.
Fly to 30-35% and you should be able to charge 20+ batteries as well as your other stuff, and have light.
UPDATE
MA2 Max charging power is 38W.....so the one you are looking at should do......sorry, I jumped the gun!!

Randy
Aerial Traffic

A more efficient route would be to use a 12v  LiFePo4 battery (lightweight and packs a good power to weight ratio) along with a 12v MA2 battery charger. You'll have less power loss by not having to convert 12v to 110v and back down to 13.2v.

Pappy3 Posted at 6-26 17:08
A more efficient route would be to use a 12v  LiFePo4 battery (lightweight and packs a good power to weight ratio) along with a 12v MA2 battery charger. You'll have less power loss by not having to convert 12v to 110v and back down to 13.2v.

Good luck carrying around the number of 12V batteries you'd need in your backpack in the Canadian bush.

Rustic17 Posted at 6-26 17:13
Good luck carrying around the number of 12V batteries you'd need in your backpack in the Canadian bush.

It'll be lighter than the inverter as other suggested option.

Pappy3 Posted at 6-26 18:52
It'll be lighter than the inverter as other suggested option.

Good suggestions and certainly worth checking out.
I will have a canoe with me so a bit more weight will not kill me :-) Just more nuisance on portages.

But DJI should be able to provide adapter for use with regular power banks. Inability to charge MA2 batteries from USB powerbank is certainly a big miss on DJI part.
I imagine I am not the only one out there backpacking with my drone :-).

Mirek

Mirek L Posted at 6-26 19:02
Good suggestions and certainly worth checking out.
I will have a canoe with me so a bit more weight will not kill me :-) Just more nuisance on portages.

I think the issue is the amount of power required...not only greater than 12 volts but also the amount needed to charge a single battery.  

I use my cheap Harbor Freight inverter to charge mine.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/produc ... 0?ie=UTF8&psc=1

So I got this today.  Charged for 4 hours since it was over 60% charged when it got here.....Then I placed 2 Phantom and 2 Mavic 2 batteries on charge.

It shows clearly the power being used, 1 by AC and 2 by DC watts......add the 2 and you get total output power.  Very happy as of Day 1

Randy

rwynant V1 Posted at 6-27 13:06
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07WQN41V9/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

So I got this today.  Charged for 4 hours since it was over 60% charged when it got here.....Then I placed 2 Phantom and 2 Mavic 2 batteries on charge.

I wonder what the draw of 2 x Mavic Air 2 batteries is???

Rustic17 Posted at 6-27 13:37
I wonder what the draw of 2 x Mavic Air 2 batteries is???

Well,  my M2pro batts are 4 cell, and drawing 65+watts charging 2 x 20% batteries

I am 1 hr 5 min on charge, and now drawing 50 watts.......using that 2 battery acc power it usually takes 1.5hrs to charge to full....based on 20-25% battery

I imagine your draw for 2 batteries charging same time .... 40 to 50 watts.....The 2 P4 Batts finished 10 min ago...charged using DJI Power Supply plugged into Power bank...they were brand new never charged Power Extra 5870mah batts.  They finished in 1 hr.

Randy

Hi,

I checked RavPower powerbank which I mentioned in post 1 of this thread.
Unfortunately this will not work.

Powerbank with capacity of 27,000mAh was able to charge only two MA2 batteries (total of 7,000mAh) before it was almost totally depleted.
This means that power loses on DC->AC->DC transformation are enormous.
The powerbank weighs over 800 grams and is quite large for backpacking.

So I am back to square one. DJI needs to provide cable adapter so we can charge MA2 batteries from USB powerbank.

MIrek

Hello there Mirek. Thank you for reaching out and for the inquiry. I understand that you wanted to use an AC power bank to charge your DJI Mavic Air 2 intelligent flight batteries during your outdoor trip. I hope that you will get the best information from our fellow DJI co pilots who uses this AC power bank. In addition, there is a possibility that these 3rd party accessories will be able to charge the said batteries. However, since it's not tested by DJI we cannot guaranteed the stability of the said charger if it will work all the time with no issues. Please stay safe and have a great trip ahead.

Mirek L Posted at 6-29 15:55
Hi,

I checked RavPower powerbank which I mentioned in post 1 of this thread.

...that's what I thaught!

Mirek L Posted at 6-29 15:55
Hi,

I checked RavPower powerbank which I mentioned in post 1 of this thread.

Works like charme with a laptop powerbank. Make sure that output voltage is adjusted to 12V. Powerbank has to supply +12V at the inner cable contact, ground at the outer contact. With my Ravpower power bank (unfortunately no longer available) I can use the detouchable charging cables of the Yx charger out of the box. Newer laptop power banks (over 20.000 mAh, adjustable output voltage, adapter plugs) are still available. Taking a MA2 battery with nominal 3500 mAh capacity you should be able to recharge about 6 batteries with a 21.000 mAh power bank. Have not tried yet.

Joe.Mavic.D.HH Posted at 6-30 01:19
Works like charme with a laptop powerbank. Make sure that output voltage is adjusted to 12V. Powerbank has to supply +12V at the inner cable contact, ground at the outer contact. With my Ravpower power bank (unfortunately no longer available) I can use the detouchable charging cables of the Yx charger out of the box. Newer laptop power banks (over 20.000 mAh, adjustable output voltage, adapter plugs) are still available. Taking a MA2 battery with nominal 3500 mAh capacity you should be able to recharge about 6 batteries with a 21.000 mAh power bank. Have not tried yet.
[view_image]

Joe.MAvic.D.HH,

Can you provide more information about your setup? WHere did you get the cable and adapter which you use to connect your MA2 battery to the power bank?
DJI does not provide adapter for USB charging of their MA2 batteries (hence I tried workaround with AC powerbank).

Mirek

Mirek L Posted at 6-30 04:45
Joe.MAvic.D.HH,

Can you provide more information about your setup? WHere did you get the cable and adapter which you use to connect your MA2 battery to the power bank?

That's the charger (charges up to 4 MA2 batteries simultaneously!):
https://www.amazon.com/Battery-C ... d=1593529800&sr=8-2
...for Canada:
https://www.amazon.ca/Intelligen ... 2Caps%2C1582&sr=8-2

The charging cables are detachable so you can use them for your own purposes. Just make sure that the power source provides +12V at the inner contact and ground at the outer contact. Any power bank with suitable current should work. The above mentioned charger provides an output voltage of 13V, the max charging voltage of the DJI MA2 battery is 13.2V.
I can't promise it to be working with other power banks just give it a try but always have an eye on the right polarization!!!

Joe.Mavic.D.HH Posted at 6-30 01:19
Works like charme with a laptop powerbank. Make sure that output voltage is adjusted to 12V. Powerbank has to supply +12V at the inner cable contact, ground at the outer contact. With my Ravpower power bank (unfortunately no longer available) I can use the detouchable charging cables of the Yx charger out of the box. Newer laptop power banks (over 20.000 mAh, adjustable output voltage, adapter plugs) are still available. Taking a MA2 battery with nominal 3500 mAh capacity you should be able to recharge about 6 batteries with a 21.000 mAh power bank. Have not tried yet.
[view_image]

Let us know your test results.  All of my powerbanks only have usb ports.  How did you find one that has the Yx port???  And will most powerbanks output 12+ volts???  I have a 22,000 Ravpower powerbank and its max output is 5 volts..2.4 per usb port.

Joe.Mavic.D.HH Posted at 6-30 07:16
That's the charger (charges up to 4 MA2 batteries simultaneously!):
https://www.amazon.com/Battery-C ... d=1593529800&sr=8-2
...for Canada:

This is cool - thanks. Now the trick is to find a suitable poewrbank with 12V Yx output jack.


Mirek

Rustic17 Posted at 6-30 07:29
Let us know your test results.  All of my powerbanks only have usb ports.  How did you find one that has the Yx port???  And will most powerbanks output 12+ volts???  I have a 22,000 Ravpower powerbank and its max output is 5 volts..2.4 per usb port.

...as I said, mine is no longer available, but there seems to be something similar on the bay:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/32000mA ... :g:nSQAAOSwfPFbTv8~

But again: I can't guarantee that it works with a different power bank than mine and try everything at your own risk please!

Where in the bush are you going Mirek?

Northwood Posted at 6-30 18:35
Where in the bush are you going Mirek?

Not that far from where you live, I believe - Killarney Provincial Park.My wife and I like to do some backcountry canoing and camping there every year. Most beautiful area in Ontario - favoured by Group of Seven.

Mirek