Ahh, summertime and I can’t wait to hit the road. With all of us vaccinated, at least in this office, I can’t wait to start the summer travels and I realize it will be difficult with still millions of people out there refusing to get their shot. Ignorance and stupidity goes so far so we have to look out for ourselves. I realize that there are extenuating circumstances but what does that cover, .05 percent of the un-vaccinated?  I mean you wouldn’t take a long road trip without checking the car maintenance schedule, tires, battery, and simple things like; do all the lights still work.

PowerUP600My friend who drives from IN to NM a few times a year recently purchased an emergency starter for when the car’s battery goes out and it hit me that my car is now over five year’s old and so when I checked the maintenance schedule, and tire life, I see I should be good to go this summer but in looking at recommendations for the battery, see that most places tell you to replace it after five years.  

 

It was literally the next day that an email popped up asking me if I would be interested in taking a look at a new emergency battery starter and it took me all of a minute to reply and say you bet.  Talk about perfect timing.

 

 So what I received from Scosche was the PowerUP 600 Torch.

 

PowerUP600cIt looks like an oversized flashlight that you plug jumper cables into. 

 

It is intended to jumpstart a gasoline engine up to 5.0 Liters in size and 8 cylinders which covers most cars and SUVs on the road today. It will also power up a Diesel engine up to 2L in size. 

 

What’s in the box to start is the nice solid neoprene travel case for the unit.  Flip open the case and there behind the mesh curtain is the pocket for the unit on the top along with a USB to USBC charging cable for the unit.  The flap covering the bottom storage part of the case has the instruction on using it in bright white lettering on a black background so even in dim light, you should still be able to read them.  With that rear cap closed, it is rated IP65 Waterproof.

The jumper cables are connected to the adapter that plugs into the rear of the charging unit/flashlight.  The entire unit connected is only about 2 feet in length so hopefully the battery to be charged is easy to get to. It is also easy to handle at just over 2 pounds weight. Also in the package is a small instruction booklet that you will need a good light to read, and also a 12v Car adapter for charging the unit assuming there is plenty of power in the car to begin with.

PowerUP600What I like about the Smart Cable that is attached to the jumper cables is the three LEDs that one is called a Night Assist white light, a red error LED, and the a green start LED.  The flashlight itself is a powerful 330 lumens LED light as well as a mode for dim light, strobe, and a fast flashing SOS strobe light. 

To turn it on, you need to hold the on/off switch at least a full second so that an inadvertent push of the button wont leave it turned on.  On the back of the unit/light, you remove the back cover that is connected by a heavy rubber cord to get to not only where you plug in the jumper cable Smart Cable, but also there is a power check button to let you know how fully charged the unit is. 

 

Here is also the USB-C charging port for when you need to charge the unit.  If you need to charge your phone or travel speaker or GPS, there is also a USB A plug for connecting those devices and using the PowerUP as a normal charging battery pack which holds a 2000 mAh battery inside.

PoweruUP600WorkGetting the car started looks like a very easy process. You plug the Smart Cable into the PowerUP 600 unit. You then connect the jumper cables to the car’s battery, Red on positive, black on black terminal, try not to hit the cables against each other. If the green LED lights up, you are good to go and start the car.

After the car starts, reverse the order, remove the black jumper cable, then the red cable, then unplug it from the unit. Another part of what I like in the unit is what they call the Spark-Free 6-Point Safety Protection which protects you from Short Circuits and Reverse Connection among other problems.  Probably the only downside is that if you are fortunate enough not to need it, you should check and recharge it every six months.

You can see their video here: https://youtu.be/bxUCDT7mD8k

Definitely going into my emergency packing for the next car trip. Because the flashlight is such a large unit, would recommend a small maglite unit in the car as well.  The Scosche PowerUP 600 will be available this spring for $99.

Robert Sanborn
May 2021