Fusion reaction: three portable power stations to keep you entertained during the dark times

South Africans are a resourceful lot. When faced with an energy crisis, they find ways to keep the lights on, the kids entertained, and the billable hours ticking over. The average South African is also now more familiar with battery technology than your average global citizen. It’s at these folks that Lava’s Fusion portable power stations are aimed – people who know their batteries and are looking to up their at-home load shedding game.

Lava Fusion 155WH Portable Power Station

What weighs in at 1.6kg, sports a 42,000mAh lithium-ion battery, and features a power output of 100 watts? That would be Lava’s 155WH portable power station. Designed to handle smaller electricity outages, it’s best used for the everyday run of electronic devices – but it’ll cope with loads of them.

But it’s not just suited to keeping smartphones, tablets, and laptops charged up and working. It’ll also keep your internet running. A wireless router can expect up to fifteen hours of uptime while connected to this Fusion device. And if you really want to get fancy, it’ll keep a 32in TV set powered for two hours. If you absolutely must catch the match on an acceptable screen during an outage, that’s totally an option.

The Lava Fusion 155WH portable power station also supports solar charging if you happen to have a panel on hand. As such, it’s ideally suited for that very South African activity – camping out in the bush somewhere. This factor also adds an extra layer of security when it comes to handling Eskom’s unexpected outbursts.

Lava Fusion 296WH Portable Power Station

Bigger is frequently better. This applies to things like cakes, salaries, and batteries. The Lava Fusion 296WH power station is a solid addition to any home appliance arsenal, featuring an 80,000mAh battery and enough uptime to make Medupi jealous. It does this while weighing in at 5.8kg. That makes a fair-sized kettlebell – taxing but not quite unwieldy yet. But you’re not likely to swing this battery pack about. Nope, you’ll stick it in a prime location and bask in the reflected glow of a functional TV screen.

That’s because the Fusion 296WH power station has the chops to run a 42in TV set for up to four hours. The inclusion of two Type D (three-pin) plug points mean that you can also run an Android TV box alongside, letting you watch something that isn’t being broadcast by the SABC.

It’s got other skills too. Yes, this unit charges your mobile devices (many times over). It’ll also keep your internet up and running, so you can stream Netflix to a tablet for nearly 30 hours at a time. Or until the tablet’s battery conks out. That’s fine, though. Just switch to your smartphone while this Lava Fusion battery brings your tablet back up to full strength.

What else could you need? Solar support as well as short-circuit, overload, and overcharge protection? Sure, those are all standard across Lava’s range of devices.

Lava Fusion 499WH Portable Power Station

It’s time to bring out the big guns in the war against boredom. Lava’s Fusion 499WH portable power station, as the large number suggests, is the most capable of the range. It’s a mighty 7kg worth of battery, capable of running a 42in TV and streaming box for up to six hours. It’ll do decent work if you connect a TV and games console to it, serving up two hours of entertainment when the lights are out.  If you’d rather run a small fridge, you can expect up to seven hours of uptime. And if internet access is all-important, this unit promises up to 49 hours of wonderful streaming access.

You’ll need devices to make use of that access, but the USB-A, USB-C, Type D, and 12-volt sockets ensure that you can keep basically any smart device you own fully charged and ready for action. That 135,000mAh battery is a contender for the largest lithium-ion battery you’ll see this side of a fully-fledged EV.

As with its smaller brethren, you can expect more than 500 charge cycles from the Lava Fusion 499WH portable power station. That should get you a fair way along the current cycle of power uncertainty South Africa finds itself embroiled in.

For any of these units, or Lava’s smaller battery packs, check out Elite Shopper on Takealot’s storefront. Prices start at R3,699 and go up to R9,999 for the largest battery pack. And you’re going to want the largest battery pack. Because, as mentioned above, bigger is always better.