I don't normally take a look at Kickstarter products, but in a moment of weakness when I was approached by the Energen team to take a look at the DroneMax 360, I decided to give it a try.
With the main sales pitch for the battery pack including charging batteries from various DJI drones, I decided to use the pack to power various gadgets and items around my home.
I've had a prototype device for a couple of weeks now. Because it's not a final production unit, it's lacking some of the polish Kickstarter backers will see when it begins shipping in May. For instance, some of the ports aren't perfectly lined up.
Prior to using the DroneMax 360, I'd never given much thought to having a portable power station on hand. I figured it was something that only the really adventurous needed for extended camping trips and the like.
But, as I've found out, that's not the case.
Design
Jason Cipriani/ZDNet
There are two faces of the DroneMax 360. One face has two 110v standard plugs, a power switch, and a fan cutout. One this side you can plug any standard plug, say for a computer or a lamp, into the battery pack to power it.
On the opposite face, you'll find a total of eight ports and series of buttons and switches. This side is where you can connect a USB cable to charge a tablet or smartphone, use the USB-C ports to charge or connect to the drone charging ports to charge two drone batteries at the same time.
The drone charging ports have three options: 4-Cell, 12V, or 3-Cell. You can set each port independently to fit the