Home backup batteries are clutch when the power goes out, but unless you’re keeping them fully turned off until you need them, they’re always drawing a bit of power to run themselves. Anker has announced a new battery, the $3,600 Solix S5000, that should minimize this by only pulling as few as 8.8W to drive its own components while not under load.
This is quite low compared to other, similar backup batteries like the $3,500 Jackery Explorer 5000 Plus. That battery consumes a steady 50W in standby mode, according to Jackery’s specs—divide its 5,040Wh capacity by that number, and you’ve got around four days of idle time. On the other hand, Anker says its own battery is good for up to 21 days on standby. Add backup batteries to the equation—the S5000 is expandable up to 30kWh—and you can expect much longer still.
Put in perspective, Anker says the Solix S5000 “powered a refrigerator alone for up to 86 hours” during in-house testing. That may be underselling it—Anker advertises that the smaller Solix S2000 I recently reviewed will run a fridge for 35 hours, yet I got 42 hours of fridge time in my own test. As impressive as these efficiency claims are, there is an important trade-off to note here: the Solix S5000 can only steadily output at up to 4,500W, whereas the Explorer 5000 Plus can hold steady at 7,200W.
The trade-off won’t impact everyone; after all, my house pulled a little more than 3,000W at most during my review of the Anker Solix E10 whole home backup system. Also, Anker says the S5000’s 314Ah LiFePO4 battery cells can last for up to 10,000 charge cycles, which is higher than the more typical 3,000 to 6,000 cycles of similar devices, and feature “an estimated service life of up to 15 years.” The S5000 carries a UL 9540 safety certification—that considers the entire system, rather than just battery cells or other specific components. For comparison, the Explorer 5000 Plus is UL 1973 certified, which only covers battery cells. The Solix S5000 also has a fairly typical five-year-warranty.
As for hardware specifics, the Solix S5000 weighs 97 pounds, which puts it closer in weight to lower-capacity devices like the 86-pound, 4kWh Bluetti Elite 400 than the 134-pound Explorer 5000 Plus. The whole thing sits on two wheels and can be pulled around like a suitcase using an extendable handle on the opposite end. The S5000’s four 120V three-prong AC outputs can crank out up to 2,400W, while its 120V TT-30 port can go as high as 3,600W. Its highest output comes from its L13-30 240V port for major appliances—it can do up to 4,500W.
Additionally, the S5000 features a 12WUSB-A port, a 15W USB-C port, and a 100W USB-C port. The battery can be recharged at up to 1,800W via its AC cable but also works with solar, Anker’s Smart Generator, and 120V or 240V third-party generators. Using a 240W power source can get it from zero to 100% battery “in as little as 99 minutes.” Anker says the Solix S5000 can function as an uninterruptible power supply with a 10-millisecond switchover time—that’s pretty standard these days.
The Anker Solix S5000 retails for $3,600, but in typical Anker fashion, the company is debuting it with a discount; it’s $2,500 to start. The battery is available starting Oct. 27.
