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Excellent Inverter

I needed an inverter to charge my laptop and cell phone in the car on road trips, and this one fit the bill nicely. I have tested it out in the car with my computer plugged in, and it works fine. It powered my computer and supplied plenty of current to charge the battery while I was using it.
This thing is smart. If you try to run it off the 12V accessory outlet in your car without running the engine, the inverter lets out a constant beep telling you that you’re going to run down your battery if you continue. According to the manual, this beep could also mean that the voltage dropped below 11.0V. I didn’t know which it was in my particular case, but as soon as I started the engine, the squeal stopped and it was happy to charge my computer.
The ground fault interruptor, overpower and underpower warnings, battery drain warnings, auto shut-off, the 12V DC pass-through, and the option to hook the inverter directly to your battery are all very very useful features on a solid product. Well worth the reasonable price you pay!

A word of warning: if you need an inverter, make SURE you look at the amperage needed to power whatever it is you want to plug in! This one supplies 1.74 amps, which is more than enough for most laptops, game consoles, cell phones, and portable TVs, but ALWAYS double check and make sure. If you want to plug in a small fridge, for example, check the power requirements to make sure this thing can supply enough current! You’ll save yourself a lot of frustration if you are certain of what you are buying.

I highly recommend this inverter! It’s worth every penny, and it feels and performs like a much more expensive unit.

Update (5/19/2012): This item is currently on sale here for the lowest price I’ve seen. I also found some auctions for this item here.

The featured review for this product, Black & Decker 200-Watt Inverter #VEC1045BD Lawn & Patio, was written by Allen White.

The average rating for this item is 5 out of 5 stars, according to 3 reviews.