I hope you all have gone through the unboxing and first impression of the BOLT smart charger. If not, please do check it out first before going through the review as I have covered most of the introductory part in there and hence will directly be jumping into the review. You can find the unboxing and first impressions here. Also if you have clip on handle bars on your bike, then you can check out how you can fit BOLT on your bike here. So time to get on with the review.
The first words that came out of my mouths on seeing the BOLT in action was “WOW!” and there is a pretty good reason for it too. For a charger this size with the way it is made, it surely does perform the way as promised. I will be covering the technical specifications of the charger in some but when they say that it charges your devices as fast as a wall socket unit, you happen to take it with a pinch of salt always. But in the case of the BOLT, it sure did charge my cell phone that quickly.
The best way for me is to actually describe the incident to your guys. I went on a small 3 kms ride around town to run a few errands. I connected the BOLT and my cell to it and kept it to charge while I was travelling. In the period of about 10 minutes in which I covered near to 3 kms, my cell phone battery at 85% when I left home had reached an impressive 92% within that time period. Now if that is not impressive for you guys, I don’t know what is.
My cell takes 2.5 hours to go from 0-100 on a wall charger. Pretty sure it would do the same on the BOLT too. So any of you are using GPS Maps while travelling, worrying about running out of charge ever is a thing of the past. The phone did heat up a little but then if that was the charger or the really bright summer sun is something that I am not sure about and I would like to give BOLT the benefit of the doubt here.
BOLT is very simple to fit on the bike and the battery. The connections are pretty simple and one with the DIY bug can do it himself/herself as well. If you get stuck in the process, the guys at the BOLT helpline are also pretty helpful and can easily guide you with the process. The detachable charging unit is actually a great idea by the designers. It takes off all the hassles of getting your BOLT stolen which is a very much possible outcome in India. Also it makes sure you do not end up draining the battery when there is no use for the charger. Removing the unit makes sure no battery drain is in process.
And there is an added advantage to this as well. Making sure that removing the detachable unit does not drain the battery also makes it easy for you because then you do not have to go through the extra efforts of tinkering with the ignition of the bike to make sure the charger will work only when the ignition is on. Though if you still wish to do that, be my guest.
Coming to the overall quality of the charger and the unit as a whole, it is very well made and a well-rounded unit that is easy to use and looks the part as well. I especially love the red lightning bolt that comes on when the charger is on. It looks great and during the dark, it really makes the charger stand out. The USB cable provided with the charger is also a pretty sturdy one and I might as well consider using that along with my wall charger as well once the original cable gives in.
Also BOLT claims that the charger is water resistant as well and can withstand mild rains as well, so I decided to make it run the paces through the next best thing, a water wash. And after a thorough soaking and a little drying up in the sun (I did not want to short up the thing so soon) it still worked like a charm. So all in all, BOLT me impressed.
Here are the Technical Specifications for the Geeks among us:The BOLT Smart Charger is actually a pretty cool unit to have and is definitely a recommended product from my end for anyone looking for not a decent but a good USB charger for motorcycles. We are hoping that the company comes up with such more accessories for bikes. Plus the added advantage that the company is Indian and the product is Made in India and not China for a change makes quite a difference to the whole scenario.
The charger also comes with the Warranty code on the manual in the box which can be activated via an Android app. The warranty is a one year replacement warranty where anything goes wrong in terms of the manufacturing of the unit and the company simply sends a replacement unit, period. So if anyone is looking for a good charger, the BOLT Smart Charger is very much a recommended product here.
By: Pratik Patole
The first words that came out of my mouths on seeing the BOLT in action was “WOW!” and there is a pretty good reason for it too. For a charger this size with the way it is made, it surely does perform the way as promised. I will be covering the technical specifications of the charger in some but when they say that it charges your devices as fast as a wall socket unit, you happen to take it with a pinch of salt always. But in the case of the BOLT, it sure did charge my cell phone that quickly.The best way for me is to actually describe the incident to your guys. I went on a small 3 kms ride around town to run a few errands. I connected the BOLT and my cell to it and kept it to charge while I was travelling. In the period of about 10 minutes in which I covered near to 3 kms, my cell phone battery at 85% when I left home had reached an impressive 92% within that time period. Now if that is not impressive for you guys, I don’t know what is.
My cell takes 2.5 hours to go from 0-100 on a wall charger. Pretty sure it would do the same on the BOLT too. So any of you are using GPS Maps while travelling, worrying about running out of charge ever is a thing of the past. The phone did heat up a little but then if that was the charger or the really bright summer sun is something that I am not sure about and I would like to give BOLT the benefit of the doubt here.
BOLT is very simple to fit on the bike and the battery. The connections are pretty simple and one with the DIY bug can do it himself/herself as well. If you get stuck in the process, the guys at the BOLT helpline are also pretty helpful and can easily guide you with the process. The detachable charging unit is actually a great idea by the designers. It takes off all the hassles of getting your BOLT stolen which is a very much possible outcome in India. Also it makes sure you do not end up draining the battery when there is no use for the charger. Removing the unit makes sure no battery drain is in process.And there is an added advantage to this as well. Making sure that removing the detachable unit does not drain the battery also makes it easy for you because then you do not have to go through the extra efforts of tinkering with the ignition of the bike to make sure the charger will work only when the ignition is on. Though if you still wish to do that, be my guest.
Coming to the overall quality of the charger and the unit as a whole, it is very well made and a well-rounded unit that is easy to use and looks the part as well. I especially love the red lightning bolt that comes on when the charger is on. It looks great and during the dark, it really makes the charger stand out. The USB cable provided with the charger is also a pretty sturdy one and I might as well consider using that along with my wall charger as well once the original cable gives in.
Also BOLT claims that the charger is water resistant as well and can withstand mild rains as well, so I decided to make it run the paces through the next best thing, a water wash. And after a thorough soaking and a little drying up in the sun (I did not want to short up the thing so soon) it still worked like a charm. So all in all, BOLT me impressed.Here are the Technical Specifications for the Geeks among us:
- ABS Charger and Bracket
- 1.5 meters long wire with colour coded battery connectors
- Input: 6-24V
- Output: 5V, 2A Max.
- Power Efficiency: 95%
- Operating Temperature: 0-75 degrees Centigrade
- Short Circuit Protection for current above 3A
- 1 x USB Output.
The charger also comes with the Warranty code on the manual in the box which can be activated via an Android app. The warranty is a one year replacement warranty where anything goes wrong in terms of the manufacturing of the unit and the company simply sends a replacement unit, period. So if anyone is looking for a good charger, the BOLT Smart Charger is very much a recommended product here.
By: Pratik Patole