NoCo Boost Portable Jump
Packs versus NEXPOW
With every great product there will be a knock off. NoCo burst onto the portable jump starter market and took over quick several years back. The companies several options for peak cranking amps and their weight of just a couple pounds made NoCo the most popular portable jump starter on the market.
This year on Amazon though, I’m seeing a competing brand NEXPOW emerging as an alternative to the NoCo Boost. I suspect these NEXPOW portable jump packs haven’t been around long but I have already seen a rapid increase in popularity on Amazon.
I bought two portable jump starters from Amazon and searched all sorts of terms like “car jump starter”, emergency battery booster” and more this year and this is the first time I have seen this NexPow brand of light-weight portable jump packs.
First, I bought one of those iMazing brand emergency jump starters and it only lasted a few months. The battery, cables and even the carrying case were After that, I bought a NoCo Boost GB40 which you will soon learn more about.
NOCO Boost GB40 1,000 Amp Portable Jump Starter
As you can see, the NoCo Boost GB70 cost more than the NEXPOW but is it worth the extra money? Or is this new NEXPOW brand the next NoCo?
At the price point above, given the positive reviews on the Nexpow, buying it is a CAN’T MISS OPPORTUNITY!
As with every tool, I’m curious are these NEXPOW boost packs any good? How is the quality compared to NoCo Boost portable jump starters? would it be worth my money to buy a NEXPOW jump starter? Is the NEXPOW an everyday jump pack or an emergency-only option?
Usually knock off or generic products are just a tool idea taken from another company, produced with cheaper parts and sold at a cheaper price. This could be exactly what NEXPOW is doing with these jump starters. It’s also possible that the NexPow jump starters are just as capable, but less expensive. We’ll go in-depth on this later.
I just wrote about generic power tool batteries the other day. Same scenario, different tool. Some knock off power tool batteries that I reviewed were good some of them weren’t.
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Let’s take a look at this. NoCo versus NEXPOW.
The best price for a NoCo Boost on Amazon right now is the 500 amp version listed at $79.99. NEXPOW is trying to push into the market with a 1500 amp version selling right now for only $49.99- down 51% from its list price of $99.99. At that price, a professional auto technician ought to be weary, so is this just another knock off or is the NEXPOW jump pack a good deal?
Is the NEXPOW 1500 amp a good portable jump pack though? Does this boosters 1500 amps compare with NoCo’s 500, 1,000 or 2,000 amp boosters? NoCo even has a whopping 3,000 amp jump starter that they sell for under $300. The NoCo Boost 3000 amp could probably jump start a Peterbilt.
Remember, just because a jump starter or power tool battery says it’s rated at say 2,000 peak amps or 3,000 peak amps does not make it true. Reputable brands like NoCo have been tested, opened up and put through insane tests to verify the size of the batteries inside. Does anyone know what battery is actually inside of a NEXPOW portable jump starter?
Weight is a major advantage to portable jump starters like NoCo and NEXPOW.
Remember the old JNC 660? One of the most popular and most re-branded jump starters ever. I call it old because it’s been in auto repair shops for years. It’s been one of the most reliable jump packs ever made.
It sold for around $300 back then if I remember right. If you got it from Blue Point, Mac or another rebrand, then it was a $500 jump starter. That JNC 660 only has 1,700 peak amps and it weighs 18 pounds.
The NoCo Boost GB 150 puts 3,000 amps into a 3 pound jump starter. New advancements in Lithium-ion batteries have made it possible to pack over 4,000 amps into a portable jump pack. That 4250 amp jump pack weighs less than a gallon of milk and can start up to an 8.0 Liter Diesel engine.
We got off track with the jump pack history lesson, but back to it.
Let’s Compare NoCo Boost Versus NEXPOW jump starters.
First, I’m going to give the specs and reviews of the NoCo Boost jump pack. Including my own personal review because I bought the 1,000 amp version in March. It’s still going strong, but we’ll get into that.
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Features of the NoCo Boost
- 1,000 peak amp of starting current.
- 2.1 Amp USB Output
- Up to 20 Starts on one charge
- Polarity protection (you’ve all done it once)
- Starts up to a 6 liter Gasoline Engine or a 3.0 Liter Diesel Engine
- Weighs less than 2.5 pounds.
- Portable power bank for charging cell phones, tablets, lap tops or any other USB devices
- Is just plain bad ass.
Amazon Reviews on the NoCo Boost
The NoCo GB 40 1.000 Amp jump starter gets a 4.7 total in over 73,000 Amazon reviews which says something in itself. Amazon shoppers are hard to please and are not afraid to leave a bad rating or review if the product sucks.
The NoCo ranks as the best selling jump starter in automotive on Amazon also. So people are definitely buying this portable jump starter.
In portability, it gets a 4.7. Safety features a 4.6 and “easy to use” a 4.6 as well. I’ll give you an example of the type of reviews the NoCo GB40 gets.
My Ford Focus 1.6 MK3’s battery was completely flat during the covid-19 lockdown as I didn’t drive anywhere for a few weeks. The battery was so flat my car couldn’t be unlocked using the key fob. I followed the instructions of the NOCO GB40 by charging it fully first before connecting it to my car. On the press of the power button once connected with the leads to my car battery I could hear some clicking noise while the power LEDs were lighting up. I tried my car 10 seconds later and it started it first time. I don’t normally write reviews but thought I’d give some feedback in case anyone has doubts if it works.- Tsangestu (verified purchase)
Who makes NoCo products?
NoCo products are made by the company in Ohio and China, according to its website. Established in 1917 in Cleveland, Ohio, the company still operates in Solus and employs more than 75 people in the USA and exports it’s Boost GB40, GB70 and other models to more than 30 countries.
Just the fact that NOCO Boost and Genius battery solution products are made in the USA gives them a huge advantage compared to some of the other Chinese brands.
My personal experience using the NoCo Boost every day.
Now, my own personal review. I have owned the GB40 since March of this year. Purchased on Amazon for $99.99 as a jump starter to use around the shop. We had been using a Snap-On jump pack that was powerful, sure. But it weighed like 50 pounds.
Working at a car dealership, we were constantly running around starting cars with dead batteries. Cold spells up here in the North Country would have ten cars on the lot cranking real slow.
Why would I carry around a Snap-On jump pack that weighed as much as a car battery when they were selling these NoCo Boost for $99 on Amazon? At worst, I was out a hundred bucks. Or the price of a Snap-On socket.
But at best, I now had a 2 and a half pound jump starter that I could carry around the lot and get all these dead batteries going. Let me back pedal a bit too, because I forgot another part of the story.
What about Snap On portable jump starters? Are they any good?
I mentioned the problem of Snap-On’s jump starter weighing too much to my rep. He sold me a similar jump starter to the NoCo at least in size. It was Snap On part number EEJP201MBK. On Snap On’s website, they promote it as an ideal jump starter for emergencies. How many cranking amps? 275 and you could tell.
I gave it back to him the next week he came to my shop. It was junk. It might have been a good jump pack for ATV’s, RTV’s and boats or something similar, but for $99 the NoCo Boost will work better even for that. And it cost almost $400. No thanks. I love some of Snap On’s tools, but I’ll be honest I’m not a fan of their electric tools. Even when it comes to lights, there are better alternatives than Snap On.
If you spend enough time on my site you will see that I love to offer alternatives to Snap On for everything. I have come to learn that Snap On is just a logo and there are tools out there that work better and cost a lot less.
The NoCo Boost was the best option for a lightweight jump pack at the time.
The NoCo Boost GB40 saved my life. Or at least my back. This little jump starter that weighed next to nothing started just as many cars on a charge as that big red car battery disguised as a jump pack that Snap On sold me.
Also on the plus side, the NOCO Boost and the NexPow can charge using USB so you can charge up your EZ Red neck lights. I’m assuming you have them by now because only rookies don’t.
Let’s take a look at this NEXPOW jump pack
Reviewing the NEXPOW jump pack is going to be admittedly subjective because I have never used the product myself. And, I’ll be up front. I have four kids and this blog pays me nothing aside from a random ad click. So I can’t buy one simply to review it, as much as I’d like to. Someday.
In this case though, I’m gonna base my review of the NEXPOW boost pack on the general consensus of the internet.
I know, it’s definitely not the most accurate way to review a tool. It is however effective, because in 2023, everyone speaks their mind on the internet. So, we can get the features of the NEXPOW jump starter. Amazon lists those.
We can get reviews of the NEXPOW jump starter because there will be tons out there. Just let me guide you through those reviews and find the ones that matter. We’re gonna see if this NEXPOW is any good by putting in work and doing the research.
Features of the NEXPOW
- 1500 amp peak starting current
- “Smart Clamps” protection from reverse polarity, spark, high temperature and overload.
- Starts up to a 7.0 Liter Gas Engine or 5.5 Liter Diesel Engine (500 more amps of starting current than the GB40)
- Weighs just 2.1 pounds
- 4.5 out 5 Stars from 7,153 Amazon reviews.
- Portable power bank for charging cell phones, tablet and lap tops.
- Available in dozens of different configurations.
So, the features of the NEXPOW jump pack compare favorably to the NoCo brand jump starters. Essentially, they are the same product. The question is, are they the same quality? Because as much as price matters when buying tools, quality matters even more.
Who makes NEXPOW products?
When looking at the value of anything, it’s worth finding out who makes the portable jump starter? Although the NEXPOW products you see on Amazon are made by “Guangdong Boltpower Energy Co Ltd.” The company develops “portable lithium jump starters”, according to its homepage. No, that’s not a typo. “Portable” is actually misspelled. I guess we can look past that if the product is quality. We’ll see.
In a further attempt to gauge the quality of the NEXPOW booster, I scoured the Amazon reviews. I Googled “NEXPOW jump pack reviews” to see if people thought this jump pack was any good or if the internet was calling it junk. At half the price of the NoCo, it’s worth a serious look and that’s what I gave the NEXPOW brand jump pack.
How are the NEXPOW jump starter reviews?
The reviews on the NEXPOW jump starter are really good. Amazon has the jump pack at 4.5 stars with some high praise from many people looking for a good jump starter. It’s Amazon rating was a tad lower than the NoCo Boost, but the customer reviews were impressive.
I was honestly surprised to see how good the NEXPOW was rated by customers. I found pleasant reviews like this one from Matt on Amazon. A verified purchaser-
Delivered same day and arrived mostly charged, worked great. Easily started my 2008 Honda Pilot. Highly recommend.
I also looked through dozens of verified purchase reviews on Walmart.com and it was tough to find negative reviews on this NEXPOW brand honestly. Because there are ways to trick reviews and prop up your numbers, I can’t trust just what I read.
That’s why I went to the internet looking for videos of the NEXPOW actually being used. I came across this one on YouTube of the portable jump starter actually starting a car. So, we at least know it will start a car/truck/machine with a dead battery.
NOCO is Suing NEXPOW for Patent Infringement.
NexPow has come so strong at NOCO Products and infiltrated the market for portable jump starters so much that the company filed suit in September of 2022 against the owners of NexPow.
Among the charges were various patent infringements, patent dilution and unfair business tactic complaints. Whether they settled or not, isn’t clear but consider something. Why would NOCO sue the developers of the NEXPOW jump starter if it posed no threat?
NEXPOW seems to be a quality competitor to NoCo
Overall I was impressed with the reception these NEXPOW jump starters are getting. And for a ridiculous price. I would say if you’re looking to buy a portable jump starter for emergencies, repair shop use or just to charge your cell phone these would suffice.
Honestly at $49.99 on sale right now, why wouldn’t you buy one a jump starter for the trunk of the car even? If I didn’t own the NoCo Boost, I would buy a NEXPOW jump starter and give it a shot.
You never know when a dead battery is going to leave you stranded. It’s worth it to have a portable jump starter in your car and the NoCo Boost or the NEXPOW would be a great choice.
