Campman Outdoor Gear & Apparel

It’s been said that an adventure starts when your plans come off the rails. That may be the case, but according to that definition, the line between an adventure and a full blown emergency is razor thin.

A prime example is starting your car, only to find that the battery is dead.

If it happens at home, you might end up being a few minutes late to work or to class. But if that same situation presents itself in a remote location, especially somewhere without cell service, it could quickly turn from an embarrassing inconvenience to a genuine threat to your safety and wellbeing.

That’s where the  Zeus portable jump starter from Uncharted Supply Co. enters the picture.

We’ve seen, owned, and been saved by portable jump starters before, but the Zeus raises the bar on this concept in a meaningful way.

The biggest difference is power. There are other units that put out this much power, but few come in such a compact package.

Named for the Greek god of lightning, who also happens to be the king of the gods according to tradition, this brick-sized jump starter has the ability to kick over a full sized 8.0L diesel engine. Most other compact jump starters are straining to jumpstart a midsize truck, but the Zeus puts out up to 20,000 mAh, putting it in an elite group.

Even if you don’t drive a diesel dually, there’s a few other reasons to consider putting a Zeus in your center console.

The fact that it’s capable of cranking out so much power also means that it can jump multiple smaller vehicles on a single charge. That means you can provide a jump for a neighbor, a friend, or a total stranger, and still have enough juice left to kick over your own vehicle without having to recharge. In other words, you won’t have to choose between helping others and saving yourself.

This unit also has features common to the less powerful alternatives. It can be used to charge electronic devices, phones in particular. It can charge a completely dead iPhone to 100% battery, but unlike lesser options it can perform this task ten or more times on a single charge.

Better yet, you can use it to run power tools in a pinch, and it will power devices requiring up to 180W of power. In that regard, the Zeus is aptly named. It also has an integrated flashlight, which is hardly uncommon in this space, but which makes it much easier to jumpstart a car after dark if you get stuck without a light.

Although we haven’t had this unit long enough to fully evaluate its durability, it’s backed by a one year warranty, which says a lot about Uncharted’s confidence in this unit. That’s plenty of time to ensure that your unit functions correctly.

If you’re concerned about longevity, Lithium-Polymer batteries, the type used in the Zeus, are typically good for 300-500 charges.

Conventional wisdom holds that Li-Po batteries will retain up to 80% of their original charge potential for roughly three years, at which point they are still functional, but are considered to be past their useful lifespan. And since these batteries are also typically good for 300-500 charges, that means you’d have to be jump-starting a car almost every day to put this unit into early retirement.

We’ve put this unit to the test ourselves and have found that it works exactly as intended, and has no issues turning over the motor on the Campman Chevy Silverado 1500. In fact, we jumped the 5.3 liter EcoTech V8 engine twice in short succession without recharging the Zeus, and still had over 70% battery life remaining after the second jump. Regrettably, we haven’t had a chance to test ours on a 8.0-liter diesel engine, but our sources have confirmed that it does so without any trouble, and unofficially, it’s rumored to be effective on even larger displacement motors as well.

It might be tempting, but don’t think of the Zeus as a replacement for jumper cables. Rather, think of it as a supplement to your in-vehicle emergency kit. Unlike jumper cables, it can be used on vehicles that are parked in such a way that parking a running vehicle nose-to-nose isn’t feasible. That’s equally handy when your car is stuck in a single car garage, parked on a busy street, or when you’re rolling solo in a remote location.

If you drive a car or truck, you really should have a remote jump starter in your kit. And if you’re looking for one that’s a step above the competition, this unit from Uncharted is the best we’ve used to date. 

About Campman

Campman is an outdoor retail store located in Salt Lake City, Utah, that specializes in gear and equipment for camping, skiing, backpacking, climbing, and everything in between. We understand that the difference between a bad memory and the adventure of a lifetime can come down to the gear you take with you when you head outdoors, and we want our customers to have the best experiences possible. When it comes to getting outside, we get it, and we’ll get you the gear you need to get there.

Questions? Feel free to contact us by phone at (801) 999-8117 or by email at sales@campman.com