Brunton Revolt 4000
Brunton's shockproof, weatherproof, u-proof USB
charging device.
Andrew Buskov
Initial Report: March 16, 2015
Field Report: June 1, 2015
Long Term Report: July 28,
2015
Tester
Biographical
Information:
Name: |
Andrew Buskov |
Age: |
40
|
Gender: |
Male |
Height: |
5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) |
Weight: |
207 lbs (94 kg)
|
Email: |
Rescue(at)Corridor9(dot)net |
City, State Zip |
Madisonville, Kentucky
USA |
Backpacking
Background:
I’ve been backpacking for nearly 25 years, and have slowly started
developing my ideal style. I’ve gotten my pack weight down to roughly
20 - 25 lbs (9.1 - 11.3 kg) before water, and am whittling it down
every hike. Day hiking is nice, but getting out over multiple nights is
really what I enjoy. I like to take my time and view the scenery as
opposed to hiking hard. I also like being comfortable and insist on an
air mattress. I usually tent or hammock, but stay in shelters when
needed.
Product
Information:
Item: |
Revolt 4000
|
Manufacturer: |
Brunton
|
Website |
http://www.brunton.com
|
Year of Manufacture: |
2015 |
MSRP: |
$49.99 US
|
Listed Weight: |
4.9 oz (177 g)
|
Actual Weight: |
4.8 oz (136 g)
|
Color: |
Black
|
Additional Colors: |
Yellow, Orange, Mint Green, Olive Green
|
Product Description:
Per information from website & enclosed
materials
The Revolt 4000 is Brunton's 4000 mAh, recreational charging pack. It
is designed for outdoor adventurers as a convenient way to power music
players, phones, and even UV water purifiers. Brunton designed this
device to essentially be U-proof (you proof) in that it should handle
any abnormality thrown at it; dust, dirt, shocks, drops, and water.
With its textured rubberized sides for easy gripping to its Vibram
sole for secure stability on a variety of surfaces, the Revolt 4000
should be able to survive a variety of abuses and still keep plugging
along.
Product
Impressions:
Upon opening the box that the Revolt 4000 shipped in, I was presented
with a very nicely packaged unit with lots of information about the
product. I've always been partial to companies who describe their
product with much detail, which Brunton has done as the pictures here
have shown. Upon opening the package, I took a look at the unit itself.
It is smaller than I thought it would be, which in the end is better
packability wise as long as it is capable of providing the described
charge. Included is a multi-device charging cable, which I will
describe more in detail below.
I'm very dedicated
to reading the instructions on all my electronic
devices prior to using them. If I'm going to pay the money for a
quality device, then I want to know everything about it and make sure
that I understand all the functions. As such, I carefully read the
instructions on the Revolt 4000 prior to trying it out the first time.
The instructions start off with an illustration describing all of the
parts of the Revolt, an overview with waterproofing information, and
instructions on
"loading and charging" the unit (one in the same I'd think). There are
also tips, troubleshooting advice, specifications, and a warranty
information section. The warranty section doesn't give a definite time
frame other than "according to local regulatory requirements", but the
box does say "Buy it, Try it, Bust it, Return it. No Questions Asked".
The
device itself measures out to be approximately 3 x 3 x 1 in
(7.5 x
7.5 x 2.5 cm), while the length of the USB cord is just under 11 in (28
cm). On the front of the device is a small flap with a yellow piece of
rubber that seals up the charging ports thus making the device
"waterproof" (more on that later). The top has a small button with five
lighted dots. Pressing the button without a device attached illuminates
the dots indicating the remaining charge that the unit has left in 20%
increments. When a device is plugged in, the dots light automatically
and the highest charge dot begins blinking to indicate that the Revolt
is charging the attached device. The bottom has the usual information
found on most electronics with the dreaded "Made in China" label. My
device arrived fully charged as per the indicator dots, but it is not
known if all devices ship charged.
After
looking the Revolt over and getting the necessary weight
requirements I plugged in my HTC One M8 phone to test it out. My phone
was sitting at approximately 68% battery and started charging almost
immediately. The indicator dot began blinking as it should and within
approximately 45 minutes my device was charged up to 97% before I
needed to unplug it and run errands. I have not had the opportunity to
test charge time as compared to a conventional USB power cord, but will
definitely do this within the next few months. In addition, I have also
not had the opportunity to test the manufacturer's claims of charges,
though I will do this as well within the testing series.
Because
of
some missing information, or things I wasn't clear on
in the
documentation, I contacted Brunton support to inquire about a number of
issues I'd had since receiving the Revolt 4000. Because I often do
some programming on my tablet while hiking, I was very interested in
using the Revolt to charge my tablet. However, the 30 pin charging port
on the USB cable is a proprietary Apple port and not a standard 30 pin
port, thus it didn't fit my tablet; a Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1. I
contacted Brunton support to see if they offered additional connectors
to fit different devices. The representative that I received an email
from stated that they did not make additional adapters, but that the
charging OEM cable I received from Samsung should work, which it does.
During this email I also inquired as to the fact that I can't seem to
get data to transfer over the included USB cable. The reply was that
the included "3 in 1 cable will transfer power only, no data." This is
definitely an issue for me as now I have to carry two additional USB
cables to transfer data (which I often do when I can find signal), or
just leave the included 3
in 1 cable at the house. Poor implementation in my opinion.
I also
contacted Brunton regarding the charging status of the Revolt,
specifically how do I know that the Revolt is charged. The
representative that emailed me back stated that when the Revolt is done
charging, the device's indicator LEDs should stop flashing. I have
charged this device twice now and neither time did the Revolt's
indicator LEDs stop flashing and go solid. I have not fully discharged
the unit so I will definitely keep an eye on this throughout the test
series.
There was a word in the documentation and on the website that kept
nagging at me for some reason; waterproof (weatherproof on the
website). I checked out the IP rating code and discovered that
IPX5
(without going into extreme technical specifications) indicates that
"[w]ater projected by a nozzle (0.25 in or 6.3mm) against enclosure
from any direction shall have no harmful effects" and "[i]ngress of
dust is not entirely prevented, but it must not enter in sufficient
quantity to interfere with the satisfactory operation of the equipment;
complete protection against contact." This to me does not indicate
'waterproof' as mentioned by the manufacturer.
I again
contacted
Brunton to inquire if "the Revolt 4000 [is] waterproof even
when the charging port flap is open?" I received a reply that stated
"[t]he Revolt is water resistant only and this state requires the port
cover to be closed otherwise moisture will penetrate the ports and
damage the unit." If the unit is only water resistant, and the IP
rating describes this as such, then in my view the words 'waterproof'
and 'weatherproof' should not be indicated in such general terms on the
packaging without further in depth explanation on the enclosed
documentation, something that is definitely missing.
I was also able to get a bit of back-country time with this
device over
the past weekend. I took my son on his first boys-only hiking trip. One
of the activities that we participated in this weekend was Geocaching.
As my One M8 has a quality compass and GPS sensor built in, using it to
find our 'treasure' was very functional. During the trip I plugged in
the One M8 and had the Revolt sitting on the phone's face. As shown by
the picture above this in no way places any stress on the included USB
cord.
However, over a period of about 30 minutes, after arriving at our first
destination, I saw that the yellow cable had already pulled out from
the black micro USB charging plug and was exposing the charging wires.
After further inspection of the cable I found indentions on the 30 pin
Apple power plug, a plug that I haven't used as I have no Apple
devices. This leads me to believe that rather than the charging plugs
being molded over the yellow cable, the yellow cable sheath was instead
mechanically pressed into the charging plug outlets. This would explain
the rapid failure I've experienced. This is yet another issue. To me
the 3 in 1 cord is definitely not "U-Proof". I'll have
to keep close tabs on it over the duration of the test series. However,
I
will state that had I purchased this product, I would definitely use
the "Return it. No Questions Asked" portion of the warranty.
Field Report: June 1, 2015
Testing Location
& Conditions:
During the past two months I have been able to use the Brunton Revolt
4000 on two overnight backpacking trips, geocaching trips, day hiking,
and even at work. In total, I've probably used the Revolt 4000 roughly
10 - 12 times. Most of these uses were simply to maintain or lightly
recharge the battery condition, but at least two were times of heavy
recharging. All of the trips were in the western Kentucky area where
elevations varied slightly around the 500 ft (150 m) range. Both
overnight trips were clear sky nights with temps hovering around 62 F
(16.7 C).
Performance:
In my use of the Brunton Revolt 4000 over the past few months, I've had
varying degrees of satisfaction with the device. During trips where I
was able to leave my devices plugged into the Revolt for over an hour
or so the Revolt functioned fairly well. However, during our geocaching
and dayhiking activities where my electronics were repeatedly plugged
and unplugged during use I found using the Revolt to be more of a
hindrance
than a benefit. The base issue was the physical design of
the Revolt itself.
While I would have thought that having a Vibram sole would make the
Revolt grip better, the device doesn't
weigh enough to really give the sole any grip strength. When setting
the
device on a rock (semi-round rather than flat), I was often picking
both the Revolt and my electronic device off the ground. Even though my
device usually sits on rocks with no problem due to the case material,
once the Revolt started slipping and sliding it regularly took my
device to the ground with it. This is most certainly not a very
desirable effect when trying to charge devices where the ground may be
very dusty or muddy. After a few falls, I found that the rubber
material on the sides of the device gripped various surfaces much
better
than the semi-rigid Vibram sole. I would have liked to see the Brunton
charge indicator button recessed a bit into the rubber material so I
could flip the Revolt over when the Vibram sole wasn't providing
adequate traction on various surfaces.
The cord
has continued to separate over the past few months, allowing
dirt and dust to get inside. I'm hoping that the cords will make it
through the entire testing period before they need to be replaced.
Unfortunately, I don't have any I-devices that would use the other two
cords. I have however noticed that the cord on the 30 pin connector is
starting to come lose as well. I can only assume this is from storing
the connectors in my packs as I don't use them with the Revolt.
I also noticed that the time necessary to charge the Revolt was
exceptionally longer than I would have thought it should be. While I'm
not finished with my testing and documenting of various times, I found
that it took the Revolt roughly six hours to charge yet only
provided charging capacity to my devices for roughly three hours.
These are gross estimates and I will make sure to have all timing
documentation ready for the Long Term Report phase. However, I will say
that at no time has completely charging the unit been less than five
hours and 20 minutes.
I was extremely disappointed with the amount of charge that I
received when charging my tablet as pictured above. I usually don't let
it get down
very low as I'm constantly working on it. However, I did let it get
down to 5% battery since it sat in my backpack for a few days. I
thought this would be a good time to test out the Revolt. I knew per my
discussion with Brunton's support team that charging my tablet
would be slow, but I never figured the charge would be as low as it was.
Figuring that my Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 has a battery with a capacity
of 7000mAh, and the Revolt has a charging capacity of 4000mAh, I would
have figured that the Revolt would charge my tablet to roughly half of
its rated capacity. However, when I hooked up the fully charged
Brunton to my 5% charged Galaxy the total charge time that I received
was roughly three hours 25 minutes, but the capacity of charge that I
received was only around 26%. That's including the 5% the Galaxy
already had, so the Revolt only provided a net charge of 21%, or
1470mAh of charge.
I guess right now I'm on the fence as to whether this unit is as
functional as I would expect for the price range. I certainly feel that
there are some points that could be improved to make the quality to
price ratio slim down. I guess it boils down to how one is going to use
the device; I'm sure I'll make a recommendation of this during my long
term reporting phase.
Long Term Report: July 28, 2015
Testing Location
& Conditions:
I was able to get an additional two nights of use during the Long Term
Report phase of the test. In addition, I've also used the Revolt
approximately 20 additional times while geocaching, day hiking, at
work, and charging the kids devices. My outdoor hikes and geocaching
trips were in the western Kentucky area where
elevations varied slightly around the 500 ft (150 m) range. Overnight
trips were hot and sticky with temperatures hovering around 95 F (35 C)
in the day and 75 F (24 C) at night. No precipitation occurred during any of my outings.
Summary:
During this testing phase, I really wanted to get more information on
charging time and use for various devices. One of the aspects I wanted
to make sure I addressed was continued usage over the long term. With
all the use that this device has seen, the charging and discharging
time for the Brunton Revolt 4000 has changed since the start of the
test. I now find that charging the device takes roughly 5.8 hours at
minimum, longer depending on which USB port I connect the device to. I
believe this is due to the older computer having a 1 amp load versus my
newer laptop which is able to provide a 2 amp load.
The amount of
charge available to my devices also went down. When the test began, I
was able to charge my M8 from 15% battery to 100% battery roughly 1.6
times. However, now I am only able to get about 1.3 charges out of the
Revolt 4000 under the same conditions. I have been able to get some use
from the Revolt in charging a rechargeable headlamp this last phase.
I'm a bit more pleased with those results as I'm able to get quite a
few charges in the time I was able to test. I have not been able to get
hard data on the charging of the headlamp though as the Revolt was used
on multiple devices in addition to the headlamp before recharging.
I ended up having to use a different USB cable about 3/4 of the way
through the whole test. The end of the cable just became too loose and
frayed for me to rely on since I was now charging my light source as
well. The cable still worked, most of the time, but I was afraid
that if the Revolt fell or slid off a rock I would be powerless. As there
was only one cable of the three that was even useful to me, bringing
along a longer cable functioned better for my needs anyway. With as many times
as the Revolt slid off its perch onto the ground, I can attest to the
shock resistant capabilities, though I never did find an opportunity to
test the water resistance aspect.
The Brunton Revolt 4000 does have some very nice qualities to it; size
being one of the biggest. However, there are many drawbacks that could
be addressed that would give the Revolt more value in my opinion.
Simply providing a more durable and user friendly cable would be an
easy fix for many of the issues, but I think a bit of redesign and
testing on power delivery issues could make this unit really shine. In
the end, had I purchased this product for myself at the MSRP listed
above I would have taken it back weeks ago. I'm a bit of a "power user"
though so maybe the Revolt 9000 would be a better fit for me.
PROS
|
CONS
|
Compact
Shock resistant shell
Durable
Simple to operate
|
Weak cable
structure
No data through USB cable
"Water resistant" per Brunton support
Proprietary 30 pin Apple charging plug
Inconsistent power delivery from rated capacity
Vibram sole not functional
|
I'd like to thank Brunton and
BackpackGearTest.org for providing me with the opportunity to test the
Revolt 4000.
Read more gear reviews by Andrew Buskov
|