When it comes to the very best battery chargers, jump starters and other electrical components to help keep your car running, there are only a handful of manufacturers who can be trusted for quality every time. Up there in the rarefied atmosphere of excellence, one name stands out: NOCO.
Founded in 1914 as a manufacturer of chemicals to prevent battery corrosion, the brand has since grown into one of the world’s pre-eminent suppliers of battery chargers, jump starters and other electrical accessories. We at Parkers have long advocated the NOCO name as a byword for quality in the battery charging business, though we allow its products to do most of the talking.
You’ll find the name on several of our relevant battery charging articles, but why should the brand mean anything to you, and why do we laud it so highly? Allow us to explain.
The product list
NOCO is famed for its wide and diverse product range but navigating through all the models can be tricky. While it may feel as though you’re submerged in a vast expanse of product codes, the list can really be broken down into two main groups:
Genius
The Genius product family is NOCO’s range of battery chargers, though their utility extends further than simple power-ups.
Battery chargers are used to juice batteries back up when low or completely flat, though they can also be used to maintain the batteries in idle cars over long periods of inactivity.
The battery charging unit is connected to the mains then hooked up to the battery terminals via two leads and left until the battery reaches full power. At this point, should the charger offer the capability, it will begin maintenance charging – known as trickle charging – to keep the battery in a healthy, fully charged state until disconnected from the mains.
NOCO battery chargers take things a step further by detecting sulfation and acid stratification – electrolytes concentrating at the bottom of the battery, starving the top – to restore lost battery performance.
From the entry range right up to NOCO’s flagship GeniusPro, this product family is big. Here are a few of our favourites:
Rrp: £54.95
Rrp: £54.95
Like the rest of NOCO’s Genius range, the Genius 2 has built-in smart technology to begin maintaining the life of your battery once fully charged, without touching a button. This charger is also capable of restoring battery performance thanks to NOCO’s acid stratification detection technology.
Light, compact and powerful, for under £50, this is a lot of battery charger for a great price.
While it’s designed to be used as an automotive battery charging tool, this charger, along with the rest of the Genius range, is compatible with most types of vehicles, including lawnmowers, tractors, boats and even hot rods.
Rrp: £599.95
Rrp: £599.95
While this may be overkill for most motorists, for absolute reliability in the toughest of conditions, this is one of the best battery chargers on the market.
Boost
The Boost range is NOCO’s answer to the jump starter – a portable power unit used to jump-start dead batteries in the absence of a mains power supply. By delivering a short but powerful burst of electricity over the course of a few minutes, a jump starter can kickstart a car battery back into life and with it the engine.
Traditionally, jump starter units have been blocky, cumbersome objects, almost too weighty to tote around in the car. However, thanks to the innovation of manufacturers like NOCO and the advancement of Lithium technology, modern jump starters are now a fraction of the weight and size of their forebears.
Compact, safe and easy to use, NOCO’s jump starts are often ranked among the best on the market. By virtue of their small stature and lightweight, these jump starts can effortlessly and inconspicuously slip into any rear boot arrangement.
Upon realising your battery has bitten the dust, connect your NOCO boost pack to the battery terminals via the included crocodile clips – these clips are spark resistant, so you needn’t worry about accidentally touching them – and power on. As always, the red clip should be connected to the positive terminal and the black clip to the negative.
Here are some of our favourite boost models:
Thanks to NOCO’s patented safety technology, the Boost range ensures spark-proof connections and reverse polarity protection, making these jump starters incredibly safe to use. This jump starter can revive engines up to four litres in capacity, such as cars, motorbikes and more.
Are your other devices out of juice? The Boost Sport also features USB and other charging ports to recharge personal devices on the go.
This example carries the same mistake and spark-proof technology as the Boost XL as well as Hot/Cold LED light to indicate internal battery operating temperatures, protecting the battery of your car and devices.
With a higher power rating, the BOOST X GX75 is also one of NOCO’s most versatile jump starters, capable of restarting large vehicles such as tractors and SUVs.
NOCO Chemicals and Accessories
Along with its battery chargers and starters, NOCO still makes battery corrosion preventative just as it has done for a hundred years. The compound is formulated to create a chemical barrier around the terminal surfaces, making them impenetrable to corrosion causing acid fumes. By doing so, the compound can extend battery life and preserve the overall condition of the battery, even the cables and battery box.
NOCO also produces a large range of accessories for the Boost and Genius ranges, including the spare battery clamps, boxes and USB chargers found below.
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