Don’t be fooled by the hype of some solar battery brands.

Alpha ESS SMILE vs Tesla Powerwall – Which is the Better Choice for Australian Solar Consumers?

When it comes to battery storage for solar energy, consumers are spoilt for choice, but two brands have stood out above the rest as the most popular brands in Australia. The Alpha ESS SMILE and the Tesla Powerwall. While the Powerwall may have the backing of the global Tesla brand, our focus at ShineHub is to identify what provides the most value for our customers. We believe that the AlphaESS SMILE range of batteries offers a superior solution for solar consumers in Australia.

Why Choose AlphaESS SMILE Over Tesla Powerwall?

The SMILE battery from AlphaESS offers several significant advantages over the Tesla Powerwall. These advantages can be broken down into some key areas: popularity, price/value, battery chemistry, warranty & Virtual Power Plant participation, and service. 

AlphaESS is the most installed battery brand in the market

People like to get brands that have a high profile. And Tesla has no shortage of that. However, AlphaESS topped Australian battery installations in 2022, beating Tesla to take the coveted top spot in the Battery Market Report 2023 by SunWiz.  This means that customers, retailers and installers love and trust the product. You don’t need to pay more for a ‘TV brand’ battery that gives you less with inferior performance characteristics, and customers are catching on. 

Battery chemistry is important but often overlooked

First and foremost, AlphaESS SMILE utilises Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) chemistry. This is a safer, more robust and stable choice, particularly important in Australia’s often hot climate. In contrast, Tesla Powerwall utilises lithium-ion chemistry, which has a tendency to degrade faster and overheat in extreme heat. LiFePO4 batteries are also more suited to long-term, always-on Virtual Power Plant (VPP) participation, providing consumers with more peace of mind that their battery will keep working efficiently throughout the warranted 10-year period.

The AlphaESS SMILE battery warranty is better 

The Alpha SMILE comes with a robust 10-year warranty that is unaffected by VPP participation, promising a long and reliable lifespan. Battery brands such as Tesla and LG  provide a warranty that guarantees that the battery will retain at least 70% and 60% of its capacity respectively over the warranty period. This is less than AlphaESS’ warranty which guarantees that the battery will retain at least 80% of original capacity at the end of 10 years. 

You can read more about the Tesla Powerwall 2 warranty here.

The AlphaESS VPP advantage

There is no doubt that Virtual Power Plant participation is a great benefit to solar battery owners and if the opportunity arises to join one, you should take the opportunity to earn a passive income from your unused battery power. You can read more about the ShineHub Virtual Power Plant and benefits here.

However, it’s important to understand how VPP participation affects the warranty on the battery that you end up purchasing.  

The ShineHub Community VPP and AlphaESS batteries have worked in lockstep since the VPP was launched in 2019. One very important result is that if you get an AlphaESS battery from ShineHub you can be sure that the warranty has been designed to handle VPP participation. 

Unlike the warranty provided on batteries by brands like Tesla and LG Chem, the AlphaESS warranty stays the same with or without VPP use. That’s not the case with Tesla and LG Chem. If you join a VPP the warranted number of cycles that the battery can handle reduces significantly and therefore the warranted period reduces as well. 

Think of it this way. Without VPP participation under normal use Tesla batteries have a 10-year warranty and unlimited cycles – pretty good. However, the warranty reduces significantly if you participate in a VPP because the Tesla battery warranty goes from being 10 years, to a certain amount of battery usage.  In most cases, it will result in a drop in warranty coverage from 10  years, to around 7 or 8 years.

Price

There is no doubt about it. Tesla batteries are expensive.  So ask yourself, do you want to pay extra for a battery that has an inferior warranty?  Perhaps if you are thinking of it as wall art.  But not if you are looking at the savings, battery performance, or warranty. The installed cost of a Tesla Powerwall 2 ranges between $18,000 and $20,000, which makes it one of the most expensive batteries on the market and nearly double the price of the AlphaESS SMILE battery from ShineHub. 

Customer support

This is an area which is often overlooked. To date only we have installed over 4,000 AlphaESS batteries in Australia. It could be argued that we know their batteries better than they do. You can rest easy knowing that with our solar aftercare program we’ll help you out things right in the unlikely event that things don’t go to plan. Our customers say that it’s worth its weight in gold to have customer support that does not leave you hanging as was the case for one unlucky Tesla owner. You can read about his warranty claim and customer support nightmare here: https://www.solarquotes.com.au/blog/powerwall-warranty-claim-nightmare/

Compare the pair

Below is a summary of 4 key battery brands on the market as a handy reference guide when you are evaluating battery quotes and brands. 

Before recommending one of the more commonly known consumer brands, it makes sense to look closely at what you are actually getting, and what’s best for your customer. Below is a summary of the key characteristics of four of the key solar battery brands we discuss in this article.

Sonnen solar batteries (sonnenBatterie Evo)

• Lithium-iron-phosphate chemistry
• 10-year or 10,000 charge cycles warranty for the to retain at least 80% of their original capacity after 10 years of use, assuming normal use and operating conditions.
• The high charge cycles and 10 year warranty makes it a good storage solution for use with Virtual Power Plants (VPP) where batteries may be more frequently discharged.
• Can safely be installed both inside and outside.
• Indicative RRP at launch $14,000 for 10kWh

Alpha ESS solar batteries (Smile range)

• Pure play solar brand that makes solar batteries built specifically for solar residential applications from the ground up.
• Feature lithium-iron-phosphate cell technology
• Alpha ESS batteries come with a 10 year warranty for the battery to retain at least 80% of their original capacity after 10 years of use, assuming normal use and operating conditions.
• The high charge cycles and 10 year warranty makes it a good storage solution for use with Virtual Power Plants (VPP) where batteries may be more frequently discharged.
• The up front price of an Alpha ESS battery In NSW from Powow is: $9,052.

Tesla solar batteries (Tesla PowerWall 2)

• Use the same lithium-ion cobalt, nickel and manganese chemistry (LiNiMnCoO₂) that is in their EV batteries.
• The Tesla Powerwall 2 comes with a 10 year warranty for the battery to retain at least 70% of its original capacity after 10 years of use, assuming normal use and operating conditions.
• Installed cost of a Tesla Powerwall 2 ranges between $18,000 and $20,000, which makes it one of the most expensive batteries on the market.

LG Chem solar batteries

• History of making batteries for lighter electronics such as smartphones and consumer electronics and EVs using Lithium-Ion chemistry.
• LGC warrants  their batteries for 10 years to retain at least 60% of its original capacity after 10 years of use, assuming normal use and operating conditions.
• Claim to be “one of the most compact units available on the Australian market”
• The quoted price range on the LG Home battery website is $7-10K for a battery.

Conclusion

Despite the media hype around big brand names like Tesla, they do not necessarily offer the best value for solar consumers. The AlphaESS SMILE battery is more affordable, has a longer lifespan, better VPP conditions, and offers a better warranty. Further, its superior safety credentials and low failure rate makes it an excellent choice for Australia’s unique climate and your energy needs. 

At ShineHub, we are committed to delivering the most reliable, effective, and cost-efficient solar solutions to our customers. The AlphaESS SMILE ticks all these boxes, making it a superb choice for the discerning Australian solar consumer.

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