Quick Review of "AmazonBasics Compact Portable Digital Tyre Inflator with Carrying Case"
I am using a Michelin Air Compressor (Michelin 3140C) since 2016 and very happy with that. This model is no longer available and is replaced by newer Michelin models. But nevertheless, it still works well and and I am happily using it regularly. Here is the Amazon link for the product details, although it is not available any more:
https://www.amazon.in/gp/product/B00X74QYQ0
I top off air in the tyres of my two cars every couple of weeks depending on my long drives and the driving conditions. For that, this compressor has been working very well without a single issue in 6 years of regular use.
However, I was using the same compressor for two cars, and it was a pain to frequently move it from one car to another. So decided to buy one more air compressor, so that I will have one in each car permanently.
This time, just to try it out, I got this AmazonBasics unit:
https://www.amazon.in/gp/product/B074DDJFTH
The main reason I got this is because it is quite compact, and will take less space in the boot. Also, recently, I have had a good experience with a few AmazonBasics products and have started to trust this as a brand!
This unit is indeed quite compact. It comes in a nice case (something that I did not get with my old Michelin unit), and is has a nice square shape which makes it much easier to carry and store (in contrast, the Michelin unit has a very odd shape that makes it hard to store in a bag).
See how compact this unit is (I have a kept a pen in the picture to give an idea of the size):
Comes in a nice case and the square shape makes it easy to carry/store:
I have used it a couple of times so far, and so far very happy with this unit. A short summary below:
Positives:- Very compact in size and nice square shape makes it easy to store in the car. It is quite light in weight too.
- Comes with a nice case.
- Not very noisy. Definitely less noisy than my old Michelin unit.
- Does not vibrate much. I could easily hold this unit in my hand (it is that compact and lightweight) when filling the air.
- Fills air quite fast. From 30psi to 32.5psi was very fast, in what felt like no time at all. I do not know how fast it will be for 0-32psi or so, but hopefully that would be a very rare need.
- Has a built-in LED light that is very useful in the dark.
- The cable is long enough to reach all four tyres easily, when plugged into the 12V socket near the gear lever in the car.
Negatives:- The pressure reading display (the small LCD display) is not backlit. It is virtually impossible to see the pressure values in the dark (such as in a poorly lit basement). But for daylight use, there is no problem. In contrast, my old Michelin unit has a nice backlit display.
- The compactness means that at the back, there is a very small compartment/hole where the wound up cable is stored. Once I took the cable out, I find it hard to wind that up so tightly to fit it back there. Putting the long cable back in that tiny compartment is certainly a pain.
I have no idea about reliability or longevity of this unit yet, since I just got it. Will use it for some time and let us see. But definitely happy with this purchase for now.
It is a very nice compact unit that works well, and is also very reasonably priced, at around Rs. 2,500 to Rs. 2,800 depending on the Amazon deals from time to time.