The Optima Digital 1200 12V Performance Battery Charger and Maintainer review will give you all the information about a charger that meets a car enthusiast’s requirements. The information below about battery savers and the quick charge process will be helpful for you to make a thorough decision.
This charger is just right for choosy buyers who want granularity in the selection process. Although it is a bit pricey, the product’s features are in a different league. Is it worth the extra cash? The answer is in this article.
Batteries chargers have existed ever since the very first automotive batteries. However, people don’t give the products much thought until their batteries act up.
No matter what kinds of cars you use, either a trail rig or a daily driver Accord, you must have experienced a dead battery at least once. We trust that is the reason leading you to this article, right?
Our advice is to have a look at this revolutionary new charger with all the amazing features.
Optima Digital 1200 12V Performance Battery Charger and Maintainer
“OPTIMA Digital 1200 charger brings all of the modern conveniences and great features of a charger, especially with Optima Batteries products”
Editor’s rating: 
Product highlights:
- Charges batteries other chargers cannot, down to 1.25V; Car audio/video applications exceeding 250 watts over the OE system
- Integrated (+) charging clamp LED work light with nonslip grips
- Charges, conditions and maintains 12V AGM and flooded batteries
- LCD battery charging gauge and quick-set selections for easy operation
- USB charging port compatible with smartphones, cameras, and tablets
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The Charger Characteristics
Box Opening
Upon the first encounter, you will notice that the Optima battery charger uses its exclusive packaging. In addition to the appeal, once you unbox the package, there will be a “thank you” letter for you and some special offers from Optima Batteries.
When you take the letter away, you will see a small box with a logo that states a 3-year warranty right off the bat. The Optima battery charger looks just as good as in real life in the fancy pictures.
Suppose you are concerned that the charger can be too modern for you to have a grasp of it. Worry not, it comes with a digital 2000 owner’s manual. You can take your time to carefully read the book and get to know how to utilize all of its amazing features.
Once the leather foam is off, the rear with a tiny compartment will appear in front of you, which will carry charging cables and also provide room for several hardwire connectors. This extra space comes in handy when you need battery maintainer connections.
Interestingly, there are doors with slots, so you can close the doors and connect the cables to a battery. This quality ensures that there are no winding up or tangling cords, saving you time untightening the cables.
Controls
Once you remove the plastic cover, you will find the screen display on the unit’s top center, indicating the battery charging level, DC volts, amperage, and error messages.
You will easily understand all the messages as they are shown in clear texts; there are no ambiguous codes.
Just look at the left of the information screen, and you can easily spot the quick set profile controls. Through the control panel, you can adjust and choose the kind of battery you want to charge.
Also, there will be a set of controls on the right side, together with the pre-charge status indicator and the LED button. All of this information is incredibly useful, especially concerning the product’s safety.
These top-rated Optima chargers feature the power-on indicator, fault indicator, and temperature protection lights. When an error occurs, the charger will signal you and help avoid unwanted accidents.
Operation
Operation is something many people are concerned about, especially for new users. However, there is no need to worry when it comes to the Optima Digital 1200 product.
Charging the Optima digital charger is pretty easy and straightforward. Besides, it also has the user manual, as mentioned above.
Look at the label to know which battery type you are charging. This step is important, and you need to select the correct type of battery. Otherwise, these Optima chargers will be damaged.
Once you have connected the cable to the battery, you then plug the charger to power it up. The product itself will have a quick test to ensure that each is in check. Then, you can decide how you want to use the product and charge the battery.
However, some people could complain about how long the pre-charge status check takes. You can skip this step if you wish, but this function can be useful for you in determining whether the battery cables are connected appropriately, ensuring reverse polarity protection.
Charging a Battery
Safety features must be the most important factor to consider before purchasing and when owning a charger. Fortunately, these Optima chargers are incredibly safe for you and your family. The product is characterized by the six stages, ensuring there is no accident.
The Advantages of The Optima Digital 1200 Charger
Compared to other chargers, the Optima Digital charger has more advanced features that will make your life easier. Let’s find out these functions through our Optima Digital 1200 12V Performance Battery Charger review.
Battery Maintenance
Batteries are commonly not affordable, and of course, you don’t want to spend your money to buy batteries again and again.
These Optima chargers are helpful when equipped with a battery maintainer that many other chargers don’t have. This feature will help prolong your battery life and save a great deal of money.
Turning on the battery maintaining feature is just easy as a piece of cake. Simply plug the clamps into the battery posts, then turn on the Battery Pre-Charge by pressing the button.
After the battery analysis, you can choose battery types by pressing the round gauge. After that, you don’t need to do anything as it is automatic.
Instead of waiting for hours, you can rest assured that your battery has been charging in the most protected condition. It will undergo three hours of reconditioning to get the most of its life.
The charger’s function will remove the sulfates, which can adversely impact the battery’s performance and shorten its life.
Smart Charger
One thing you may be confused about now is what type of battery you have. Are you worried that finding out the type of battery is difficult? Put your mind at ease as 1200 is smart enough to set itself to the correct charging mode.
Optima’s Scott Parkhurst stated that the Optima battery charger will be totally automatic to charge the battery and is able to determine the suitable charging rate.
The charger will remind you to read the user manual again through the full-text LCD if you choose the incorrect mode.
If you used to use chargers before, you might notice that sometimes your chargers get alarmingly hot, especially when you are recharging a deeply discharged battery. You may be afraid that this phenomenon can cause unwanted troubles.
This fault condition will not happen to the Optima chargers because it will automatically pause for three to 15 minutes at some points. This function will be beneficial to both your batteries and chargers.
Fault Detection
You are not a technology expert, and you have to struggle to figure out any problem once your machine gets broken. Do you think it is time-consuming? Worry not, this Optima battery charger possesses the information LCD screen that you can hardly find in any other chargers.
When there is a problem with the machine, it will inform you through the display with red lights. This will be informative and quickly help fix the problem. The unit also sounds an audible tone, so you can notice and handle the situation fast, avoiding accidents.
One problem users usually face is the reverse polarity wiring fault. Sometimes you may perceive your charger gets broken and pour your money for a brand new one.
For this Optima Digital 1200, it can easily detect this condition and inform you, enabling users to correct it before the charging begins.
Back From The Dead
Suppose your car hasn’t been used for a long time and you have much more fun in your Jeep. It is common in this case when a parasitic drain kills the battery when it is not in use.
Many chargers don’t charge a battery of fewer than 10.5 volts, but the Optima Digital charger does. This product can deeply recharge your batteries. However, it needs charging in parallel with another battery until it reaches 1.25 volts.
Other Unique Features
Unique Cables
If you need to work in dark conditions, this digital charger will be convenient, thanks to the LED work light. It will support you to identify between the positive and negative cables, enabling you to hook the cables up correctly before charging.
USB Charging Port
It is nothing strange when your phone gets low on battery on the go. So, this feature comes in handy when you need to recharge your phones or any other devices. You won’t miss any important calls or messages because your phone batteries are low. Isn’t it great?
Separate Maintainer Connection
You will get more surprised to know that below the USB port is an auxiliary port for a separate maintainer connection. This characteristic will come in handy when you wish to hardwire into your car or motorbike.
Long Time Warranty
One of the things that users prioritize is longevity. The charger comes with a three-year warranty and is unlikely to fail. However, when it fails, you can call the manufacturer and get your charger repaired or replaced during this warranty time.
Disadvantages of The Charger
Although there are a lot of positive effects of the product, this product still has some drawbacks. The customer service may not meet your expectations. When you need to keep in touch with them during the warranty time, you may not receive any response immediately.
Another disadvantage of the product is that it is exorbitantly priced. People with a tight budget may not be able to pay for it.
Also, the alligator clamps are easily broken as it is made of plastic. Besides, the power cord’s length is quite short; you will find it a bit difficult to work on two cars.
Buying Guide
After reading all the benefits of these terrific products, are you trying to find ways to choose the best battery chargers? If yes, the below tips will be what you need.
Identify What Voltage Type You Need
It is up to your car’s needs (usually 6 volts and 12 volts) when choosing a battery charger. The Optima battery charger can be used for 12 volts that many other products can’t. Therefore, suppose you only have a 12-volt car battery; In this case, you may need to opt for this charger.
Finding the Right Size
Battery chargers are becoming lighter and more portable over time, thanks to technological development.
This improvement will be convenient for you when you are on the move. The Optima product’s dimension is 7.5 x 6.5 x 10 inches, and its weight is just 7.75 pounds. Therefore, it is suitable to carry around.
Manual or Automatic
If you have some basic knowledge of mechanisms, you may be eager to use this manual 1200 charger. However, it will be more convenient for those who are new to cars to have a fully automatic charger.
But this also means that there will be some overcharging situations, negatively affecting your battery and charger.
Smart Car Battery Chargers
When you are not a mechanic, diagnosing the problems of your charger will be time-consuming. So, it will be helpful when your charger can find the problems themselves.
If you want to have this feature, you may consider this 1200 charger. It will help you avoid human errors and protect you and your charger from unfortunate incidents.
Customer Review
Overall, the product received many compliments from customers. Some customers say that its design is so elegant and easy to use. It has been the best product they’ve ever had. However, some people complain that the warranty is not really real and it is hard to reach anyone in the warranty department.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Optima Digital 1200 12V Performance Battery Charger review has listed this product’s many outstanding features that can make your life easier.
The charger has a compact design for you to easily carry around. Also, its smart technology can inform you when there are errors during operation. Although the product is a bit pricey, it is worth paying extra money given these amazing functions.
