Sync EV Review

By Danny Morgan
5th May 2021
Last updated: 10th May 2021

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The Sync EV is a relatively new kid on the block. A small home charge point that packs a punch with a wealth of features, but is it the right product for you? Read our Sync EV review to find out.

Review scores updated 29/10/2021

This will be a shorter review than usual because we know there are some big updates planned for the Sync EV app.

However, this product is in high demand so we could not wait any longer to deliver our verdict – especially as all Sync EV users will receive any future app features/improvements even if you buy today.

So, if you need an EV charger installation now and you’re considering the Sync EV, then read on to find out whether it’s worth your time. Or watch our video review:

The Lowdown

The Sync EV is one of, if not the, smallest home charge point on the market.

It’s an untethered unit which means there is no cable attached. I personally like the cleaner look an untethered charger offers, but many understandably find a tethered charger like the Wallbox Pulsar Plus more convenient because the built-in cable is always ready for you.

The Sync EV’s built-in SIM means you have access to a wide variety of smart functionality and avoids the need to connect it to your home WiFi.

Instead, the Sync EV connects to various mobile networks (although it does have WiFi built in as well), which is often a more reliable setup than chargers using your home WiFi to connect to the internet – particularly if your wireless signal is ropey.

There is a small caveat. While the Sync EV comes with a data plan that is free for about three years, it will cost you after that. At £9.99 for another three years, it’s hardly going to break the bank but something to be aware of.

However, if you don’t want to pay this you can simply revert to the Sync EV’s backup WiFi once your free data plan runs out.  

In terms of price, this is a mid-range product.

The Sync EV starts from £589 with installation, including the Government OZEV grant – obviously that is assuming you meet the Government requirements for the grant, which you can check right here.

No bargain basement prices to be found here then, but if you want a decent smart EV charger with installation these days then you are going to be looking at £500 upwards anyway (with the OZEV Grant).

The Design

Sync EV claims this is the smallest home charger in the world. It’s not hard to see why as it only measures 187mm high by 112mm wide and 90mm deep.

Compare that to something like the Andersen A2 or even the Wallbox Pulsar Plus when you add in the overall footprint of the cable loop and you get a real sense of how small it is.

In fact, why not use our handy charger comparison tool to compare sizes side by side.

There’s a useful LED light ring which displays the charging status, such as powered on, ready to charge or charging. Useful to see that it’s working at a glance, but you can turn the brightness down in the app if you find the neon colours a bit boy racer-ish.

Overall, it’s a pretty unfussy design. The gloss black finish gives it a smart appearance, although you’ll want to keep your grubby mitts off it to avoid fingerprints.

The Build

The build quality is what you’d expect at this price point. Well put together, but still almost entirely plastic – you’re not going to get high-end materials like you would on an Andersen A2, which is over double the price.

There’s good resistance on the socket cover and it feels durable, which is good because you’re going to be using that rather a lot.

The Sync EV also includes PEN fault detection, which basically means you don’t need to have an earth rod installed at your property or a Matt:E device which can be expensive. So, the Sync EV helps keep installation costs down and avoids the need for a great big copper rod to be driven into the ground at your home. Win win!

The App

The Sync EV app has what you’d expect from the modern EV charger.

You can set up a charging schedule with a start and stop time. This is handy if you have cheaper electricity prices overnight, for example. Simply set the start and stop to coincide with the off-peak time.

You can also go one step further and set a target charge. For example, you may want 25kWh adding to your vehicle by 7am.

With this setting, the Sync EV will prioritise meeting the target you have set. It will try to do as much charging within your off-peak window if you have one, but the target charge takes precedent so it will also charge outside this time to ensure this is met.

Or you can strip away all these features and set the Sync EV to “Basic” mode. In this setting, your car will start charging as soon as you plug it in and only stops when the battery is full or if you manually tell the Sync EV to stop.

In its current form, the Sync EV app isn’t the nicest to look at nor is it the easiest to get around.

But, as mentioned, there is a big update on the way. We have had a sneak peek and so far the new app is much easier on the eye, simpler to navigate and there are some really smart features on the way.

Keep a look out for our updated review when the new app launches, but all existing Sync EV customers will receive the upgrades. So, even if you bought the Sync EV now with the current version of the app, you would receive the new version when it releases.

The User Experience

I’ve really enjoyed testing the Sync EV. The whole experience has been a painless one. It was easy to set up and while the app has been a little fiddly, it didn’t take that long to get my head around it.

Sync EV also offers incredibly good customer service. Any questions I had were answered quickly and the knowledge of their customer support team was excellent.

This is something our own customer service team see for themselves and we know our customers have experienced too. As much as I’d like to think so, I wasn’t getting any special treatment which bodes well for “real” customers.

Should You Buy It?

I can heartily recommend the Sync EV. Unless you are really set on having a tethered charge point, then the Sync EV does the basics and more.

It’s unobtrusive, reliable and has the smart app features most people would need, plus it’s set to get even better with an app update in future.

And if you don’t want to faff around with scheduling and so on (although it’s pretty easy to set up) then you can just use the “Plug and Charge” option and keep things dead simple.

The Sync EV offers really good value – besides, there aren’t many chargers that come much cheaper than this.

If you really want a tethered charge point, then your main options in this price bracket are the Ohme or Wallbox Pulsar Plus and you can check out our EV charge point reviews of those products right here.