So you’ve done it. You’ve joined the electric revolution, silently wafted past petrol stations with a self-satisfied smirk, and installed a neat little box on the wall of your garage. It glows reassuringly, promising a full battery by morning. The future is here, and it’s brilliant.
There’s just one tiny problem. In a shocking twist that absolutely no one who has ever owned a smartphone could have possibly foreseen, technology moves on.That chic piece of wall art you just bought might have the lifespan of a housefly in a hurricane.
According to the UK-based EV charging company Simpson & Partners, the EV infrastructure we’re so proud of is being built on a foundation of throwaway tech. They estimate that over 100,000 home chargers are destined for the landfill by 2030, simply because they can’t be updated to keep up with the latest advancements.
Mandy Simpson, the company’s co-founder, put it rather bluntly: “It’s time consumers knew the truth about charger lifespans – and some won’t last as long as the electric cars they charge.” She points out that the majority of chargers sold today are sealed units. When new tech like, say, bi-directional charging becomes the norm, your only option is to rip it off the wall, chuck it in a skip, and buy a new one.
But wait, amidst this bleak picture of planned obsolescence, a glimmer of hope emerges from the picturesque Cotswolds. Simpson & Partners, founded by husband-and-wife team Mandy and David Simpson, are championing a radical concept: building things to last- funny that.
Their chargers are purposefully designed to be unsealed and upgradeable. Both the hardware and the software can be updated, ensuring the box on your wall doesn’t become a relic the moment a new energy tariff is announced.
To prove they’re not just talking a big game, the company has just launched its Home Series Gen V3 charger, the first model ready to support smart bi-directional charging (V2G).This is the holy grail of EV ownership, turning your car into a giant mobile battery that can send unused power back to the grid, potentially earning you money.
They’ve also cozied up with the boffins at Octopus Energy. Their Gen 2 and Gen 3 chargers now support the Intelligent Octopus Go tariff, which gives you six hours of super cheap electricity every night for your car and your entire home. According to co-founder David Simpson, this partnership “opens up mass-market smart charging that’s inclusive, effective, and ready for whatever car you drive.”
And in a final, stunning blow to the “buy-it-twice” business model, they’re even looking after their existing customers. Anyone who bought a charger from June 2022 can upgrade to the new V2G functionality for just £49. It’s almost as if they want to build a long-term relationship rather than just sell you more stuff. A truly bizarre business strategy for the modern age.
So, before you get too attached to that glowing box on your wall, it might be worth asking about its long-term ambitions. Does it dream of adapting and evolving, or is its destiny to be buried under a pile of last decade’s gadgets?
