Xantrex Technologies 851-0400 XPower Plus 400-Watt Inverter

This is just what I needed. It has two plug-ins on it and plugs into the cigarette lighter in your car. I've taken in on several road trips and used it for hours upon end. There is a fan on it that comes on when it is in use, but you can only hear it if the car is completely silent.

I've seen/had others and this is the best one I could find for the money. Note: the plugs are kind of close together, so you are unable to plug two cell phone chargers into it unless you buy a small extender piece for one of the plugs ($1). I have one and use it when I need it, but that's not very often.

It's a good buy.

Item works as described,the built in cooling fan seems to run more as the battery gets lower (12.24v) even under small load.but it is not very loud.great for small backup power...

We bought this Power Inverter right before Christmas so my wife and daughter could watch movies on the laptop in the car. We drove about 8 hours total, and the laptop didn't skip a beat! Not only did it help keep the family entertained, but it also saved Christmas. On the night we were opening presents, a storm blew through and knocked out the power for almost 4 hours. The kids were upset that they couldn't open presents, so I ran an extension cord from the car to 2 lamps in the living room. It worked perfectly! I started the car twice during that 4 hour timeframe just to make sure it didn't drain the car battery. I highly recommend this product.

Purchased the inverter for a trip to Florida to power two laptops. Other reviewers were spot on in their assessments that it will not power two devices if they are near full discharge. We found that if the laptops started with a full charge, that the inverter would extend their usage by several hours, but if the batteries were low, the inverter would "complain" with an audible squeal. Even so, with careful planning, it was quite useful and allowed two people to watch separate movies or play computer games, etc.

I know on the newer cars they now have electric outlets. Unfortunately my car doesn't.So, the inverter acts as your power source. For radios, laptop computer,fans, basically anything under 5amps. I even keep my battery charged with a trickle down solar panel so it never will run down. The battery runs at peak performance.