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Electrify America has just introduced its first at-home charger in the U.S. The new charger comes at a cost of $499 and is available from Amazon.com. We checked the availability today and found that the new charger has a two-day delivery with no shipping costs for Prime members. It can also be purchased directly from the company. The price includes a three-year warranty and 24-hour technical support.

The new charger is compatible with every electric vehicle available in the North American market today according to Electrify America. It has a charging power of up to 7.6kW – roughly 6 times faster than the typical Level 1 charger provided to some new EV owners, depending on vehicle make and model. In our testing, Torque news has found that the 115V chargers that EVs come with only add back about 3 or 4 miles of range per hour on the charger. “At Electrify America, we are constantly innovating to meet the diverse needs of electric vehicle drivers and are excited to expand our product offering to help advance EV adoption,” said Nina Huesgen, Senior Manager, L2 Operations & Program Management at Electrify America. “We recognize that many of today’s EV drivers do more than 80 percent of their charging at home, and with the introduction of our L2 home chargers, Electrify America is providing consumers with a more convenient and reliable option that should help increase the appeal of EV ownership.”

The company says that the new chargers have the following advantages:

Flexible installation options: For easy installation, the L2 home charger comes with a standard NEMA 14-50 supply power plug, compatible with the 240-volt outlets commonly found in households. The unit can also be hardwired by a licensed and qualified electrician and comes with a docking station that allows for wall-mounting.

Indoors or outdoors: The home charger is equipped with a NEMA 3R enclosure, allowing it to be mounted inside or outside. A 24-foot long cable makes it easy to reach and plug into your car.
Colored light that indicates charging status: An LED color indicator makes it easy to view charging status, with a ring around the charger that lights up blue while the car is charging and lights up green when the battery is full.
Technology of the future: The home charger is equipped with Wi-Fi connectivity, which allows Electrify America to provide customers with even more data about their home charging sessions and will enable utility demand response programs in the future.

Three-year warranty, 24-hour support: Electrify America offers a three-year warranty and 24-hour customer support.

Easy installation: Electrify America is working with Qmerit, a company that specializes in EV charger installations across the country, to deliver a seamless installation experience. Customers can first visit com/charging-at-home to complete a survey about their home’s electrical capacity and installation needs, designed to streamline the in-home installation process. They will then be provided with as many as three competitive pricing quotes from pre-certified EV charging station installers in their area.

Customers who do not already have a dedicated 240V line from their electrical panel to the location of the charger should consult with a local electrician (if they do not work with QMerit). Also, pulling a permit from the town is always a good practice. It is important to remember that the panel must be able to support the charger current and have space to add breakers. Most EV owners budget between $400 and $1,000 for EV charger installation costs. Those with older homes, or who plan to install a charger in a location not attached to the home should budget more.

In addition to covering green vehicle topics, John Goreham covers safety, technology, and new vehicle news at Torque News. You can follow John on Twitter at @johngoreham.