Choosing Your EV Charger

Whether ‘tis quicker to charge with an attached cable or better on thine eyes to choose a socketed charger.

The choice of a tethered or untethered charger can be confusing enough without adding parallels to Shakespeare’s Prince Hamlet dichotomy. Unlike the complex decisions of Prince Hamlet, your choice of EV charger is much simpler!

In this blog we aim to add clarity to the term ‘tethered or untethered’ and present the benefits of both charger types to help make your choice much easier.

What does tethered or untethered actually mean?

EV charging units can have a cable attached to the charger body. The cable will have a type 2 plug on the end, which can be connected directly to the car. This is referred to as a tethered charger.

Alternatively, some chargers have just a socket with no lead; therefore, you will need your own lead with a type two plug at each cable end. You will need to plug these into both the car and charger. This is referred to as an untethered or sokected charger.

There is also a hybrid charger which is considered untethered; however, you can connect the cable to it and select a setting to lock the cable in position making it into a tethered charger.

TETHERED

 

UNTETHERED

 

HYBRID

 

You may have gained a better understanding of the different types of chargers but which is best for you? The key consideration is simply aesthetics over practicality and below are the key points.

Tethered – This is more convenient when charging as the cable is attached and ready to go meaning only a single end to plug in at the car.

Untethered / Socketed – This can look visually better when the charger is not in use as no cable is trailing and visible. In addition, the cable and particularly the plug ends can become damaged when dropped or accidentally run over by the vehicle. If the unit is tethered, it may need a complete replacement which will warrant a visit from the engineer. Whereas with a socketed unit, it is simply a replacement cable.

Hybrid – These chargers offer both tethered and untethered options. The Zaptec Go is a socketed charger however, you can set a plug lock function to keep your charging lead in place, making it into a tethered unit. Of course, if the cable does become damaged, unlike a permanently tethered unit, you can simply unlock the plug and replace the cable. 

Hopefully, that adds some clarity to the decision making for your new charger. Of course, you may wish to talk through some of this in more detail, in which case we are only a phone call away and would be delighted to help you choose.