Tesla today released a new Level 2 home charger called the Tesla Universal Wall Connector that can do something no other charger can—it can charge any electric vehicle sold in North America. No additional adapters are required.
This is because the Universal Wall Plug uses an AC version of the Supercharger Magic Dock, which allows the charger to turn off the built-in J1772 adapter when the user needs it. It will charge vehicles using the new North American Charging Standard (NACS), as well as electric vehicles equipped with the J1772 connector, which has been standard in North America since 2011.
The Universal Wall Connector is available today at Best Buy and Tesla for $595. Considering the Tesla Wall Plug currently sells for $475 and the Tesla J1772 Wall Plug sells for $550, this is a very reasonable price and in line with Tesla’s other home charging products. Tesla told me that customers can order the chargers today, but deliveries won’t begin until October.
As the North American industry moves from J1772 connectors to NACS, EV buyers will now be torn between which type of charger to buy. If they have an EV equipped with NACS in the future, should they buy the one with the J1772 plug and just use the adapter? Or should they buy a charger with a NACS plug and use the adapter now, thinking that at some point in the future they will have an EV equipped with NACS?
In my opinion, this is a better solution than using an adapter if your EV’s charging connector is different from the connector on your charger. This will be especially useful for those who have two EVs at home, one using a NACS connector and the other using a J1772 connector. Adapters can be lost, misused, or damaged, but universal wall connectors keep the adapter securely attached to your device when not in use.
In addition to releasing the Universal Wall Plug, Tesla announced today that it will soon release an update to its mobile app. The update will allow the app to expand functionality and enable features including scheduling charging sessions and viewing data about past charging events. We will provide additional information as new app features become available.
So check out the first look video above and let us know what you think. Are you as excited as I am about the new universal wall connector? Let me know in the comments section below and if you have any questions, ask them here and I will try to find answers.
Post time: Dec-06-2023