The RoboReel is a cord reel with motorized retraction and several safety features. It is replacing multiple extension cords in my shop. The 50 foot, 12 guage cord has a 15 amp limit with a circuit breaker built into the wall plug. The unit is relatively heavy at about 20 pounds but in combination with the anti-slip feet on the frame, it doesn't slide around when you pull out the cord. Just how easy does the cord pull out? I set the unit on a piece of cardboard on my smooth cement floor. Even on the cardboard, the unit didn't budge.
The business end of the cord has 3 receptacles. Nothing unusual there right? But there are other features there as well. There are three LED lights to indicate whether or not the power is on. When fully retracted, there is no power to the receptacles. As you pull out the cord, power is turned on when the cord is extended about 18 inches.
In the center of the receptacle ball is a dual-function button. Pressing the button once turns the receptacle power off. Pressing the button again retracts the cord. With the power off, pressing and holding the button turns the receptacle power back on. A button on the top of the base dome provides the same functions as the button on the receptacle ball.
The retraction is a two speed process. Initially the cord is retracted at high speed. At a user programmable point, the retraction switches to low speed to keep the receptacle ball from whipping around.
The RoboReel base unit has some nice features of it's own. I've already mentioned the non-slip feet, the power/retraction button on the top, the easy deployment, and the 15A breaker. It also has a 360 degree rotation feature that is very nice. While this feature will see limited use in the units current location in my shop, it will be highly useful once my shop is complete and it has a more permanent home. The rotation is very easy as is illustrated with the next video.
The RoboReel has some nice safety features as well. Beside the circuit breaker in the wall plug, there is also over temperature protection with audible alerts.
The manufacturer also offers a wall mount for the portable version of the RoboReel as well as a ceiling mounted version. The portable version lists at $279 with the ceiling mounted version $20 more.
There is only one thing I would change about this product and it really isn't part of the product itself. I wish the wall mount was included and not sold as an accessory. Other than that, this is a great addition to my shop and I'm glad I have it.
