Wallbox Pulsar Max vs GivEnergy EV Charger: Compact All-Rounder or Solar Specialist?

The Compact All-Rounder vs the Solar Storage Specialist

Choosing a home EV charger often comes down to what matters most in your setup. The Wallbox Pulsar Max and the GivEnergy EV Charger represent two genuinely different philosophies. One is a sleek, feature-rich charger designed to look good on any wall and work with virtually any home. The other is purpose-built to shine in homes that already have — or plan to install — a battery storage system and solar panels.

If you're a Tesla owner weighing up these two, you're likely asking one of two questions: "Do I want the most polished, compact charger I can get?" or "Can I charge my car from stored solar energy and slash my running costs even further?" The answer to that question will almost certainly decide which charger belongs on your wall.

In a nutshell:

• Wallbox Pulsar Max (£699): The most compact charger on the market with a 5-year warranty, three-phase capability, and voice control — a premium all-rounder that fits where others can't.
• GivEnergy EV Charger (£478): A budget-friendly charger that truly excels when paired with a home battery, letting you charge your Tesla from stored solar energy rather than just live generation.

Spec Comparison

Solar and Energy Storage Integration

This is where these two chargers diverge most dramatically. The GivEnergy EV Charger's standout feature is its ability to charge your Tesla from energy stored in a home battery — not just from live solar generation. That's a meaningful distinction. Most solar-compatible chargers can only divert surplus solar energy to your car while the sun is shining. The GivEnergy system lets you store cheap overnight electricity or daytime solar in your home battery, then feed it to your car whenever you like. If you're on a tariff like Octopus Go (7.5p/kWh off-peak), you could fill your home battery overnight and charge your Tesla from it the next evening.

The Wallbox Pulsar Max does offer solar integration through its Eco-Smart feature, but it requires a separate Wallbox Power Meter at additional cost. It handles solar diversion competently, but it cannot draw from a home battery the way the GivEnergy can. For homes without solar panels or battery storage, neither charger offers a compelling solar advantage — but if you've already invested in a GivEnergy ecosystem (or any compatible home battery), the GivEnergy charger becomes significantly more attractive.

As wallbox.com notes, the Pulsar Max can connect with solar and home battery systems via the Wallbox app, but the depth of integration simply doesn't match what GivEnergy offers natively through its monitoring portal.

Power and Charging Speed

On a standard UK single-phase supply, the Wallbox Pulsar Max delivers 7.4kW compared to the GivEnergy's 7kW. In practice, the difference is marginal — a 60kWh Tesla battery would take roughly 8.1 hours on the Pulsar Max versus about 8.6 hours on the GivEnergy. Either way, you're waking up to a full charge after plugging in before bed.

Where the Pulsar Max pulls ahead is its three-phase capability. If your property has a three-phase supply (rare in UK homes but more common in commercial settings or newer builds), the Pulsar Max can deliver up to 22kW, slashing a full charge to around 2.7 hours. The GivEnergy is locked to single-phase only, so there's no upgrade path if your electrical setup changes. As bestchargers.co.uk highlights, the Pulsar Max is available in 7.4kW, 11kW, and 22kW variants.

The Pulsar Max also includes Power Boost, Wallbox's dynamic load balancing technology, which monitors your home's total electrical demand and adjusts the charge rate to prevent your main fuse from tripping. This is genuinely useful in older UK homes with lower-rated consumer units.

App, Connectivity and Smart Features

Neither charger is a smart tariff champion — if automatic integration with Octopus Intelligent Go or Agile is your priority, you'd be better served by an Ohme. But both offer scheduled charging through their respective apps, which means you can manually set your charger to run during off-peak hours on tariffs like Octopus Go (00:30–04:30) and still save significantly.

The Wallbox myWallbox app is the more polished experience. As electriccarguide.co.uk notes in its review of the Pulsar Plus (which shares the same app platform), the interface is intuitive with solid scheduling and energy management features. The Pulsar Max adds voice control through Alexa and Google Assistant — a nice touch if your home is already in the smart speaker ecosystem.

The GivEnergy monitoring portal takes a different approach. Rather than focusing purely on the charger, it gives you a whole-home energy view — solar generation, battery state of charge, grid import/export, and EV charging all in one dashboard. It's less slick than the Wallbox app but arguably more useful if you're managing a complete energy system. The GivEnergy charger also includes RFID access for security, handy if your charger is on a front driveway.

Connectivity-wise, the Pulsar Max offers both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, while the GivEnergy relies on Wi-Fi alone. Neither offers 4G as standard — worth noting if your charger is far from your router.

Build Quality and Design

The Wallbox Pulsar Max is genuinely tiny. At 198mm × 201mm × 99mm, it's one of the most compact chargers available in the UK — as tinyeco.com confirms in its roundup of top UK chargers. It's available in six colours, which is unusual in a market dominated by black and white boxes. The IK10 impact resistance rating means it can handle accidental knocks from car doors or wheelie bins without damage.

The GivEnergy is noticeably larger at 320mm × 220mm × 115mm, though it counters with a superior IP65 weatherproofing rating compared to the Pulsar Max's IP54. In practical terms, IP65 means the GivEnergy is fully protected against water jets from any direction — a genuine advantage if your charger is exposed to driving rain or positioned near a garden hose. The Pulsar Max's IP54 is still perfectly adequate for most UK installations, but the GivEnergy has the edge in harsh weather exposure.

The Pulsar Max's 5-year warranty comfortably beats the GivEnergy's 3-year cover, giving extra peace of mind for a product you'll use daily for years.

Price and Value

The GivEnergy undercuts the Pulsar Max by £221 on unit price alone. That's a significant saving — enough to cover a chunk of your installation costs. For a straightforward single-phase setup without solar or battery storage, the GivEnergy offers solid value at a competitive price point.

However, the Pulsar Max justifies some of its premium through the longer 5-year warranty, three-phase future-proofing, dynamic load balancing, and a noticeably more refined design and app experience. Whether those extras are worth £221 depends on your priorities.

Who Should Buy Which?

Buy the Wallbox Pulsar Max if:

• You want the most compact, discreet charger possible for a tight driveway or small wall space
• You have (or plan to get) a three-phase supply and want 22kW charging
• You value a longer 5-year warranty for peace of mind
• Voice control through Alexa or Google Assistant appeals to you
• Your home has an older consumer unit and you'd benefit from Power Boost dynamic load balancing

Buy the GivEnergy EV Charger if:

• You have a home battery system and want to charge your Tesla from stored energy
• You're building a whole-home energy ecosystem with solar, battery, and EV charging
• Budget is a priority and you want a capable charger under £500
• Your charger will be in an exposed location and you want IP65 weatherproofing
• You want RFID security for a charger on a front-facing driveway

Our recommendation: For the typical UK Tesla owner on a single-phase supply without a home battery, the Wallbox Pulsar Max is the stronger all-round choice — it's more compact, better built, and backed by a longer warranty. But the GivEnergy EV Charger is genuinely transformative if you have battery storage. Charging your Tesla from energy you generated (or bought cheaply overnight) and stored in a home battery is the closest thing to free motoring you'll find. If that describes your setup, the GivEnergy isn't just the better choice — it's the only sensible one.

---

Read our full Wallbox Pulsar Max review or GivEnergy EV Charger review.

Compare all chargers →