Two British-Made Premium Chargers — But One Costs £346 More
This is an unusual comparison. Most charger matchups pit a budget option against a premium one, or a smart-tariff specialist against a simpler unit. Here, you've got two proudly British-manufactured, anodised aluminium chargers that both prioritise aesthetics and build quality over raw software power. The Andersen A3 and the Simpson & Partners Home 7 are fishing in the same pond — the question is whether the Andersen's £995 price tag delivers enough over the Home 7 at £649.
In a nutshell:
- Andersen A3: Unmatched design customisation (247 finishes) and a clever hidden cable system
- Simpson & Partners Home 7: Similar premium build at £346 less, a longer warranty, and three-phase capability
Does the Andersen A3's Design Justify a £346 Premium?
The Andersen A3 is, without question, the best-looking EV charger you can buy. With 247 combinations spanning metals, woods, and custom colours, plus a hidden cable system that tucks the 5.5m lead inside the unit, it's the only charger designed to be displayed rather than tolerated. If your charging point sits beside your front door or on a prominent wall, the Andersen makes a visual statement no other charger can match.
The Simpson & Partners Home 7 isn't ugly, though. Far from it. It offers multiple finishes including Accoya wood options and distinctive colours, all wrapped in the same anodised aluminium construction. It's a handsome unit — it just doesn't have the Andersen's obsessive range of options or that signature cable-hiding trick. For most driveways, where the charger sits on a garage wall or around the side of the house, the Home 7 looks every bit as premium as it needs to. That £346 gap buys you aesthetics, not functionality.
Simpson & Partners Home 7: The Warranty and Flexibility Advantage
Here's where the Home 7 starts to pull ahead on paper. Its 10-year enclosure warranty is the longest of any charger we track — three years beyond the Andersen's already-impressive 7-year coverage. There's a caveat: the Simpson & Partners warranty specifically covers the enclosure rather than all internal electronics, so it's not a completely like-for-like comparison. Still, for a charger built around aluminium durability, an enclosure warranty makes plenty of sense.
The Home 7 also offers flexibility the Andersen can't match. It's available in both tethered and untethered versions — handy if you want a universal socket for visiting EVs or a future car with a different cable preference. And if you ever move to a property with three-phase power, the Home 7 supports up to 22kW. The Andersen A3 is locked to single-phase at 7.4kW with no upgrade path. For most UK homes this won't matter today, but it's a meaningful bit of future-proofing for £346 less.
How Do the Smart Features Compare?
Neither charger is a software powerhouse. If smart tariff optimisation is your primary concern, you'd be better served by an Ohme — check our best smart EV charger guide for those options. That said, both the Andersen and Simpson & Partners cover the basics: scheduled charging, smart tariff support, and solar compatibility, all over Wi-Fi.
The Andersen A3 integrates with Octopus Intelligent Go and OVO Charge Anytime. The Simpson & Partners supports Octopus Go, OVO Anytime, and EDF GoElectric. Neither app is going to win design awards of its own — the Andersen's is competent, the Simpson & Partners' is functional but less polished. If you're on a smart tariff and just need the charger to follow a schedule, both will do the job. Neither offers 4G fallback, so you'll need reliable Wi-Fi reaching your charging point.
For solar users, both chargers offer integration through their respective apps, though neither provides the granular diversion control you'd get from a dedicated solar charger. Our solar charger guide covers that in more detail.
Which Should You Buy?
Buy the Andersen A3 if:
- Your charger is prominently visible and kerb appeal matters to you
- You want the hidden cable system — nothing else on the market does this
- You're willing to pay for the specific finish that matches your home
- The 7-year warranty feels long enough
Buy the Simpson & Partners Home 7 if:
- You want premium British build quality without the premium British price
- A 10-year enclosure warranty gives you peace of mind
- You'd prefer the option of tethered or untethered
- Three-phase support now or in the future matters to you
For most buyers, the Simpson & Partners Home 7 is the smarter purchase. It delivers 90% of the Andersen experience — the aluminium construction, the attractive finishes, the smart charging basics — while costing £346 less and offering a longer warranty plus three-phase capability. The Andersen A3 is a beautiful object, but you're paying almost a thousand pounds for a charger whose electrical output is identical to units costing half as much. Unless the hidden cable and that specific finish option are non-negotiable for you, the Home 7 is the better value. Browse all options on our charger comparison page to see how both stack up against the wider market.