Zaptec Go 2 vs NexBlue Point 2: the V2G bet for £30

The £30 that separates two bets on V2G

Two untethered chargers, both pitching themselves at the bi-directional future, priced within a rounding error of each other. The Zaptec Go 2 is £500. The NexBlue Point 2 is £530. The gap is £30 — less than a tank of fuel, and nowhere near enough to decide on price alone.

The real question is which version of "V2G-ready" you trust. Zaptec is a known Scandinavian brand with a meter certified for legal billing. NexBlue is a newer UK entrant with more features in the box and a shinier spec sheet. One is the conservative bet on a proven name; the other is the maximalist bet on included kit.

• Zaptec Go 2 — the established V2G pick, with a MID-approved meter and optional three-phase 22kW.
• NexBlue Point 2 — more features per pound, including tariff automation and solar surplus, from a brand with less history.

Which V2G claim actually holds up?

Both chargers say "V2G-ready". Neither will export a single kilowatt to your grid tomorrow — V2G remains an emerging proposition in the UK, with a handful of trials and no mass-market tariff yet. What matters is which one will still be standing, and compliant, when it does arrive.

The Zaptec Go 2's MID-approved energy meter is the underrated detail here. If you ever want to be paid for exporting to the grid, the supplier needs a legally certified meter reading. Zaptec ships one as standard. The NexBlue Point 2 counters with OCPP 2.0.1 and ISO 15118 Plug & Charge — the newer software standards — and that matters too, but the meter question is the one regulators will ask first.

If V2G is your actual reason for buying, the Indra Smart PRO — the brand that ran the UK's first V2G trials — is worth a look before either of these. At £599 it's the most experienced in the category.

What the NexBlue gives you today

Put V2G aside for a moment and look at the everyday charger. Here, the NexBlue Point 2 has the busier feature list: EcoPilot tariff automation for Octopus Intelligent Go and Octopus Agile, a CT clamp included for both load balancing and solar surplus, RFID activation, OCPP 2.0.1, and lifetime-free 4G. The Zaptec Go 2 also includes subscription-free 4G, but leaves tariff optimisation to your supplier's app rather than handling it itself.

If you're on a fixed-window tariff like Octopus Go or E.ON Next Drive, that difference doesn't matter much — a plain schedule does the job. If you're on Octopus Agile, where rates move every half hour, the NexBlue's EcoPilot chases prices the Zaptec does not. Over a year that can cover the £30 gap comfortably.

The caveat against the NexBlue isn't the hardware; it's the track record. NexBlue is new to UK homes. The five-year warranty is reassuring and the IK10 impact rating is unusually tough, but there's no decade of reliability data to fall back on. If that makes you twitchy, the Ohme Home Pro at £535 offers similar tariff smarts from a proven brand.

What the Zaptec gives you today

The Zaptec Go 2's everyday case is narrower but deeper. Single- or three-phase auto-switching means that if you're one of the few UK homes with three-phase supply, the same box will deliver 22kW — something the single-phase-only NexBlue can't. The MID meter is the other genuine difference: certified-grade readings useful for company-car reimbursement today, and V2G export tomorrow.

Against that, it's a more modest package on the smart side. The app is basic. Tariff optimisation happens elsewhere. For a buyer on Octopus Intelligent Go, where the energy provider handles scheduling natively, this is fine. For one on Octopus Agile without that integration, the Zaptec leaves money on the table the NexBlue picks up.

The verdict

Buy the Zaptec Go 2 if:

• You have, or might one day have, three-phase supply
• You want a MID-certified meter for company-car billing or future V2G export
• You prefer a brand with years of UK deployments behind it

Buy the NexBlue Point 2 if:

• You're on Octopus Agile or similar and want the charger to chase prices
• You want solar surplus and load balancing included in the box
• You're comfortable being an early customer on a newer UK brand

On the wall, the Zaptec is the one we'd pick — the MID meter and three-phase flexibility are the substantive differences, and the five-year track record tips the balance at this price. The NexBlue is the more interesting charger on paper; come back to it in two years when the reliability data has settled.