Twenty-one kilos against thirty-five hundred watts
Carry it alone, or run more from it?
Both of these are inverter generators, which means the engine speed is not tied to the output frequency and both can therefore produce a clean waveform and run quietly at low load. One is rated 2.0 kW and weighs twenty-one kilos. The other is rated 3200 W and publishes a noise figure. And neither publishes a tank capacity or a runtime, which between them are the two questions anyone actually asks about a generator.
| Compared on | HY2300Si, 2.0 kW continuous, 2.2 kW maximum, 21 kg | SG3500i, 3200 W maximum, 3500 W peak, 66 dB |
|---|---|---|
| Rated | 2.0 kW continuous, third bullet | 3200 W maximum output, first bullet |
| Maximum output | 2.2 kW, from the title and third bullet | 3500 W peak, first bullet |
| Waveform | Stable 230 V sine through inverter technology, second bullet | Pure sine, second bullet, named for laptops, phones, tablets and televisions |
| Tank | Nowhere in the listing | Nowhere in the listing |
| Runtime at a stated load | Nowhere in the listing | Nowhere in the listing |
| Noise at a stated distance | Absent as a figure; the ECO mode is described as reducing noise, fourth bullet | 66 dB, from the title; NO distance is stated |
| Weight | About 21 kg, first bullet | Nowhere in the listing |
A tick means one listing published something the other did not, or published a better figure. It does not mean the product is better, and the column is not a score out of anything: a maker who says less loses lines here without losing a comparison. The two verdicts below are where the page is settled.
Takes the rated-output line because it publishes a continuous figure rather than a maximum — those are different numbers, and a generator is sized on the first. Twenty-one kilos is also published, which decides whether one person gets it into a car boot. What it does not give is a decibel figure of any kind.
More output at both ratings, a waveform described precisely enough to name the devices it suits, and the only noise figure in the pair. Sixty-six decibels is published without a distance, which halves its usefulness — noise falls with distance, and a figure at one metre and a figure at seven metres describe very different machines. No weight at all.
Because neither publishes either, and a shared silence is reported as a tie rather than as a defeat for both. It is also the more striking result: how long a generator runs on a tank is the question everyone asks, and two listings in the same family answer it identically by not answering.
Less than it appears. Sound pressure falls roughly six decibels with every doubling of distance, so 66 dB at one metre and 66 dB at seven metres are wildly different machines. Generator noise is conventionally quoted at seven metres, and the listing does not say.
Rated, always. The maximum is what the machine can produce briefly; the rated figure is what it can sustain. A load at the maximum figure will overheat or trip a generator sized on it, and only one of these two listings publishes a continuous rating explicitly.
2.0 kW continuous · 2.2 kW maximum · pure 230 V sine · tank not published · runtime not published · noise not published · about 21 kg · 2× 230 V 16 A, 12 V DC 5 A, USB · emissions class not published
A 21 kg inverter generator with 2.0 kW continuous and 2.2 kW maximum output, two mains sockets, a 12 V DC outlet at 5 A and a USB port.
Best for: A motorhome or a boat where the 12 V outlet is as useful as the mains sockets.
≈ €399
3200 W maximum · 3500 W peak · pure sine · tank not published · runtime not published · 66 dB, distance not stated · weight not published · 2× 230 V, 2× USB 2.1 A, 1× 12 V · emissions class not published
A 3500 W peak inverter generator with a 141 cm³ four-stroke engine in an impact-resistant case, two mains sockets, two USB ports and a 12 V outlet, quoted at 66 dB.
Best for: A workshop or site where 3200 W and a hard case matter more than knowing the fuel schedule.
≈ £499 / €523
A price quoted in the text of a PowerVerdict page dates from the day that page was written; the live figure beside each product is fetched while you read and replaces it.
