AlphaESS SMILE-M5

Yes, fully approved for the federal Cheaper Home Batteries Program. And the SMILE-M5 was designed specifically around the rebate's banded structure: the 13.99 kWh module is sized to sit inside the rebate's full-rate band. We handle every bit of the paperwork and the rebate's applied as an upfront discount on your quote.

The Alpha ESS SMILE-M5battery is manufactured in Sungrow's factory in Jiangsu Province, China. AlphaESS was established in China in 2012 and now has more than 250,000 systems operating across over 130 countries. Its Australian subsidiary was established in 2015 and provides local sales and after-sales support.

Yes. It's IP65-rated, so it handles rain, dust, sun, and Australian weather generally. Indoor installation (in a garage or laundry) is also fine and tends to keep the battery cooler in summer, which can extend its life slightly.

Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP), the safest mainstream battery chemistry going. It has better thermal stability than older NMC cells, lasts longer, handles more charge-discharge cycles, and is the chemistry pretty much every new home battery in the Australian market is moving to.

Yes. The SMILE-M5 has a hybrid inverter built in, so it can either replace your existing solar inverter or run alongside it. Our team will check your current system in your free quote and recommend the best approach.

Ten years on both the product and its performance. AlphaESS guarantees the battery will retain at least 70% of its original usable capacity at the 10-year mark.

Yep. The SMILE-M5 is approved across all the major Australian VPP programs and network schemes. Joining a VPP lets you earn extra income, bill credits or incentives from your battery by allowing the operator to discharge it to the grid during peak demand. Joining a VPP is completely optional.

Yes. The SMILE-M5 has UPS-grade backup for selected circuits, so when the grid drops out, your selected essential circuits will keep running. We'll work with you to choose which circuits to back up during the install. If full whole-home backup is a priority for you, one of our other battery options might be a better fit, but we can discuss this with you when we put together your quote.

It means you actually get the full 13.99 kWh of storage. Some home batteries quote a "rated" capacity but only let you use 90-95% of it (the rest is held in reserve to extend the battery's life). The SMILE-M5 lets you use the full nominal capacity, so the number on the box is the number you actually get to use.

Yes. The SMILE-M5 supports 1 to 4 modules in parallel, so you can start at 13.99 kWh and add modules over time as your usage grows, up to a total of around 56 kWh. Note: it's usually a bit cheaper to install your full capacity in one visit than to add modules in separate trips, so we recommend future-proofing and sizing it right the first time.

On purpose. Australia's federal Cheaper Home Batteries Program rebate has a banded structure: the first 14 kWh of storage gets the full 100% rebate factor, capacity from 14 to 28 kWh gets 60%, capacity from 28 to 50 kWh gets 15%, and capacity beyond 50 kWh isn't rebated. By making each module 13.99 kWh, AlphaESS designed the SMILE-M5 to step through each band. One module captures the full 100% rebate. Two modules adds the 60% band. Three modules adds the 15% band. Four modules takes you to around 56 kWh: just past the rebate cap, but with the bulk of the system still earning subsidy across all three bands.

It depends on how many modules you go with (anywhere from 14 kWh to 56 kWh), whether you already have solar, the condition of your switchboard, your location, the backup circuits you want and where the equipment is being installed. We will provide a tailored quote for your home that covers a full system designed around your goals and your home's needs.