Portable chargers are awesome. These powerful devices make it easy to power-up on the move – a great option when modern smartphones and tablets struggle with reconciling long battery life and peak performance.
The market is very competitive now. There are thousands of products on the market and you want to make sure that you get the very best – here’s a look at everything you need to consider before buying a portable phone charger.
Battery Size
You want to make sure that your portable phone charger is able to provide you with lots of juice throughout the day. You’ll find that most chargers range from 2000mAh all the way up to 12,000 mAh.
You want the highest number possible, as this will give you more power. What do those numbers mean, though?
Well, a 5000mAh battery pack will be able to charge an iPhone 7 around 1.5 times on a single charge. Not bad depending on its battery condition. A 15,000 mAh battery pack will be able to charge that same phone around 5 times though!
You should try to think about what you need from your battery pack. If you want an extra boost to help your phone make it through the day, a smaller battery might be appropriate. If you want to charge multiple devices over the course of a couple of days, though, you’ll want to look at the larger models.
Number of USB Ports
Some power banks have more than one USB port. This makes it possible for you to charge multiple devices at the same time. If you are on the move and using multiple devices, this can really be a lifesaver!
Imagine that you’re a photographer, for example. You might want to charge your smartphone while also simultaneously charging a battery for your camera. If you have a battery pack with multiple USB ports, this could be a possibility.
Again, you’ll want to think about how you are going to use your battery pack and what makes the most sense for your needs.
Power Output
A key area where battery packs differ is in terms of the amount of power it can provide. The wattage of battery packs will differ, with more expensive models being able to provide faster charging to your devices.
This is an important factor that you should not overlook. Even if you find a battery pack that has a marvelous size and multiple USB ports, it will simply be very frustrating if the wattage is too low.
A 1 amp USB port will charge a smartphone very slowly, for example, while a 2.4 amp alternative will charge most smartphones at the fasting possible speed. You’ll want to give this some serious consideration before you make your decision.
Additional Features
Because the market is so competitive, many manufacturers have started to offer a range of additional features in an attempt to help their product stand out from the crowd. Some of these features are amazing… while some are l2ittle more than gimmicks that could potentially drive up the cost of your battery pack.
Some battery packs may come bundled with charging cables, for example, but this could be unnecessary if you already have all of the cables that you need. You might want to look for an alternative if you find the extra feature affects the price.
Some battery packs include an LED flashlight. This is actually quite a useful feature because you will often use your battery pack while you’re on the road. A torch can come in quite handy when you’re sorting through your backpack or trying to find your charging cable in the middle of the night without putting on all of the lights.
Another great feature to look out for is some type of LED indicator. You want to know how much juice is remaining in your battery pack, so this can be very useful. It can tell you at a glance how much power is remaining, letting you know when it’s time to charge the battery pack again.
The Right Certifications
Finally, you want to make sure that you purchase a device that is safe and meets key industry standard regulations. This will help you to charge the battery pack – and your devices – with peace of mind.
You should be sure to look out for the various marks and logos on the packaging which indicate that your battery pack has passed all of the necessary regulations. You should check out which are the most important regulations in the location where you’re purchasing your battery pack.
We hope that this guide helps you to make the right choice when it comes to buying your first battery pack. We’re sure that you’re going to love the convenience and peace of mind that comes with having a powerful and high-quality battery pack with you.
This post was written by Michelle Aran, the CEO of Velvet Caviar, a pioneer in the e-commerce and retail space. She has built one of the most successful designer phone case brands in the world over the span of the last five years, and her skills for growth hacking are second to none, which has allowed her to create a social media empire in excess of one million followers.
