Anker recently announced new charging products and I've taken a first look at one of them. If you don't know the brand, well, you should. It's proved itself to be imaginative and innovative over the years and its latest crop of products confirm that reputation, matching strong build quality, elegant design chops and effective performance.
$99.99 from amazon.com, £79.99 from amazon.co.uk
This new power bank is solid in the hand -- it weighs 1.31 pounds (595g), so you won't be hanging it on your key ring. And you might have tried because it has a lanyard attached, of which more in a moment. But it offers strong versatility in terms of how you can use it.
First of all, it has a large LCD which tells you how much charge is left in the 25,000mAh cell. It shows the percentage in digital form, topped by a tiny face with a dear smile, an optimistic touch which is retained even when the battery is flagging, and which shows the output charge as well. Plug it in to recharge and the display shows the charge level, ticking the percentage points up in increments so fast that it can become addictive to stare at it, be warned.
The lanyard contains a USB-C socket. Unpeel it and the braided lanyard feels durable and strong. It's cleverly designed so it holds in place if you hold the power bank by it. It measures just under 1 foot (30cm).
Not only is there a lot of battery in the power bank, it can deliver a total output of up to 165W. This means it can charge two, yes, two laptops at the same time. That's made possible by the second built-in cable.
This is another USB-C cable, coated in a soft silicone this time, which nestles in the top of the battery, held in place magnetically. Lift it up and it unwinds to a length of a little more than 2 feet (69cm). A second gentle tug and it rewinds smoothly back into place.
Both cables are compatible with most products, from iPhones (from the iPhone 14 onwards), to Samsung Galaxy and Google Pixel phones, to laptops and tablets.
Maybe your charging needs are more diverse and your hotel room needs to recharge four devices at the same time. Well, you can. There are also two sockets on board: one USB-C and one USB-A. Here you can plug in other cables, to charge an Apple Watch, for instance.
The USB-C socket is how you charge the device itself. Three of the four outputs can manage up to 100W when charging on its own, the USB-A is up to 33W.
Finally, it supports pass-through charging so you can charge the power bank while charging others, though the charging capabilities are less powerful in this scenario.
There are cheaper power banks available, but if you need power and versatility, Anker's latest is worth considering.