Develop Bugs

Review of Anker Astro Slim2 4500 mAh External battery w/pics!!!

This is a review of Anker Astro Slim2 4500 mAh dual output External battery (5V 1A Input, 5V 1A dual output with built in hideaway cable for one of the output ports): http://www.ianker.com/product/79ANS4552-BA
Every time I start to think about extended battery, I run into a big question of what am I going to do with all my cases that no longer going to fit the phone. That is why I decided to explore external battery solution. I don't trust no-name ebay brands because those have overly exaggerated capacity rating. So I turned to a trusted brand, Anker, since so many people in this forum had a lot of positive things to say about their products. In comparison to our stock 3100 mAh battery, this Slim2 external battery is not over the top with its 4500 mAh labeled capacity. If you take into consideration all the conversion factors between external lithium battery, USB port transport, and back to phone's battery, we are talking about final capacity which could realistically be closer to 3100 mAh (and actually stated in the manual as 30% internal power consumption due to losses). What makes the battery stand out is it's unbelievable slim form factor and all the design details that go with it.
When you first take it in your hand you can't believe how light and slim it is. We are talking about 10mm slim! I actually took exact measurement with my digital caliper and found it to be 4.97" x 2.52" x 0.41" (126.34mm x 64.08mm x 10.64mm) and weight to be 4.1 oz (116g) which also includes built-in micro-usb cable. I can see that a lot of thought went into it's design. The case of this external battery is made out of tough plastic with a matte finish and sides have a rubbery finish for a nice grip. The form factor is very slick, something that can go easily into your pocket or purse or even carried in one hand attached externally to your phone. The unit has one micro-usb input port which is cleverly covered by hideaway micro-usb output cable/connector, and another regular usb output port. Pretty much it eliminates a need to carry any external cables since the one you need for your Android device is already built-in. The cable for that external micro-usb connector is flat, flexible, and just long enough to wrap around the end of the battery pack, and it should be sufficient to connect to any phone or tablet. As part of the accessories that come with Slim2, you also get usb-to-micro-usb extension cable with additional mini-usb adapter and Apple 30pin adapter. This second regular usb Output port also comes very handy for another important reason. If you look at the pictures I took, you can see that hideaway micro-usb connector has trapezoid shape. It should work fine with most of the slim or rugged cases that have silicone or tpu inner shell/bumper surrounding micro-usb port opening. With my UAG case is was a very close call where I had to push it in with some force. This hideaway port will not work with Defender case due to its inner plastic shell suited and standard rectangular port opening. That's where 2nd usb output port comes in handy to use external usb cable with a regular micro-usb connector.
There is no power button, instead you have auto on/off capability and display of battery capacity using 4 led lights partitioned in 25% increments. Every time you plug/unplug power cable those lights lit up to show you capacity level or charging level. Also, auto shut off reassures that you will not overcharge the battery once it reaches 100%. I charged this battery to 100% (indicated by 4 solid lights), and used with my Note 2 which was down to 55%. To my surprise charging time was very fast considering it has 1A output, and I was able to get my phone back to 100% within 1.5 hour with 2 led lights remaining thus indicating that battery still had 50% of charge left. That is consistent with my assumption of battery capacity to be around 3100 mAh.
Overall, I'm very pleased with Slim2 as an emergency battery pack. It's slim, easy to grip, light weight, small footprint, NO need for external cables (unless if you have a case like Defender), and ability to charge 2 devices simultaneously. Furthermore, if you remember my mod with clip stand from a car mount, I actually found it to fit together really well which is great, for example, while watching a movie and charging your phone up at the same. Everything is captured in pictures below!
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
With a clip-stand:

awesome, gonna get one

initial_k said:
awesome, gonna get one
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Keep in mind, you will get about 3100 mAh of actual charge, these external batteries actual rating is 30% down from the label due to usb 5V conversion factor.
This one is not the highest capacity, but it's the slimmest one for sure. It actually saved us a few times when our Nexus 7 tablet was drained and I just sticked it in between book-cover case and was using a tablet while charging it up (with 1A output you get a relatively decent charging speed).

vectron said:
Keep in mind, you will get about 3100 mAh of actual charge, these external batteries actual rating is 30% down from the label due to usb 5V conversion factor.
This one is not the highest capacity, but it's the slimmest one for sure. It actually saved us a few times when our Nexus 7 tablet was drained and I just sticked it in between book-cover case and was using a tablet while charging it up (with 1A output you get a relatively decent charging speed).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Need to get something for my kid's Droid DNA. It doesn't have a lot of power for a day traipsing in the wilderness, and won't take a larger external. This might fit the bill.

drnihili said:
Need to get something for my kid's Droid DNA. It doesn't have a lot of power for a day traipsing in the wilderness, and won't take a larger external. This might fit the bill.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Anker Astro 3E is only $10 more and offers 10,000 mAh versus this 4500 mAh. Unless they need something super slim/light, Astro 3E is a better value in my opinion, and still has a relatively small footprint.

vectron said:
Anker Astro 3E is only $10 more and offers 10,000 mAh versus this 4500 mAh. Unless they need something super slim/light, Astro 3E is a better value in my opinion, and still has a relatively small footprint.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No astro 4 is better 13000mAh
Sent from my SPH-L900 using xda app-developers app

vectron said:
Anker Astro 3E is only $10 more and offers 10,000 mAh versus this 4500 mAh. Unless they need something super slim/light, Astro 3E is a better value in my opinion, and still has a relatively small footprint.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
He'd like both.
We live (or soon will) in 70 acres of forest and he likes to go off wandering most of the day. Between camera, gps tracking and the like that can be a challenge for the DNA, especially if he's forgotten to top it off first. I'm really looking for something he can just toss in his pocket/daypack to be sure he has enough juice to get through the day. Looking at the 5600mah also. It may be more pocektable. He's never gone over multiple days unless I'm' with him, and I've got the ZL9300, so no worries there. I'll have a look at the 3E and the 4 to see how much bigger they are. Certainly they'r a better value per mah, but the key is finding something that's very easy for him to take. As with cameras, the best external battery is the one you have with you when you need it.
EDIT: I like the form factor of the 5600 and 8400 better, but I like the included cable of this model. An external battery is of no use if you don't have a cable, and you know how 14 year olds can be ...

5600 and 8400 from Anker are the old models.
Btw, I just received and charging Astro Pro 14400 mAh - that one is a monster with two usb ports and a separate 9V/12V DC outputs. Will have review in a day or two

Will the attached micro usb fit the case mate tough?
Sent from my SGH-I317M using xda app-developers app

vr_nguyen said:
Well the attached micro usb fit the case mate tough?
Sent from my SGH-I317M using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It should. With both UAG and CaseMate Tough cases the opening around micro-usb port is tpu material to that connector can wedge right in there. Tough port opening is wider than UAG, and I remember I had no issues wedging that micro usb connector right into UAG, so it should work with Tough as well.

I'm trying to think what's the advantage of this over an extra battery. It would make sense for those who carry several devices and does not want to carry several batteries. I for one only carry one device at a time, so I guess this would be useless for me.
Can you guys point out any other scenarios?
TIA
Sent from my SGH-I317M using xda app-developers app

vr_nguyen said:
I'm trying to think what's the advantage of this over an extra battery. It would make sense for those who carry several devices and does not want to carry several batteries. I for one only carry one device at a time, so I guess this would be useless for me.
Can you guys point out any other scenarios?
TIA
Sent from my SGH-I317M using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When you're at home that's pretty much primarily use now the reason why the slim is more portable hence you can bring out on the road
Sent from my SPH-L900 using xda app-developers app

The reason to use this ultra-slim battery is very simple, you can hold it connected to the phone while actually using the phone.
This is a picture from Anker webpage. So for example you are facing a scenario where your phone went dead or you are on call or browsing and down to 2% - but you have to continue using your phone and don't have time to wait for charging. This is the only battery that will allow you to do that because you can actually hold it physically together with your phone (and use built-in cable) and it will be charging your phone while you are using it.

I just purchased this for powering my phone and other equipment when away from chargers.
I really like the form factor and the micro-USB cable is very clever. However this battery has a glaring problem (in my opinion): you cannot charge your phone from the battery while charging the battery. When traveling light and grabbing an all-night recharge this would be a nice feature to have to not have to carry two chargers and cables.
- Juha

kuikkaj said:
I just purchased this for powering my phone and other equipment when away from chargers.
I really like the form factor and the micro-USB cable is very clever. However this battery has a glaring problem (in my opinion): you cannot charge your phone from the battery while charging the battery. When traveling light and grabbing an all-night recharge this would be a nice feature to have to not have to carry two chargers and cables.
- Juha
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This feature disabled on purpose. I know some other vendors enable it, but it actually not good for the battery. You have two connections, from battery to a phone for charging of the phone, and from wall charger to a battery for charging of the battery. If you have both connected at the same time you will need a way to bypass charging of the battery until phone is charged up first - that pass will be extremely inefficient and it will take you almost twice as long to charge the battery due to all conversions. Then once you done, you will need another mechanism to stop charging of the phone and to switch to charging of the battery, and while you are doing that phone will be discharging so you will have to pick up it's charge as well. Too complicated, too inefficient, and complexity of control circuit will work against reliability of the device. At night it's much easier to charge phone from one outlet and battery from another, just need to get dual usb wall charger, like one of those 2A/1A ones. Charge the phone from 2A output and charge the battery from 1A output.

vectron said:
This feature disabled on purpose. I know some other vendors enable it, but it actually not good for the battery. You have two connections, from battery to a phone for charging of the phone, and from wall charger to a battery for charging of the battery. If you have both connected at the same time you will need a way to bypass charging of the battery until phone is charged up first - that pass will be extremely inefficient and it will take you almost twice as long to charge the battery due to all conversions. Then once you done, you will need another mechanism to stop charging of the phone and to switch to charging of the battery, and while you are doing that phone will be discharging so you will have to pick up it's charge as well. Too complicated, too inefficient, and complexity of control circuit will work against reliability of the device. At night it's much easier to charge phone from one outlet and battery from another, just need to get dual usb wall charger, like one of those 2A/1A ones. Charge the phone from 2A output and charge the battery from 1A output.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree, the feature would make the design slightly more complex due to increased logic, unless the used charge IC supported something like that internally. It would not necessarily have to be inefficient as you can bypass the charger and just feed the input directly to output. Could be as simple as a switch controlled by the battery full information of the charger.
But I digress. For most people this is not an issue, I just like to travel light. :cyclops:
Would you by any chance know of a battery pack or vendor that would have this feature?
- Juha

kuikkaj said:
I agree, the feature would make the design slightly more complex due to increased logic, unless the used charge IC supported something like that internally. It would not necessarily have to be inefficient as you can bypass the charger and just feed the input directly to output. Could be as simple as a switch controlled by the battery full information of the charger.
But I digress. For most people this is not an issue, I just like to travel light. :cyclops:
Would you by any chance know of a battery pack or vendor that would have this feature?
- Juha
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have reviewed so many Anker external batteries, already lost a count of everything lol!!! I think they had one that was charging both phone and charger, but they wouldn't recommend it. Or maybe that was one of the NewTrent batteries (NT70) I have reviewed in the past.
Btw, Anker is releasing AstroSlim3 in a week or so with 6000 mAh capacity (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CEZJT2E) and new Astro 3 with 12000 mAh (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CEZBKTO) with led indicator for capacity and no power button, activated by shaking it. Don't know the pricing yet, and hopefully will get both of these units for review as well.

Review of Anker 3.6A (18W) Dual USB Car Charger w/pics!

This is a review of Anker Bolt 3.6A (18W) Dual USB Car Charger: Anker Car Charger
From my own personal experience I use Note 2 every day as GPS to/from work. Everything is usually on (display, bluetooth), plus GPS/Google maps are up, and I take/make phone calls in a middle of all that. What does that mean? Battery is draining really fast, and even with car charger you need at least 2A output to be able to charge at faster rate than discharging with everything on. 2A charger is not hard to find, although question always come up if you can trust their actual rating. If you want to take it to the next level and charge another smart phone, you can probably find a dual charger with 2A and 1A, although reliability and current sharing during simultaneous use of ports might be in question. This new product from Anker took it to the next level where they are offering dual port output with 2.1A and 1.5A outputs and guarantee full current supply from each port at the same time. In terms of reliability, they are offering 18 months warranty which I think is a bold statement of confidence in their product.
3.6A, which is 18W, is a lot of power and to my surprise the charger was actually very small and lightweight. The dimensions of the end with dual ports is only 26 mm x 24 mm, and the whole charger is very lightweight and only 22g. This small size is very convenient for tight spaces like in your arm-rest compartment, and just in general is unobtrusive to use anywhere in the car. I know they advertise it as dual port with 2.1A for Apple (obviously iPad) and 1.5A for smart phones, but I confirmed that our Note 2 charges perfectly from Apple port. As a matter of fact that would be the best port to use for Note 2 fast charging. I took a picture in my car to demonstrate that both of the ports worked charging Note 2.
Overall it's a great little dual usb port car charger from a trusted company with a punch of 3.6A capacity split between 2.1A and 1.5A ports where both can be used simultaneously so you can do a fast charging of two devices at the same time. Plus, you can get it on Amazon for under $12 which is a bargain.
Here are a few pics:
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}

How fast does it charge though. Post pictures of charge progress over a 15-20 minutes period please

elite-fusion said:
How fast does it charge though. Post pictures of charge progress over a 15-20 minutes period please
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't know if I ever get around it. I'm testing my ZeroLemon 9300 mAh so I mostly discharging my battery rather than charging it up. Will take a while before I get to in car charging Beside for me timing charge in the car makes no sense because I use my N2 for GPS and calls all the time, so I'm discharging it at a heavy rate as it charges up. But for sure, it goes up 15%-20% with this charger during my 1hr commute, but only because I use GPS/BT/display fully on at max brightness. This car charger is true 2.1A/1.5A, so the charging time from 2.1A shouldn't be any different than our OEM wall charger.

vectron said:
Don't know if I ever get around it. I'm testing my ZeroLemon 9300 mAh so I mostly discharging my battery rather than charging it up. Will take a while before I get to in car charging Beside for me timing charge in the car makes no sense because I use my N2 for GPS and calls all the time, so I'm discharging it at a heavy rate as it charges up. But for sure, it goes up 15%-20% with this charger during my 1hr commute, but only because I use GPS/BT/display fully on at max brightness. This car charger is true 2.1A/1.5A, so the charging time from 2.1A shouldn't be any different than our OEM wall charger.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should be able to use the Galaxy Charge Current app (available on the play store) to see how much current it's supplying (although this may vary depending on the USB cable you use with it, a reason why I'm purchasing the variant with a built in micro-usb cable and a usb port) although I seem to remember you stating in another thread you had one of the US variants of the Note II and the app may not be compatible with those.

D3_ said:
You should be able to use the Galaxy Charge Current app (available on the play store) to see how much current it's supplying (although this may vary depending on the USB cable you use with it, a reason why I'm purchasing the variant with a built in micro-usb cable and a usb port) although I seem to remember you stating in another thread you had one of the US variants of the Note II and the app may not be compatible with those.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's right I'm on US version under Verizon. Those are the exact 2 variants that don't work with this app

D3_ said:
You should be able to use the Galaxy Charge Current app (available on the play store) to see how much current it's supplying (although this may vary depending on the USB cable you use with it, a reason why I'm purchasing the variant with a built in micro-usb cable and a usb port) although I seem to remember you stating in another thread you had one of the US variants of the Note II and the app may not be compatible with those.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Quick update on this:
Although the Galaxy Charge Current app only reports the charger giving 1.2a, over an approximately 15 minute period with the screen on, music playback, GPS lock and video recording @ 720p with DailyRoads Voyager, the charger was still able to charge my N7100 from 80% to 86%, which isn't bad considering the heavy load it was under.
The particular charger I bought is this one

D3_ said:
Quick update on this:
Although the Galaxy Charge Current app only reports the charger giving 1.2a, over an approximately 15 minute period with the screen on, music playback, GPS lock and video recording @ 720p with DailyRoads Voyager, the charger was still able to charge my N7100 from 80% to 86%, which isn't bad considering the heavy load it was under.
The particular charger I bought is this one
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pretty good! But the one you bought is their old generation 15W charger (2.1A and 1A outputs), while this one is a revised new gen 18W with 2.1A and 1.5A outputs - this one

vectron said:
Pretty good! But the one you bought is their old generation 15W charger (2.1A and 1A outputs), while this one is a revised new gen 18W with 2.1A and 1.5A outputs - this one
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah, thanks for the info. Seems I'm only missing out on 300mA though (one reviewer says the android port on that is rated at 1.5A and I get 1.2A from mine) so I don't think I'll go for that one. this way I know I'm going to get a decent charge no matter what usb cable I use. I've only got one that's actually capable of charging at full speed and having to take it everywhere I go would be annoying, the fixed charger on this is perfect for me.
Only posted here to help others looking for a decent car charger, as you did. Every other thread I see on the topic seems to recommend usb chargers such as yours but never recommend cables capable of utilising them to their full potential.
Anyway, keep up the great reviews
Most of them make me want to spend money I know I shouldn't on things I don't necessarily need
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda premium

D3_ said:
Ah, thanks for the info. Seems I'm only missing out on 300mA though (one reviewer says the android port on that is rated at 1.5A and I get 1.2A from mine) so I don't think I'll go for that one. this way I know I'm going to get a decent charge no matter what usb cable I use. I've only got one that's actually capable of charging at full speed and having to take it everywhere I go would be annoying, the fixed charger on this is perfect for me.
Only posted here to help others looking for a decent car charger, as you did. Every other thread I see on the topic seems to recommend usb chargers such as yours but never recommend cables capable of utilising them to their full potential.
Anyway, keep up the great reviews
Most of them make me want to spend money I know I shouldn't on things I don't necessarily need
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have any recommendations for usb cables that can take advantage of that charge speed?

hurrpancakes said:
Do you have any recommendations for usb cables that can take advantage of that charge speed?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Absolutely! I highly recommend to use Monoprice usb 28AWG/24AWG cables with Ferrite choker and gold-plated connectors. You need thicker cables to handle 2A current. Do not use thin computer cables designed for 500mA current.
Monoprice cables are very cheap too, 3ft for $1.08: http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10303&cs_id=1030307&p_id=8640&seq=1&format=2 or 6ft for $1.40: http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10303&cs_id=1030307&p_id=8641&seq=1&format=2

hurrpancakes said:
Do you have any recommendations for usb cables that can take advantage of that charge speed?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd go with what Vectron suggested.
In the UK the only cable I've found that does is an old BlackBerry usb cable my cousin had. Swapped it for a spare cable I had that only did 1A because her phone only charges at 1A anyway.
Sent from my Galaxy Note II using xda premium

vectron said:
Absolutely! I highly recommend to use Monoprice usb 28AWG/24AWG cables with Ferrite choker and gold-plated connectors. You need thicker cables to handle 2A current. Do not use thin computer cables designed for 500mA current.
Monoprice cables are very cheap too, 3ft for $1.08: http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10303&cs_id=1030307&p_id=8640&seq=1&format=2 or 6ft for $1.40: http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10303&cs_id=1030307&p_id=8641&seq=1&format=2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I assume their premium would also have the throughput and low resistance to work as well.

lovekeiiy said:
I assume their premium would also have the throughput and low resistance to work as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Absolutely, it's low voltage drop cable design. Plus it never failed me in the car either if it's 100deg C or down to single digits.

Just ordered one to see if it'll trigger my iBolt Dock's USB charging/audio feature. Hopefully it does...if it doesn't, well least I can charge two phones in the car at once now.

Ordered these cables from monoprice, used with my original charger and couldn't get my ZL9300 charged over 72%. Kept it on charger for over 12 hours

VitaliyUvakin said:
Ordered these cables from monoprice, used with my original charger and couldn't get my ZL9300 charged over 72%. Kept it on charger for over 12 hours
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can't be the cable. It's just a thick wire. If it would have been defective, you wouldn't be able to even charge it up to 72%, although you can never tell for sure. So you have used original Samsung 2A wall charger with it's original cable from the same AC wall outlet to charge up your Note 2 with Zerolemon before to 100% without any problem? I just want to baseline your working setup so you can troubleshoot from there. If it was working before in exactly the same setup and you only replaced the cable, can you go back to the original cable and see if it will charge it to 100% without a problem? If not, then it's something wrong with a cable. Make sure nothing funny is going on with your AC wall outlet plug. I discovered that in my house I have a few that not allowing me to do fast charging due to some electric wiring limitation. Also, make sure everything is connected all the way in. Depending on the case you are using, some of these micro-usb connectors are a bit too thick to go all the way in, and although it looks like you are charging - because connector is not mated all the way in, you have a bad contact and limiting charging current. I actually BET you that's exactly what is going on. I have so many usb-to-micro-usb cables around, can't keep track of it. But I remember at my work I had to slice a piece of micro-usb connector to make it thinner to work with my Zerolemon TPU, and I believe that was monoprice cable. Definitely check it out, cause that could be a problem in your case.

Everything was the same, same 2A charger, same outlet, same phone with ZL battery . Just replaced my Samy cable with 6ft one from monoprice. Will try again tomorrow with oem cable, will see how it goes

VitaliyUvakin said:
Everything was the same, same 2A charger, same outlet, same phone with ZL battery . Just replaced my Samy cable with 6ft one from monoprice. Will try again tomorrow with oem cable, will see how it goes
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Trim micro usb connector. Gotta be it.

It seems to fit pretty tight, but I will definitely try it.

Ha! The Anker direct store in ebay is selling this for $55!! What is it made of gold now? LOL.

Review of Anker Astro 3 (2nd gen) 12000 mAh external battery w/pics!!!

This is a review of Anker Astro 3 (new 2nd gen) 12000 mAh external battery: http://www.ianker.com/product/79AN7904-BA
*** The Review of the Updated version was posted here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=51836263&postcount=62
***
Yes, another external battery. No, this one is like nothing I have ever tested from Anker or anybody else. It's not a surprise Anker became one of my favorite companies to review new products from because they are constantly introducing something new and/or improved. That is the only way to stay on top of the game and to earn the top rating of your customers.
First of all, even with it's 12000 mAh capacity, this new 2nd gen Astro shrank up in size down to 110 mm x 83 mm x 26 mm which fits very comfortably and feels very nice with its soft touch rubbery finish in your hand. At close to 10 oz in weight you will feel it for sure in your pocket, although it's slick design is very portable and with included mesh pouch is easy to carry around in your bag/purse/backpack or even pants pocket, as long as you are not wearing skinny jeans In contrast to most of the today's external batteries with dual output, Astro 3 comes with 3 independent full size usb outputs that deliver a whooping 4A of combined current. I checked it by charging Note 2, S4, and Nexus 7 simultaneously and was able to confirm that right on a dot. N2 was charging at about 2A, S4 at about 1A, and N7 at about 1A as well. I was actually timing and monitoring the percentage of battery change, not just relying on Current Charge app. These 3 usb charging outputs are actually partitioned into one Smart output (intended for Apple devices and other android devices) and two Universal outputs which are specifically designed to charge Android devices at maximum speed. There is some custom circuit which determines max speed and optimizes output correspondingly. I also noticed the safety nature of this circuit prevented me from charging both N2 and S4 at 2A each from Universal outputs where N2 was charging at 2A and S4 at 1A, leaving 1A for Smart output, thus confirming it's not a bulk current sharing between all 3 ports. The input port, micro-usb, for charging Astor 3 is actually a fast 1.5A input which is great since it charges this external battery at 1.5x times faster rate.
While you charging the battery itself or using to charge other devices, another huge improvement in the design is a circular 10-segment indicator with granularity of 10%. You no longer have to rely on a typical 4-segment led. This one will give you a more precise reading, although it might take you a little while to get used to figuring out on a spot the exact percentage by counting segments before light times out. Once the light turns off, it's a clean surface design with no leds or buttons. So how do you turn it on or verify led count? Yet another cool innovation, just do a shake of the battery and indicator circle turns on to reveal number of active segments. I really like that motion activated switch, makes it very unique. But trust me, it's not the most unique part of this new Astro 3 design. As I mentioned in a number of my previous reviews, the labeled capacity of the battery is not what you actually get. It's the capacity of the cells inside of external battery when it has to be converted to 5V usb interface at the output and then back from 5V to 3.7V inside of the phone. During this conversion ALL external batteries loose anywhere between 30%-35% of its capacity. Well, this new 2nd gen Astro 3 is optimized to a much higher efficiency. I have tested it and can confirm it provides the actual charging capacity of 10,044 mAh, which means a loss of only 16%!!! Basically, the internal battery circuit has been optimized to provide a more efficient output. I have tested a lot of external batteries, and this is the first one I have seen at such high efficiency.
Overall, I was very impressed with a design and features of this battery, especially with how efficient it's output. Currently offered for $49.99 on Amazon its a great value where it provides the actual capacity output equal to other more expensive batteries labeled at around 14000 mAh. With a high output efficiency, 4A of total combined charging current, triple output, and motion activated 10-segment led indicator - I highly recommend it!
Here are the pictures.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}

Someone just pointed out to me Anker has back 2 school sale, with Astro 3 now for $45.99. Here is a link: http://www.ianker.com/adpage.php?act=us
I also been asked if Smart port will charge iPad 4 at full 2.4A speed. I'm checking into this and will post an update as soon as I find out.

I got an anker too, but the e4. Seems like i can only reach 1.8A when i'm using the cable provided by Anker and not the Sammy OEM cable..

Ev0d3vil said:
I got an anker too, but the e4. Seems like i can only reach 1.8A when i'm using the cable provided by Anker and not the Sammy OEM cable..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you referring to 1.8A per Galaxy Charging Current app, that's an approximation anyway. Unless if you are rooted and using something else where in an identical setup where you exchange cables and see 1.8A in one case and 2.0A in another case?

Looks great. I would buy it in a second, if it was not so thick. I would not mind a longer wider power bank. A power bank that was 5.7 *4.5*.6 inches would have roughly the same volume as the 2nd generation Astro 3. In other words, the same thickness as the Astro 3E.
PS The volume of the Astro 3E is 9.41 versus the Astro 2nd generation at 14.52. The power bank increased in size more than in power. The Astro 2nd generation is 54 percent larger.

What cable are you using for the note 2? Now i'm not getting the 1800mah charge with the anker e4. Ugh.

Explore3 said:
Looks great. I would buy it in a second, if it was not so thick. I would not mind a longer wider power bank. A power bank that was 5.7 *4.5*.6 inches would have roughly the same volume as the 2nd generation Astro 3. In other words, the same thickness as the Astro 3E.
PS The volume of the Astro 3E is 9.41 versus the Astro 2nd generation at 14.52. The power bank increased in size more than in power. The Astro 2nd generation is 54 percent larger.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But it also increase in capacity and efficiency, so you can also look at it as volume per capacity E3 probably had a capacity of around <7k mAh (after 30% de-rating efficiency). With Astro3 you start with 12000 mAh versus 10000 mAh and have at least 80% average efficiency, plus get 3 outputs with one being smart output used for any iCrap including 2.4A iPad 4 (which btw is confirmed). Also, 10% indicator is way cooler. Just imho, a bit of thickness increase is OK because length is a deal breaker for pocket-ability. And yeah, I'm talking about batteries
If you want absolutely the slimmest possible battery, checkout review of Astro Slim3 6000 mAh I just posted here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2388894 - 12mm in thickness, that is insane!!! and you get 80% efficiency as well with a built in micro-usb cable.

Can't buy this thing on Amazon as it seems Anker for whatever reason has had all their products yanked. Anker sells it on Ebay in their Ebay Anker Store as well .....but they want $199.96 for it! They say it's that high because stock is low. Seems strange to me. I would love to know what is up between Anker and Amazon.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Anker-Astro..._Cell_Phone_PDA_Batteries&hash=item4d0f5d413d

Old MuckenMire said:
Can't buy this thing on Amazon as it seems Anker for whatever reason has had all their products yanked. Anker sells it on Ebay in their Ebay Anker Store as well .....but they want $199.96 for it! They say it's that high because stock is low. Seems strange to me. I would love to know what is up between Anker and Amazon.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Anker-Astro..._Cell_Phone_PDA_Batteries&hash=item4d0f5d413d
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I asked them the same question. Apparently something got messed up with US listing of all of their products and they are working with Amazon to fix it. I had someone from Canada asking me questions about Anker, and I see all of their products are listed fine on Amazon in Canada, UK, Germany, and everywhere else internationally. Something got messed up with US listing and I confirmed with Anker they are working as soon as they can with Amazon to fix it.

vectron said:
I asked them the same question. Apparently something got messed up with US listing of all of their products and they are working with Amazon to fix it. I had someone from Canada asking me questions about Anker, and I see all of their products are listed fine on Amazon in Canada, UK, Germany, and everywhere else internationally. Something got messed up with US listing and I confirmed with Anker they are working as soon as they can with Amazon to fix it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just seems strange to me...Amazon is always very good about fixing technical issues and this has been going on for days. In any event none of that justifies charging 200 bucks for the Astro 3 on their Ebay store....low stock or not.
I've never had anything but good experiences with Anker, FWIW.

Old MuckenMire said:
Just seems strange to me...Amazon is always very good about fixing technical issues and this has been going on for days. In any event none of that justifies charging 200 bucks for the Astro 3 on their Ebay store....low stock or not.
I've never had anything but good experiences with Anker, FWIW.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree! But I actually seen someone else do that before. I forgot which product it was, but we had a reply here on XDA to one of the posts jocking they misplaced a decimal point. Then, someone else posted later they just jacked up the price to keep the listing "alive" while they were out of stock and obviously nobody would buy it for the price 100x higher than original. I guess just another trick...

vectron said:
I agree! But I actually seen someone else do that before. I forgot which product it was, but we had a reply here on XDA to one of the posts jocking they misplaced a decimal point. Then, someone else posted later they just jacked up the price to keep the listing "alive" while they were out of stock and obviously nobody would buy it for the price 100x higher than original. I guess just another trick...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All I know for sure is that I would like to order this damn thing already. Have not been able to order anything from Anker thru Amazon for almost a week now.

vectron said:
I asked them the same question. Apparently something got messed up with US listing of all of their products and they are working with Amazon to fix it. I had someone from Canada asking me questions about Anker, and I see all of their products are listed fine on Amazon in Canada, UK, Germany, and everywhere else internationally. Something got messed up with US listing and I confirmed with Anker they are working as soon as they can with Amazon to fix it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I gotta say, I'm getting a little worried about this Amazon "problem" . . . we're heading into one week with no Anker products on Amazon and I just don't see a messed-up listing taking this long to remedy. I finally got through to customer service today because I need a bluetooth speaker and I wanted to pick up their BT 4.0 speaker before I head on vacation. They have no idea how long this is going to last and the CSR I spoke to said, in so many words, that I might want to purchase my speaker elsewhere. Understand, I informed her I was under a time constraint so that obviously affected her response, but Anker is getting excoriated on their FB page. I hope everything is rectified soon, because my experience with this company has been spectacular.

Thanks for the review. I'm torn between trying to wait for this one to become available again or to bite the bullet and order the old 3 for $5 more.

CocheseUGA said:
Thanks for the review. I'm torn between trying to wait for this one to become available again or to bite the bullet and order the old 3 for $5 more.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First of all, I just saw that all the Anker products are back online on Amazon!
But, I also see that Astro 3 (2nd gen) is on back order due to demand. In my opinion, wait until its available. Why buy old technology when you can get unit with a higher capacity, more USB outputs, better efficiency, and new indicator?
... UPDATE... It is sold out on US Amazon, but should be back in stock in 1 week.
In general, and this doesn't refer just to Anker but any other product/vendor I have reviewed. If anybody has a question for a vendor and can't get an answer right away - let me know because I receive review samples directly from their marketing department and can get in touch quicker to get you an answer.

Hi, i'm getting a really slow charge with the Anker battery. Are you rooted and flashed with Perseus? I can't seem to get a 1.8A charge on any power bank. Stock here btw.

Ev0d3vil said:
Hi, i'm getting a really slow charge with the Anker battery. Are you rooted and flashed with Perseus? I can't seem to get a 1.8A charge on any power bank. Stock here btw.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Which battery and what usb cable are you using? I'm all stock, not rooted. Either Anker or any other brand I have tested, if they rate output to 2 - I always see 1.8A charging and can confirm it by timing and watching % charge. But I do use either oem usb cable or usb cable from my ue Boom or monoprice cables. No matter how great your battery, the cable will be your bottleneck if its not true 2A cable. Plus I have tested and can confirm that with a number of external batteries if you are charging from "apple" designated port or port rated at 1A - they put some current limiting to keep it capped.

vectron said:
Which battery and what usb cable are you using? I'm all stock, not rooted. Either Anker or any other brand I have tested, if they rate output to 2 - I always see 1.8A charging and can confirm it by timing and watching % charge. But I do use either oem usb cable or usb cable from my ue Boom or monoprice cables. No matter how great your battery, the cable will be your bottleneck if its not true 2A cable. Plus I have tested and can confirm that with a number of external batteries if you are charging from "apple" designated port or port rated at 1A - they put some current limiting to keep it capped.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tried with the cable that came with the phone, stock, sometimes the charge drops to below 1000ma on the 2A port. Tried with a HTC cable. Same issue. Also tried with the cable that came with the anker, same thing. Am using an Anker E4 so i believe their build quality is more or less the same right?
Which monoprice cable are you using? Can you give me a link on amazon? Guaranteed true 2amp cable?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B003L18S0E/

vectron said:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B003L18S0E/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks! so the stock cable isnt a true 2 amp cable as compared to this? From what i see, its gold plated and ferrite?

Longer microUSB cable for charging

Hey folks, I am looking for a longer (around 6ft or so, if not longer) cable, preferably with a 90 degree micro-usb side, with which to charge my tablet. I purchased one from amazon, but when it came in, I plugged it into my Samsung wall charger and then into my tablet, and I was greeted with the red X over my battery icon, indicating that the tablet either was not charging, or was not charging at the correct rate. Upon comparing the new cable with that which came with my tablet, the new one was significantly thinner, which I imagine could be the reason for the problem.
Has anyone purchased a cable that works properly/has the correct gauge? If so, mind posting a link?
If this has been asked before, I apologize. I went back four or five pages, but the only related questions I saw were about the wall chargers themselves, not the cables.

Svenjamin said:
Hey folks, I am looking for a longer (around 6ft or so, if not longer) cable, preferably with a 90 degree micro-usb side, with which to charge my tablet. I purchased one from amazon, but when it came in, I plugged it into my Samsung wall charger and then into my tablet, and I was greeted with the red X over my battery icon, indicating that the tablet either was not charging, or was not charging at the correct rate. Upon comparing the new cable with that which came with my tablet, the new one was significantly thinner, which I imagine could be the reason for the problem.
Has anyone purchased a cable that works properly/has the correct gauge? If so, mind posting a link?
If this has been asked before, I apologize. I went back four or five pages, but the only related questions I saw were about the wall chargers themselves, not the cables.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Longer cables = Longer charge times.
Many of the cheapo cables on ebay are fakes and will not charge your device properly.

I did not know that about the length! I had thought the gauge would make more of a difference. Is length actually the more important factor?

Svenjamin said:
I did not know that about the length! I had thought the gauge would make more of a difference. Is length actually the more important factor?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They are equally important.
The resistance of a wire is proportional to its length and inversely proportional to its cross-sectional area. So, if you double the length of a cable you double its resistance. If you double its cross-sectional area you halve its resistance.
If you pick a cable that is twice as long, it will have to have double the cross-sectional area to have the same resistance. That means a low resistance cable that's 6' long is going to be very thick indeed.

You may use extended AC cable
not extended usb cable
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}

Misinformation deleted.

GldRush98 said:
No, kkretch made an absurdly ridiculous and false statement. Length has exactly nothing to do with charge time. You will not see a difference between such SHORT distances like 3 feet or 10 feet. If you hade like a 20+ foot cable, then maybe. Short cables (under 10 feet) you won't see any difference. Quality and gauge of the wires is what makes the difference. Look for 24 gauge cables. These use thicker wires that will be able to provide more current to your device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No he didn't.
There are three factors that affect the resistance of a wire, which is the relevant factor here, namely the material it is made from, the length and the cross-sectional area. Temperature also has an effect but I am assuming constant temperature here.
Assuming one copper wire is made of roughly the same material as the next, length and cross-sectional area are equally important. If you think cross-sectional area is more important than length, please back up your claim with some actual physics. I have based what I said on knowledge I gained doing a physics degree at university. I would be happy to back this up with some references if you don't believe me.

The voltage output drops with cable resistance, and significantly. German computer mag c't did some tests, which rather surprised me. The wattage stays the same, but the lower the voltage, the lower the amperage. You can compensate length by thickness, however. Alarming would be, if the cable runs hot.

I use this one and it works great.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GCFSLFS/ref=cm_sw_r_an_am_at_ws_us?ie=UTF8
Sent from my Big 10 inch..

lecorbusier said:
The voltage output drops with cable resistance, and significantly. German computer mag c't did some tests, which rather surprised me. The wattage stays the same, but the lower the voltage, the lower the amperage. You can compensate length by thickness, however. Alarming would be, if the cable runs hot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is wrong. Wattage is defined as voltage times amperage. So if either voltage or amperage drops, so does wattage.
Sent from my SM-P600 using Tapatalk

Svenjamin said:
Hey folks, I am looking for a longer (around 6ft or so, if not longer) cable, preferably with a 90 degree micro-usb side, with which to charge my tablet. I purchased one from amazon, but when it came in, I plugged it into my Samsung wall charger and then into my tablet, and I was greeted with the red X over my battery icon, indicating that the tablet either was not charging, or was not charging at the correct rate. Upon comparing the new cable with that which came with my tablet, the new one was significantly thinner, which I imagine could be the reason for the problem.
Has anyone purchased a cable that works properly/has the correct gauge? If so, mind posting a link?
If this has been asked before, I apologize. I went back four or five pages, but the only related questions I saw were about the wall chargers themselves, not the cables.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://www.amazon.com/Blackberry-Fo...838452&sr=1-4&keywords=playbook+charger+rapid
That's my go to charger for all things microusb. I have 3. 1 to charge my note 3, 1 for the 10.1" 2014 and my girlfriend uses one for her S4.
The length is about 6 feet which is great and its rated at 1.8a but honestly, I'm not sure if it's more efficient than the stock samsung chargers, but it charges in the same time. It charges my 10.1" 2014 in about 5:15 hrs from 0%.
It doesn't have a right angle, but I had bought a right angle adapter from ebay and used it once. I find it better to just turn the tablet upside down in my case and I'm good to go using it while it's charging.
I'm a musician and travel a lot and I have hated all these usb brick chargers that manufacturers have been dishing out. The cables are way too short and the 2 piece design (brick and usb cable) annoys me as I sometimes forget one piece or the other. With this 6 foot charger I can usually reach from the wall socket to the bed in hotel rooms when before I would have to leave my phone on the floor or put a chair by the socket to rest my phone on (yeah, you'd be surprised how many hotels don't have outlets beside the beds!).
Check it out, and for the price, it's a steal! I also bought one of their premium car chargers and it charges my note 3 just as fast as a wall charger as it's rated at the same 1.8a!

I bought this one and it really works out great, similar in charging time to the original wire, this tablet charges very slow anyways (1800mah x 5 = 9amps) so whatever you do you can't go below 4 and a half hours from 0 to 100%
http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=291023834333
Sent from my SM-N9005 using xda app-developers app

neevz said:
I use this one and it works great.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GCFSLFS/ref=cm_sw_r_an_am_at_ws_us?ie=UTF8
Sent from my Big 10 inch..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here....

You are quite right about this. Power (Watts) = voltage (Volts) x current (Amps). If the voltage falls without a proportional increase in current, the power must fall also.

GldRush98 said:
No, kkretch made an absurdly ridiculous and false statement. Length has exactly nothing to do with charge time. You will not see a difference between such SHORT distances like 3 feet or 10 feet. If you hade like a 20+ foot cable, then maybe. Short cables (under 10 feet) you won't see any difference. Quality and gauge of the wires is what makes the difference. Look for 24 gauge cables. These use thicker wires that will be able to provide more current to your device.
Here is a 10 foot 24 gauge for $1.53 plus shipping: http://www.monoprice.com/Product?ab...=10303&cs_id=1030307&p_id=8642&seq=1&format=2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do your home work here http://www.calculator.net/voltage-drop-calculator.html
24 gauge 10 ft cable has a voltage drop of 9.62%... 5.3 volts to 4.79 volts
24 gauge 3 ft cable has a voltage drop of 2.83% .... 5.3 volts to 5.15 volts
That's at 1 amp draw
Bump it up to 2 amp draw you get 19.43 % drop on the 10 ft cable and the 3 ft cable goes up to 5.85 % drop.

Well, I decided to practice what I preach, and it turns out, I was dead wrong. Absolutely wrong. Even a distance of a few feet drastically reduces charging current. My apologies to everyone in this thread.
I charged my tablet the last 2 nights via a 6 foot USB extension cable and the original factory power adapter and cable. Both nights left me with only a half charged battery in the morning. Tonight I decided to install a quick widget and I was shocked at the difference the extension cable made.
With 6 foot extension cable:
With only the original cable:
So there you have it. I am surprised. And also annoyed my extension cable is useless.

Cable results
Here are some surprising results from various cables and chargers.
OEM 5.3 volt Note 2014 charger.
Included SM-P600 cable - 38inches - 1960 ma
OEM Blackbery Playbook cable - 47inches - 1794 ma
Ebay S3 cable 38inches - 1687 ma
Ebay marked HTC cable - 35inch - 470 ma
OEM 5.0 volt Note GT-N8013 charger
Included SM-P600 cable - 38inches - 1831 ma
OEM Blackbery Playbook cable - 47inches - 1696 ma
Ebay S3 cable 38inches - 837 ma
Ebay marked HTC cable - 35inch - 254 ma

I've got this 6 footer coming next week. I'll post results when I get it.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FAAGNLU/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

GldRush98 said:
I've got this 6 footer coming next week. I'll post results when I get it.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FAAGNLU/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Look forward to the results.
Sent from Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Edition via Tapatalk.

Geordie Affy said:
Look forward to the results.
Sent from Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Edition via Tapatalk.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Everything is looking good for it! It is supplying the same amount of mA that the original cable provided and the longer length makes charging and using much easier. I'm very happy with that cable.

[Review] Choetech QC 3.0 10400 mAh battery pack

Disclaimer: I was sent these items at a heavy discount in exchange for my fair & honest review
Choetech 10400 QC 3.0 Enabled Battery Pack:
Overview
Choetech took their old QC 2.0 battery and made some improvements to it while also adding QC 3.0.
Ports/Charging:
There are a variety of ports offered on this battery which serve different functions. First the battery can be charged on of two ways: you can either use a microUSB cable (like the one included in the box), or a lightning cable if you happen to also have an Apple device. Both cables will allow the battery to be charged at 5V/2.4A; however, I found the battery charges via QC 2.0. I tested it via my multimeter which show the battery drawing ~9V/1.8A which is closer to 16.2 W of power. I’m not sure why the battery doesn’t list this as an input because it certainly takes all of the power.
On the output side you are given the option of using 2 USB-A standard ports. One of these ports will charge at 5V/1A which is also known as QC 1.0, while the second one charges via QC 3.0. The voltage range is variable as is the current. The ranges for the QC 3.0 port are: 5V/3A (15W), 9V/2A (18W), 12V 1.5A (15W). All of these outputs are consistent with the QC 3.0 standard which allows the voltage to step in smaller increments thus reducing the overall heat and increasing charging efficiency.
Design/Build Quality:
This battery has a very nice, solid aluminum housing that really makes it feel nice. The top/bottom edges are chamfered, while the sides are black anodized aluminum. This is the perfect pairing for the HTC 10 given its nice chamfered edge, and similar aluminum construction. I have another Choetech battery pack that is equally well made and feels like a tank. I don’t foresee this battery buckling under normal use, or even some drops given how well made it feels.
To use the battery, you first need to hit the power button that in turn lights up a series of 4 bright LED’s. These LED’s will indicate the current charge left on the battery while also looking great. When you are charging the battery pack the LED indicating its current level of charge will blink as an indication of how much power is currently store in the battery.
What’s in the Box:/B]
-Choetech 10400mAh power bank
-microUSB cable
-Documentation
Charging Multimeter test:
Charging Ports:
Here is breakdown of the voltages/rates the battery can be charged at:
Output: 5V/1A (5W)
QC 3.0 Port: 5V/3A (15W), 9V/2A (18W), 12V/1.25A (15W) [/SIZE]
Battery I/O Rating Pictures
Given the battery’s two output ports, you will be able to charge two devices simultaneously, although I would only use it to charge one at a time personally.
Overall This is a great small QC 3.0 enabled battery pack that will keep everything working on the go. I own battery packs from EasyACC, Choetech, Aukey, and Anker, but this one is still one of my favorites for what it offers. I plan on using this battery to charge my HTC 10 while at school, and on the go in general.

Nice review, I've done a similar thing on amazon, also found the charger to be great. I did a quick charging test and it was averaging around 1500mA, whereas the htc one main plugs charger was 1600mA, so to charge that close to a main plugs socket is great. Specially for a portable charger where you want it charging fast!

Phil750123 said:
Nice review, I've done a similar thing on amazon, also found the charger to be great. I did a quick charging test and it was averaging around 1500mA, whereas the htc one main plugs charger was 1600mA, so to charge that close to a main plugs socket is great. Specially for a portable charger where you want it charging fast!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This battery will output the rated (18W) if the phone can handle that much current. I posted a picture in my review using a multimeter to measure the power (16.8W at the moment I took the picture). I don't know what the phones peak input current is, but I know it's higher than than S7 Edges 15.03W input, and Neuxs 6P's 15W. I've seen similar ranges of 15-17W using the stock HTC charger which means this battery is outputting the proper current for the phone to charge as fast as it possible can via the QC 3.0 port.

How many full charges can it deliver to the phone?

Lurien said:
How many full charges can it deliver to the phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just over 2 from my experience, but that's 0 to 100 so not bad.
It is damn fast though for a portable charger. For example I've gone from 33% to 100% in a little over an hour

Phil750123 said:
Just over 2 from my experience, but that's 0 to 100 so not bad.
It is damn fast though for a portable charger. For example I've gone from 33% to 100% in a little over an hour
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not bad at all.. that's like having 2 spare batteries and change... I'm considering getting this. Thanks for the feedback.

Lurien said:
How many full charges can it deliver to the phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Phil750123 said:
Just over 2 from my experience, but that's 0 to 100 so not bad.
It is damn fast though for a portable charger. For example I've gone from 33% to 100% in a little over an hour
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lurien said:
Not bad at all.. that's like having 2 spare batteries and change... I'm considering getting this. Thanks for the feedback.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you account for the efficiency external batteries have (not very high due to heat losses) the 2 full charges is about right in my experience.

Pilz said:
If you account for the efficiency external batteries have (not very high due to heat losses) the 2 full charges is about right in my experience.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup when looking at mah of portable batteries I always take off about 30%. Assuming it's good quality that about what you get. I. E in this case 10400mah you get about 7000mah actually usable. Obviously that goes down with time too.

Phil750123 said:
Yup when looking at mah of portable batteries I always take off about 30%. Assuming it's good quality that about what you get. I. E in this case 10400mah you get about 7000mah actually usable. Obviously that goes down with time too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Plus when quick charging you could lose some of the ~7000 you might expect, regardless of that I still find it to work as well as my other 1000mAh battery packs.

Things I miss in your review:
How much does it cost, and how are competitive products placed?
How long does it take to charge the Battery with a QC2.0 Charger?
How much is really inside?
You'd have to use a constant 1.5A load and check How long it lasts... ?
Except from that. Nice review Thanks.

Choetech has stated they're using Samsung Li-Ion cells so they're likely these. I'll crack open mine when I receive it, haven't ordered it yet.
http://gamma.spb.ru/media/pdf/liion-lipolymer-lifepo4-akkumulyatory/ICR18650-26H.pdf
http://lygte-info.dk/review/batteries2012/Samsung ICR18650-26H 2600mAh (Pink) UK.html
-26H is the successor to -26F
http://data.oomipood.ee/kasutusjuhend//ICR18650-26FM.pdf
http://dampfakkus.de/akkutest.php?id=120
http://lygte-info.dk/review/batteries2012/Samsung ICR18650-26F 2600mAh (Pink) UK.html
I personally have these -26H's inside my 4x18650 5V2A power bank case.
They're great cells for indoor use and low current draw (per cell) use.
They'll happily dump over 90% of the specified Whours even at a full 5A discharge. (which is 2600*3.63/1000=9.44Wh)
At a more sane discharge current of 1A/2A they'll be able to provide ~ 99/96% of the specified Whours.
So how much is really inside? Spec sheet says 10200mAh's assuming 0.2C discharge and 2.75V cut-off.
In practice? ~10200-10600mAh's depending on the discharge current. (this is of course fresh cells, capacity will drop over time)
This of course does not take into account the power loss which occurs when you boost the voltage up.
Assuming a nice, above average 90% efficiency inside the power bank you'd be looking at ~9200mAh's.
Then taking into account the voltage stepdown happening inside the phone, let's assume 90% efficiency again and we'd be looking at ~8150mAh's.
Aaand then taking into account the cable loss (- connector losses), let's assume you have an average 26AWG 1 meter cable and you transfer 18W of power at 9V2A, loss is 6%.
We're down to ~7550mAh's.
Saying it can charge a 3000mAh battery twice plays nice with that calculation.
One thing to note though and like I said, great for indoor use but if you look at the spec sheet, you can see the capacity vs temperature table.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
tl;dr if you wish to extract every little ounce of power you can from these cells (or this power bank)
if you go hiking in really cold weather, make sure it stays close to room temp (25C), so not in the outermost compartment of your backpack but neither touching your body which could then warm it up higher than room temp - no es bueno.
if it's a really warm, sunny summer day and you go have a beer outside sitting in the porch, don't leave the power bank in direct sunlight, place it in shade instead
This is pretty much business as usual and has to do with the design of the cell and cathode material used.
Cells [like the -26H] intended for laptops, power banks etc. are going to have different discharge characteristics compared to cells [like INR18650-25R] intended for electric vehicles, power tools and so on.
So it's good that the power bank has an aluminium chassis. It's going to be able to dump some of that heat generated by the boost circuitry in to the air and so on and so forth.
The cells themselves won't really heat up that much. You know, there's 4 of them in there and they are in parallel = current load is being split pretty much equally.
At 3V under load which is pretty close to fully discharged (cut-off = ~2.75V), if the power bank circuitry is prodiving 18 watts of power and drawing 21.6 watts (18+20%) from the 1S4P battery pack because of inefficiencies, it would still be just 7.2A of current total and 1.8A per cell.
Well within the capabilities of these Samsung cells and so low power wise per cell they're not heating up much.

I recently added this one to my arsenal and now prefer it over others I have. I can charge it off anyone's charger i'm with on longer trips so cable management is nill. Love the fact you can tell it's in qc mode versus normal charge mode.

Just recently got this power bank for my hTc 10 - as from my experience 10Ah looks impressive on the computer screen - but in real life we actually need 20Ah backup battery .. ?
Spoiler
And it states that output is 12V x 1.5A what actually implies 18W... ?
Sent from quite brutal hTc 10 ..

dottat said:
I recently added this one to my arsenal and now prefer it over others I have. I can charge it off anyone's charger i'm with on longer trips so cable management is nill.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, not exactly nil, right? You can charge from micro-usb or from lightning, which is a great addition, but you can't actually charge from the cable you're most likely to be carrying with your HTC 10, which is a USB C cable, right? I looked at the description on Amazon, and thought that was an interesting omission.

Andyw2100 said:
Well, not exactly nil, right? You can charge from micro-usb or from lightning, which is a great addition, but you can't actually charge from the cable you're most likely to be carrying with your HTC 10, which is a USB C cable, right? I looked at the description on Amazon, and thought that was an interesting omission.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It can be charged via a microusb cable that is included. Since they are as common as can be I don't see how that would be an issue. I have piles of them laying around, spare one in my car etc.. I know it's not ideal to have more than one type of cable, but I use them to charge my S7 Edge, Bose QC 20's , LG Tone Platinum's etc.. that's why I personally have them just about everywhere. I also have a time of Type-C, C-C/A-C cables because of my Nexus 6P. Ideally I would like 4 type c poets for in/out but no one makes anything close yet.

Pilz said:
It can be charged via a microusb cable that is included. Since they are as common as can be I don't see how that would be an issue. I have piles of them laying around, spare one in my car etc.. I know it's not ideal to have more than one type of cable, but I use them to charge my S7 Edge, Bose QC 20's , LG Tone Platinum's etc.. that's why I personally have them just about everywhere. I also have a time of Type-C, C-C/A-C cables because of my Nexus 6P. Ideally I would like 4 type c poets for in/out but no one makes anything close yet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I never suggested it would be hard to find a cable to charge the battery pack.
But dottat wrote that cable management issues were nil, so I was merely pointing out that for those of us with HTC 10s that really isn't quite the case, since if we want to travel with a single cable, the single cable we are going to travel with -- a USB C cable -- can't charge the battery. This means bringing two cables, at a minimum.
This was not a huge complaint or indictment of the product. I was just making a point. The product would be even better if it could charge via a USB C cable.

Andyw2100 said:
I never suggested it would be hard to find a cable to charge the battery pack.
But dotat wrote that cable management issues were nil, so I was merely pointing out that for those of us with HTC 10s that really isn't quite the case, since if we want to travel with a single cable, the single cable we are going to travel with -- a USB C cable -- can't charge the battery. This means bringing two cables, at a minimum.
This was not a huge complaint or indictment of the product. I was just making a point. The product would be even better if it could charge via a USB C cable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I completely agree, unfortunately there are only a handful of battery packs that support QC 3.0 and even fewer that offer Type-C (if any yet) on top of that. The interesting part is their QC 2.0 version has a Type-C port to charge the battery along side the microusb. I'm not sure why they changed that (maybe to appeal to a larger crowd), but it's odd nonetheless. I can post a picture of it later today since its 0103 right now so the lighting wouldn't be ideal to see it.

Andyw2100 said:
...dottat wrote that cable management issues were nil, so I was merely pointing out that for those of us with HTC 10s that really isn't quite the case, since if we want to travel with a single cable, the single cable we are going to travel with -- a USB C cable -- can't charge the battery. This means bringing two cables, at a minimum.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But within a large company someone is definitely with iPhone - what somehow suggests carrying one more cable.. ?
I opted to carry my original hTc 10 Type C cable and a small interface which converts Type C into the lightning connector.. ?
Sent from quite brutal hTc 10 ..

jauhien said:
But within a large company someone is definitely with iPhone - what somehow suggests carrying one more cable.. ?
I opted to carry my original hTc 10 Type C cable and a small interface which converts Type C into the lightning connector.. ?
Sent from quite brutal hTc 10 ..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They make one that charges via Type-C as I mentioned earlier; however, it uses QC 2.0 as opposed to QC 3.0

Has anyone compared this Choetech 10400 QC3 (currently unavailable on Amazon) with the Anker 20000 QC3? Pros? Cons?