Charging has become such an important part of our daily lives and that’s because we have so many devices that are wireless and use batteries as their way of being powered. As a result, we’re always on the go with these kinds of devices and ultimately, the time comes to charge our electronics. Most of the time charging is seen as a drag because you almost always have to use a USB charger to charge your devices. At least, that’s the most stable and normal option, but you’re required to stay attached to the USB charger until your device is charged to a good point.
With that said, power banks, better known as portable chargers have changed the way that we charge and this is because we can take power wherever we go. There are many different types of power banks on the market and a lot of them have their good parts and flaws. So as amazing as power banks are, as you can charge your devices without being chained to a USB charger, it’s important to know what types of power banks there and what they have to offer.
Here are the best types of power banks that hold a firm place in the portable charging arena.
Small / Slim Power Banks
Small power banks are among the most used type of portable chargers and for good reasons too. This is because they’re the essence of what portable charging brings, as they’re very small and are literally able to go anywhere with us. The main reason for this is because Mini power banks have low power capacities, and the as the power capacity is lower than the power bank will be smaller.
Mini power banks come in two main shapes. The most common shape that they come in is a Cylindrical shape. Most charging electronic companies that sell power banks at least have a small portable charger that’s in the size of the cylinder. That’s mainly because it’s one of the best ways to keep the size small enough to make it fit into a pocket and also make it easy to hold in your hand.
Then there’s the somewhat more useful shape that small power banks come in, and that would be a Slim shape form factor. Slim power banks are generally better than Cylinder Mini power banks because they’re about the same exact size as your smartphone; which means that you can place them in your pocket along with your smartphone while it’s charging.
With all that said, as amazing as Mini power banks are, it’s important to know that the main flaw with them is that they’re only really able to charge a smartphone’s 1 or 2 times before they’re fully depleted of their power capacity.
High Capacity Power Banks
High capacity power banks aren’t nearly as popular as smaller ones and that’s mainly because of the of the size and weight of them. This is because since the power capacity is a lot higher than smaller ones, the batteries being used are larger and a number of batteries being used are more. Overall, even high capacity power banks can be taken anywhere, it’s just that with these ones you’re not going to be putting them into your pocket or holding them in your hand for very long durations of time. Instead, high capacity power banks are more meant to be set down and then charge your devices.
Also check: What is the Best Power Bank for Pokémon Go?
In addition to having a power capacity that’s able to charge devices multiple times over, these kinds of power banks are very capable in another way. Such as having multiple charging ports. With most high capacity portable chargers, you’re able to get more than 1 charging port, and go into the 2 or 3 ports range; this allows you to charge 3 devices at once, and this is amazing because charging multiple devices at once with USB chargers is quite convenient but now you can do it wherever you’d like.
Also, along with the many charging ports, these kinds of power banks have fast charged. Standard charging per port is usually 5V/2.4A and that’s a fast enough charging to charge lots of devices at their max charging speeds. Another powerful part is that they use special charging techs such as Quick Charge and USB-C, so if you have smartphones or other devices that are compatible with that kind of charging technologies then you’re able to charge them at very fast speeds.
Rugged Power Banks
In general, when we think about electronics we think about highly useful devices and they’re basically an extension of our lifestyle; at the same time, electronics are generally very fragile. Just take a look at smartphones, most smartphones are not able to take falls to the ground and when they do, the screen cracks. With that said, we’re just now getting to the point where smartphones have become waterproof.
The same thing goes for power banks. Most power banks are not able to survive drops to the ground and neither are they waterproof. However, there are certain power banks that are built to withstand things that normally break them, and those are Rugged power banks.
Rugged power banks have reinforcements that are able to protect them from drops and they have covers that are able to go over the charging ports and make the power bank waterproof. With that said, not all Rugged power banks are created equal and this is because many different Rugged power banks have different waterproofing rating. Some of them have Enclosure ratings of IP65 that makes them waterproof from jets of water but they cannot be immersed into water otherwise they would get damaged.
If you want a power bank that can go for a swim then you’d have to take a look at power banks that have an Enclosure rating of IP68.
Power Banks with Built-In Cables
As great as power banks are, the main problem can be the cable that you’re using with it, or rather the lack thereof. This is because you may be heading out the door, grab your power bank and only to realize that when you do need to charge your smartphone, that you forgot to unplug your charging cable from your USB charger and take it with you.
That is why power banks that have built-in cables are among the useful type of portable charger because they’re always going to be useful and they’re basically more portable than power banks that don’t have any built-in cables. This is because built-in cables on power banks are concealing and don’t get in the way, as power banks that use USB ports always have their cables sticking out. Also, these type of power banks are quite small, and the use of a short built-in cable is very useful because there’s less to keep track of.
In addition to having a built-in cable that you’re going to use the most, these power banks also have USB ports that allow you to use any handy cable that you may have to charge your other devices. Not only is that good, but they also have ways to recharge themselves that are built-in, which include the use AC Adapter or USB cables to recharge the power bank.
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