What is a Power Bank?
These days, power banks are equally as important as our toothbrushes. It has become a crucial part of our life. A Power Bank is defined as an electronic item that is used for providing portable power to charge battery-powered items like mobile phones, laptops, and other similar items that have a USB interface: they can charge via USB, etc, or wirelessly.
It comes in different shapes, sizes, and even colors. Every power bank’s cost varies according to its size and capacities. For buying a perfect power bank based on its performance, several points need to be considered. Don’t worry, in this power bank buying guide, we’ll tell you how to choose a perfect power bank for yourself. Let’s hop in!!!
How does the Portable charger work?
Before discussing the perfect power bank, let’s learn how the portable charger works. All instead of charging our phones, tablets, or any devices from the socket, use power banks or a portable charger. We insert the charger (or charger cable) into the device that needs power.
Given the short lifespan of many smartphones, the popular and best portable chargers are USB devices. The power banks come very handy and can be kept easily in your pocket or a purse and help in extending your phone’s battery life.
Mostly the power bank comes with one or more USB ports and can connect to nearly any variety of cable used to charge modern smartphones. The common connections found these days on the power banks are Standard Micro-USB, USB-C, and Apple Lightning cables ending with a USB Type-A.
Who Needs a Power Bank?
This is a world full of technology, and we all are dependent on our mobile phones 24/7. Just imagine if your phone’s battery is dead when you need it the most. You’ll surely go restless without using your mobile phones. So, let’s discuss who all needs a power bank.
1. Students
Today’s young generation is the face of the future. They have grown up using technology. These days in colleges or universities, they need their devices charged without being near a plug socket most of the time. Having a proper power bank would be helpful for them, and they would be stress-free all day helping them to focus on their studies.
2. Business-men
If you are a businessman, you need your phone charged 24/7 because you don’t want to miss your important calls just because your phone’s battery is down. So, a perfect power bank which would help your phone last the whole day would be amazing.
3. Employers
Well, I have another tip for all the businessmen or the bosses out there. Wouldn’t it be great if you gifted all your employers a power bank? It would be a great way to show your employers how concerned you are about their busy life. And they won’t have any excuses related to the phone’s battery is down.
4. Travelers
A person who loves to travel, who loves to shoot vlogs all over the world, definitely needs a good power bank in his/her pocket. Cause you don’t want your phone or camera’s battery to be dead during your tour. So, a power bank with long-lasting capacity would be perfect for travelers.
Types of Power Banks:
Well, there are two types of power banks. Those are Power Banks with low capacity and Power Banks with High Capacity. Less discuss the two types thoroughly:
1. Power Banks with Low Capacity:
These types of portable chargers are the most useful types of chargers in the market as they come in very small sizes and are lightweight. They have a low capacity of power which means that the power banks use a low number of batteries, and most of them use a single battery at a time.
There are two types of batteries used in Low-Capacity Power Banks. There are ones that use Ion and the ones that use Polymer batteries. Power banks that use Ion batteries have cylinder shapes and are quite short. Polymer power banks have slim form factors and are nearly the same size/weight as a smartphone. A smartphone can be charged once or twice with this kind of power bank.
2. Power Banks with High Capacity:
These types of power banks are very useful when the power is involved, and that one would have high power capacities. They have the power of 20,000mAh or more and as a result, can charge many types of devices to their max power lots of times over. It comes with the usage of many USB ports, which gives the ability to charge lots of devices.
These types of chargers are also able to have better charging tech such as Quick Charge, Type-C, and even DC Output ports for charging Laptops. But it is very heavy and is not meant for holding for a long period.
What are the Things That You Should Consider While Purchasing a Power Bank?
1. Compare the charge capacities
Before searching for a power bank, first, check the battery capacity of your phone or tablet. Because there are many phones which charge more than the others. So first take a look at the battery capacity which you will find given under the battery area.
For example, if your battery capacity is 1000mAh, you have to find a power bank with a slightly higher capacity. It is always better to have a bit extra to make sure the device gets a full charge.
2. Several USB ports
These days it’s very important to have more than one USB Ports to charge one or more devices. These days we don’t just carry a phone with us, but we carry earphones and smartwatches too. So, make sure you select a power bank with more than one USB port.
3. Ability to charge faster
These days there are many new phones which can charge fast, so they can pull in more amperes of power. Higher the amperes, faster the charging and it works best with bundled power adapters. Earlier the battery packs used to only have 1A charging, but these days the battery packs support 2A to 3A charging. It helps your phone to get charged quickly.
4. Size and weight
The size and weight of the power banks is a crucial aspect when buying a power bank. The more the capacity of the power bank, the heavier it will be. So, choose wisely.
5. Charging connectors
Although the output of the power bank is almost universally a large USB type-A USB connector, which is used to connect USB chargers, flash drives, etc., the connectors used to charge the power bank are different. It’s usually a micro-USB and occasionally a mini-USB, but recently some have built-in Lightning connectors, so it can be charged via Apple chargers, with Apple cables, reducing the number of different cables needed.
What are the Things That Need to be Avoided While Buying a Power Bank?
Now that you all know what are the things you need to consider while buying a power bank. But let me tell you about the things which you have to avoid while buying a power bank.
1. Choose wisely the capacity of the power bank:
People often don’t know their requirements and buy the wrong capacity of the power bank. If you buy a high-capacity bank, then it causes trouble in terms of size. More capacity means the size and the weight will be more which will be difficult in carrying. And if you buy a smaller capacity power bank, it won’t be sufficient to charge your phones multiple times. So before buying a power bank, first check the battery capacity of your device and buy accordingly.
2. Compatibility issues:
Before buying a particular power bank, make sure if it can charge other gadgets like cameras, tablets, and speakers too. It will help you in reducing the tension of carrying multiple batteries on a trip. Also, avoid power banks that have only one USB port. Nowadays it is a must to have a power bank with multiple USB ports to charge more devices.
3. Avoid buying cheap products:
Don’t get carried away by the cheap price of the product cause these types of products don’t have any warranty and are mostly duplicate. Anything that comes in the best specifications also comes with a higher price. Higher price means affordable and reliable. So before buying a power bank, always look at the speculations and capacity first. It will determine the real worth of the product.
4. Avoid not checking the Safety Caution:
We all just buy the product before checking its safety caution just because it had a cheap price. First make sure that the power bank offers you safety features such as Short-circuit protection, over-discharging protection, high voltage protection, etc. These all-safety features will secure your smartphone from getting damaged. And it’s most likely that the company which will provide you these features will provide you a warranty card too that will secure your payment for a year.
5. Avoid buying a bulky power bank:
Another cool feature of the power bank is that you can carry it anywhere while traveling. But what’s the use of the power bank if it is very heavy and big? Therefore, avoiding the heavyweight power bank should be your prime concern. It is always convenient to go for a lightweight and small-sized power bank so that it can be carried in a bag or pocket without creating any trouble.
Must Read: Laptop Buying Guide
What are the Famous Power Bank Brands?
Almost every multinational electronics company has started to manufacture power banks of their own. But there are only a few brands that have impressed their customers with their performance and have given their customers what they want. Let’s check out a few top brands for power banks.
1. Mi Power Banks:
Xiaomi power banks make sure to launch powerful products in a budget range. Just like its smartphones, it launches promising products with a good budget for its customers.
2. Corseca Power Banks:
This brand has captured its customer’s hearts since 2015 by launching its best products. Power Products as a category was launched in mid-2016.
3. Ambrane Power Banks:
Ambrane started its journey by launching power banks in the market. Later on, it became the brand’s identity and signature product with time.
4. Intex Power Banks:
Intex Technologies is an Indian multinational electronics
manufacturing services company that manufactures many electronic items. One of the important and promising products of Intex is power banks.
5. Realme Power Banks:
One of the most famous electronics brands is Realme. It was founded in the year 2018 and has captured the market at a rapid pace. People love the brand because of its great products and services. And one of its products is power banks which are purchased by many of its customers.
Prices and Warranty
Let’s discuss the prices and warranty of the power banks.
- If you want a power bank within 3000-5999mAh, the price range would be within Rs 300-800 depending on the company. It mostly comes with a single USB Port and mostly with no warranty. I would suggest you not buy a power bank below 10,000mAh battery capacity.
- If you want to buy a 10,000mAh capacity power bank, its price ranges within Rs.1000. It will have multiple USB Ports with a domestic warranty. The 10,000mAh power bank is commonly purchased by customers.
- If you want a 20,000mAh, its price ranges between Rs.1200 – 2000. It comes with a guaranteed 6months or 1year domestic warranty. It comes with multiple USB Ports and can quickly charge your device.
- A 30,000mAh power bank was still a dream for many, but Xiaomi made it possible. The 30,000mAh power bank can charge a tablet and even a computer. Its price is Rs.2500 with 18W fast charging. It comes with a 6 monthly domestic warranty and multiple USB Ports.
Conclusion
Well, I hope this complete power bank buying guide helped you in figuring out the best power banks for you. Just make sure to buy a power bank with a warranty, good battery capacity, and not too bulky. What are you waiting for? Go and shop for the best Power Banks for you!
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