choose your power bank
1. filter your search based on charging capacity. When choosing a power bank, you should pay particular attention to its charging capacity, which is measured in milliampere hours (mAh). If you plan on using your power bank just to charge your phone, 5,000 mAh or less will suffice. If you intend to charge larger devices like a tablet or want to charge your phone multiple times without recharging the power bank, you’ll need something over 10,000 mAh.
- A power bank with 10,000 mAh or more can charge a phone up to 4 times without being recharged and can recharge a tablet up to 2.5 times without being recharged.
- You can find guides for picking the right power bank capacity for your device by searching online.
- The dimensions of the iQunix MiniPower, for example, are 4 inches (10 cm) by 0.9 inches (2.3 cm) by 0.9 inches (2.3 cm), but only has a 3,350 mAh capacity.[2]
- The Anker PowerCore II 20000, on the other hand, has a charging capacity of 20,000 mAh and dimensions of 6.7 inches (17 cm) by 2.5 inches (6.4 cm) by 0.8 inches (2.0 cm).
3. Find power banks with a high charging output and input. Most power banks will come with a 1 ampere (A) or 2.1 A output or both. A 1 A output is usually enough for a phone, while a 2.1 A is more suitable for a tablet. Power banks for laptops will usually have a 3 A output. Input ranges from 1 A to 2.4 A.
- The higher the amperes of the output, the faster your device will charge; the higher the amperes of the input, the faster your power bank will recharge.
