Anker Laptop Powerbank

Whether you're working on your laptop outside, or travelling and have nowhere to charge your phone, a powerbank can be a good way to make sure you get through the day with your devices. So far, I've always relied on a bunch of them for emergency power, but they've always been either slow at charging, only capable of charging a single device, or simply not capable of providing enough power for the intended device. The Anker Laptop Powerbank promises to solve a lot of these issues: it offers fast charging with triple 100 Watt charging, two built-in cables, and capability to charge four devices simultaneously at 25,000 mAh capacity.

My use cases for reviewing this Anker powerbank have been twofold: charging my laptop while working outside at cafes and as a chargepoint for phones during our summer vacation in our electric car. In the latter case, the car itself is of course perfectly capable of charging a phone or two, but I wanted to maximise my driving range and conserve power where I could. Generally speaking, the power bank performed well for both use cases, but with some caveats.

Starting with design, the powerbank has two built-in cords: one shorter, heavier one that also neatly functions as a grip, and another one that rolls out from the top of the powerbank. I like the design of this a lot, combining portability with use as a charging cable. The shape of the powerbank itself is literally like a brick, which it also kind of feels like as it's on the heavier side. It's not too heavy or big to carry around in a pocket on your cargo pants, as I've proved accurate, but it won't fit in regular pockets. There's also a small display on one side, which shows current charge and charging speeds of connected devices. In all, it looks like a quality charger, though I noticed the matte finish scratches easily: My review unit got a big scratch the first time I put it on a table outside on a terrace.

Starting with my first use case, regarding the use as a powerbank for laptops, I took the charger with me for work on my standard corporate laptop a couple of times. Basic laptops don't draw too much power, and the Anker powerbank is really convenient in this case. Either of the two built-in cables works well to place the powerbank either close or a bit further away. Charging speed is very quick for a powerbank, meaning any basic laptop is able to run at full speed and stay charged until the powerbank runs out of power. Despite the high charging speed, the power bank never felt like it was getting hot, so it seems quite safe in that regard.

Unfortunately, I also tested the Anker powerbank on my HP Victus gaming laptop, and it failed to charge it altogether. I even ordered a special adapter for HP laptops to see if that would fix it, but without result. Apparently, the 100W maximum supplied still isn't enough to power gaming laptops, or at least my model, making it an uncertain purchase if that's what you're looking for.

The second use case was taking the power bank with me on two vacations in our electric car. Here the power bank proved a good companion on the road: my phone drained faster using Android Auto and navigation for hours on end, while there were also other phones and a tablet in need of topping up every now and then. The built-in cables help a lot with being able to charge immediately, and the charging speeds are also excellent, charging my phone with speeds comparable to my 65W chargers at home. Charging through my car wouldn't have given me the same speeds. It also means the inconvenience of holding a phone while plugged in lasts a lot less.

At an official 25,000 mAh rating, I managed to fully charge a phone about three to four times and a tablet about two times on a single charge of the power bank. As Anker mentions on their website, there's some energy loss during charging, so the full 25,000 mAh isn't available. Nevertheless, the outcome of my testing feels reassuring if this is the only power you have as your backup. The only downside to this much juice is the charging of the powerbank itself takes quite a long time: I counted about eight hours of charging going from near zero to a hundred. It's therefore best to plan your use of the device if you're going to rely on it, like I did when I went camping and didn't have access to any power.

Theorising outside of my use cases, I'm not sure about taking this on an airplane, but supposedly it's still within airline limits for taking it with you on flights. Also, I didn't see any IPX waterproof rating mentioned in the specs, so I think it's more of a work/city and road trip device, and less suited to more adventurous endeavours that could involve dust, rain, or otherwise wet environments. There exists power banks better suited for the latter cases.

In all, this is actually the best power bank I've had so far, mostly due to the charging speeds and convenient design. It packs plenty of power at the cost of being rather heavy and bulky, but it will still easily fit any small bag to take with you. This makes it an excellent powerbank if you're looking for a reliable power source for phones and (light) laptops, with the only major downside that it still isn't enough to reliably power heavier gaming laptops, and that the exterior scratches easily.