iFlash® Ultra Slim 3200mAh Portable Power Bank Backup External Battery Charger with Embedded Micro-USB and Flashlight

Ultra Slim 3200mAh External Battery Pack looks very slick, it is quite thin. One unique feature of this external power pack is that it has a micro USB cable built into the side of the unit (see attached photo collage). It pops out of the side on a coiled cable, so if your mobile device takes a micro USB connector you don't need to carry any extra cables. This built-in cable delivers very rapid charging (see test results below). The power pack also has a port which allows you to connect other connectors, so it works with devices that have proprietary connectors as well.



I tested Ultra Slim 3200mAh External Battery Pack with Galaxy Nexus Phone (running ICS 4.0.4), Samsung Galaxy 7.7 Tablet (running ICS 4.0.4) and iPad Mini.



I received this power bank from the manufacture for an honest review be it positive or negative. Top reviewers are often asked to review new battery packs and one of the benefits of being asked to test different power banks is that it gives me an opportunity to compare them to each other using the same charging test, so I can compare them using "apples to apples" comparison. This set of tests allows me to provide unbiased results as the numbers speak for the performance of each unit.



I received two identical units black and white, having two of them allows me to test for consistency in manufacturing. Ideally I want to see the same performance numbers for both units, and this was the case with the two Ultra Slim power packs .



My methodology is to charge each mobile device on each port of the unit for 10 minutes and measuring how much each unit was charge in that 10 minute period. In addition I tested charging two mobile devices at the same time. Each line in the table below represents a separate 10 minute test. I use Battery App by Elvison to determine how each device recognized the charging source. 'AC' status means the charging is at full charging rate. 'USB' status indicates charging at a lower charging rate. 'Discharging' status means that the charging rate is below the power that the device is consuming so it slows down the discharge rate but does not re-charge.



➨ General features:

======================



Ultra Slim 3200mAh external battery weighs 3.2 oz. Its size is 2.25" x4.25 " x 0.375". The pack has one USB output port and one built-in micro USB cable.



In addition to the built-in micro USB cable Ultra Slim comes with a charging cable and two tips - micro USB and iPad. It did not have tips for Samsung Galaxy Tab or lightening connector for iPad Mini and I used my own charging cables during the tests. I am attaching a photo of the Ultra Slim 3200mAh during one of the test next to my tablet for size reference. You can find this photo by following 'customer photos' link under the main photo in this listing.



Ultra Slim 3200mAh looks very slick: it is thin, has a nice finish, and in general has a look and shape of a smart phone. It shows the charge level by displaying 25%, 50%, 75%, 100% on panel. When it is charging, however, this indicator gets turned off. But the charging continued even when the lights were off. This is a little different from how other external power pack indicators work (they stay on when you are charging),so I wanted to mention it. In addition to the charging capabilities, Ultra Slim has a built-in flashlight.



➨ Test Results:

======================



✔ Galaxy Nexus Phone

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

White unit: AC ~~~~~ 6% change in charge in 10 minutes (built-in mciro USB charging cable)

Black unit: AC ~~~~~ 6% change in charge in 10 minutes (built-in mciro USB charging cable)



White unit: AC ~~~~~ 2% change in charge in 10 minutes (separate charging cable)

Black unit: AC ~~~~~ 2% change in charge in 10 minutes (separate charging cable)



✔ Samsung Galaxy 7.7 tablet

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

White unit: AC ~~~~~ 1% change in charge in 10 minutes (separate charging cable)

Black unit: AC ~~~~~ 1% change in charge in 10 minutes (separate charging cable)



✔ iPad Mini tablet

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

White unit: AC ~~~~~ 1% change in charge in 10 minutes (separate charging cable)

Black unit: AC ~~~~~ 1% change in charge in 10 minutes (separate charging cable)



➨ Key finding:

======================

✔ This power pack has great performance with built-in micro USB cable.

✔ Using your own charging cables the power pack works with both Galaxy 7.7 Tablet and iPad Mini but performance is on the slow side.

✔ I observed the same performance for both the black and white model, which is good and reflects consistency in the manufacturing process.



I highly recommend this power pack to people who can take advantage of the built-in micro USB cable.



You can find it on Amazon by following this link.







AshopZones review ★★★★★

EC Tech Mini 2600mAh external battery power bank lipstick size

The unique feature of EC Tech Mini 2600mAh that it looks like a flash light with a charging port in it. The flashlight is quite bright. Many batteries have a small built in flashlight, but they are normally not very strong where as this one if fairly good.



I tested EC Tech Mini 2600mAh Power Pack with with Nexus 7 Tab (running ICS 4.3), Galaxy Nexus Phone (running ICS 4.2) and Samsung Galaxy 7.7 Tablet (running ICS 4.0.4). My tests showed average results for the phone, and below average results for the tablets.



I received this power bank from the manufacturer for an honest review be it positive or negative. Top reviewers are often asked to review new battery packs and one of the benefits of being asked to test different power banks is that it gives me an opportunity to compare them to each other using the same charging test, so I can compare them using "apples to apples" comparison. This set of tests allows me to provide unbiased results as the numbers speak for the performance of each unit.



My methodology is to charge each mobile device on each port of the unit for 10 minutes and measuring how much each unit was charge in that 10 minute period. In addition I tested charging two mobile devices at the same time. Each line in the table below represents a separate 10 minute test.



I use Battery App by Elvison to determine how each device recognized the charging source. 'AC' status means the charging is at full charging rate. 'USB' status indicates charging at a lower charging rate. 'Discharging' status means that the charging rate is below the power that the device is consuming so it slows down the discharge rate but does not re-charge.



➨ General features:

======================



EC Tech Mini 2600mAh external battery weighs 1.8 oz. Its size is 4.1" x 1" diameter.



The pack has one USB output port. The package includes 4 tips, among them mini USB, micro USB and iPad. The package also contains a charging USB cable. Galaxy tab connector and lightening cable for iPad Mini are not included.



➨ Test Results:

======================



✔ Galaxy Nexus Phone

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AC ~~~~~~ 3% change in charge in 10 minutes



✔ Samsung Galaxy 7.7 tablet (using my own Galaxy tab connector cable)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AC ~~~~~~ 1% change in charge in 10 minutes



✔ Nexus 7 Tab

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AC ~~~~~~ 0% change in charge in 10 minutes



➨ Key findings:

======================

✔ This external battery works well as emergency power a phone or as a rechargeable flash light. This is not the best small factor external battery I have tested, but it has the brightness flash light of all the external batteries that I have tested. I keep in the car as a rechargeable flash light, and just in case I need power for an emergency phone call.



You can find it on Amazon by following this link.





AshopZones review ★★★★☆

EC Tech 7800 mAh Power Pack External Battery for Nexus, Samsung, Apple iPad

I tested EC Tech 7800 mAh Power Pack with with Nexus 7 Tab (running ICS 4.3), Galaxy Nexus Phone (running ICS 4.2) and Samsung Galaxy 7.7 Tablet (running ICS 4.0.4). Overall, the tests show good results.



I received this power bank from the manufacturer for an honest review be it positive or negative. Top reviewers are often asked to review new battery packs and one of the benefits of being asked to test different power banks is that it gives me an opportunity to compare them to each other using the same charging test, so I can compare them using "apples to apples" comparison. This set of tests allows me to provide unbiased results as the numbers speak for the performance of each unit.



My methodology is to charge each mobile device on each port of the unit for 10 minutes and measuring how much each unit was charge in that 10 minute period. In addition I tested charging two mobile devices at the same time. Each line in the table below represents a separate 10 minute test.



I use Battery App by Elvison to determine how each device recognized the charging source. 'AC' status means the charging is at full charging rate. 'USB' status indicates charging at a lower charging rate. 'Discharging' status means that the charging rate is below the power that the device is consuming so it slows down the discharge rate but does not re-charge.



➨ General features:

======================



EC Tech 7800 mAh external battery weighs 6.6 oz. Its size is 2.75" x 3.75" x 0.875".



The pack has 2 USB output ports. The package includes 4 tips: PSP, Mini USB, Micro USB, Apple. It also has two adapter cables. Galaxy tab connector and lightening cable for iPad Mini are not included. The battery pack has a small LED flashlight built into it.



➨ Test Results:

======================



✔ Samsung Galaxy 7.7 tablet (using my own Galaxy tab connector cable)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Port 1: AC ~~~~~~ 2% change in charge in 10 minutes

Port 2: AC ~~~~~~ 4% change in charge in 10 minutes



✔ Nexus 7 Tab

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Port 1: AC ~~~~~~ 3% change in charge in 10 minutes

Port 2: AC ~~~~~~ 4% change in charge in 10 minutes



✔ Galaxy Nexus Phone

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Port 1: AC ~~~~~~ 3% change in charge in 10 minutes

Port 2: AC ~~~~~~ 4% change in charge in 10 minutes



✔ Galaxy Nexus Phone and Nexus 7 Tab together

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Port 1: AC ~~~~~~ 3% change in charge in 10 minutes (Galaxy Nexus Phone)

Port 2: AC ~~~~~~ 1% change in charge in 10 minutes (Nexus 7 Tab)



➨ Key finding:

======================

✔ This external battery worked equally well for the phone and the tablets. It is not the fastest external battery I have tested, but its performance is very respectable.





You can find it on Amazon by following this link.





AshopZones review ★★★★☆

Sendy 5200mAh High Capacity Portable Power Backup External Battery

I tested Sendy 5200mAh power bank with Nexus 7 Tablet (JellyBean 4.2.2), Samsung Galaxy 7.7 Tablet (ICS 4.0.4), and Samsung Galaxy Nexus cell phone (JellyBean 4.2.2), iPad Mini and Sansa Clip+ MP3.



I received this power bank from the manufacture for an honest review be it positive or negative. One of the benefits of being requested to test different power banks is that it gives me an opportunity to compare them to each other using the same charging test, so I can compare them using "apples to apples" comparison. This set of tests allows me to provide unbiased results as the numbers speak for the performance of each unit.



These comparison tests reveal that Sendy power bank works very well with Android devices (particularly the Galaxy Tab which is often the worst performer), but did NOT work with my iPad Mini.



The size of the power bank is 4" x 1.75" x 0.75". It weight 4.5 oz on my digital scale. In addition to being a charge it also has a built-in LED light. The light is not very bright, but better than nothing in an emergency situation.



My methodology for testing power banks is to charge each mobile device for 10 minutes and measuring how much each unit was charged in that 10 minute period. Each line in the table below represents a separate 10 minute test.



I use Battery App by Elvison to determine how each device recognized the charging source. 'AC' status means the charging is at full charging rate. 'USB' status indicates charging at a lower charging rate. 'Discharging' status means that the charging rate is below the power that the device is consuming so it slows down the discharge rate but does not re-charge.



✔ Nexus 7 Tablet

--------------

Charging cable -- AC ............. 1% change in charge in 10 minutes



✔ Samsung Galaxy Nexus Phone

--------------------------

Charging cable -- AC ............. 4% change in charge in 10 minutes

Data cable ------ AC ............. 1% change in charge in 10 minutes



✔ Samsung Galaxy Tablet 7.7

--------------------------

Charging cable -- AC ............. 5% change in charge in 10 minutes



✔ iPad Mini

--------------------------

iPad Mini cable -- power source not recognized ............. 1% dischage in 10 minutes



✔ Sansa Clip+ MP3

--------------------------

When I charge Sansa MP3 with a standard AC charger, the MP3 player goes into charging mode, displaying the charging animated icon. When it is plugged into the Sendy power bank the MP3 continued to play the content. This is a great benefit for MP3 player with built-in battery, this means I charge and listen at the same time and I do not have to wait for the battery to recharge.



I am attaching a collage of 4 photos, which can be located by following 'customer photos' link under the main photo:



Photo #1 shows everything that came in the package, USB cable with interchangeable tips and a small bag for carrying the power bank.

Photo #2 shows the power bank next to Sansa MP3 player for size reference

Photo #3 shows Galaxy Tab with the battery app showing results

Photo #4 shows iPad Mini which did not recognize the power shot (when it does a white plug icon is displayed on the app screen)



Overall:

------------------

Excellent performance for Android devices, does not work with iPad Mini. Nice size for travel.



You can find it on Amazon by following this link.





AshopZones review ★★★★★

iFlash 5600mAh Backup External Battery Charger

I tested iFlash® 5600mAh External Battery Pack with Samsung Galaxy 7.7 Tablet (running ICS 4.0.4) and iPad Mini.



I received this power bank from the manufacture for an honest review be it positive or negative. Top reviewers are often asked to review new battery packs and one of the benefits of being asked to test different power banks is that it gives me an opportunity to compare them to each other using the same charging test, so I can compare them using "apples to apples" comparison. This set of tests allows me to provide unbiased results as the numbers speak for the performance of each unit.



I received two identical units black and blue, having two of them allows me to test for consistency in manufacturing. Ideally I want to see the same performance numbers for both units when testing the same device, and this was the case with these two units.



My methodology is to charge each mobile device on each port of the unit for 10 minutes and measuring how much each unit was charge in that 10 minute period. In addition I tested charging two mobile devices at the same time. Each line in the table below represents a separate 10 minute test. I use Battery App by Elvison to determine how each device recognized the charging source. 'AC' status means the charging is at full charging rate. 'USB' status indicates charging at a lower charging rate. 'Discharging' status means that the charging rate is below the power that the device is consuming so it slows down the discharge rate but does not re-charge.



➨ General features:

======================



iFlash® 5600mAh external battery weighs 4.4 oz. Its size is 3.75" x1.75" x 0.875". The pack has one USB output port. It comes with a pouch which fits the power pack, cables and tips. It has a built-in flashlight.



The external battery comes with a charging cable and 5 tips - micro USB, mini USB and iPad (and two others I don't recognize). It did not have tips for Samsung Galaxy Tab or lightening connector for iPad Mini and I used my own charging cables during the tests. I am attaching a photo of Flash® 5600mAh during one of the test next to my tablet for size reference. You can find this photo by following 'customer photos' link under the main photo in this listing.



➨ Test Results:

======================



✔ Samsung Galaxy 7.7 tablet (using my own Galaxy tab connector cable)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Blue unit: AC ~~~~~~ 2% change in charge in 10 minutes

Black unit: AC ~~~~~ 2% change in charge in 10 minutes



✔ iPad Mini tablet (using my own lightening connector cable)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Blue unit: AC ~~~~~~ -1% change in charge in 10 minutes (discharged)

Black unit: AC ~~~~~ -1% change in charge in 10 minutes (discharged)



➨ Key finding:

======================

✔ It works well with the Galaxy 7.7 Tablet, although charging rate is not the fastest I have tested. This power pack does not work with iPad Mini. I observed the same performance for both the black and blue model, which is good and reflects consistency in the manufacturing process. Overall rating: OK.





You can find it on Amazon by following this link.





AshopZones review ★★★☆☆

Yubi Power YP250ABLU 2500mAh Ultra Compact Lipstick Size Portable Power Bank

I tested Yubi Power YP250ABLU 2500mAh Ultra Compact power bank with Nexus 7 Tablet (JellyBean 4.2.2), Samsung Galaxy 7.7 Tablet (ICS 4.0.4), and Samsung Galaxy Nexus cell phone (JellyBean 4.2.2), iPad Mini and Sansa Clip+ MP3.



I own several wall chargers and power bricks and run the same set on tests on each of them, so I can be compare them to each other using "apples to apples" comparison. This set of tests allows me to provide unbiased results as the numbers speak for the performance of each unit.



These comparison tests reveal that this charger provides pretty good speed of charging and capacity (even though it is not the fastest or has the most capacity), however it is unbeaten in its compact size.



The size of the power bank is 3.75" x 0.75" x 0.75". It weighs 2.9 oz on my digital scale. It is quite compact, however I need to point that the lipstick comparison is slightly exaggerated. I am attaching a photo collage of 6 photos, and Photo #5 show this power bank next to a couple of lipsticks for relative size comparison. The photos can be located by following 'customer photos' link under the main photo in this listing.



My methodology for testing power banks is to charge each mobile device for 10 minutes and measuring how much each unit was charged in that 10 minute period. Each line in the table below represents a separate 10 minute test.



I use Battery App by Elvison to determine how each device recognized the charging source. 'AC' status means the charging is at full charging rate. 'USB' status indicates charging at a lower charging rate. 'Discharging' status means that the charging rate is below the power that the device is consuming so it slows down the discharge rate but does not re-charge. Photo #1 show what the Battery App shows during one of the tests.



✔ Nexus 7 Tablet

--------------

chargind cable -- AC ............. 3% change in charge in 10 minutes



✔ Samsung Galaxy Nexus Phone

--------------------------

charging cable -- AC ............. 5% change in charge in 10 minutes

data cable ------ USB............. 0% change in charge in 10 minutes



✔ Samsung Galaxy Tablet 7.7

--------------------------

charging cable -- AC ............. 3% change in charge in 10 minutes



***Note for Samsung Tablet users*** Yubi power provides Samsung Tablet connector tips free on request. If you already have interchageable connector cables (this unit does not come with interchangeable tip cables) these Samsung tablet tips give me much better speed of charging then using a cable that came with my Galaxy tablet.



✔ iPad Mini

--------------------------

iPad Mini cable -- AC ............. 3% change in charge in 10 minutes



In addition to 10 minute charge speed tests, I ran two other tests:



✔ iPad Mini

--------------------------

Starting with iPad Mini discharged and Yubi Power Bank full I was able to charge iPad Mini to 29% full at which point the power bank was out of power (about 3 hours)



✔ Sansa Clip+ MP3

--------------------------

When I charge Sansa MP3 with a standard AC charger, the MP3 player goes into charging mode, displaying the charging animated icon. When it is plugged into the Yubi Power Ultra Compact power bank the MP3 continued to play the content. This is a great benefit for MP3 player with built-in battery, this means I charge and listen at the same time. I do not have to wait for the battery to recharge. Photo #6 shows Sansa next to the power bank for relative size comparison.



I received this unit for evaluation, testing, and review from the manufacture. Running a set of standard test allows me to provide unbiased numeric evaluation and comparison of different units. Based on this comparison this unit measures up very well.



➨ Overall:

------------------

Great size power bank to have on the go. Very good performance for a unit of such a compact size. When I exercise this is the power bank I take with me.



You can find it on Amazon by following this link.





AshopZones review ★★★★★

Intocircuit Power Castle Series PC11200 11200mAh Heavy Duty 5V 2A/1A Dual USB Ports External Battery Pack with Nexus 7 Tablet, Samsung Galaxy 7.7 Tablet , and Samsung Galaxy Nexus cell phone

I tested Intocircuit Power Castle Series PC11200 11200mAh Heavy Duty 5V 2A/1A Dual USB Ports External Battery Pack with Nexus 7 Tablet (JellyBean 4.2.2), Samsung Galaxy 7.7 Tablet (ICS 4.0.4), and Samsung Galaxy Nexus cell phone (JellyBean 4.2.2).



I own several external battery packs.  To test their performance I run the same set on tests on each of them in order to provide unbiased results as the numbers speak for the performance of each unit.



To test Intocircuit power pack I ran my 10 minute test for each of my 3 devices on each of the 2 ports for a total of 6 tests. In addition I charged both Nexus phone and Nexus Tablet at the same time, one in each port. The results of these 7 tests are included in the tables below.



I am attaching a collage of 2 photos. You can locate this photo by following 'customer photos' link under the main photo.



Photo #1 shows the power brick on the digital scale, its weight is 9.9 oz. The size of the power pack is 2.625" by 4.375" by 0.875".



Photo #2 shows the top of the unit which has an LED screen showing the level of charge.  Next to the screen there is a small lack button which turns on the LED light. The light is pretty dim. Some other power bricks I have have a much brighter light, however this is not a key feature of the battery pack and the underpowered light did not effect my rating of this unit.



This power pack has two outlets, they are not labelled.



I use Battery App by Elvison to determine how each device recognized the charging source. 'AC' status means the charging is at full charging rate. 'USB' status indicates charging at a lower charging rate. 'Discharging' status means that the charging rate is below the power that the device is consuming so it slows down the discharge rate but does not re-charge.



My methodology is to charge each mobile device on each port of the unit for 10 minutes and measuring how much each unit was charge in that 10 minute period. Each line in the table below represents a separate 10 minute test.



The key findings:

(1) Both Nexus phone and Nexus 7 tablet (both running Jelly Bean 4.21) charged at AC rate on both ports.

(2) Samsung Galaxy 7.7 works, but show different behaviors on the two ports



The table below summarizes my findings:



Nexus 7 Tablet

--------------

right port.......AC rate.....1% charge increase

left port........AC rate.....2% charge increase





Samsung Galaxy Nexus Phone

--------------------------

right port.......AC rate.....5% charge increase (among the best rates in my tests)

left port........AC rate.....5% charge increase (among the best rates in my tests)





Nexus 7 Tablet and Samsung Galaxy Nexus Phone at the same time

--------------------------------------------------------------

Tablet...........AC rate.....1% charge increase

Phone............AC rate.....5% charge increase (among the best rates in my tests)





Samsung Galaxy Tablet 7.7

--------------------------

right port.......AC rate..... 1% charge increase

left port........AC rate..... discharging if screen is on, 1% charge increase if screen is off



In addition to the tests above we used Nexus 7 Tablet to navigate during a several hour trip while plugged into Intocircuit Power Castle Series PC11200 11200mAh external battery (rather than the car charger).  Nexus 7 remained charged at 100% at the end of the trip.



I received this battery pack from the manufacture for an honest review be it positive or negative. Running the same set of test on all my external batteries allows me to provide an unbiased review. By comparing the results of the tests for this battery to the other external batteries I tested, this power pack earned a 5 star rating.





You can find it on Amazon by following this link.







AshopZones review ★★★★★

Yubi Power® YP840A 8400mAh External Battery Charger Tested with Nexus 7 Tab, Galaxy Nexus Phone, Galaxy 7.7 Tab and Sansa Clip+ MP3

In the last 6 months I have tested 6 different power banks using the same set of tests so I can compare them to each other. Yubi Power® YP840A performed better than any of the power banks I tested so far. The best performance before Yubi YP840A was PowerGen PGMPP12000, which charged my Android phone 5% in 10 minutes. As you will see in the table below Yubi did better.



Description of my tests:

-------------------------

I test each devices by charging each unit for 10 minutes and noting how the charge % change.



I use Battery App by Elvison to determine how each device recognized the charging source. 'AC' status means the charging is at full charging rate. 'USB' status indicates charging at a lower charging rate. 'Discharging' status means that the charging rate is below the power that the device is consuming so it slows down the discharge rate but does not re-charge.



Samsung Galaxy Nexus Phone

-----------------------------------

Port1______Yubi cable________AC source_____7% charge in 10 minutes

Port2______Yubi cable________AC source_____8% charge in 10 minutes



Nexus 7 Tablet

-----------------------------------

Port1______Yubi cable________AC source_____4% charge in 10 minutes

Port2______Yubi cable________AC source_____3% charge in 10 minutes



Nexus 7 Tablet and Samsung Galaxy Nexus Phone at the same time

-----------------------------------

Port1______Yubi cable________AC source_____7% charge in 10 minutes (phone)

Port2______Yubi cable________AC source_____3% charge in 10 minutes (tablet)



Port1______Yubi cable________AC source_____4% charge in 10 minutes (tablet)

Port2______Yubi cable________AC source_____8% charge in 10 minutes (phone)



Samsung Galaxy Tablet 7.7

-----------------------------------

Port1______Yubi cable________AC source_____3% charge in 10 minutes

Port2______Yubi cable________AC source_____3% charge in 10 minutes



Port1______Samsung cable_____discharging___0% charge in 10 minutes

Port2______Samsung cable_____discharging___0% charge in 10 minutes



Disconnected__________________discharging___2% discharge in 10 minutes



SanDisk Sansa Clip+ MP3 Player

-----------------------------------

Port1 - worked

Port2 - worked



The MP3 player recognized the charger on both outlet, however it behaved differently than charging from the charger it came with the player itself. When I charge Sansa MP3 with a standard AC charger, the MP3 player goes into charging mode, displaying the charging animated icon. When it was plugged into the PowerGen external battery it continued to play the content. I listen to books on my MP3 player so this caused me to move forward in my book and I had to manually reset my position by a few chapters to get back to where I was when I started charging. The positive side of this, is that is possible to continue listening while MP3 is recharging. This is very handy for Sansa MP3 player since it has built-in battery that cannot be swapped for a charged one. I used to have to stop listening to have it recharged and now I can continue to listen while it re-charges. I was very happy to have this feature during hurricane Sandy when I lost power and my books on MP3 player were my only source of entertainment.

 



Notes:

1. The manufacture is offering a free connector tip for Samsung Galaxy Tablets. This connector is not available as part of the standard package, but is made available to Galaxy owners free of charge per request (documentation includes a note about a free P1000 connector for Galaxy). I tested my Galaxy 7.7 Tab with this connector and it worked very well. With my Samsung charging cable the unit was only able to slow down discharging, not recharge. The retail package includes a 30 pin Apple connector which looks very similar to P1000 Galaxy connector but does not fit the Galaxy port. I am attaching a collage of several photos. Photo #2 and Photo#3 show these two connectors next to each and show the subtle difference between the two.



2. After using the micro adapter tip successfully on 7 tests (total of 70 minutes of use) the micro adapter tip stopped working. I isolated the problem to the tip by tested the cable with another micro adapter tip (that combination worked) and then this tip with another working cable (that combination did not work). I contacted the manufactor to find if there is a policy for handling bad adaptors and he said that customers who encountered this problem should contact the manufacture for a free replacement. The product comes with 1 year warranty. Another option is to replace the multi part charging cable with a single piece generic charging cable.



Difference between a power cable and a data cable:

Charging cables short the two data connections together (rendering them useless for data transfer), but this fools devices to see them as an AC power connection, and thus accept the higher current of the charging source. Both my generic cable and PowerGen cables used in my tests are charging cables.



3. The unit is nice looking black brick, its size is 4" x 2.5" x 3/4". Its weight is 7.3 oz.



4. The box contains 4 adaptor tips: micro USB, mini USB, Nokia 2mm round, and 30pin Apple. 30 pin Galaxy adaptor as avaible free upon request. The box also contains one 7" USB cord. You can see the entire content of the package in Photo #1.



5. Yubi power bank has two USB ports. They are not labelled. Documentation states that you can change devices requiring 2.1A and 1A from both outputs. Both ports behaved the same in my tests.



6. Some power banks included LED flash light as part of the unit. Yubi YP840A does NOT.



7. The blue lights on top of the battery pack indicate the level of power in the battery: 3 lights indicate full charge, 2 lights indicate 2/3 of full power and so forth. To turn on the device you need to press the button on top of the unit. The device can be turned off by pressing the button on the top of the unit again.



8. The Warranty period for Yubi YP840A is 1 year (as stated in Amazon product description). The manual I received stated that the warranty period is 6 months. I contacted the manufacture to clarify which number is valid, and I was told that 1 year is correct and the newer versions of the manual will have this information corrected.



Yubi YP840A showed the fastest re-charging of all the power bank I have tested to date. But the adapter tip died prematurely. I debated whether I should deduct a star for this defect. All power banks use these tips so they can work with multiple devices. The adapter tips are the weak points of this design and I think failures will happen in some random number of devices. I decided that based on 1 year free warranty replacement policy, the overall excellent performance of the unit, and availability of the Galaxy adapter tip (which none of the other power banks I tested offered) this unit deserves a 5 star rating.



I received a sample unit for testing and writing an unbiased and honest review. I described the positives and negatives of my experience with the unit. If you have questions about my tests or features I have not addressed, I am happy to answer comments.



You can find it on Amazon by following this link.







AshopZones review

PowerGen PGMPP12000 12000mAh External Battery Pack High Capacity Power Bank Charger Triple USB 3Amps output for Apple and Android Nexus

I tested I 12000mAh PowerGen external battery pack with Nexus 7 Tablet, Samsung Galaxy 7.7 Tablet, and Samsung Galaxy Nexus cell phone, and SanDisk Sansa Clip+ player.





I am attaching a video and a photo that I will be referencing in this review.

The first thing I noticed when I opened the package is that juice pack looks slick and well made. The photo shows a close up of the power pack on a gridded mat, next to a ruler and a pen for size reference. Its dimensions are 3.25" width x 3.75" by 0.88" thick. It weighs 8.9 oz (without cables).



The box contained two USB cords 7" and 27" and 5 adaptors to fit different devices (Nokia 2mm round, Playstation Portable 4mm round, mini USB, two micro USB). The adaptors are a weak point of the design, they feel a bit flimsy and it is easy to loose all the small pieces. The minimum number of adaptors needed for each of my devices is two: one that goes into the AC plug to charge the external battery and the second (mini USB) that goes into the devices for charging.



The blue lights on top of the battery pack indicate the level of power in the battery: 4 lights indicate full charge, 3 lights indicate 75% and so forth. To turn on the device you need to press the button on the side of the unit. To turn off the device you need to press and hold the button for a few seconds (this is not documented, I found it by experimenting).



The video shows turning the juice pack on, charging the juice pack, charging a device, and turning the juice pack off.

The power pack also has an LED light, which generates a pretty good bright light and can be used a flashlight.



The 12000mAh PowerGen has three USB outlets: Out A 2 Amp(best for iPad or any Apple device), Out S (best for non Apple devices), Out 1 Amp (best for iPhone and iPod). I tested my four electronic devices using both my own USB cable as well as the manufacture cable + adapter. In the documentation booklet PowerGen states that PowerGen cables provide better performance for non-Apple devices on the 2Amp (Apple port) and I wanted to see the difference between the cables.



The manual says that non-Apple devices for which adaptors are provided will charge at full speed. The provided adaptors fit Samsung Galaxy Nexus phone, Nexus 7 tablet and Sansa Clip MP3 (as they take regular USB-to-micro USB cable) but none of the provided adaptors fit Galaxy Samsung 7.7 Tablet so my in my tests for Samsung Galaxy I used the cable that came with my tablet.



I used Battery App by Elvison to determine how each device recognized the charging source. 'AC' status means the charging is at full charging rate. 'USB' status indicates charging at a lower charging rate. 'Discharging' status means that the charging rate is below the power that the device is consuming so it slows down the discharge rate but does not re-charge.



The key findings:

================

(1) 2 Amp and 1 Amp outlets is aimed at Apple devices but worked fine with Nexus devices, and did not charge Samsung Galaxy 7.7 tablet (but slowed its normal discharge rate).

(2) S outlet worked for all Android devices, including Samsung Galaxy 7.7 tablet

(3) Using PowerGen cables vs generic charging cables made a positive difference.



Difference between a power cable and a data cable:

Charging cables short the two data connections together (rendering them useless for data transfer), but this fools devices to see them as an AC power connection, and thus accept the higher current of the charging source. Both my generic cable and PowerGen cables used in my tests are charging cables.



Description of my tests:

-------------------------

I tested each devices by charging each unit for 10 minutes and noting how the charge % change.

Note that I have been running the same tests with several PowerGen Juice packs, so if you are interested in the difference between the juice packs you can compare these test relative to each other.

The tests were run with the following permutations:

--- on 2A Apple port, 1A Apple port, and S port

--- using PowerGen cable and using my own charging cable

--- For Samsung Galaxy that was discharging attached to PowerGen on two Apple ports, I compared the discharging rate attached to PowerGen and normal discharge without the juice pack



The table below summarizes my findings.



Nexus 7 Tablet

-----------------------------------

1Amp Apple port ..... generic cable .... AC source .... 2% charge in 10 minutes

1Amp Apple port ..... Powergen cable ... AC source .... 2% charge in 10 minutes

S port .............. generic cable .... AC source .... 3% charge in 10 minutes

S port .............. Powegen cable .... AC source .... 4% charge in 10 minutes

2Amp Apple port ..... generic cable .... AC source .... 2% charge in 10 minutes

2Amp Apple port ..... Powergen cable ... AC source .... 5% charge in 10 minutes



Samsung Galaxy Nexus Phone

-----------------------------------

1Amp Apple port ..... generic cable .... AC source .... 3% charge in 10 minutes

1Amp Apple port ..... Powergen cable ... AC source .... 5% charge in 10 minutes

S port .............. generic cable .... AC source .... 5% charge in 10 minutes

S port .............. Powegen cable .... AC source .... 5% charge in 10 minutes

2Amp Apple port ..... generic cable .... AC source .... 5% charge in 10 minutes

2Amp Apple port ..... Powergen cable ... AC source .... 5% charge in 10 minutes



Samsung Galaxy Tablet 7.7

-----------------------------------

1Amp Apple port ..... generic cable .... discharging .... 0% discharging in 10 minutes

S port .............. generic cable .... AC source ....... 5% charge in 10 minutes

2Amp Apple port ..... generic cable .... discharging .... 0% discharging in 10 minutes

not attached......... N/A................discharging..... -4% discharging in 10 minutes



SanDisk Sansa Clip+ MP3 Player

-----------------------------------

1Amp Apple port ... works

S port ............ works

2Amp Apple port ....works



The MP3 player recognized the charger on both outlet, however it behaved differently than charging from the charger it came with the player itself. When I charge Sansa MP3 with a standard AC charger, the MP3 player goes into charging mode, displaying the charging animated icon. When it was plugged into the PowerGen external battery it continued to play the content. I listen to books on my MP3 player so this caused me to move forward in my book and I had to manually reset my position by a few chapters to get back to where I was when I started charging. The positive side of this, is that is possible to continue listening while MP3 is recharging. This is very handy for Sansa MP3 player since it has built-in battery that cannot be swapped for a charged one. I used to have to stop listening to have it recharged and now I can continue to listen while it re-charges. I was very happy to have this feature during hurricane Sandy when I lost power and my books on MP3 player were my only source of entertainment.



To summarize:



I liked:

-----------------------------------

1. Good behavior with Nexus devices.

2. Galaxy tablet consistently works at AC rate on S port (some of the PowerGen packs I tested in the past did not give me consistent results)

3. Solution for MP3 player with built-in battery

4. Looks sleek, feels solid, is compact

5. Labels for the ports are now in black font so they are easier to read (Thank you PowerGen for listening to feedback!)



I did not like:

-----------------------------------

1. The multiple piece connectors are easy to loose. I prefer a one piece charging cable I bought as a replacement, even though its performance is slight slower



I received 12000mAh external battery pack for testing from the manufacturer to write an honest and unbiased review and I hope you found my tests useful.



Overall, I am pleased with this unit and recommend it.





You can find it on Amazon by following this link.

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