Picture the scene; you’re at the festival of the summer and the headline act is about to start. You reach for your handset to capture the epic moment but you find nothing but a black mirror – your phone’s battery has just spluttered out of life.
Cut to airport check-in, and you can’t access your e-boarding pass because your phone is out of power -disaster. Or perhaps you’re just about to embark on a long car or train journey but are unable to get to your downloaded content because you’re out of power. Cue hours of grey boredom.
We promise the point of all these chilling scenarios isn’t to stir up panic. However it is an everyday minor horror; after all, who hasn’t been caught short and found themselves living on a prayer of two per cent of battery? Nomophobia is real folks.
Thankfully, salvation from a digital abyss is here in the form of supercharged power banks; compact, sleek and with the superhero-like ability to get you back to full bars in next to no time.
How to choose the right battery pack
There are versions for every need; from a quickie boost on the commute to the heavy-duty power needed to get you going through a whole weekend of above-average use.
When it comes to tech, the phrase ‘you get what you pay for’ rings true. Batteries tend to dwindle down after prolonged use (a few years), so spend what you can afford on a quality pack that does at least two or three full charges. Better to get one great power bank than a couple of mediocre ones that will be relegated to landfill after a single use.
What does ‘mAh’ on portable battery packs mean?
Keep your eyes peeled for the pack’s mAh (milliamp hours) rating which is its storage capacity, and compare that against your device’s battery. As long as your portable battery pack has a greater mAh rating than your phone’s, you should get at least one full charge from it. For example, an iPhone X has 2716mAh while a Samsung S9 has 3000mAh; a decent battery pack for those phones needs to be significantly higher than 3000mAh.
Aside from that, look out for dual USB ports so you can charge multiple devices simultaneously – if you’re willing to share your precious power with a friend, that is.
A word from Captain Obvious: a battery pack or power bank only works if you charge it, so make sure you’re fully loaded up by plugging into mains power before you head out of the door.
Scroll on to find the best portable battery packs, power banks and chargers to keep your device going as long as you do.
