Todd Talks: Power Banks & Batteries

Why is it so important to have a power bank? Our resident Tech Expert, Dustin, is here to help! Dustin explains what to look for in a power bank, why everyone should have one, and what separates a quality power bank from the average. 

Let’s face it - you’ve been there - your mobile device gives you the warning "20% BATTERY REMAINING." The countdown begins and the panic starts. Images of your next plug in opportunity flash through your mind. Will it be your car? Your office? The airport? Back at camp? Now the real panic sets in - you aren’t going to be any of those places in “twenty percent” time! You need a power bank.

Let’s learn about power banks: what they are, how they work, and how to pick one out that’s right for your needs.

Power banks are small external battery packs that free you from the panic being disconnected from friends and family because of a dead mobile device. Use the included cable to plug the power bank into the same charging adapter that you already use for your phone or tablet. Power banks indicate the amount of charge in a variety of ways: with a digital readout displaying percentage, a series of lights that illuminate to indicate amount of charge remaining, or sometimes a flashing versus solid light. When you are on the go and your mobile device is losing power, simply plug your usual device charging cable into one of the USB ports on the power bank. Instantly, your dead device is charging! Panic relieved.

To pick out the right one for you, it’s helpful to know about battery capacity and what it means. To measure battery capacity, we use milliamp hours, or “mAh,” which is a unit of measurement for electric power over time. Most smartphones have batteries with a capacity from 780 to 1200 mAh, tablets range from around 4000 for smaller models to around 8000 for larger. It’s easy to Google the model of your device to find out its capacity. You’ll use this to determine which power bank is right for you by weighing its capacity and physical size against your power and physical space needs. When shopping, just look on the packaging and it should indicate the capacity of the power bank you are considering

Hopefully this was helpful and you are on confidently on your way to picking out the perfect, on-the-go charging solution for your needs!