The Good:
- Small and portable
- Lightweight
- Charges most phones at a normal rate
- Well priced
The Bad:
- Not big enough to completely charge some phones
- Extremely slow charging on USB-C devices
You think you don’t need a portable battery pack? Think again. Think back to that time when you were out shopping and your phone died. Think about that road trip where the car chargers were out of reach and painfully slow. Now think about if you had a small battery pack like the PowerCore Mini. Different story!
Features
The Anker PowerCore Mini is one of the smallest Anker PowerCore products. It has a battery capacity of 3200mAh, enough to fully charge most phones at least once. The product measures at just under 4 inches in length while having a diameter of .9 inches. The exterior of the product itself is low-key, not yelling for you but being there when you need it. The USB port, Micro USB charger and LED light are all on one end, and the check power level button is on the side.
Performance
Now down to the actual performance of the PowerCore Mini. In the week I’ve been using it, I was quite surprised with its performance. It charges my Android phone at the same speed as it would from a wall charger! In my tests (using the app Ampere, I got about a 210 mA to 270 mA charging rate, which is perfectly fine. However, the same does not apply for a USB-C equipped phone. My Nexus 6P charges around 760 mA with the PowerCore Mini, but it isn’t nearly enough for the Nexus 6P. It will work, but it is very slow. For example, the Anker PowerCore 15600 will charge my Nexus 6P at 1550 mA, which is very good for Type-A to Type-C, but still quite slower than Type-C to Type-C charging (2640-3000 mA). So the bottom line is this: If you have a Micro USB equipped Android phone or iPhone, this will work just fine! If you have a USB-C phone, this will work, but it won’t work nearly as good as some other Anker portable chargers. Go with a bigger one if this is your case.
Summary
So, would I buy this product again? I definitely would! It’s a solid product and perfect for situations where a larger battery pack isn’t convenient. I like having bigger external battery packs around when I’m filming a timelapse, or on trips they are extremely nice. However, the advantages of having a small battery pack on hand are many. It fits right in your pocket/bag. If you don’t have one of these, it is a great purchase! Please note that I was sent this product in exchange for my fair and honest opinion. I’m not afraid to say that something is wrong, but I am quite satisfied with this product and all other Anker products.
