How long does it take to charge a power bank? Friends, if you are just thinking about buying a power bank, the first question that arises is how to charge an external battery? Features of carrying and transporting portable batteries

External batteries seem to have only recently appeared on the market, but today there are a lot of users who own them. No wonder: a small “box” allows you to charge a dead smartphone, phone, tablet or other gadget away from home. In addition, the Power Bank easily fits into any bag, and there are models that can even be carried in your pocket!

But today we will not talk about sizes. Many users are interested in how to charge an external battery. In fact, everything is very simple, although there are nuances that are worth knowing.

Charging options

First, let's look at charging options.

First and, perhaps, the most popular - from a computer or laptop via a USB port. Connect the Power Bank with one side of the cable, insert it into the other USB port, the device starts charging immediately.

True, charging is not as fast as we would like - it’s all about the features of USB technology.

Second option- charging from the network. Please note that external batteries are sold without charger? It is assumed that the user will charge the gadget either from the USB port of the computer, or from the charger that comes with the smartphone or tablet. Note that charging from the network is much faster than from USB.

Third option can be called exotic - charging from the sun's rays. In this case, it is assumed that you are using a special solar-powered Power Bank, which can actually be charged with solar energy. Here's what it looks like:

Fourth option— charge the Power Bank from your phone or smartphone. Do you think this is a joke? Now there are mobile gadgets that can act as a kind of external battery, which means that they can also be used to charge a Power Bank. Like this.

How long does it take to charge an external battery?

This depends on the capacity of the external battery, as well as on the charging method. The gadget charges fastest from a network charger. The average charging time for a 5000 mAh battery from a 1A charger is 5 hours. Accordingly, if the battery has a capacity of 10,000 mAh, charging will last about 10 hours - from 0 to 100 percent.

If you charge the Power Bank in other ways, the charging time can seriously increase - even several times. Solar batteries take the longest to charge from the sun.

Features of Power Bank charging

In order for the external battery to reach full capacity, it must be charged to 100% at least 3-4 times.

It is believed that Li-Ion batteries do not have the so-called “memory effect”, which is what we are talking about. But there are people who think differently, so they recommend always charging the Power Bank to 100% in order to maintain maximum capacity.

As for discharging, it is not recommended to discharge the external battery to 0% - no more than 10-20%, after which it must be charged. You can find out using the indication level. If there is none, try doing it by eye with LED indication.

For example, LED indication of Power Bank from Xiaomi:

It is believed that if you discharge the Power Bank “to zero” once every 2-3 months, this will allow it to “calibrate”.

Do not charge the Power Bank in direct sunlight (except external batteries designed for solar charging).

Always use original cables and chargers.

Have you recently purchased a portable battery or are you just planning to buy one? Then this instruction You will find it helpful and contains tips on how to care for your battery and how to use your portable charger.

How to charge a Power Bank battery?

Majority modern devices have a built-in battery based on Li-pol - lithium polymer, such batteries have some features - you need to know them in order to use the portable device correctly:

Battery operating temperature – from -20 to +40 degrees
After 800-900 recharge cycles, the battery capacity will drop by 20%
The Li-Pol battery can be partially charged, but complete discharge is not advisable.
A deep discharge completely destroys a lithium-polymer battery.

You can charge the portable charger a little every day, up to 80-90% of the working capacity; the spent charge is summed up when calculating the number of recharges.

Example: If the manufacturer claims 800 cycles, then you can safely spend 20-25% every day, resulting in a service life of as much as 11 years!

Agree, that’s quite enough! I'm sure that in 11 years we will either be using wireless chargers or won't need them at all.

Features of carrying and transporting portable batteries

Li-pol electrolyte withstands vibration and shock (without damaging the housing). If you constantly take the charger with you, don’t worry, it won’t stop working. If you fall, make sure that the case is intact and there are no “holes” so that the electrolyte does not leak out and ruin your clothes. In case of contact with skin, wash area with warm water.

Long-term storage of Power Bank

The optimal charge level for storage is 60%. Remember when we bought new phone his battery was charged at exactly that level.

The battery tolerates storage well and has a slow self-discharge - approximately 20% within two years. You can store the gadget on a shelf for several years, then connect it to the network and charge it - it will be fully functional.

Immediately after purchasing a portable charger

The chemical that generates the energy to charge smartphones and tablets when shipped from the factory has a special shell that preserves the lithium-polymer composition before use. When purchasing, it is recommended to charge and discharge the gadget several times - you will bring it into fully working condition. Don't be alarmed if the first charges take a long time, it may seem to you that the portable battery is not charging, but it's worth waiting a little.

With the arrival on the market portable devices To charge the battery, the problem of finding an outlet fades into the background, but another one has taken its place - how to charge a power bank so as not to harm it.

An external battery, also known as a battery, is a series of parallel-connected batteries that store energy and release it at the user's request.

LED backlight is most often used to indicate the charge level.

It's not as informative as the display, but it doesn't waste precious amp-hours either.

At one end of the block there is a USB output for connecting a cable and charging external device, next to it is a USB input for charging the power bank itself.

If size is important when choosing a portable memory device, you should not buy compact devices from Chinese brands with unrealistically large capacity indicators. A battery with a capacity of 20,000 mAh cannot be the size of a credit card. You should choose well-known manufacturers, for example, Xiaomi.

How to charge a power bank

There are currently countless various models external batteries, it is advisable to read the instructions supplied with your model so as not to damage the device.

To charge the power bank, you can connect it to the USB output of your computer or laptop. When using this method, the device will take an extremely long time to charge. This is due to the design features of USB installed on the PC.

A low-capacity power bank with this method will charge in about 5-6 hours.

In order to save your time, it is recommended to replenish the capacity of the portable battery from the network using the new cord included in the delivery kit. To charge an external battery for a phone, as well as other mobile equipment, it is necessary only with chargers certified for use with mobile phones and accessories.

If the charger came with one of the smartphones or was purchased to charge the phone, it can be safely used to charge the power bank.

In case of urgent need, some models mobile phones capable of working as a small power bank. With their help, you can recharge a suddenly dead external battery.

Sometimes manufacturers supply their portable batteries with solar battery. This option will be useful on a long trip outside the city. To restore the capacity of such a battery, it is enough to place it in direct sunlight.

It is advisable to do this during the hours of maximum sun activity, around lunchtime.

How long does it take to charge a power bank and how to calculate the charging time

To achieve maximum charging speed, check the charger you are going to use. At the bottom there should be a sticker with the output data.

Find a line that looks something like this:

Output: 5.0 V, 1 A
or
Output: 5.0 V, 1 A

The second value, in our case - 1 A, is the current strength that this charger is capable of delivering. If you have several chargers in your home with the correct plug, check each one and use the one with the highest current output. Ideally - 2.4 A.
It makes no sense with a current of 0.5 A and below. The charging speed will be extremely low, at the level received from the computer’s USB output.

Some external batteries support QuickCharge technology. In this case, when using a charger that supports QuickCharge, even a device with a battery of 20,000 mAh or higher will be charged in 5-6 hours.

To determine the time it will take to fully charge the bank, you can use the following formula:

Power bank capacity in mAh/1000/charger current output + 1 = full charge time in hours.

Calculation example:

Battery capacity - 10,000 mAh;
Current output of the charger is 1 A.

Substitute into the formula:

10000/1000/1 + 1 = 11 hours until the battery is fully charged.

The built-in LED indicators will indicate that the power bank is completely ready for use. In most cases, they stop blinking when the power bank has reached one hundred percent charge.

If there is a display, it will display the current charge percentage. Everything here is intuitive - shoot when the coveted number 100 is reached.

What devices can be connected to the power bank

If the device is equipped with a USB cable for connecting a computer, it is guaranteed to be charged from a portable battery. If used daily a large number of devices, make sure that the external battery capacity is sufficient.

For example, if you use a smartphone daily with a 3000 mAh battery and a tablet with a 2500 mAh battery, you should pay attention to power bank models with a capacity of at least 10,000 mAh.

Features of using a portable battery

To extend the life of your portable charger, follow these simple recommendations:

Do not overdischarge the battery. It is advisable to keep the charge level at 10-15%;
Before a power bank can release its entire rated capacity, it needs to go through 3-5 charge-discharge cycles;
It is not advisable to use uncertified chargers to charge a power bank.

Like a telephone, it is best to charge a power bank away from direct sunlight, since the battery at this moment becomes noticeably hot and additional heating can damage it.

If everything is done correctly, the battery will always delight you with the flow of energy.

It just so happens that the standard battery life Today, a smartphone or some other gadget is used in most cases - one day, and in general this is not bad and even logical - they put it on charge in the evening and took it off in the morning. But due to numerous factors, our devices do not “make it” until late in the evening, and this is somewhat upsetting. One of the most common reasons fast discharge there may be call intensity or poor network coverage, Internet connection, new applications also greatly affect the battery charge, only the Pokemon GO game can drain a smartphone 3 times a day.

The solution to this problem may be to purchase Power Bank. These devices have been on our market for quite some time, and they are produced by a large number of manufacturers of varying degrees of fame.

An external charger is a very useful gadget that will help you stay connected more than once, whether you are at the dacha, in nature, or on a trip.

What is Power Bank

External battery, portable charger, Power Bank, universal mobile battery, there are many names, but the essence is the same - this is a portable power source that is designed to charge mobile gadgets, and it can be any device that supports charging via USB.

The Power Bank package includes the charger itself, as well as USB cable. Depending on the model and manufacturer, the kit may also include adapters for charging mobile gadgets with various connectors.

As a rule, Power Banks have the form of a block, although models are offered with quite interesting and atypical designs.

The most important parameter of the Power Bank is its capacity. Here you should start from how many devices will be charged and how long these devices need to be kept in working condition.

What can you charge?

smartphone;
tablet;
eBook;
portable speaker;
MP3 player;
camera;
fitness bracelet;
GPG navigator;
in general, there is a lot of everything that can be charged via a USB cable;

How to charge Power Bank

Most external battery models are charged via a USB input, but there are options that can be charged via Micro USB or using a Lightning port (connector).

To charge the Power Bank, connect the included USB cable to it from the micro USB side. At the opposite end of the cable there is a standard USB input, with which you can charge the Power Bank from a computer, laptop, or use a 220 Volt adapter to charge directly from an outlet (the portable battery charges faster from the mains).

The information display of the gadget can tell you how much you need to charge the device. If this warning system is not available, charge it in a more “folk” way - put it on charge in the evening, and in the morning the external battery is ready for use.

How to charge from Power Bank

To charge your devices, connect the same USB cable to the battery, only in reverse - connect the cable from the standard port to the battery, and connect the micro USB to, for example, a smartphone or tablet.

Which to choose

The basic principle of selecting the required capacity is to optimize the weight and dimensions of the external battery. If you rarely stay in places without an outlet, then it will be enough to buy a small-capacity power bank; such a “baby” can be put in your wallet or pocket. Well, if you like to climb into the mountains for 1-2 weeks, you will have to stock up on a larger battery.

Capacity

Capacity portable charger It’s easy to identify, manufacturers indicate it almost everywhere - on the packaging, on the case, they often include it in the name, but it’s not that simple.

A power bank with 4000 milliamp hours cannot be charged, for example iPhone smartphone 6 with 1810 mAh batteries twice from 0 to 100%, in the best case you get one full charge cycle and another half. This is due to the fact that the actual capacity of the battery for dispensing charge is less than that declared by the manufacturer due to loss of charge in connectors, wires and charge conversion in the phone.

How to find out the required capacity

These calculations are approximate, and this formula will only help you guess what volume to expect.

To calculate the required capacity of the Power Bank, let’s take, for example, an external battery from HIPER with a capacity of 15,000 mAh and the capacity of our smartphone, for example, iPhone 6 Plus - 2915 mAh. Next, using the example formula, we will find out how many times you can charge iPhone battery capacity of 15000 mAh:

15000/(2915×1.5)=3.4 - that is, the universal external battery HIPER MP15000 will give our phone 3 full charges, and one slightly less than half charge.

Frame

When it comes to the battery case, things are not so simple.

The body can be plastic or metal. Metal, of course, has high strength, scratch resistance, and is also a premium material, but in the case of an accessory, this strength can harm the main device.

The thing is that most Power Bank cases made of metal have sharp edges, and due to the short wire, the external charger and the gadget will have to be carried together. When devices come into contact, the Power Bank can scratch your smartphone, so either carry your gadgets as carefully as possible, taking into account this feature, or trust the soft plastic.

USB cable

Almost all external batteries are equipped with a USB cable, but if you are the owner of an Apple product, make sure that the appropriate adapter is included in the package.

How many amperes

An important indicator on which the charging speed depends is the current strength. On this moment The most common two values are 1 and 2 Ampere. 2 Amps is always better because the gadget will charge faster.

It is not uncommon to find models with two or three USB ports. As a rule, one of them is 2 ampere, but here you need to take into account the fact that the portable charger will provide such current only when connecting one device. If charging is carried out simultaneously, for example through two channels, then the current strength on both will be 1 Ampere.

It would be useful to pay attention to the current strength of the incoming port of the Power Bank. The ideal option would be when the current is two Amperes + 2-A mains charging, but this is only relevant for external batteries with a large capacity, since otherwise they can take a very long time to charge.

Notification system

The minimum functionality that any external battery should have is a charge indicator. Whether it will be 4 LEDs or a full screen - this choice is individual for everyone.

In principle, it is easy to understand from the diodes what condition the battery is in. You will be surprised, but some models do not even have such a simple warning system.

Price

This section refers to one of the advantages of a portable charger, since it has a relatively affordable cost, which is often comparable to replacing the built-in battery in service center or purchasing additional chargers for work or car.

TOP 5 Best Power Banks for iPhone

	HIPER MP15000	HIPER MP20000	HIPER MP12500	HIPER MP7500	HIPER MP10000
price, rub.	from 1488	10860	from 1360	from 1188	from 1168
Charging two devices	+	+	+	+	+
Card reader	+	+	+	+	+
Flashlight	+	+	+	+	+
Entrance	micro USB	micro USB	micro USB	micro USB	micro USB
Output, A	2.1	2.1	2.1	2.1	2.1
Adapter for Apple 30 PIN	+	+	+	+	+
	+	+	+	+	+
Adapter to micro USB	+	+	+	+	+
Number of USB connectors	2	2	2	2	2
Adapter for mini USB	+	+	+	+	+
Adapter for NOKIA connector	+	+	+	+	+
	Li-lon	Li-lon	Li-lon	Li-lon	Li-lon
Charge indicator	+	+	+	+	+
	+	+	+	+	+
Overload protection	—	—	—	+	—
Housing material	metal	metal	metal	metal	metal
Battery voltage, V	3.7	3.7	3.7	—	3.7
Weight, gram	365	470	312	201	258
	134/70/20.5	170/70/20.5	116/70/20	70/90/20	100/70/20

TOP 5 Best Power Banks for Tablets

	Xiaomi Mi Power Bank 10000	Xiaomi Mi Power Bank 16000	Xiaomi Power Bank 20000	Xiaomi Power Bank 21000	Xiaomi Power Bank 10400
price, rub.	from 750	1800	from 1640	from 755	from 1200
Charging two devices	—	+	+	—	—
Start fast charging	—	—	Qualcomm Quick Change 2.0	—	—
Fast charging support	—	—	+	+	—
Entrance	micro USB	micro USB	micro USB	micro USB	micro USB
Output, A	2.1	2.1	2	2.4	2.1
Adapter to micro USB	+	—	+	+	—
Number of USB connectors	1	2	2	1	1
Built-in battery type	Li-lon	Li-lon	Li-lon	Li-lon	Li-lon
Charge indicator	+	+	+	+	+
Short circuit protection	+	+	—	+	+
Overload protection	+	+	+	+	+
Housing material	—	metal	plastic	metal	—
Charging time, hours	—	9	—	—	12
Weight, gram	207	350	338	228	250
Dimensions Width/Height/Thickness, mm	60.4/90/22	60.4/145/22	73/142/21.8	71/130/14.1	77/90.5/21.6

TOP 5 Best Power Banks for Laptops

The most popular and purchased Power Banks designed for charging laptops and netbooks

	Rombica NEO PRO280	Rombica NEO PRO180	Cactus CS-PBPT18-18000AL	TopON TOP-MAC	Molecula PB-20-01
price, rub.	from 7990	6860	from 4910	from 4800	4990
Charging two devices	+	+	+	+	+
Battery capacity	28000	18000	18000	12000	20800
Network adapter included	+	+	—	+	+
Entrance	round connector	round connector	round connector	round connector	round connector
	3.2	3.2	3.2	—	2.1
Adapter for Apple 30 PIN	—	—	—	+	+
Adapter for Apple 8 PIN (Lightning)	—	—	—	+	+
Adapter to micro USB	+	+	—	+	+
Number of USB connectors	2	2	2	1	1
Universal output connector	+	+	+	+	+
Adapter for NOKIA connector	—	—	—	+	+
Built-in battery type	Li-Polymer	Li-Polymer	—	Li-Polymer	—
overheat protection	—	—	—	+	+
Short circuit protection	—	—	—	+	+
Charge indicator	+	+	+	+	+
Housing material	metal	metal	metal	metal	—
Weight, gram	830	570	—	392	625
Dimensions Width/Height/Thickness, mm	192.5/117.4/21.8	192.4/85.4/21.8	—	188/70/16	92/196/24

TOP 5 Best Power Bank with solar battery

Popular and most purchased Power Banks with the ability to charge the batteries of the charger from the sun's rays.

	KS-IS KS-225	iconBIT FTBTravel	HARPER PB-0010	Promate solarMate	Solar EK-7
price, rub.	from 1313	from 860	from 1790	2990	from 1200
Charging two devices	+	+	+	+	+
Waterproof housing	—	+	+	—	+
Flashlight	+	+	+	+	+
Entrance	micro USB	micro USB	micro USB	micro USB	micro USB
Maximum output current, A	2.1	1	2.1	2.1	2
Adapter for Apple 30 PIN	+	—	+	—	—
Adapter for Apple 8 PIN (Lightning)	+	—	—	—	—

Number of USB connectors	2	2	2	2	2


Built-in battery type	—	Li-Polymer	Li-Polymer	Li-Polymer	Li-Polymer
Charge indicator	+	+	+	+	+

Housing material	plastic	plastic	plastic	plastic	plastic

Weight, gram	252	—	300	—	—
Dimensions Width/Height/Thickness, mm	122/77/20	75/142/14	120/73/30	—	—

Do you want to eliminate the risk of force majeure associated with the sudden discharge of a smartphone, tablet or laptop away from outlets? We recommend buying an external battery! It's incredibly practical and useful thing, which allows you to replenish the gadget’s battery away from outlets. Of course, to restore the device’s battery, the VSD must be pre-charged. This is quite simple to do, but you should know how to charge external batteries correctly in order to maximize their service life.

How to charge external batteries for phones: top 5 tips

Fully charge the portable battery after purchase, following the indicators. According to experts, it is recommended to additionally use the process of “drop charging” of the VZU with a weak current. This means that the gadget must be connected to the power source for some time after the indicators show 100%. This has a beneficial effect on the performance of the VZU. Before, how to charge Xiaomi external batteries, you can use a special device - a USB tester with a built-in voltmeter and ammeter. As soon as the gadget shows a value of 0.00A, charging is completely completed and the charger can be disconnected from the network.

It is believed that in order for an external battery to reach its maximum capacity, it should be fully charged and discharged 3-4 times. Thus, it will be possible to rewrite the statistics of the VZU and use it to the limit of its capabilities. External battery for tablet or Li-Ion type phone should always be charged to 100%. Try not to interrupt the recovery of the OVR from the network until the indicators light up. In turn, speaking about how to charge external power banks, it should be noted that the models of this type It is better not to discharge to zero, as this significantly reduces their service life. Try to connect the gadget to the outlet when it still has 15-25% charge. Please note that VCDs with percentage charge indication allow you to clearly determine this indicator, but in the case of LED indication you will have to do everything “by eye”.

How to charge external batteries from the network?

To do this, just use the standard supplied cable or connect any compatible one. To start the charging process, you need to plug the connector into the port of the external battery and connect it to the AC mains. LED indicators will allow you to monitor the battery replenishment level. However, it must be taken into account that they can often give inaccurate results, especially if the VCU has been used for more than 1 year. An alternative option is batteries with digital indicators. They are much clearer and more visual, but their cost is 18-25% higher than their analogues. Charging external battery for phone from the mains, try to avoid voltage surges. Most modern models have protection against overheating and burnout. It must be taken into account that