For having one of the industry’s largest batteries, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge goes through battery like water through a strainer. It’s not a “two day” phone. It’s barely a “last past lunch” phone depending on what my morning holds. I often go from 100% to under 70% before I arrive at work in the morning. So my life has become an endless hop between strategically-placed charging stations. But when I’m out and about or out in the woods on a photo excursion, I need lots of juice at the ready and I need it in my phone in a snap.
For my previous iPhone and iPad, I had a RavPower RP-PB04 10,000 mAh power bank that I’m still absolutely in love with, so any new power bank has big shoes to fill. When I went looking for something with a higher capacity, I naturally gravitated toward RavPower.
I was thrilled to find that they had this model – the RP-PB043, which not only features Quick Charge 2.0 output but input as well. With a QC 2.0 wall charger like Samsung’s OEM model, you can charge it “relatively” quickly (5-6 hours). Without it, it might take close to a full day to replenish this much capacity. Definitely a huge benefit.
As for device charging, this power bank charges my Galaxy S7 Edge just as fast as a QC 2.0 wall charger, which is about an hour-and-a-half from empty. It has enough power on a full charge to fully replenish my phone 5-7 times. I can not only use it all day, but all weekend if I’m out on a photo excursion. It also features a 2.4A port for my iPad, and a Type C port for newer notebooks. It literally has a port for everything. It even comes fully charged out of the box, so you can literally grab it and go.
Compared to my previous RavPower battery, it’s bigger and heavier, naturally. All that power needs to go somewhere. Despite it’s bulk and size, it fits perfectly in the mesh side pocket of my laptop bag or just snugly in my sling camera bag. The design is sleek and attractive, and the build quality is absolutely solid. My old RavPower power bank had a more plastic exterior that, with constant use, took quite a beating. This model feels like it will stand up over time and look good doing it. Like my previous RavPower power bank, it also comes with a drawstring-close mesh baggie. Is it necessary? Probably not, considering they advertise the finish of the power bank as scratch resistant. Yet it’s one of those nice touches that really make you take notice. It comes with a pair of flat but solidly-built micro USB cables, which is another nice perk.
The top of the power bank features four LED lights that show the current remaining power of the unit, or the charging status when plugged into the wall. It’s displayed with the button next to them is pressed. Unlike my old RavPower battery, this one doesn’t feature an on/off button, but this is a good thing. I would often charge my iPad in my camera bag, and I could easily bump the power off terminating the charging session. When you plug a phone into this model, it starts charging right away. A minor change but very welcome when you’re topping off a device on the go.
This is, for my money, the best portable power bank you can buy if you’re looking for tons of capacity and rapid charging. I could see this being the perfect companion for family road trips, camping excursions and other situations where portable power is essential.
