Those who’ve taken that long plane ride to Florida for vacation or to New York for a business trip will understand that if you use your mobile devices on the plane, you may land with only 10% of battery remaining.
Watching movies, listening to music, sending messages, checking social media, and/or playing a game are just some of the few things that we do while on the go. In such a connected world, keeping your mobile devices powered and ready to go is a necessity.
Over the past few years, I’ve reviewed my fair share of portable battery banks. Units that can power full size laptops, to others that can jump start a car and what I’ve found is that the light weight, stylish, and large battery capacity are the ones that I enjoy and use the most.
While on vacation people tend to use their smartphones and tablets more than when they’re at home due to the multiple photos taken, text messages to their friends back home, checking the news or weather of their current location, or even seeing where they should eat that night.
When traveling you also want to travel as lightly as possible, minimizing the amount of charging cables that you bring with you. To solve this problem, many companies offer large USB charging banks that can charge six devices at once. No longer will you need to use six outlets and instead use just one.
Welcome to my dual review of Hisgadget’s IntoCircuit battery bank and iClever Wall Charger. Throughout this review, I will discuss the design, functionality and my final thoughts for both products. A special thank you to Hisgadget for providing me with these products.
Design
Beginning with the IntoCircuit battery bank, it has a brushed aluminum finish that wraps around a rubberized body.
On the front surface, you’ll discover an electronic display that reads out internal battery percentage and current input/output voltage/amperage. Enabling the screen is done by the small On/Off button to the left of the screen. The rest of the aluminum body has white branding and product information.
The right side closest to the display contains the IntoCircuit’s interface that contains two SmartID 5V/2.4A USB ports, a microUSB 5V input, and a single LED flash light that is activated via the top mounted On/Off button mentioned earlier.
In terms of weight and size, this is not a battery bank that will be hanging out with your phone in your pocket. At 14.08 ounces, it’s slightly under one pound, but heavy enough that it will deter most on the go users. I found it best to be used in a car for charging a phone that is being used for navigation. Sizing is on the modest side, but large at 5.04 x 0.87 x 2.8 inches (LWH).
Moving on to the iClever six-port USB charger, it’s rubberized body stands tall or long depending on the orientation. The aluminum construction is designed in such a way to tuck into a small corner or be laid flat so that it can fit into a small cubby hole. Unfortunately, its rounded top makes it impossible to be placed upside down, but does offer a nicer look than the many rectangular designs on the market.
Like the IntoCircuit, the iClever contains white product information around the body, which is a matte black, and the rear of the unit contains an input connection port. Again, the front is where the interface is located and contains not two, not three, but six SmartID USB 5V/2.4A charging ports. To symbolize power, a tiny dim green LED is lit towards the top of the unit.
Functionality
I’ve mentioned a few times the word “SmartID” and if you haven’t already Googled the word, here’s what that means. Many companies that produce these battery banks have new technology that now allows them to offer a “smart” USB charging port. By detecting the required amperage from the device in question, a small electronic chip can adjust the output amperage accordingly. For example, an Apple iPhone requires 5V/1A for charging and using a USB port that provides more amperage than is needed can harm the battery over time. By detecting the draw of the device the “SmartID” USB ports can lower their maximum 2.4A output to 1A.
When I was using the IntoCircuit, I tended to carry it around in my car to serve as a backup battery for when/if my phone were to die. Its 15,000 mAh battery can charge a Galaxy Note 4 two – three times before needing a recharge itself. That said, it’s not limited to one unit as with its dual USB ports, users can easily charge their tablet and phone simultaneously.
The LED on the front of the unit can come in handy for finding your device in the dark or to light up a small desk, but don’t expect to be lighting up entire rooms with it. The lens allows for most of the light to shine forward, but nothing like a flash light. Although, due to the 15,000 mAh battery, this would easily outlast a flash light.
Lastly, when using the iClever, its slim design was helpful for a small table in the corner or the kitchen. The first product I used on the iClever was the IntoCircuit itself as it came with 5% on the battery. After a four to five hour wait, the IntoCircuit was fully charged. In terms of charging other devices, I connected a TI calculator, phone, Bluetooth headset, and another battery bank to the unit. With ease, all devices charged to their full percentage and I had no complaints with the iClever.
My Final Thoughts
Why you should buy these two products over another brand in the large Amazon store is a hard question to answer. While they are fully functional devices and offer some great ease of use, their price is another reason why you may hesitate when choosing these products; with the IntoCircuit being $39.99 and the iClever being $25.99. Don’t get me wrong, if you were to purchase these units you’d be a happy customer, but I recommend searching the market for other options to compare against.
Buy it Now (iClever):
But it Now (IntoCircuit):
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