OnePlus' Power Bank Is Pretty, Compact, Cheap, High-Capacity

By Niels Broekhuijsen
published

Been looking for a power bank for your OnePlus One phone? Well, here you have it. Quite cheap, too!

To celebrate the anniversary of its One smartphone, OnePlus announced the launch of a new accessory – the OnePlus Power Bank.

It's exactly what you'd expect: a portable battery. Now you're probably thinking "Gee guys, is this really newsworthy?", but let us stop you there. This one ticks all the boxes that a power bank should: it's pretty, it's compact, it has a high capacity, and it's cheap. The design even matches that of your OnePlus One phone, if that's your sort of thing.

The OnePlus Power Bank will be available in Silk White or Sandstone Black, and it has two female USB A ports for charging, each of which can push up to 2 Amps. You can charge the Power Bank with a mini-USB cable, just like your smartphone (unless you have an iPhone). With a capacity of 10,000 mAh, it might take a painful 5.5 hours to charge to full capacity, but it will recharge your OnePlus One phone three times over.

Can't find that button you press to check the power level? Instead of a button, you need to shake the device gently to light up the battery indicator, meaning the device has no physical switches at all.

Built-in safety features include short circuit protection, overcharging protection, overheating protection, and resistance against electrostatic discharge.

The OnePlus Power Bank will be available "soon" and will cost just $14.99.

Follow Niels Broekhuijsen @NBroekhuijsen. Follow us @tomshardware, on Facebook and on Google+.

Niels Broekhuijsen
Niels Broekhuijsen

Niels Broekhuijsen is a Contributing Writer for Tom's Hardware US. He reviews cases, water cooling and pc builds.

8 Comments Comment from the forums
  • BulkZerker
    Will you need an invite to get this too?
    Reply
  • Onus
    That is a good price, for that capacity. Even on Shellshockers, I think I've paid $20-$22 for similar capacity.
    I'm not sure about the "shake-switch" though; seems like a gimmick that could be a point of failure.
    For reference, I've used RAVPower and Anker battery packs with good results, sized at 3000mAh, 10000mAh, and 13000mAh.
    Reply
  • alextheblue
    That is a good price, for that capacity. Even on Shellshockers, I think I've paid $20-$22 for similar capacity.
    I'm not sure about the "shake-switch" though; seems like a gimmick that could be a point of failure.
    For reference, I've used RAVPower and Anker battery packs with good results, sized at 3000mAh, 10000mAh, and 13000mAh.
    I trust RAV and Anker to use fairly good quality cells. This thing at that price? Guaranteed to use lower-quality cells... It still might be worth it to some people buy I've grown wary. I've bought cheap banks before and they're really hit or miss especially in the long-term. It's even worse when you get one for someone as a gift and it dies just outside warranty or otherwise performs like junk (can't hold a charge for very long etc). As a result, these days I won't buy anything that doesn't use A-grade cells from Panasonic, LG, Samsung, top-tier manufacturers.

    Also for my own personal use I like to buy power banks and flashlight/chargers that are serviceable. That way if the 18650 batteries in them start to fail I can replace them with better quality (and longer-lasting) cells such as Panasonic 3400/3600 batteries (Orbtronic uses them). Beware fake/relabeled batteries though. Have to buy brand-name and from a trusted source!
    Reply
  • thundervore
    Does this have IQ charging ports?

    I know it can push up to 2 Amps but what is my one of my phone only needs 1a and the other needs 2.1a, will it be smart enough to supply the right voltage to each?

    I have a Anker with IQ ports and it is the best thing ever!!!
    Reply
  • Axonn
    I prefer to have a large battery and a well-optimized OS. I can get around 3 days (including talking & data) out of my Note 3 with Tasker optimizations (automatically turning off mobile data when the screen is off and so on). If I use Secure Settings (my phone is rooted) and Tasker to turn off connectivity while I'm sleeping I boost it to 5 days. If I'm slightly conservative with data, 6 days :D. Usually, I charge it once every 4-5 days.
    Reply
  • tryingmybest2
    14838055 said:
    Does this have IQ charging ports?

    I know it can push up to 2 Amps but what is my one of my phone only needs 1a and the other needs 2.1a, will it be smart enough to supply the right voltage to each?

    I have a Anker with IQ ports and it is the best thing ever!!!

    The voltage is fixed . and your machine will draw power as it needs. think of it the same of the wall plug , it is 110V all time and you can use it for anything that does not exceeds the maximum wattage of it.
    Reply
  • elzafir
    It's about the same price as Xiaomi's 10400mAH powerbank. Xiaomi uses Samsung and LG cells with Texas Instruments controller. I'm sure OnePlus will offer similar quality.
    Reply
  • alextheblue
    It's about the same price as Xiaomi's 10400mAH powerbank. Xiaomi uses Samsung and LG cells with Texas Instruments controller. I'm sure OnePlus will offer similar quality.
    IF they really use true Samsung and/or LG cells and not fakes/refurbs, they're castoffs. Not grade A cells. They're cheap units and so they'll be hit or miss in the long term, just like these OnePlus banks.

    There are some Xiaomi models that are more expensive and claim to use a Li-Po battery instead but they cost around double. At that point I'd start looking at better built units entirely.
    Reply