We’ve become used to seeing 10,000 and 20,000mAh portable batteries that cost anywhere from $50 – $100 (or more). But what if I told you that you could get a powerful 20,000mAh Orico portable battery that can charge everything from your laptop to your smartwatch for $35? You’d want one, right?
The Orico portable battery uses fast charge technology to deliver “up to 18-watts of power to all your iPhone, iPad and Macbook. It’s a convenient, safe, and reliable way to charge and power all your electrical devices 2-4 times faster than the standard power bank.” In other words, this is a battery that can give your device up to a 50% charge in 30 minutes.
The Orico battery is available in 10,000mAh or 20,000mAh capacities; the 20,000mAh version measures 5.9″ long by 2.9″ wide by 1″ thick, and it weighs 13.4 ounces. It’s clad in ridged black aluminum, and while it is a substantial and solidly built little brick, it’s not overly large or unwieldy at all. It’s the perfect size to chuck into your backpack or briefcase, and due to its huge capacity, you can expect to charge your phone for days before making a real dent in its remaining power.
Included in the package I received were the Orico portable battery, a Qualcomm QuickCharge 2.0 USB wall charger, and a fast charging USB to Lightning cable. The Orico battery charges via either the Type-C port or the microUSB port, and while those cables weren’t included, I have a large collection of them so it was no big deal.
On the front of the Orico portable battery, there are four ports: a USB-A port a microUSB in charging port, a Type-C port, and a fast charge USB-A port.
It takes up to 2 hours to fully charge the 10,000mAh version and up to 4 hours to fully charge the 20,000mAh version. As the battery charges, you’ll notice the four LEDs go from red to white as the battery fills; when all of the LEDs glow white, your battery is fully charged. You can check the remaining power at any time by pressing the button on the right side of the battery.
The battery power is displayed in 25% increments by white LEDs.
So let’s test the charging capabilities! Orico was kind enough to include a USB A/V detector in my package — that’s how confident they are that their battery performs as promised. I checked both USB ports, and with no draw on them, they show as delivering 5.18V.
Here’s what happens when I plug the Huawei P20 into the Orico charger’s FastCharge Type-A port; notice how the Voltage jumped from 5.10V to 9.10V and that the red LED on the Orico indicates that the battery is now using FastCharge; the P20’s battery went from 70% to 100% in 30 minutes.
You can also watch the battery in action here.
Orico is built with the latest Qualcomm Quick Charging (QC 3.0) technology allowing it to charge your Android device 4X faster than a conventional charger. It charges your Android phone’s battery up to 80% in 30 minutes. QC 3.0 employs an intelligent algorithm to allow your portable device to determine what power level to request at any time to enable optimum power transfer.
The Orico portable battery is capable of all of the fast charge protocols showsn in the picture below; the “seven protocols can deliver fast charging for QC 2.0 3.0 / BC 1.2 / Apple devices/ Samsung AFC/ MTK PE 2.0 1.1.”
The Orico is an extremely well priced 20,000mAh portable battery to begin with, but adding in its ability to fast charge so efficiently, I consider it a must-buy.
The 20,000mAh Orico Portable Battery retails for $35, and it is available from their Indiegogo page; they are shipping this month. You can add the fast charge Lightning cable for an additional $5.
Source: Manufacturer supplied review sample
What I Like: Inexpensive 20,000mAh battery; Very solidly built; 7 protocols to deliver fast charging; Can be charged via USB-C or microUSB
What Needs Improvement: Nothing — it works as advertised
