Even the latest phones don’t usually have enough battery to go through the entire day if you are a heavy phone user like myself. Even if you aren’t a heavy user, you likely still carry a battery and cable just in case you need to top off. Does the Thinium Recharge [+]2.0 fit the bill of convenience? Let’s find out.

The Thinium Recharge[+]2.0 is both a wall charger and a battery pack. Inside the Thinium’s svelte shell is a 3,000mAh battery, a set of US prongs (for plugging into the wall for charging the battery and the phone), and a pop out connector where you can attach the appropriate adapter for your phone.

Inside the box are adapters for MicroUSB, USB-C, and Lightning ports; these will charge every smartphone currently available.

The Thinium Recharge [+]2.0 also includes stick-on metal plates that you can place either on the back of your case or, like I did with my Pixel 2 XL’s case, inside the case. This plate helps the battery stay put on your phone. I guess you could stick one of the plates directly to the back of your phone if you wanted to, but I don’t like sticking things on the back of my phone. I also don’t really like my current case, so I usually carry my phone naked unless I am going somewhere.

A spacer is also included that can make the phone and charger fit together a little better, but I found the spacer unnecessary and stopped using it. The spacer didn’t allow enough room to properly plug the charger tip into my phone when it was in place, plus it’s just another thing you have to carry which seems to be kind of against their marketing, which validly points out that the Thinium Recharge [+]2.0 lets you carry only your phone and the battery pack/charger, so having to carry the spacer just seems a bit much.

The Thinium Recharge [+]2.0 has a nice little stand that let’s you recharge while watching a video which is kind of cool.

So how did I test the Thinium Recharge 2? Well, I recently took a trip to Florida for work, and on the entire travel da,y I only used the Thinium to top off my Pixel 2XL. The combination of the phone’s battery and the Thinium kept my phone alive throughout the day and evening until I went to bed.

Where the Thinium really shines is when you want to carry a minimal amount of gear with you. You can leave your main charger at home, using only the Thinium on your trip or throughout the day, and you’ll be just fine without having to carry a cable.

I couldn’t only carry the Thinium Recharge [+]2.0 on my trip, however, as there’s one thing the Thinium doesn’t support that my standard charger and my other external battery offer — rapid charging. My normal wall charger and RavPower battery both charge the Pixel 2XL faster than the Thinium Recharge 2 does. Even so, the Thinium Recharge[+]2.o is a perfect backup charger when out and about; for normal charging needs, though, I’ll stick to the standard charger and my RavPower. I say this mostly because the 3,000mAh capacity will only charge my Pixel 2XL once or top it off a couple of times. My RavPower battery has a higher capacity and multiple ports so I tend to prefer carrying only one battery that can charge everything versus multiple batteries for charging multiple things. However, if all I’m carrying is my Pixel 2XL, this is where the Thinium Recharge [+]2.0 shines. I can fit my phone and Recharge 2 in the pocket of my cargo shorts, and don’t have to manage any cables.

The $69.99 Thinium Recharge [+]2.0 can charge itself and your phone with the flip-out prongs; you can plug the phone and the battery into the wall at the same time or just the battery by itself, which is convenient. You can also pull out a USB cable and charge the Thinium Recharge [+]2.0 from your laptop to top it off. This is one reason I will continue to carry it with me when I am just going out of the house for a day. When I am travelling to Charlotte later this week, I will likely have the Thinium Recharge [+]2.0 and my RavPower with me. I won’t be able to get by with just the Recharge for this trip as I just will have too much other stuff that requires charging with me.

Source: Manufacturer provided review sample

What I Like: Thin and convenient;he perfect backup charger when you only have your phone

What Needs Improvement: The 3,000mAh capacity is much too low for me to use when I have more than just my phone with me