Having a powerbank handy to charge up electronic stuff whilst in the outdoors has, for me, become an essential bit of kit. When guiding clients in the mountains, I use my iPhone 6 for photographs, navigation apps and as an emergency telephone. Some of the apps I like to use are:
- Mapping software like Memory Map ;
- A new avalanche awareness app made by the Scottish Avalanche Information Service.
Also, when supervising Duke of Edinburgh’s Award expeditions, which can be up to four days long, I use Nokia 105 mobile phones as emergency phones. These phones form part of our ‘Grab Bags’: an emergency kit that each expedition group has with them, containing a Garmin eTrex 10 GPS, emergency phone, whistle, note pad and pencil, spare batteries and emergency procedures.
I have also started to use a rechargeable Olight HR2 Nova headtorch, which benefits from having a backup power supply should it lose charge.
Through prolonged use or cold temperatures, all of these important electronic devices can lose power so a powerbank and cable are items of kit I always have with me in my rucksack.
There are many sizes of powerbank available on the market, the main choice being what capacity to go for: something small like 5,000mAh, which would give maybe 2x charges to an iPhone 6 or something big like 20,000mAh mAh which might give you 7x charges. Other considerations are recharging time, its size and weight and its durability.
A company called OUTXE recently sent me a powerbank product specifically designed for the outdoors: OUTXE Savage 20,000 mAh Rugged Power Bank. Having used it for the last few months, here’s a review, summing up what I think of it.
Here are the main features and benefits of the product:
Large Capacity: it’s 20,000 mAh, which is pretty massive, suited to multi-day treks or circumstances where you need to charge lots of devices. 20,000 mAh will give you about 7x charges of an iPhone 6.
Water-resistant and Durable: the powerbank is encased in silicone rubber with rubber caps covering the USB and charging ports, making it water resistant, shock proof, dustproof and generally a really strong, robust bit of kit, well suited to the outdoors.
Torch: the product has a 200-lumen flashlight built into it. A double click of the power button turns on this very bright torch.
Two USB ports: should you need to, this powerbank can charge up two electronic devices at the same time.
Fast Charging: the product can charge up your devices quickly, you can get 80% charge on your smartphone in 35 minutes.
Fast Re-charging: the product has a micro USB input – DC 5V/2A (max) – which will charge up the powerbank in 13 hours and a Type C input – DC 5V/3A(max) – which will charge it in 10-11 hours (a Type C charging cable is provided). For a fast charging time of 6-7 hours, you can use both inputs at the same time.
Safe re-charging: the product has surge and short-circuit protection to prevent the powerbank from overheating when it is being recharged.
The product comes with some small carabiners and lanyards, it measures 170 x 86 x 30 mm and weighs 525g.
So what do I think of it…..?
The features I really value and like are its huge capacity, being able to charge more than one device at once and the fast charging and re-charging capability. The torch came in quite handy, too.
On the downside is the product’s weight – 525g is a lot to carry.
In summing up, this product was most useful to me when on multi-day expeditions and hiking trips. It was especially useful on four-day Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Award expeditions when I needed to charge up multiple devices over a prolonged period of time. On single-day hikes, I would say it’s too big and heavy, and my preference would be to opt for a lighter, less bulky power bank. Nevertheless, it’s something I have liked having with me in the car or in my travel luggage, knowing that it will reliably have loads of capacity to charge my electronic devices.