Anker Prime 27650mAh 250W power bank A1340 – a marathon runner (off-grid review)

The Anker Prime 27650mAh 250W power bank A1340 is strong and indefatigable. It is the largest TSA-approved power bank for aircraft in-cabin use. It has been so popular that you may have to wait.

Not being an iPhone user, I don’t worry about running out of battery 😁. Being serious, you will need a power bank on any long-haul flight, camping trip, heavy workday on-site, etc.

The Anker Prime 27650mAh 250W is one of the new breed of PD 3.1 intelligent power banks that gives the peripheral device just what it needs so you can safely charge anything from a set of buds, a watch, smartphone to a 100W+ laptop.

Australian Review: Anker Prime 27650mAh 250W power bank A1340

Website	Product page User Guide
Price	$299.95 (as of 20/12/23) with free shipping and a 30-day money-back guarantee
From	Anker online and specialist retailers
Warranty	2-year ACL
Country of Origin	China
Company	Anker (Shenzhen Oceanwing Smart Innovations Technology Co., Ltd) is a Chinese electronics company that produces computer and mobile peripherals, including phone chargers, power banks, earbuds, headphones, speakers, data hubs, charging cables, torches, screen protectors, security cameras, and more under multiple brands. Its main markets are the USA, Europe, Japan and Australia.
More	CyberShack portable power news and reviews

We use Fail (below expectations), Pass (meets expectations) and Exceed (surpasses expectations or is the class leader) against many of the items below. We occasionally give a Pass(able) rating that is not as good as it should be and a Pass ‘+’ rating to show it is good but does not quite make it to Exceed. You can click on most images for an enlargement.

To put this in perspective – it is simply the best

It is a power bank capable of approximately 27,000mAh/100Wh charging at up to 250W combined output (less efficiency overheads). In theory, if you have a 5000mAh smartphone, it will charge it five times. If you have a MacBook Pro with a 75Wh battery, it will give a full recharge and then some.

It uses 7 x 3.85V/3.95A/15.2W Lithium-Polymer (Li-Po pouch) batteries = 27,650mAh/106.45Wh (maximum rating). The typical rating is under 100Wh for Travel Safe Approval (TSA).

Its form factor is interesting – 165 x 60 x 45mm x 670g – not large and flat like those using 18650 Lithium-ion cells. It is safer than 18650 Lithium-ion cells and is designed for higher continuous discharge rates.

Anker does not reveal the battery charge cycle count, but we know it is between 300 and 500 – probably the latter – before it starts to retain 80% charge. If you use/charge it daily, that is about 2-years, and a typical user will get at least five years.

All power banks have an efficiency rating. We have calculated the efficiency (charge in versus charge out) at 85%. That is very efficient, as most power banks are 60-70%.

Safety – Pass+

Given the rapidly escalating number of Lithium-ion fires, we won’t review Lithium-ion devices that we consider a risk. We think up to 100Wh is a minimal risk; in this case, its use of LiPo pouch batteries further reduces that.

The critical key is the battery management system. Anker uses its ‘ActiveShield 2.0’, which constantly monitors cell temperatures, voltage fluctuations, and peripheral device feedback. It has a power tuner chip (selected safest charge over fastest charge) and Power IQ 4.0 to gently charge lower amperage devices.

 In addition, it can be firmware updated via the App if required.

PD 3.1 – why this is important.

The new USB-C standard allows delivery of up to 240W (28/36/48V for 140/180/240W). This unit can deliver a maximum of 28V/5A/140W on one port. Regrettably, most existing devices, like laptops and smartphones, do not support PD 3.1, peaking at 20V/5A/100W.

Significantly, PD 3.1 optimises charging by intelligently communicating with the peripheral and only delivering the power it requires to charge.

It also can handle pass-through power, offering more power when required for an application and can be used as UPS. The same port can be used for charge or discharge.

While the older standard PD 3.0 has many 3.1 features, it lacks the PPS voltage range from 15-48V/5W and some peripheral feedback safeguards.

Charge Time – Exceed

Caveat: You need a 100W GaN charger or higher to achieve the fastest charge times. You can charge at 15-65W, but the time increases accordingly – like trying to use a garden hose to fill a swimming pool.

This supports 170W charging over two USB-C ports. That means you can attach two chargers with 5W cables and almost halve the time.

Using a Belkin BoostCharge Pro 108W 4-port GAN wall charger took just over an hour.

An optional 100W Gan charge base charges the power bank via Pogo pins, but it is not on the AU website.

Display – Pass+

It is a colour display and offers accurate charge and discharge statistics. It will estimate the time to charge/discharge and wattage output on all three ports.

We noticed improved charging rates compared to factory-supplied chargers. For example, the Samsung S23 FE charges a maximum of 24W with the Samsung charger and 27.2W with the Anker.

UPS function – Pass+

It acts as a UPS, allowing pass-through power with no millisecond cutover delay. If the power bank is full, it draws about 15% more power than needed for output (hence the 85% efficiency factor).

BT App – Pass

It is a basic app that you don’t need for operation. It can update firmware and allows you to set up charge characteristics for commonly charged devices.

Ports – Pass+

It has two USB-C ports – C1 and C2 and one USB-A port

• C1 has up to 232W shared with C2. The maximum per port is 140W. Both ports can operate at 100W
• USB-A has up to 65W with full PPS charge rates and intelligent device charging.
• If using all three ports, the maximum is 140/92/18 = 250W

A range of devices were tested, including a 100W laptop, smartphone and buds. The display wattage matched our diagnostic equipment.

We tested ‘stamina’, and the 20V/5A/100W laptop charged fully in about 1.5 hours.

Build and warranty – Exceed

It is well made and has a 2-year warranty.

CyberShack’s view – Anker Prime 27650mAh 250W power bank A1340 is the best yet

Geeks and power users rejoice – the best yet is here at a reasonable $299.95. If that is out of the budget, a 200W version is $229.94.

I like it because you can see accurate charging information for every device, and it charges very quickly. It is great for charging security cameras as well.

The only caveat is that you also should buy an Anker 100W+ Gan Charger for the fastest charge.

Anker Prime 27650mAh 250W rating

• Features: 90 – three ports, 250Wh, colour readout, and Li-Po put it ahead of contenders.
• Value: 90 If you want the best, pay for it or wait for a sale.
• Performance: 95 – excellent charge times and consistent delivery
• Ease of Use – 90 – No app is needed for operation, but a 100W+ GaN charger gives the fastest charge.
• Design: 90 – The use of LI-Po pouch batteries means it is not like other power banks.