What you need to know about Power Banks

Power Banks - Frequently Asked Questions

Power Banks are becoming a very popular promotional product with a wide range of devices available at different price points. We have seen, and continue to see a strong demand for branded Power Banks especially as the price drops due to increased manufacturing volumes. To help address some of the common questions we get asked, we have put together a FAQ below that will hopefully help you understand more about these very useful products:

What are Power Banks?

The simplest way to describe a Power Bank is as an “external rechargeable battery”. They are in effect just a bank of batteries in a portable enclosure with various connectivity ports. They are also sometimes referred to as Power Sticks or Mobile Chargers.

What are Power Banks used for?

The most common use is probably to recharge a mobile phone when its batteries are low or flat. However, Power Banks can be used to provide a power boost to many mobile devices such a Tablets, Cameras, Portable Gaming Systems, Smart Watches, Headphones and Bluetooth Speakers. If the device itself has a rechargeable battery, and a USB connection port, then a Power Bank can in most cases can come to the rescue and re-energise your device.

Are Power Banks good Promotional Gifts?

Absolutely! In our world of multiple connected devices, having extra power on-hand for your portable device is always going to be useful. A promotional gift that is useful and has longevity, is going to be appreciated and will get used. This will help you promote your brand and get an excellent return on your promotional spend. Power Banks are certainly now in the top category of promotional products supplied worldwide.

What’s this mAh rating all about?

Without getting over technical, the mAh rating of a Power Bank determines how much battery power it can store. The higher the mAh, the more power it can provide to recharge your devices. For the technically minded mAh stands for “Milliampere Hour”.

What mAh rating do I need?

Think about what the likely type of devices the Power Bank will be used to recharge. Each of these mobile devices has an internal battery with a mAh rating as well. Below are some examples:

iPhone 6S:  1,715mAh      Samsung Galaxy S8: 3,000mAh           Galaxy S8 Plus: 3,500MaH  

iPad Mini4: 5,124mAh      Samsung Gear S Watch: 300mAh       iPad Pro: 7,310mAH

As you can see there is a big variation depending on the device. Using the iPhone example, we would need a Power Bank with a mAh rating of 2,000mAh to fully recharge it. A Power Bank with a 4,000mAh rating could therefore recharge this iPhone twice.

Tablets are even more power hungry, so need the larger batteries to get a reasonable use-life between charges.  Bear in mind that some tablets consume more power than others, large hi-def screens and fast CPUs eat juice! For tablets, we also recommend Power Banks with a 2 Amp output port for faster charging times.

Also consider, whether there is a real need to fully recharge a device from a Power Bank. If you can top up your mobile phone or tablet’s battery by 50%, that should see you through the off-line emergency until you get home. The most common Power Banks we provide at Promotional World are in the 2,200mAh to 5,600mAh range, although we can supply ones that are a whopping 12,000mAh.  

How do you charge up a Power Bank and how long does it take?

Most Power Banks come with a USB connector cable for charging purposes. This can be plugged into a power plug adaptor with a USB port, or into the USB port on a device such as a laptop or PC. The latter being a slow way to charge up a Power Bank. Also, most car charge adaptors feature an USB port, so you can recharge it while driving along. The amount of time to charge it up depends on the mAh rating and the method of charging. For a typical 4,000mAh device, a full charge can take 4 to 5 hours.

What cables do I need?

To cater for multiple device connectivity, the best option is a have a USB Combo cable that enables connection to various manufactures devices e.g. Apple & Samsung. Most Power Banks do come with a Micro USB to USB cable which is used to charge the unit, and also acts as a connectivity cable to other devices.

What determines the cost of a Power Bank?

The key cost driver is the mAh rating. The higher it is, the more batteries in the Power Bank, so the price goes up (as does its weight!). Other features that are available on some models include LED lights or a digital display to show the amount of charge left, and additional output ports. The larger capacity Power Banks usually have both a 1 AMP and 2 AMP output port. This is a useful feature to charge 2 devices at the same time e.g. a mobile phone and tablet. Power Banks are also available with inbuilt USB Flash Drives to store your digital files, and as a Power Bank Torch combo. These sort of features clearly add to the cost of the device.

What are the promotional branding options for Power Banks?

One of the reasons that Power Banks are popular promotional products is that they offer a good branding area to show off a company logo, or other promotional message. Depending on the construction of the case (aluminum or plastic), Power Banks can be screen printed in various colours or engraved for a more high-end look. Many Power Banks come in a carry case to hold the unit and its cables. This offers another branding area to show off your logo or design.

How much do they cost?

They come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, so please have a browse through our Power Banks category for pricing information and branding options. Also check out our Products Video section for a few videos examples of our Power Bank range.

For any other questions on Power Banks, please contact us at Promotional World and we will help you find the right product for your marketing campaign.

Stay Energised!

The Promotional World Team