Earlier this summer, Anker announced a trio of new products – one of them being an incredibly thin MagSafe/Qi2 battery for iPhones, and now even Google Pixel 10. I’ve spent my fair share of time with it, and the new Anker Nano Power Bank is honestly everything you’d want out of a MagSafe battery bank.
With Apple no longer making their own MagSafe batteries, and the upcoming iPhone 17 Air having relatively weak battery life – this could be a great purchase to make ahead of Apple’s ‘Awe dropping’ iPhone 17 launch event.
Overview
Despite coming in such a small package (just 8.6mm thin, while competing options are around 50% as thick) – Anker’s Nano Power Bank still packs 5000mAh. That provides enough capacity to roughly recharge a standard 6.1-inch iPhone, like an iPhone 12 or newer.
Since it’s a Qi2-capable battery bank, it recharges your devices with up to 15W of power, compared to older options on the market that’ll only support up to 7.5W. Prior to the Qi2 standard, only Apple’s official MagSafe battery could provide 15W to an iPhone – and that battery was riddled with flaws.
Nano Power Bank also provides up to 20W of power out through its USB-C port if you need to charge even faster. This’ll also provide more capacity, since you won’t be losing as much power to wireless charging inefficiencies.
My thoughts
First things first, the magnets on this battery bank are quite strong. It’s fairly common (unfortunately) for third party MagSafe accessories to have cheap magnets with weak connections – but you certainly don’t need to worry about it here.
Anker also says their battery runs around 14 degrees cooler compared to other options on the market. I’ve never really felt other Qi2 batteries get overwhelming hot, so I’d say the Anker option performs well in this regard.
Really, the best thing about this slim battery bank is the fact that I don’t really think about it. It doesn’t add much bulk to the phone, about the same as a MagSafe wallet (not Apple’s one: think a third party one with five or so card slots). When it’s in my pocket, I’m not concerned about it either. The fact that it sort of just works without thinking much about it, is what makes it so excellent.
The USB-C port is also rather nifty if you want to quickly charge up another device, like AirPods or an Apple Watch – provided you have the cable for it. Though, I suppose you could also charge your AirPods on the Qi2 ring if you have a compatible pair (AirPods Pro 2 or AirPods 4 w/ ANC).
Wrap up
Overall, Anker’s Nano Power Bank excels. It provides incredible peace of mind, and serves as the first real replacement to Apple’s old MagSafe Battery Bank from a third party. It’s built quite well, and with its affordable price tag, it’s hard to feel that it isn’t a great value if you want something minimal that also works very well.
You can pick up this Anker 5K ultra-slim Nano Power Bank on Amazon for $54.99 currently. It comes in three colors: white, black, and green.
If you’re under 24, check out Amazon Prime for Young Adults. You can get a 6 month free trial, and afterwards it’ll run you only $7.49/month. You don’t need to be in college either.
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