Anker PowerPort 5-Port USB Charger with USB-C Power Delivery | Should you get this in 2020?
This five-port Anker charger is nothing new: I’ve had it for quite a while and used it on my nightstand to charge all my devices at night. I’ve since replaced it there with the Satechi Trio wireless charger, but it’s found new life. It’s an “oldie but a goodie”: my uses keep evolving, but I keep using it.
What it does
The Anker PowerPort can do up to 60 W of charging:
- A USB-C Power Delivery port on top does 30 W on its own and can charge things from a MacBook Pro to an iPad Pro to phones, even an iPhone with a USB-C to Lightning adapter.
- Four standard USB-A ports below do up to 12 W per port, up to a combined 30 W. Anker says its PowerIQ ports figure out which devices you’re using and how much power they need, and spread the load.
Why you’d want it
It isn’t particularly fast. The advantage is five ports: it can charge a lot of things at once, useful for things that don’t need the fastest charging and can sit for a while, overnight or over an afternoon. That’s why I used it on my nightstand. Since I started making YouTube videos, I charge lots of things: batteries for cameras, batteries for lights, tablets, phones and more for the set. Plugging them in at night or when I’m done shooting lets them all charge together and be ready next time.
It’s also good for travel: in a hotel room, a friend’s house or a guest suite, one device plugs into the wall and each of your devices plugs into it, so you don’t need a bunch of power adapters.
Details and price
It comes with a six-foot cord, so you can place it behind a nightstand or desk, and some adhesive strips to stick it to the back or underside of a desk or nightstand. It comes in white or black. The advertised Anker price is around $45 to $50, but it often goes on sale on Amazon: I got the black one just the other day for about $32. At that price, charging five more devices at once is pretty convenient.
Newer options
Anker now sells newer GaN chargers (the “Atom” line) that are faster and higher wattage, but even the PowerPort Atom 3 has only four ports (although its PD port is higher wattage), which limits how many devices you can charge at once. If you have a lot of devices and aren’t concerned about charging speed, I’d recommend one of these five-port chargers: they work well, I’ve had no problems, and the six-foot cord and sticky pads allow many placements. Check the links for the best current prices.
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Links
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