Review: Mophie’s Powerstation PD XL puts a fast-charging 10,050mAh cell in your pocket

Accessory maker Mophie, owned past times the pop Zagg brand, offers a plethora of versatile batteries for your Apple gear. Today, we’re taking a facial expression at the company’s Powerstation PD XL, an inconspicuous 10,050 mAh jail cellular telephone pack that tin give the axe extend the run fourth dimension of your device with upward to eighteen watts of might output together with back upward for the USB Power Delivery (PD) protocol which allows yous to safely recharge your iPhone from nix to l pct inwards one-half an hour.

An inconspicuous battery pack

The neat picayune accessory gives yous a few accuse cycles for your iPhone. For a smartphone with a 3,000 mAh battery, for instance, you’d instruct roughly 3 total accuse cycles together with soundless have got some juice left inwards the cell. For what it’s worth, Mophie says that the accessory extends your iPhone’s battery upward to 35 hours, your iPad for upward to vi hours together with a small-scale tablet past times upward to thirteen hours.

Meet Mophie’s fast-charging Powerstation PD XL portable juice.

Unveiled ahead of CES 2019, it doesn’t facial expression much dissimilar from other batteries inwards Mophie’s lineup. You have got 2 USB ports lined upward along i end. On a slightly angled side, you’ll discovery a quarter of condition LED lights that display the charging condition together with electrical flow battery life.

Just press a push to plow turn the battery pack on or off.

The 4 LED condition lights along with the might button.

Akin to several other Powerstations inwards Mophie’s lineup, our Powerstation PD XL features a textured pattern destination that makes for a ameliorate handgrip when held. It does experience non bad inwards your hand. As for the plastic enclosure, it looks solid together with doesn’t only protect the accessory against scratches or scuffs when stowed amongst other devices, but also helps improve performance versus the metallic exteriors of the many, many other battery packs iDownloadBlog has tried hence far.

A textured destination allows for a overnice grip.

Introducing Power Delivery

The Power Delivery protocol is what makes fast-charge back upward possible.

It lets the device requesting juice, similar your band or tablet, care the might it receives together with so that yous don’t have got to worry close overcharging. You tin give the axe residuum assured that your Powerstation volition regulate the overall input inwards guild to remain safe. As with all Mophie batteries, this one’s been triple-test certified to ensure peak performance together with security operation.

Mophie branding on a side.

As mentioned earlier, this battery pack has 2 ports on the rear, i is a regular USB-A port for charging your iOS devices via the criterion Lightning to USB cable together with the other is a smaller, reversible USB-C port that transfers to a greater extent than might than the older USB-A standard.

Simultaneous charging brings the USB-A port (left) from 15W to the same 5W offered past times Apple’s iPhone wall charger.

The USB-C port is also used to recharge the device’s internal battery, supporting upward to xv watts of input might (5V/2.4A). You tin give the axe role either a regular USB-A charger to juice upward your Powerstation or an 18W USB-C i (5V/3.0A) for the fastest recharging speed.

A premium mobile battery deserves a high-quality USB-C cable, similar this braided Satechi cable.

The device lets yous accuse 2 devices simultaneously, similar your iPhone through its USB-C port along with an iPad through the USB-A port. When sending juice to 2 devices at the same time, your Powerstation reduces the USB-A port to the same 5 watts of might similar that slow-charging wall brick which Apple soundless ships with iPhones.

That doesn’t occur if you’re recharging your Powerstation via USB-C piece sending juice to some other device via USB-A. In that case, the USB-A port volition furnish twelve watts of power, non five. By the way, sending juice to a device piece recharging your Powerstation at the same fourth dimension invokes priority charging to ensure that might is sent to whatsoever connected devices kickoff before the Powerstation itself starts to recharge.

The benefits of fast-charging

I was able to fast accuse my iPhone XS Max from dead to l pct using the 18W USB-C charger that came with my iPad Pro inwards only nether xxx minutes. By comparison, the criterion 5W might brick that ships with iPhone took an sixty minutes together with a one-half to instruct me to 50 percent.

TUTORIAL: How to fast-charge iPhone or iPad

In other words, thank yous to Power Delivery back upward Mophie’s accessory allows me to recharge my band to a greater extent than than 2 times faster compared to the criterion 5W charger.

Comparing the Powerstation profile to that of my iPhone X.

Most iPhone models do offering a decent battery life, but fifty-fifty my iPhone XS Max sometimes falls bellow twenty pct when beingness used a lot throughout the day, fifty-fifty to a greater extent than together with so during the summertime every bit soaring temperatures negatively send upon the life of lithium-ion batteries. Now having to pass a lot of fourth dimension waiting around for my band to accuse was a blessing. Even if yous alone have got x minutes, you’ll soundless instruct upward to twenty pct battery life thank yous to fast-charge support.

Thanks to USB-C together with PD support, the tiny device tin give the axe also post juice to your notebook.

I was fifty-fifty able to run past times upward my MacBook Pro with my Powerstation, but don’t facial expression a 10,050 mAh capacity battery to recharge your USB-C laptop completely.

Other Powerstations

Mophie has a bunch of Powerstation-branded batteries for most needs.

Power users (pun intended) that require fifty-fifty to a greater extent than stored might than the Powerstation PD trace offers are wholeheartedly recommended to accept a closer facial expression at the USB-C-enabled Powerstation 3XL with its massive 26,000 mAh battery, the largest inwards Mophie’s lineup, which equates to roughly a 96Wh battery.

The Powerstation lineup was refreshed for 2019 with the novel Mini (5,000 mAh), regular (10,000 mAh), XL (15,000 mAh) together with XXL (20,000 mAh) models that all have got a shared USB-C input together with output port to deliver fast charging (18W) together with faster recharging (15W).

There is also a USB-A port available on some models, together with 2 USB-A ports on others.

The Powerstation Plus trace is available inwards several colors.

Then at that topographic point is the company’s Apple-exclusive Plus trace of Powerstations targeted at folks who loathe carrying extra cables thank yous to their integrated Lightning / micro-USB switch tip output cables. They come upward inwards 3 sizes — the $60 4,000 mAh Plus Mini, the $80 6,000 mAh Plus (6,000 mAh) together with the $100 10,000 mAh Plus XL, the latter sporting speeds upward to 10W together with micro-USB recharging input.

The high-capacity Plus XL model tin give the axe also live recharged wirelessly using a Qi-compatible charger, together with it’ll extend your iPhone’s battery upward to seventy hours together with your iPad upward to eighteen hours.

Mophie’s Powerstation Hub tin give the axe live connected straight to the air conditioning socket or collapsed when used every bit a mobile battery pack.

Those who call for something fifty-fifty to a greater extent than versatile needn’t facial expression farther than Powerstation Hub, Mophie’s latest 6,100 mAh battery pack (pictured above) that tin give the axe juice upward 4 devices instantly via USB-C, USB-A or wirelessly. However, if yous don’t call for that much on-the-go power, consider Mophie’s JuicePack battery case, released dorsum inwards Jan [review] together with pictured correct below.

Mophie’s iPhone battery illustration is available with an integrated Lightning or USB-C port.

Lastly, the company lately unveiled some novel compelling accessories similar a Qi-compatible wireless charging pad, a duet of fashionable auto chargers and a diversity of USB cables.

Final thoughts

In the past times twelvemonth or so, I have got been all-in on Power Delivery. Ever since experiencing the benefits of fast-charging, I never looked back. You will, of course, call for to purchase a Lightning to USB-C cable to fast-charge your iPhone because Apple hasn’t yet adopted USB-C on its smartphone nor does it bundle iPhones with these handy cables.

Simultaneously sending juice to my iPhone X together with iPad Pro.

As a affair of fact, Lightning to USB-C cables were prohibitively expensive because alone Apple used to build them. Since the start of 2019, however, Lightning to USB-C cables are available from many third-party vendors. A character non-Apple cable tin give the axe live had for every bit picayune every bit x bucks, or fifty-fifty less.

USB is an manufacture standard, important Mophie’s portable battery tin give the axe live safely used with non-Apple gear without whatsoever reliability issues. I was able to recharge Android phones together with might diverse USB accessories similar external storage with my Powerstation. Though non strictly an Apple-exclusive product, Mophie has optimized the output might together with the ports on the Powerstation trace of piece of occupation solid unit of measurement of products for Apple’s devices.

Despite premium pricing, this Powerstation has a lot going for it.

The Powerstation PD XL battery lets yous accuse your devices every bit chop-chop together with safely every bit possible.

With a length of 4.2 inches, a width of 2.3 inches together with a thickness of 0.8 inches, it’s really compact. I also similar how lightweight it is — the XL model weighs inwards only 7.2 ounces. These things tin give the axe definitely live carried around with relaxation every bit they’re small-scale plenty to gibe into a pocket. Besides, USB-C battery packs commonly start at 20,000 mAh together with so it’s definitely refreshing to regard a lower-capacity juice pack that soundless offers all the benefits of the Power Delivery protocol.

MacBook Pro meets its novel friend.

It’s got priority charging, which is a must. While its regular USB-A port alone outputs power, the newer USB-C port does both input together with output. Most importantly, yous het Power Delivery back upward inwards a tiny parcel that volition literally allow yous fast-charge everything without worrying close overcharging together with damaging your devices.

This is i compact mobile juice pack.

If yous call for decent mobile might with fast-charge support, Powerstation PD is it, a must-have accessory for pros together with a actually practiced alternative for a lot of average Joes. In my personal opinion, it’s i of the best USB-C battery packs that back upward the Power Delivery protocol.

My alone complaint deals with the lack of an integrated Lightning cable. Then again, if you’re someone who ever has a USB-C to USB-C cable inwards your go bag, that won’t live an result at all. In fact, all PD-compliant Powerstations ship with a USB-C to USB-C cable.

Pros together with cons

Here’s what nosotros liked together with disliked close this battery pack.

Pros

• Power Delivery brings secure fast-charge support


• The device is really compact together with lightweight


• Just the correct amount of might for such a portable package

Cons

• Premium toll tag


• Integrated Lightning cable would live appreciated


• Dual-charging brings USB-A from 12W downwards to 5W

Pricing together with availability

These batteries come upward inwards 2 flavors: the $60 Powerstation PD together with the $80 Powerstation PD XL. The regular version has a 6,700 mAh jail cellular telephone together with its XL counterpart is packed with a 10,050 mAh battery. Both volition accuse your iPhone 8 or newer upward to 2.5 times faster compared to a criterion 5W charger, or upward to 50 pct inwards only 30 minutes.

You tin give the axe instruct your Powerstation from mophie.com with a 2-year warranty.

Your 2 cents

Have yous used these chargers from Mophie yet?

If so, we’d similar to listen close your experience together with so don’t hesitate to portion your thoughts together with observations with beau readers inwards the comments downwards below.

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