There are many power banks out there. Some have more power in them than others, some look better than others and some perform better than others. So, it was with great trepidation that I agreed to review the Lumsing 10400mAh harmonica-style portable power bank. How would it perform? Would it look as good in person as it did in the pictures? How long would it last?
Unboxing
Upon receiving the power bank, I was first of all met with some lovely packaging. The whole thing was wrapped in a cardboard box, inside of which was a foam box into which the power bank was pressed. What I first took to be a box lining was, in fact, a little drawstring bag to keep the power bank in. A very nice touch. It also included a good-quality (albeit short) micro-USB cable.
The power bank itself is a work of art as far as power banks are concerned. The one I have is white, although other colours (currently, black and gold) are available, and there is a brushed-steel effect strip along one edge (as you can see in the picture) which really reinforces the ‘harmonica’ effect. Along the long side are two USB ports, one 1.1A and the other 2.1A, as well as 4 LED ‘pips’ which act as a power level monitor. The power switch is also along this side. The micro-USB charging port is on one of the short sides. It really is the most gorgeous power bank I’ve ever seen. It’s smaller than any other bank with a similar power level I’ve seen and is also very light considering the amount of charge it holds.
Performance
So, enough about the looks of the thing, how did it perform? I decided to conduct a test that would really show off the bank, or uncover its shortcomings. I used the 2.1A output and hooked it up to an HDMIPi screen, with a built-in Model B Pi, and played Big Buck Bunny continuously on it until the battery died. I left headphones plugged in, just in case that made any difference.
How did it do? In my opinion, it did exceptionally well. It powered the screen and the Pi for 5.5 hours before dying. The power ‘pip’ monitor behaved as expected and reduced steadily. The battery did not warm up noticeably and I suffered no voltage-drop ‘brown-outs’ at all. I consider 5.5 hours on a single charge to be excellent. I re-charged it afterwards with a 2A power supply and it took about 3 hours to achieve full charge again. The one thing I didn’t try is to use it at the same time as charging (i.e. in ‘UPS mode’). If I remember next time I use it, I’ll try this out and update this review.
It’s currently available on Amazon for £21.99, which is amazingly good value (its usual price of £45.99 is somewhat steeper!). If I didn’t have one already from doing this review, I’d invest in one.
I wholeheartedly recommend this product. I just can’t fault it. I urge you to pick one up as soon as you can.
Rating: 10/10