And what is this you might ask? Well, I’m a great believer that you can’t have too many QC3.0 power banks (i.e. FAST charging). I use them all the time for our various Smartphones in the UK and in Spain.
This model is the and it has a single type C input/output connector as well as a normal fast charge (QC3.0) USB output and comes complete with a short USB (one end) to type C (other end) lead.
Check out the stock photo and specs in the link above. I have nice things to say about Blitzwolf kits unlike some of the Ebay rubbishy power banks I’ve bought in the past.
Here’s my own photo. The unit is neat, has rounded edges, satin black metal quality finish and has 10,000maH capacity (apparently – it may be while before I can prove that but in the past, Blitzwolf have not disappointed) and comes complete with manual. It also supports Apple 2.4A fast charge. Though not obvious in my photo there are 4 neat LED indicators.
The manual is in decent English, German, Spanish and Japanese and properly describes operation of the product. The LED area is also a POWER BUTTON. The unit is on charge but actually arrived almost fully charged which is lovely.
Meanwhile, on the subject of powering Raspberry Pi, I’ve contacted several suppliers and designers, so far no joy in finding a reliable 5v 3A supply for the Pi4. Plenty of 2 amp battery packs but few actally simultaneously charge and discharge at that rate while guaranteeing up time and minimum 5.1v sustained output – and I’ve found none that do that at 3 amps – if you know differently please DO write in. I wrote to Callahan Kovacs who seems to have something not far off but neither of his designs are in production and I don’t have time or patience to build an SMT power unit. SURELY there must be others?
What drove your choice of the BW-P9 (10Ah, why not the BW-P8 (20Ah.
Thank you.
Hi there John
The short answer – ignorance and not wanting it to be TOO big I guess. Capacity for me is not as important as speed of charging. See related blog entry on batteries coming up…
As a frequest traveler working in the field, your point on weight is well noted.
I just changed my company laptop (dell), it has a USB C port that can be used to charge the laptop as well (tested with car charger and Mac charger).
The Dell pack offering PW7018LC is damn pricey at ’65W hours’, 400g
Then you also need to purchase a C charger…..dont get me started!!
looking forward to your blog on bats.
It seems fascinating, thanks.
But I’m looking for something exactly like that but without a power button, I want battery ready to use without this switch, do you know if it exists?
Sorry if my entry was misleading – the on-off button has to be long-pressed if you deliberately want the output turned off. I used the battery unit then put it back in it’s box for several hours. When I plugged a Raspberry Pi into it, the Pi powered up perfectly, to turn the Pi OFF I had to hold in that combined button/LED display for a couple of seconds.
Thanks for your answer.
Have you tried what happen when you have electric power interruptions?
I had a battery with the same behavior as yours but when I have power interruptions the power goes off and I have to touch the button again for switching it on again. So it’s not a good idea to power RPI for a long time using this battery because you could find you RPI down.
Hi Oriol
Right, scratch Raspberry Pi idea, I just ran the unit with no input. As soon as I plugged input in, the output turned off and I had to turn it on manually. So that’s fine for charging phones and tablets but no good for a Pi. I have other units – Besiter and Mixx – looks like this is deliberate behaviour.
Ok so I’ve been investigating – there is a DIRE shortage of UPS supplies able to give out 5v @ 3A or more for a Raspberry Pi. One guy designed two but stopped production. He may do some more next year but won’t commit. This needs addressing. I’ll talk to Aidan.
Ok, thanks FYI.
Not tried the BlitzWolf® BW-P9 10000mAh 18W QC3.0 PD3.0 Type-c + USB Ports Power Bank, but I do like the OKZU ones that are available on Amazon. 30 minutes to recharge my phone is a lifesaver and for just under £12.
You didn’t specify the maH capacity of the charger you mention but I looked it up – 10,000maH. Charging time and how many devices you can charge is down to the maH capacity of the power bank and the capacity of the battery in your phone(s). I mentioned the capacity of the Blitzwolf and the capacity of the Pocophone F1 is a matter of record. Want to provide more info on the exact model of OKZU and the model of your phone? A power bank from Amazon at £12 does sound a bit too cheap to me. Also important is how quickly the bank itself will charge… if you’re going to use one for a Raspberry Pi that IS important. On the other hand, I did take the opportunity top check Amazon.co.uk and you almost convinced me to get one on spec. Then I paused forf thought, no indicator lights it would seem – and 5-6 hours at best to recharge the OKZU. I’ve not checked recharge time on the Blitzwolf but I’m hoping for better than that. For phone charging use that would likely be OK but not so for use as a cheap UPS… I absolutely intend to get rid of all of my lower capacity non-QC3.0 chargers and power banks in the near future so keep ideas coming in.