Many people who work or study in public places like coffee shops or libraries dread seeing the low battery warning, especially if there isn't a free charging port in sight. But isn't there some way to get around that?
Put an end to the days of squabbling over scarce charging stations, and never again will you have to worry about your laptop running out of power shortly before an important meeting when you neglected to bring its charger.
Can a laptop be charged with a portable power source? The short answer is "yes." Nonetheless, not just any power bank will do the job of charging a laptop. Therefore, you should ensure that it is compatible with your device.
If you want to keep your laptop charged on the move but don't know which power bank will work best, read on. Below are a few considerations to keep in mind while shopping for a high-capacity power bank.
a) Does It Provide Sufficient Power to Recharge a Laptop's Battery?
First and foremost, when looking for a power bank that can revive a dead laptop, you need to make sure it has enough power supply or output. Powering up a laptop computer is very different from recharging a small gadget like your smartphone.
Various laptops have varying power requirements, so it's important to research your model specifically to see how much power it needs. You can easily get your laptop's specifications online.
Let's look at median values instead to find a power bank compatible with the vast majority of standard laptops. The data we have from iSwitch, a helpful energy retailer, shows that the typical laptop consumes between 30 and 70 watts per hour, with the upper end likely representing gaming machines with a lot of computing power.
What exactly does this mean? A power bank with an average power output of less than 50W probably won't be able to charge a standard laptop. Naturally, it's preferable to choose an option with a higher power output, as this will allow it to charge your laptop more quickly.
b) What Kind of Ports Does It Have, and Will They Work with Your Laptop?
USB-C delivery ports have become the standard for charging laptops; therefore, most portable chargers now feature USB-C output connectors.
However, if your laptop is a bit older, you may want to make sure the charging connector is suitable for the power bank you intend to use. The charging connections and available slots on some laptop models, especially those that are slimmer, are sometimes proprietary. An alternative solution is to use a specialised adaptor to work around this problem.
c) What's the Capacity of the Power Bank? Can It Fully Charge Your Laptop?
Simply put, a power bank's battery capacity refers to the amount of "stored energy" that it possesses. For charging laptops and other large devices, a power bank with sufficient storage space is essential.
In fact, you need to account for several times the energy requirement if you want your power bank to be good for more than one complete charge.
So, to give you an example:
There are 5,100 mAh in the battery of the 13-inch Macbook Air. This particular kind of laptop requires a power bank with a known capacity of at least twice that of the device, which is more than 10,200 mAh if you intend to charge it twice per day.
To put it another way, if your laptop has a large battery, you'll need a power bank with a similar large rating in order to fully recharge it multiple times.
Conclusion
Yes, it is safe to charge your laptop with a power bank as long as you use the correct power bank and cable. Make sure to check the voltage and amperage of your power bank to ensure it is compatible with your device. Some laptop models are more sensitive to voltage fluctuations than others, and it is important to ensure that the power bank has sufficient wattage.
It is also important to make sure that the power bank is adequately charged before using it to charge the laptop.
If you are looking for the best power banks for laptops online, look no further than our amazing selections here at Chargeasap. We are a consumer electronics startup from Sydney and have been creating highly innovative mobile phone accessories since 2016. Feel free to check out our other shop categories above for more of our device accessories for sale and their prices.
