REASONS TO BUY
Great capacity
REASONS TO AVOID
Expensive
Not terribly convenient
Not the most portable
Anker PowerCore Speed 20000 Review
While this battery does have an impressive capacity, it otherwise failed to distinguish itself
The Anker PowerCore Speed 20000.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
By David Wise ⋅ Senior Review Editor ⋅ October 25, 2018
Contributions From: Austin Palmer
Our Verdict
Scoring in the middle of the pack, the Anker PowerCore Speed 20000 is one of the larger battery packs but is far from being one of our favorites. There are other larger batteries that we liked a bit better, finding the PowerCore Speed 20000 to be a bit on the pricey side and lacking convenience features. It's a bit too big to be easily carried in a pocket and takes a very long time to recharge, although it can charge devices an impressive number of times.
Our Analysis and Test Results
This portable battery finished just behind the OtterBox Power Pack 10000, but exceeded the performance of the RAVPower Ace 22000. The OtterBox is a little more portable than the Anker but has much less capacity and is less convenient to use. It also costs about $10 less. The RAVPower scored is slightly less portable than the Anker, but we still favored it overall, as it's cheaper with a larger capacity.
This battery pack isn't great to carry around in a pocket.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Portability
This battery is one of the larger ones of the bunch, having a rectangular form factor that measures 6.6" long, 2.4" wide, and 0.8" deep.
This is one of the larger and heavier batteries that we tested.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Unsurprisingly, this portable battery is also one of the heaviest models, weighing in at a little less than 13 oz.
The longer and slimmer profile of this battery actually make it not horrendous to carry around in a pocket.
The larger batteries are much more suited to being carried in a bag than a pocket.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
While it usually will stick quite a ways out of both a front or back pocket, it's not overly cumbersome to sit or stand with it, but is definitely noticeable. We usually found it preferable to store this battery pack in a larger jacket pocket or a bag or backpack rather than carry it around in a pants pocket.
The dummy load allowed us to test the capacity at different discharge rates.
Credit: Austin Palmer
Capacity
This portable USB battery has a stated capacity of 20,000 mAh and we were able to get a little over 60% of the stated capacity out of this battery, or 12,175 mAh, using our dummy load set to a discharge rate of 2.4 amps. We repeated this test with the discharge rate set at 1 amp and got a bit more energy out — 12, 428 mAh — but not by much. We liked that this battery was able to maintain a 2.4 amp discharge rate the entire time.
For our next test, we looked at the claimed 4 Galaxy S7, 6 iPhone 7, or 1.5 iPad Air 2 charges that Anker says you should be able to get out of this portable battery. Using our Samsung Galaxy S8 test phone, we found that it exceeded the roughly comparable S7 claim, as we were able to charge our phone 4.48 times before the battery completely died.
You need to make sure the battery has an adequate discharge rate if you want to charge multiple devices as quickly as possible.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Added Convenience
The PowerCore Speed pretty basic in design. While you can charge multiple electronic devices at once with this charger, it lacks integrated convenience features.
The pair of output ports and recharging port on the Anker.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
There is no built-in flashlight module, no built-in cables, and no integrated method to recharge the battery, requiring an additional cable for both of those tasks. However, a micro USB cable is included with the PowerCore Speed. Additionally, there is also an 18-month limited warranty included as well.
This battery takes a very long time to recharge.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Recharge Time
The PowerCore Speed is one of the largest battery packs, so it's at a bit of a disadvantage in here. It took quite a long time — a whopping 485 minutes before the LED lights indicated that it was fully charged.
Value
This battery isn't a great value option, as there are less expensive options that have even more capacity out there.
Conclusion
While the Anker's only real deficiencies are its somewhat limited portability and its longer than average recharge time, we are still a bit hesitant to recommend it. It does have a huge capacity, but other batteries have an even larger capacity and cost less, while being just a little bit less portable — somewhat of a non-issue, as most people are going to be carrying these larger batteries around in a purse or other bag, rather than a pocket.
—David Wise and Austin Palmer
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