I want to get one of these, and rig it up in a case of some sort with my
raspberry pi. I wonder how long it could power the pi. Someone I saw
online built a laptop into a case, and used a battery similar to this one,
and it ran for about 2 days off of one charge of this battery. I'd have
to think that the pi would be good for a week or more on a single charge
of such a battery. I really need to look into getting meone of these
things. I use a power juice now, and it will run my pi for about an hour,
which isn't a whole lot, but it's enough when I need to be away for just a
little while, and still need access to a machine.
On Fri, 16 Sep 2016, Dane Trethowan wrote:
Review: RAVPower RP-PB14 Xtreme ? The Last Portable Battery You?ll Ever Need?
August 27, 2014
RAVPower RP-PB14 Xtreme
I?m starting to think I might have a problem. My interest in external batteries
may be turning into a fetish, but these energy stores are important to our
digital lifestyles. The latest electron pump to whet my appetite is the
RAVPower RP-PB14 Xtreme.
Xtreme is a clue to this units performance, this is one meaty power pack.
Weighing in at over half a kilo and with dimensions of 18.5 cms x 12.4 cms x
1.8 cms, this isn?t going to fit in your pocket. But its huge capacity is its
advantage and it?s still small enough to fit in pretty much any bag.
The 23,000mAh 5v output will, for example, fully recharge an iPhone around 12
times, a Galaxy S4 around 7 times and even an iPad Air from empty to full
twice over. In addition the battery can output a range of higher voltages to
power netbooks, notebooks and laptops too.
The Kit
As well as the battery itself, the kit comes with 4 charger tips for mobile
devices (Samsung, Nokia, mini and micro USB) as well as 2 x USB power leads,
plus a range of 10 charger tips for laptops (see below) and a DC lead to hook
them up. There?s also a felt carry case to pack it all into.
RAVPower RP-PB14 Xtreme Kit
Feel the Power
The little LCD screen gives the unit an air of quality and shows the remaining
power level of the cells (both visually in bars as well as a percentage
value). In addition the USB symbol appears when charging through either of the
USB ports.
RAVPower RP-PB14 Xtreme LCD Display
The upper aluminium body (plastic bottom half) helps with heat dissipation and
there are 4 ports along the top edge of the case. From left to right, first is
the input port, this is used to charge the battery from the supplied AC Mains
charger (15-24v 2A) which will work around the world as it?s 100-240V 50-60Hz.
It takes around 6 hours to fully charge.
RAVPower RP-PB14 Xtreme Ports
Next along is the USB 2 port, this is a 2.5A output that will charge an iPad
at full speed as well as those other power greedy devices like the Galaxy Tab
or Nexus 7. The USB 1 port is a standard 1.0A output for your iPhone, Android
smartphone, Portable Game Console etc. Finally the right-most port is the DC
Output for charging laptops and notebooks.
Check the AC adaptor for your laptop to determine the voltage required, then
hold down the single function button until the voltage value begins to flash.
Press the button again to cycle through the output options (9, 12, 16, 19 and
20 volts). Once you arrive at the correct value leave it flashing for a few
seconds and it will stop and lock to that output.
Apple Magsafe Cord / CableThe 10 notebook tips included in the kit will
connect the battery to most units from Acer, Asus, Benq, Dell, HP, Lenovo,
Samsung, Sony and Toshiba.
Being a MacBook household there?s an obvious omission from that list, no doubt
because of Apple?s proprietary connector. However a quick search turns up these
inexpensive Apple Magsafe and Magesafe 2 cords so it may be possible to rig
something up for your Cupertino computer. But plug any Heath Robinson
contraption into your shiny, expensive MacBook at your own risk.
You can use both USB Smart Ports at once (3.5A max) and even simultaneously
charge 3 devices by adding your laptop at the same time (4.5A max total
output). The instructions allude to an 80% efficiency stating that the unit
will ??consume about 20% of the total capacity, including power loss from
circuit
heat and voltage conversion?.
RAVPower say the Lithium-Polymer cells employed by their unit are more stable
and safer than Li-ion and they are good for over 500 recharge cycles. They are
keen to point out the other safety features of this unit too and quote
protection for overcharge, overvoltage, overcurrent, overtemperature and short
circuit with auto-shut down where required. In normal use the unit will auto
power off between 5 and 20 seconds after its been disconnected.
Bottom Line
We recently packed the RP-PB14 on a long family car journey and even though
there was USB power available in the car, the rear seat passengers preferred
to use the battery as it meant those (short) lightning and micro-USB cables
weren?t as stretched and restrictive as they were when plugged into the car
adaptor.
The enormous capacity of the RAVPower unit would be especially useful on long
flights. Although I?ve noticed there?s an increased risk of being pulled at
airport security these days with a battery in your hand luggage. I?ve been
stopped at the X-Ray on 4 out of the last 4 flights I?ve taken so they could
take a closer look at this smaller battery.
<br />
My daughter can seemingly drain any smartphone battery in just a few hours and
as she?s starting university in a few weeks this is going to be the perfect
device for her backpack. Popularity with her fellow IT students should be
assured too when word gets out that she?s packing a power source that?ll keep
multiple devices juiced-up throughout the day.
The RAVPower Xtreme is sturdy, high-capacity energy source that will see most
people through many days of travel, camping, power outage or whatever. If you?re
after a beefy battery that?s flexible enough to charge most modern electronics
then it?s certainly a worthy candidate for anyones shortlist. Available now for
around ?80.
**********
Those of a positive and enquiring frame of mind will leave the rest of the
halfwits in this world behind.
--------------------------------------------
This email was sent from my http://softcon.buyhostnow.com/ web hosting account.
