(Last Updated On: April 28, 2019)

Most power banks these days seem to feature most of the same features and by that we mean they all have the same power capacity ranges, similar sizes, and Outputs.

With that said, at this point what makes a power bank better than other ones is the small details that they have.

The small details are the ways that the charging speeds are set up, the conversion of power, and the recharge rates.

Those are the things that are more important than just what’s on the surface, and those are differences that you should pay attention to when you’re purchasing a new power bank.

This is the PowerAdd Pilot X7 20,000mAh power bank. Let’s see if it has all the details to make it an extraordinary power bank.

Other Types of 20,000mAh Power Banks:

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Power

Power Capacity:

The power capacity of the PowerAdd Pilot X7 starts at 20,000mAh and that can change quite drastically because the power bank doesn’t make use of any special batteries because it uses the common Grade A+ lithium Polymer batteries and then there are inefficiencies when the power goes through a charging cable as well.

As a result, you’ll be getting about 70% of a conversion rate and that’s going to be about 14,000mAh of power capacity that you’ll actually be able to use.

With that said, even though a conversion rate of 70% is very normal with lots of power banks, you’re still losing 6,000mAh worth of power that could have been used to potentially charge a smartphone 2 more full times.

It’s with 14,000mAh of power that is able to charge most smartphones 5 times or more and you’ll be able to charge to charge an iPhone 6s about 8 full times.

So for smartphones, even though the Output power capacity is a lot lower than the starting one, it’s still very useful and the power bank can be used for days without needing a recharge.

If you’re charging Mini sized tablets then you’ll be able to get about 1.7 charges, and charge full-sized tablets will result in 1.3 full charges. Ultimately, even though the conversion rate of the power capacity isn’t that good, it still manages to get charging devices to their full power very well.

Devices	PowerAdd X7 20,000mAh Power Bank (Output Capacity = 14,000mAh)	Phone Capacity	PowerAdd X7 20,000mAh Power Bank Left Over Capacity after One Charge # of Full Charges for the Device
iPhone SE	14,000mAh	1,624mAh	12,376mAh 8.6 Full Charges
iPhone 6	14,000mAh	1,810mAh	12,190mAh 7.7 Full Charges
iPhone 6 Plus	14,000mAh	2,915mAh	11,085mAh 4.8 Full Charges
iPhone 6s	14,000mAh	1,715mAh	12,285mAh 8.1 Full Charges
iPhone 6s Plus	14,000mAh	2,750mAh	11,250mAh 5.0 Full Charges
Samsung Galaxy S6	14,000mAh	2,550mAh	11,450mAh 5.4 Full Charges
Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge	14,000mAh	2,600mAh	11,400mAh 5.3 Full Charges
Samsung Galaxy S7	14,000mAh	3,000mAh	11,000mAh 4.6 Full Charges
Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge	14,000mAh	3,600mAh	10,400mAh 3.8 Full Charges
Samsung Galaxy S8+	14,000mAh	3,500mAh	10,500mAh 4 Full Charges

Output Charging:

This is where the powering capabilities of the PowerAdd X7 aren’t designed that well and many other portable chargers on the market make the same mistake too.

The mistake that is made is that each of the charging ports has their own fixed charging speed and as a result when you’re charging 2 devices at once, one device will always have the short end of the stick that has the slower charging port.

5V/2.1A Port:

This charging port is labeled to be the charging port that you’d use tablets with and even though this makes sense because tablets are able to charge their fastest at a 2 Amp range and higher; smartphones are also able to charge at their max charging speed with 2 amps also.

So even if you’re only charging a smartphone with the power bank, it’s best to use the 5V/2.1A charging port that has 2 Lightning marks on it. Since using the “Smartphone” charging port only Outputs 1 Amp which will limit your charging speed.

5V/1.0A:

Labeled as the smartphone port, this charging port is best to be avoided because it just outputs a single amp and most devices have their max charging speeds above that.

With that said, when you’re charging 2 devices at once with the power bank, choose the what devices you want to charge faster and place them accordingly with the charging ports.

On the bright side, the Max Output of the power bank is 3.1A and that means you can use the full power of each of the charging ports at the same time.

Input Charging:

If you’re using a 2 Amp wall charger to recharge the PowerAdd power bank then that will result in the max recharge rate 5V/2.0A so the power bank will recharge to its full power capacity within 11-12 hours.

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Design

Size and Weight:

When you have a larger power capacity, the power bank is going to be larger too.

The PowerAdd X7 has a length of 6.1 inches, a width of 3.1 inches and a thickness of 0.9 inches. Even though it’s not humongous, what makes holding the power bank a cumbersome thing is its weight of 15.7 ounces and that’s basically a pound.

Functional Components:

There aren’t any surprises here with how the power bank functions.

On the short side of the charger is where you’ll find 2 USB charging Output ports and a flashlight in-between them. A micro-USB Input port can be found on the long side of the charger.

On top of the power bank is where there is a power button and 4 Blue LED power capacity indicators.

Charging automatically starts when you plug a device into the charger and it automatically stops charging either when the device is fully recharged or when there aren’t any devices connected to the power bank.

That leaves the power button with 2 main functions of checking power capacity and turning on the flashlight by holding it down for 3 seconds to turn it on and holding it down again to turn it off.

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Build

Structure and Material:

The build of the PowerAdd X7 is nothing special but it’s still pretty good with the centerpiece having 2 separate pieces and the other 2 pieces are its side panels. The thickness of the plastic is very high.

Tech:

The power bank makes use of the common safety tech like Current-Control, Over-heating, and Over-Charging protections to make sure that you and your devices are safe during charging.

Reliability

Even though the PowerAdd power bank is reliable, there are not many parts or really any parts of the power bank that make it extraordinary.

The power capacity can have a better conversion rate, the charging speeds can share their current throughout each of the charging ports and the weight of the charger could be lighter.

There really aren’t parts that make it better than average and it’s within the major parts of the power bank is where most of the problems lay.

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Summary:

Power:

The power capacity isn’t that high because the conversion rate is just at 70% so you’re missing a lot of power.

Charging speed design is quite bad for when you’re charging 2 devices at once because one device will always be getting the slower charging.

Design:

It’s a small power bank but a heavy one that can make it seem larger than it really is.

Build:

The build is strong and makes use of very thick plastic but that most likely won’t save it from a drop to a hard floor.

Reliability:

For what it has at the surface, the PowerAdd power bank has reliable parts. However, it’s the things within the major portions of the portable charger that make it very mediocre to rely on.

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Specs of the PowerAdd X7 20,000mAh Power Bank:

• Capacity:            Advertised: 20,000mAh            Output Capacity: 14,000mAh
• Output:

Port 1: 5V/2.1A

Port 2: 5V/1.0A

• Input:   5V/2.0A Via Micro-USB Input
• LED Power Indicators: 4 LED Dotted Power Capacity Indicators
• Size: 6.1 x 3.1 x 0.9 inches
• Weight: 15.7 Ounces

Conclusion:

What have we learned from this power bank review?

It’s that even though a power bank has lots of major features like a high power capacity, 2 charging ports, and a small size; the main things to look out for is what each of those things offers in detail.

Whether power capacity is going through a good conversion rate, if the charging speed design is good for charging 2 devices at once or if the small power bank is even lightweight.