Review: Anker Compact Car Jump Starter 400A Peak Current

Anker Compact Car Jump Starter 400A Peak Current

7.9

Power

9.0/10

Design

7.0/10

Build

7.5/10

Reliability

8.0/10

Pros

  • It can Jump Start Car that have either a 3L Gas Engine for 2.5L Diesel Engine or lower.
  • Can charge 2 devices at once with each port Outputting 5V/2.1A and a Max Output of 4.2A.
  • Features a flashlight with 3 different settings.

Cons

  • Large and Heavy. Mainly meant for staying in your car for those emergencies.
(Last Updated On: December 3, 2018)

Most of the time, Portable chargers that are also Car Jump Starters aren’t the most capable of power banks since most of their focus is to simply jump-start a car.

That’s not always the case, and it really shouldn’t even be the case because customers want a power bank that can do both very well. Charging their devices and also being able to Jump Start their vehicle if the need arises.

We know it’s asking a lot for a device as portable as a power bank but we’re getting to a point where portable chargers are able to double as something and have more use than just being able to charge smartphones and tablets.

Like this Anker Compact Car Jump Starter that can start cars and charge your devices to some pretty good lengths.

DBPower 18,000mAh Jump Starter Power Bank

Power

Power Capacity:

The Anker Car Jump Starter has an initial power capacity of 10,000mAh, and it can lose quite a lots of its power during charging depending on the way that you’re using the power bank. This is because the Portable charger has 2 charging ports and just uses normal Lithium Polymer batteries.

If you’re using 2 charging ports at the same time and using a lot of the power bank’s Output, then you’re most likely going to be left with an Output power capacity of 8,000mAh. This is pretty good, though.

Charging Smartphones and Tablets to Full Power

This makes the Output power capacity very versatile because you’ll be able to charge your smartphones about 3 times or more.

You’ll even be able to charge 2 smartphones at the same time to their full power capacities. Charging tablets doesn’t pose too much of a challenge because you’ll be able to charge an iPad Mini 2 and 4 series up to their full power capacities and still have just a sliver of power capacity left to use.

Charging Full-Sized tablets will result in them likely being a charge to their full power, but taking the entire power capacity the Anker portable charger with them.

It has a very usable and versatile power capacity that can be heavily relied on for charging your personal devices other than jump starting your car.

DevicesAnker Compact Car Jump Starter 400A Peak Current (Output Capacity = 8,000mAh )Phone CapacityAnker Compact Car Jump Starter Left Over Capacity after One Charge

# of Full Charges for the Device
iPhone SE8,000mAh 1,624mAh6,376mAh Left Over

4.9 Full Charges
iPhone 68,000mAh 1,810mAh6,190mAh Left Over

4.4 Full Charges
iPhone 6 Plus8,000mAh 2,915mAh5,085mAh Left Over

2.7 Full Charges
iPhone 6s8,000mAh 1,715mAh6,285mAh Left Over

4.6 Full Charges
iPhone 6s Plus8,000mAh 2,750mAh5,250mAh Left Over

2.9 Full Charges
Samsung Galaxy S68,000mAh 2,550mAh5,450mAh Left Over

3.1 Full Charges
Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge8,000mAh 2,600mAh5,400mAh Left Over

3.0 Full Charges
Samsung Galaxy S78,000mAh 3,000mAh5,000mAh Left Over

2.6 Full Charges
Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge8,000mAh 3,600mAh4,400mAh Left Over

2.2 Full Charges
Samsung Galaxy S8+8,000mAh 3,500mAh4,500mAh Left Over

2.2 Full Charges

Power for your Car:

If you’ve got the Portable Jump Starter topped off to its full power, you can potentially jump-start a 3L Gas Engine or 2.5L Diesel Engine vehicle about 15 times over. With that said, there are a certain thing to remember.

  • Don’t continuously Jump Start your Car. You must wait 10 seconds or more.
  • Stop using if there are bulges in the power bank.
  • Don’t use the power bank to jump start your car if there’s less than 25% of power capacity left.

Output Charging:

The Output charging power of the portable charger is really good. There are 2 charging ports and each of them is able to Output a charging speed of 5V/2.1A. The individual charging speed of each of them is quite close to a Max standard charging speed and as a result, you’ll be able to charge most standard charging device at their max charging speeds.

Meaning that smartphones that aren’t compatible with USB-C or Quick Charge will be able to charge at their max charging speeds. You’ll also be able to charge tablets like iPads near their max charging speeds as well.

The best part is that you can use each of the USB charging Output ports at their max charging speeds since the Max Output of the power bank is 4.2A, you can use 2.1A and 2.1A and they’ll just add up to the Max Output exactly.

Jumping Starting Cars:

As we mentioned before, this power bank will only be able to Jump Start cars that have either a 3L Gas Engine or a 2.5 Diesel Engine. It has a starting Current of 200A and a Peak Current of 400A.

Input Charging:

Charging is rather unusual with this portable charger because it uses a 15V Wall charger to recharge itself, or you can use the 15V Car Charger because the power banks come with Wall and Car chargers.

When you’re using either of those the power bank is able to recharge itself at 15V/1.0A and that will result in a full recharge within 4-5 hours.

Similar Portable Jump Starter

Jackery New Spark Portable Jump Starter

Design

Size and Weight:

So it’s pretty large, and at the same time is quite heavy. So it’s best to use this power bank while it’s set down.

It has a length of 7.3 inches, the width of 3.3 inches and a thickness of 1.7 inches. It weighs nearly a pound at 12.4 ounces. Of course, if you’re searching for a more portable 10,000mAh power bank then it’s best to search for ones that don’t double as Jump Starters for the car because there are plenty out there which you can check out here.

The main reason it’s so large and bulky is that it’s also a Car Jump Starter and you’re not expected to hold this and walk around with it. It’s best to keep this in your vehicle as long as it’s under 140 degrees Fahrenheit or above -4 degrees Fahrenheit.

Functional Components:

Most the power bank’s features are on a single side.

On the long side is where you’ll find 2 USB Output charging ports, a LED power capacity indicator bar that also indicates to show what’s happening when you’re jumping your car, 2 USB Output charging ports, the DC Input port, and the Car Jumper ports that are covered by a flap.

There’s a flashlight that can found on the short side and a power button on top of the power bank.

So charging automatically starts when you plug a device into the USB charging ports and that leaves the power button for 2 main features, with the power button is able to control flashlight functionality and the Car Jumping power.

To use the flashlight, hold down the power button for 3-5 seconds and the flashlight will turn on in its normal form. You can then press the power button to change the flashlight to other kinds of lights like SOS and Strobe. Turning off the flashlight is done by holding the power button again.

What do the LED Power Capacity Lights Mean?

When the LED power capacity indicators are red, then that means nothing is charging and you’re probably just pressing the power button to check the power capacity. When the LED lights are green, then that means that charging is taking place.

Build

Structure and Material:

It’s all of made of plastic but the power bank has lots of bulky pieces that stick out from itself and that’s able to result in a build quality being stronger than most other power banks that are also made of plastic.

Tech:

When you have portable chargers that are able to provide power to devices like our smartphones and also able to Jump Start cars, things can get a bit wonky.

This is mainly on the side of using the portable charger as a Jump Starting device because if you’re using it heavily that can put a lot of strain on the power bank’s tech like its batteries and Circuitry. Which can result in damage and swelling of the batteries.

However swelling of batteries is more common for power banks that use Polymer batteries and this case, this one uses Ion batteries.

For the most part, it’s a safe and stable charging experience and Anker notes that they use lots of safety tech to make sure that each Jump Start is supposed to be stable for the power bank and that you should wait 10 seconds or more between Jumps.

RAVPower 18,000mAh Portable Jump Starter

Reliability

It’s highly reliable for those that are searching for emergency power in cases of their personal small devices and for Jump Starting their very large personal device, their car. In all seriousness, this Anker Jump Starting power bank is highly useful for those time when you need a jump start for your car and power for your devices.

We’re really surprised that its Output power through its charging ports is fast and are able to use their full charging power at the same time.

Similar Portable Jump Starter

Beatit Tech 500A Portable Jump Starter

Summary

Power:

Power Capacity doesn’t burn out too much during charging and that’s able to result in the portable charger having enough Output power capacity to charge most smartphones multiple times over and it can also charge tablets very well too.

Charging speeds are great between both charging ports at 2.1A and it has a Max Output of 4.2A. Recharging is unique since the power banks aren’t recharged through the common Micro-USB Input port, instead, you use a DC Input.

Design:

It’s large and rather heavy and for the most part, it’s not meant for on-the-go purposes.

Build:

A strong build quality when it comes to its structure and tech build qualities. With that said, the power bank can have a risk of getting damaged if you’re getting really heated with the Jump Starts.

Reliability:

Of course, reliability is really good, especially if you have this in your car and need a Jump Start.

More Portable Jump Starter Reviews

Specs of the Anker Compact Car Jump Starter 400A Peak Current:

  • Capacity:            Advertised: 10,000mAh            Output Capacity: 8,000mAh
  • Output:  

Each Port: 5V/2.1A 

Max Output: 4.2A

  • Input:      15V/1.0A
  • LED Power Indicators: Power Capacity Bar
  • Size: 7.3 x 3.3 x 1.7 inches
  • Weight: 12.4 Ounces

Conclusion

We didn’t always view portable chargers that double as Car Jump Starters as the most useful kind of portable chargers. Mainly because they’re just bigger and heavier than traditional ones.

However, this Anker one dissolves most of that though because it’s able to bring lots of power and pretty good design choices to the table that make this worth the price of being reliable in 2 major powering areas.

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