Product Review: RAVPower Portable Chargers & Power Banks

I admit I was a bit skeptical at first when I was contacted by RAVPower to test/review their portable charging devices, but was actually quite impressed once I put them to the test in real world situations with my laptops, iPads, iPhones and GoPros.

I admit I was a bit skeptical at first when I was contacted by RAVPower to test/review their portable charging devices, but was actually quite impressed once I put them to the test in real world situations with my MacBook, iPads, iPhones and GoPros. Especially when you consider their prices!

They seem to be sold through Amazon.com and have their own RAVPower store page there – with an impressive lineup of well-designed chargers and power banks available for well under $100.

So you’re probably wondering “why review these on ProVideo?” – because we all live and work depending on thirsty portable devices and cameras and having the peace of mind you can recharge or run continuously for hours no matter where you are is worth it!

I only tested a couple of their power banks that they sent me, but will look into getting a couple more configurations to see how well they perform in other scenarios. I’ll share what worked on the compatible devices that I use regularly.

PD Pioneer 20100mAh Power Bank

US$59.99

The RAVPower PD Pioneer 20100mAh 45W Power Bank is a potent portable PD charging bank that can recharge your MacBook Pro, any iPad/iPhone and even smaller POV cams like GoPros  or 360 cams and VR headsets.

Compact in size at only 6.3″x 3.0″x 1.0″, this power bank is portable enough to fit in your bag or coat pocket and provide power for multiple devices all day long.

I charged it up the day it arrived and I’ve been testing it over a week with the MacBook Pro, Oculus Go, Vuze+ and GoPro Fusion and HERO7 Black (running several hours recording – see below) and it still has plenty of charging power left in it.

45W of Power Delivery (PD) output compatible with a variety of devices – parallel power to charge 2 devices at the same time with both USB-A and USB-C ports with UL certified and engineered safety systems like short circuit protection, overvoltage and overcurrent protection.

Listed Compatible Products 
MacBook 12Inch 2015/2016/2017/2018
MacBook air 13.3inch 2018
MacBook Pro 13.3inch with touch bar 2018
MacBook Pro 13.3inch 2017/2018
MacBook Pro 15.4inch 2016/2017/2018
MacBook Pro 2016 13/15inch
Dell XPS 13 9350/9360/9370/9365
Dell XPS 15 9570/9575
XPS15-9560-R1845
iPad pro 2017/2018
iPhone 8/8plus/X/XS/XR/XS MAX
Google 2016 pixel
Huawei mate 9/10/20, mate 9 pro, mate 10 pro, mate 20 pro
Huawei P9, P10, P20 PRO
Huawei Honor 9/10/V10

But obviously there are a lot more compatible devices such as I mentioned above!

I did try it out with the Wacom MobileStudio Pro 16 and my Lenovo P51 Thinkpad but neither took the charge through the USB power ports. I really wanted it to be compatible with the Wacom because it does eat up juice and the whole concept is ultimate portability so it would be a perfect power companion otherwise!

I topped-off my MacBook Pro 15 from about 70% to 100% for testing but I didn’t benchmark it for charge time but it was under an hour

External Battery Pack RAVPower 5000 Power Bank 5000mAh Portable Charger

US$15.99

Another unit I tested from RAVPower is their newest “Lipstick” style power bank, the External Battery Pack RAVPower 5000 Power Bank 5000mAh Portable Charger (long name) for smaller devices such as iPhones and smaller tablets. (Although it works great with GoPros too!)

At just over 4″ long and about an inch in diameter, this power bank will go anywhere with you to fully recharge your phone or provide continuous power to reserve your device’s charge under heavy use.

Technical Specifications
Battery Voltage: 3.7V
Battery Capacity: 5000mAh
Battery Cells: Premium Grade A Cells
Charger Input: Micro-USB 5V / 2.0A max
Charger Output: 5V / 2.4A

Rapid charge: 2. 4a output and 2a input with ismart technology delivers optimal charging current for any connected device; 3. 5H (2. 4a input) for a fully charged power bank.

Certified safe: URL safety Certified charger that provides complete protection against short-circuiting, overheating and overcharging.

GoPro Testing

Ok – those of you who follow my reviews know that I do a lot with GoPros. But the biggest design flaw with these cameras is their impotent battery life!

What good is a 64GB MicroSD card if you run out of battery before you can fill up that card with awesome footage! Especially if your GoPro is mounted to a stationary device or in an application where you don’t need it to be waterproof.

With the GoPro HERO7 Black’s new streaming capabilities, you can easily connect the RAVPower directly to the USB-C port on the camera and leave it running for hours!

I used them for some of our band gigs we played the past couple weeks (yeah, that’s me on bass) and could relax knowing that my cameras weren’t going to shut off or die even after 3 solid hours of recording.

What’s remarkable is that you don’t even need to have a battery IN your HERO7 Black and the RAVPower banks will keep them running for hours.

My Take-away:

I really like the design, build quality, performance and even the packaging. Time will tell if they hold up under heavy use, but I know at the price point of these power banks, I’m going to be getting several more – plus keep an eye out if they come up with designs that are more robust and compatible with a larger range of laptops.