Four signs that you have bought a fake power bank

Power banks have long been indispensable for those who are often away from an outlet. However, there are still fake devices on the market that have significantly exaggerated characteristics. If you are looking for an accessory of a well-known brand and come across an overly attractive offer, you should know how to recognize a fake.

Android Police writes about this.

Unrealistically high capacity

If a small power bank promises 500,000 mAh and costs just over a $25, it's almost certainly a hoax.

The capacity of a battery directly depends on its size and weight. Smart-format power banks usually have about 10,000 mAh, while large 40,000 mAh devices can be the size of a water bottle, and 500,000 mAh models are usually already full-fledged portable power plants.

It's important to remember that even a high-quality power bank never delivers 100% of the charge, as some energy is lost during voltage conversion.

False power indicators

Unscrupulous sellers often indicate exorbitant figures — for example, they claim to support 120 watts instead of the real 20 watts. If the device doesn't charge your smartphone at least as fast as a regular adapter, this is a reason to be wary, especially if it's a "super-powerful" power bank at a very low price.

Quality of packaging and manufacturing

Many fakes are sold without branded packaging, but in ordinary plastic bags. If the power bank does have a box, but it has a blurry image, poor printing, or no instructions, be careful. Fake accessories may also have a different shade of plastic, logo placement, and poor quality of buttons and LEDs.

Some brands, such as Xiaomi or Anker, add special codes for authentication: you can enter them on the manufacturer's website. But even here, there are tricks: fake QR codes can lead to fake websites that pretend to be the original ones.

Conditional "solar panel"

Cheap power banks sometimes have a built-in solar panel, but this is more of a marketing gimmick. In practice, such a panel produces minimal power and can only charge the device significantly under ideal conditions (strong direct sun). In addition, heating the battery in the sun accelerates its wear.

We also wrote that the prices of chargers on the market differ significantly, sometimes even tenfold. Although a more expensive device will usually be of higher quality, this is not always the case.

As a reminder, Android smartphones have the feature that allows you to record the screen. In the new version of the operating system, developers allowed users to record what is happening on an external monitor.