At a Glance
Expert’s Rating
Our Verdict
The Anker Astro E5 is a decent power bank at a good price, but there’s nothing here that particularly stands out among other portable chargers. The second-generation Astro E5 looks to be a far more attractive option, both aesthetically and technologically.
Best Prices Today: Anker Astro E5
Anker’s Astro E5 is a dual-output power bank that’ll keep your phone or tablet going for several days on the road. Read our Anker Astro E5 portable charger review. Also see: Best power banks 2018 .
Those changes in the second-generation power bank are the difference between one that stands out from its rivals and another me-too portable USB charger. So bear in mind when reading this review that the second-generation Anker Astro E5 would score significantly higher in our ratings. Also see: Best MiFi 2016 .
The Anker Astro E5 very much reminds us of the RavPower RP-PB13 Deluxe , a £23 14000mAh power bank that has a similar rectangular design, encased in black plastic with a silver-painted central band. This Anker has a gloss finish that’s a magnet to fingerprints, however, and its silver power button and four status LEDs stand out more than the smaller black button and blue LED strip seen on the RavPower. There is little difference in their size and weight, although we prefer the RavPower’s design.
The specs are incredibly similar, too. Both feature 1A (5W) and 2A (10W) fast-charging USB outputs for simultaneously charging a phone and tablet, although here they sit either side of the LED flashlight rather than to the left. And both have a 1.5A (7.5W) Micro-USB input for refilling their own batteries. There is really very little separating between the two, and your decision will likely be swayed by their design rather than the small differences in price and capacity. This Anker’s 18-month warranty is also attractive.
Neither Anker nor RavPower support advanced features such as passthrough charging, so you won’t be able to simultaneously charge your phone, tablet and power bank without using a pair of mains sockets. Auto-on/-off is also missing, so to begin charging you’ll need to plug in your device and press the power button.
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Specs
Anker Astro E5: Specs
- First-gen Anker Astro E5: 15000mAh power bank
- 1x 1A (5W) USB output
- 1 x 2A (10W) USB output
- 1x 1.5A (7.5W) Micro-USB input
- carry case
- 126x77x24mm
- 316g
- 18-month warranty Second-gen Anker Astro E5: 16000mAh power bank
- 1x 2A (10W) USB output
- 1x 2A (10W) Micro-USB input
- PowerIQ technology
- 150x62x22mm
- 296g
- 18-month warranty
Best Prices Today: Anker Astro E5
Author: Marie Black, Global Director of Content Operations, Foundry
Marie is Global Director of Content Operations at Foundry. A Journalism graduate from the London College of Printing, she’s worked in tech media for 20 years. These days she is focused on refining editorial processes and workflows, and on our evergreen, transactional and custom content strategy.
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