Anker Prime 250W power bank reviewed: a reliable must have

One of the biggest power banks may also be the best, as the Anker Prime 250W power bank shows you can keep nearly any gadget you need charged at high speed.

What is the Anker Prime?

Not exactly related to Optimus Prime, Anker’s Prime is a big, meaty power bank made by the winner of our 2023 Best Pick for power banks.

And when we say big, we mean it.

The Anker Prime power bank is tall and thick, like a large building that looms over smaller power banks. It’s almost a monolithic power bank, if such a thing exists.

And yet it’s also better designed than many other large power banks we’ve seen. Comparatively, they’re normally large and flat, taking up the sort of footprint reserved for a small tablet, but weighing more in the process. They contain large batteries, big enough to recharge a laptop if need be or several phone cycles, and so they need to be big and meaty.

The Anker Prime does big and meaty better than some others we’ve seen, and even takes advantage of the recent use of Gallium Nitride or “GaN”, a material that caters for faster charging without as much heat.

What does it do?

A sizeable power bank, the 250W Anker Prime technically includes a whopping 27,650mAh, making it capable of charging a laptop battery at least once or an iPhone three to four times depending on the size of the phone.

And that’s precisely what it does.

Three ports can be found at the top of the Prime, with two Type C USB and one rectangular Type A, giving you three ports of charging potential, or two plus one to recharge the bank itself.

Each of the Type C ports support both in and out charging, so they can be used for high-speed charging another device or even refilling the bank itself, with a single port supporting as much as 140W of high-speed charging.

However, it also can deliver a lot of power quickly, with its three ports covering up to 140W on one Type C port, up to 92W on the second, and up to 18W on the third when used simultaneously, delivering that 250W of total power if you have three devices that can take advantage.

Use one or two ports and the maximum output will change, with one Type C port maxing out at 140W, a second at 100W (for 240W total), or one Type C at 140W and the Type A at a max of 65W (for 205W total).

Basically, your three ports will net you a lot of power for the 27650mAh Anker Prime. There’s plenty of power to spare.

There’s also a screen on the front giving you a read out of power use and consumption, plus how much life is left on the battery.

At the bottom of the Anker Prime power banks is a little port, which is a touch on the proprietary side, but not overly important. From what we understand, it’s a port for the Anker Prime Charging Base, an optional extra that isn’t available in Australia. You don’t need this, mind you, but it’s just worth being aware of.

Anker even includes a cable supporting that 140W maximum charge speed, as well as a handy case, and there’s even a little app for your phone that can tell you how much life is left, the speed and power consumption of what you’re charging, and if you can’t find the device, it’ll call out for it, as well.

The Anker app connects to the power bank using Bluetooth, helped along by the one button on the bank, and you can also use the app to change the brightness setting on the power bank’s screen, which is surprisingly useful.

Does it do the job?

In terms of giving you a solid battery pack, the Anker Prime delivers, thanks in part to just how sizeable it is, but also because it delivers plenty of speed. Plugging it into a laptop is a cinch, and when we bring the Apple MagSafe power connector, can stick with the magnetic charging system used on the Mac, or even just use Type C as we always have.

It’s a similar situation with the Type A and Type C ports in general, but you do need to bring with a cable. Unlike the Anker Nano Power Bank, there’s no plug built directly into the Prime power bank. Anker includes one, but you need to remember to bring it with you. Just keep it in the bag, though. It’s easier that way.

What we love about the Prime is just how well designed it is.

A massive power bank, it can handle practically all of our needs, recharging phone, laptop, and a pair of headphones. Typically, we switch the last one to Type A if need be, or alternate between one of the Type C ports, simply because headphones and earphones typically max out at 5W, and so don’t need scores of power for fast charges.

What does it need?

To Anker’s credit, nearly everything is in the box that you could possibly want for a power bank. The massive 250W bank is accompanied by a USB-C cable to charge nearly any device you may have, laptops included, and there’s even a case.

It could probably do with an extra Type C port, making four rather than three, but that’s a minor issue, and for many people, three ports will be enough.

Is it worth your money?

But the price can be a bit of an obstacle, because spending $300 on a power bank isn’t what everyone has in mind.

In Australia, the 250W Anker Prime is $299.95, which isn’t a bad price by any stretch of the imagination, but also is still a touch on the costly side.

Laptop power banks tend to command a higher price tag as it is, but the 27650mAh range the Anker Prime starts in typically kicks off from $199, though may not necessarily support high wattage charging, sometimes maxing out at between 60 and 95W. This can vary wildly.

Yay or nay?

While the Anker Prime is a little on the high side for pricing, it’s the first power bank we’ve seen to handle charging at such a seriously significant speed and amount. Granted, it weighs around 667 grams, so replacing your regular power brick with it might make your back a little less appreciative, but it’s a big battery that delivers.

We love that it can be used to charge practically anything we own and take with us, too. The high wattage makes it ideal for recharging our laptop, while the second Type C port is fast enough for our phone, as well. And we can use that final port for any number of things: headphones, speaker, camera, or even an eReader of sorts.

There’s just so much power in the Anker Prime, it’s a reliable must have.

If you need to keep a recent laptop and a few other devices charged where ever you go, the 250W Anker Prime makes so much sense. Highly recommended.