It might seem a bit odd to be passionate about chargers, and even stranger to have a favourite, but I am, and I do.
Anker’s absolutely fantastic Prime 250W is my current favourite. It was released back in the summer and offers the ability to charge multiple devices with a maximum output of 250W while displaying nerdy specs like current charge speed on its built-in display.
The problem that I, and most other passionate charger fans, have is the associated cost; at £169.99/$169.99, it’s probably one of the most expensive chargers on the market, even if it can charge up to six devices at the same time at relatively high wattages.
Amazon slashes the price of the Anker Prime 250W for Black Friday
Amazon has slashed the price of the top-end Anker Prime 250W by £40, bringing it down to a more affordable £129.99.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a premium price for a charger, but it’s a damn sight more tempting at its reduced price point – especially for self-proclaimed charging nerds like myself.
It’s at this point that I’m sure many are you are thinking “Why the hell would I spend over £100/$100 on a charger?”. Well, let me explain.
There’s of course the big headline feature that this desktop charger can output up to 250W of power at any given time. This means that you could in theory charge two laptops simultaneously – but let’s be honest, how many people will this actually apply to?
For me, there are a few other reasons to really enjoy the Anker Prime 250W. First up, with that wattage available, the Anker Prime can power just about anything that gets a top-up via USB-C, be it laptops, tablets, phones or even smart home accessories. You name it, the Anker Prime will get it topped up.
There’s also the built-in screen, which tells you exactly how much power is being used overall, as well as how much power each individual USB port is receiving at a given time. This allows me to not only geek out about charge speeds, but it helps me verify fast charging claims made by tech manufacturers in my reviews.
Sometimes manufacturers will advertise fast charging, only for that to be active for the first few minutes of the charge process. The Anker Prime can sniff this out a mile away, as long as it supports the product’s fast charge system.
I also love the sheer number of ports available on the charger; four USB-C ports and two USB-A ports sat on the right-hand side. The number of ports, all able to be provided with charge simultaneously, has essentially allowed me to ditch not only my phone charger, but my tablet charger and even my laptop charger, instead having three short USB-C cables on my desk ready for use.
And, finally, this may be very niche, but it connects to the Anker app for iOS and Android that lets you check on charge speeds and even create your own custom charge schedules for specific ports.
I, for example, have a timer set up that only powers on the USB-C port charging my laptop between 9:30am and 5:30pm (my working hours) to avoid overcharging the device and degrading the battery when it’s not in active use.
Is it overkill? Possibly. But I still think that the Anker Prime 250W is worth the cost – especially with Amazon’s incredibly tempting offer.
