Customer Reviews

Duracell Instant USB Charger with Lithium ion battery / includes universal cable with USB and mini USB,

5 star:		(50)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I like to watch movies on my iPod Touch on long flights, so after looking into a number of dedicated iPod battery solutions that cost $75 or more, I found this nifty solution for a fraction of the cost. Since I wasn't sure how much extra juice I would need for video playback for up to ten hours, I picked up three of these when they were on sale for $15, figuring that would be enough to do the job.

I ran the fully charged iPod with one of these batteries connected from the outset (as opposed to waiting for the iPod to drain and then recharge it later), and, surprisingly, made it through an entire long haul flight from L.A. to Tokyo with only one battery. In fact, there was still plenty of charge left on the iPod when I landed, so the other two batteries turned out to be unnecessary. Since these Lithium-Ion batteries are so lightweight, it didn't matter anyway -- I see no downside to a little overkill when it comes to reserve power. The only minor gripe I have is that it's easy to accidentally hit the ON/OFF switch when stuffing these into my bag, which seems to allow them to discharge more rapidly over time. A little care when packing should prevent this.

This product is an example of a simple, elegant solution that's also very low cost compared with dedicated recharging products. I'd recommend investing in a couple of these to anyone who depends on portable devices that can be charged via USB.

I've been extremely happy with this product! With the unit fully charged, it will take my iPhone 3G from about 1/4 charge to a full charge in about 45 minutes. It's an extremely simple design. It has a mini-USB connector on the bottom labeled IN which is where you plug it in to charge, and then a full-sized USB connector labeled OUT on the top where you connect your device's USB cable. The IN port has an LED indicator which is RED while the unit is charging and GREEN once it's fully charged. On the face of the unit near the "copper top" there's another indicator light that is GREEN while charging your iPhone/Blackberry/RAZR and RED once charging is complete and the unit is drained.

I would highly recommend this unit for heavy iPhone users on the go. It's not the most optimal solution, but until Apple makes an iPhone with interchangeable batteries, it's the best option we've got.

I used to use a "MintyBoost" power supply, but the thing always seemed to have dead batteries and it is rather heavy, so I reluctantly decided to look for a replacement. This Duracell looked like the most responsive to my needs--others are beefier but they are much bigger and heavier--so I took a run at this one and have been pretty pleased. It's feather light and will charge off of just about any USB output, and it provides enough juice to charge and/or operate most USB appliances at least partially. The on-off switch is handy and not overly easy to flip on by accident. It has a charging state indicator on one end next to the "input" and a power state indicator on the top fascia next to the Duracell logo. I have gotten it to work successfully and consistently with my 3G iPod, Blackberry, and Plantronics Blue-Toof earbuds. I have gotten it to work with my 2G Kindle only once, with difficulty, and slooooowly--I don't know what the problem is here, still troubleshooting on this; it could be something about my USB micro adapter. Since the Kindle's battery life is EXTREMELY long and since I classify the Kindle as not-quite-essential during travel--there is wailing and gnashing without it, but I survive and am not fired--this is not a huge big deal, though it is annoying. Hence, 4 instead of 5 stars (for now at least).

Something I had trouble confirming from Duracell's website--which, by the way, is not overly informative as it is mostly MARKETING HYPE about their AWESOME PRODUCTS and how many MILLIAMP HOURS they all offer, and doesn't provide device compatibility or current capability info that I can find--is that there is an A-type USB female on one end that is the "output" and a 5-pin B-type USB mini female on the other end that is the "input." This is the layout you would expect but I had a deuce of a time confirming it before purchase. Thus, for most appliances, the plugs, adapters, and gee-gaws you already have will let you use this unit-no need to buy more. It ships with a wee little A-type male to 5-pin B-type male that is actually kind of handy itself.

Recommended, but be wary if you want to use it with a Kindle.

LATER ADDITION: Now eight months later and I've had some time to use it. I weigh it at 1.5 ounces, and it has 1100mAh capacity with 0.6A / 3W max load printed on the label. There is an indicator on it that tells you when it's on, when it's charged, and when it needs charging. You can get a well-reviewed 5000mAh supply for about 5 ounces, but I'm thinking of buying a second one of these so that I have a backup around if I screw up and discharge one and because I am tired of lugging heavy crap all over the world's largest airports on a regular basis. These performance numbers seem reasonable to me; I get about a third of a tank if I empty it into my iPhone 4, and my older Blackberry would accept it, too (you know they're crazy at AIM about having 500mA on their charger input), so the 600mA seems plausible.

small & cute & light. This is Model PPS2. Model number not apparent on product image, it's from the battery's own label backing. A convenient small recharger using a USB port. I already have a Dexim Bluepak for the Ipod Touch, but it's too restricting when traveling with other devices which cannot use it. Tried the Duracell charger upon arrival. Took a few hrs to charge up. Took about as long to recharge a dead ipod touch to almost 100%. Only enough juice to do that 1 charge. Tried to charge a dead touch again, no juice (I did power off the Duracell in between). For under $25, performed as expected. Like being able to use if for many devices - like an ematic mp3 player. Of course, must supply your own plug for charging, but the Duracel comes with a single usbµ usb cord which can be used for both charging the Duracel or for duracel to device charging. Like the on-off switch & the indicator lights for charging battery & charging devices. Wish there was a charge-supply-indicator light, so I know how much juice is left.

Been looking for a solution like this and my thought process was to buy a battery from a battery manufacturer rather than a Belkin or Griffin. Works perfectly and is a great spare battery. It is also very very light so you can keep it plugged in while using the phone that's being charged!

I brought this battery pack for my iPhone 4 for when I'm on longer bicycle rides (8 hours plus) and I'm using GPS the entire time. I didn't need anything that gave me a full charge, but something that was light, easy to carry and gave me a few extra hours. This product does exactly that.

It is 100% compatible with the iPhone 4 (couldn't find anything that says it was prior to me purchasing it). From a fully charged battery pack and a dead iPhone 4, it charges it to 55% before the battery is drained. Running a GPS program and listening to music that gives me another 3-4 hours of life, which is exactly what I wanted.

If you are looking for something that will give you a quick charge, then I would highly recommend this product. For the low cost it can't be beat. However, if you are looking for a battery pack that gives you a COMPLETE charge (depending on the device) you may consider something with more mAh (Milliamp Hours).

It comes with a USB cable for charging the battery pack and takes about 2 hours to fully charge from completely drained when plugged into my computer's USB port. It has a small on/off switch on the side and an easy to ready LED light on the front. Green is on and charged, Amber is on and drained, no LED is off.

If you have a device that can be charged by plugging it into your computer, then this battery pack should work on that device. Instead of plugging the device into the computer, you plug it into this device and turn it on.

Just to further test its capabilities, I was also able to partially charge a Kindle (2nd Gen), an iPhone 3GS, iPod Nano (3rd gen), and a BlackBerry 9700.

didn't know how useful this item was till the lights went out and my cell had only less than one bar.with the lights out most of nite it charged my cell to the max.talked all nite with the lights out.

I ordered this Instant USB charger from Duracell to backup my iPhone 3GS when I travel and it does exactly that, charging time for the battery itself is very impressive but even more impressive is how fast your iPhone is charged using this device.
Would recommend it for any USB powered portable device.

I got this unit as a possible back-up charger for my iPhone 4. I was immediately concerned at the unit's small size when I first got it. Certainly, the iPhone 4's battery is larger than this. My fears were confirmed when I connected my iPhone 4 which was at 10% battery. After about two hours, my iPhone battery was up to 60%, but the Duracell's power light went off -- meaning its batteries were completely exhausted.

It is a sleek, lightweight device. And it can provide a little extra juice to keep your iPhone 4 going for a few more hours. But without the ability to charge an iPhone 4 to capacity, this device isn't living up to my expectations.

I actually bought this at grocery store when I was away from home and didn't have my phone charger but needed my phone. So I thought I had paid way too much for it, but now that I see it online here at Amazon I plan on buying another one, since I have an old iPhone, an iPad, my cell phone, a video camera, all that need to be charged by a USB port (Yes, it even keeps my iPad alive just a little bit longer than the already lengthy battery life it has!!).

Well, one day I accidentally forgot to take it out of my pocket and found it rolling around in the dryer tumbler after being washed on super-cycle. Well, I immediately thought, well that's that the end to this great little convenient buddy of mine...so I had thought to wait for a few days, and let it completely dry out before trying to charge it, and it has worked the same ever since!!!

So it has a standard USB out dock for any type of device that uses a USB port as its powering device, plus it has included a USB to a mini USB in-dock with which you charge the battery itself. There's a LED light indicator there that will indicate whether the battery is charged fully (red-needs charging, green-fully charged) plus on the face of the charger another indicator LED light that tells you whether there is power coming out of the battery which will slowly turn to orange once the power starts to drain.

The BEST thing about this is that you can simply shut off the power coming out of battery by using an on/off switch on the side, plus you can charge your phone (or other device) at the same time you have the battery charging when you switch it on. With it off, the battery charges itself in less than an hour! With the USB to Mini-USB connector cable included, you can plug this baby into anything that has a standard 5 to 7.5 Volt DC comming out of it (which is the USB-2 standard) making it cinch to switch from my laptop, to my PC to my iPad adapter to my camera to my phone to anything (the only thing it doesn't do is allow data to flow through)