Lots of people take their MacBooks and iPads with them when they leave the house for prolonged periods, whether it’s for doing their job, focusing on studies, or for having something to do when sitting at the coffee shop. But one quandary that affects everyone at some point, regardless of what they use their gear for, is battery life.
Fortunately, battery life isn’t something you’d need to worry about if you had a Shargeek Storm 2 100W 25,600mAh power bank. That’s because this high-tech behemoth can keep your devices powered well longer than any day at work, in class, or trip to your favorite sit-down restaurant would ever take.
Transparent housing & labeled logic boards
The Shargeek Storm 2 is an astonishingly good power bank that features a transparent housing with metallic sides. The transparent housing lets you see everything happening inside; in fact, the company shows tremendous attention to detail as it labels the individual electronics on the internal logic board so that you know what everything does, and we find that impressively nifty. Who else even does that?
Looking inside, we can even see that the batteries are Samsung-branded cells and not some cheap no-name knock-offs, so it’s immediately evident that you’re getting quality power storage with the Shargeek Storm 2.
Power I/O
With a maximum of 100W power output over one of two USB-C power ports, you can power even the most demanding devices with the Shargeek Storm 2. An additional USB-A port on the power bank lends power to lower consumption devices such as your iPhone, digital camera, or drone, just to rattle off a few ideas. The charger complies with the Power Delivery (PD), Quick Charge (QC), and Programmable Power Supply (PPS) standards.
While the native charger that comes with Apple’s 16-inch MacBook Pro with Apple silicon boasts 140W of power output, we regularly use a 100W charging dock and find that the computer charges up quickly with use. That said, the 100W that the Shargeek Storm 2 provides is more than enough to support your day of computer usage, and even more so if you use a lesser-power MacBook.
A lot of these larger power banks take a while to charge back up after draining them, but not the Shargeek Storm 2. The intelligent power and temperature management built-in allows this thing to go from 0-100% charge in as little as 1.5 hours when connected to a 100W USB-C power adapter and a proper USB-C cable, such as the yellow one it comes with.
Shargeek says the Storm 2 can charge an iPhone at 18W around 4 times, a MacBook at 45W around 1.5 times, an iPad at 30W around 1.5 times, a GoPro or DSLR camera around 12 times, or a drone around 1 time. Obviously, numbers will be subjective as different devices consume power differently and at different rates. We find that it has no trouble giving our 2021 16-inch MacBook Pro with M1 Pro a full charge from empty.
There are a total of four ports on the Shargeek Storm 2. As for what the individual I/O charging ports can do, here’s what you need to know:
- USB-C1: 100W PD 3.0 input & output
- USB-C2: 30W PD 3.0 & QC 4+ output
- USB-A: 18W QC 3.0 output
- DC: 75W input & output
Informative display
While there’s certainly no shortage of 25,600 mAh power banks on the market, not all of them support 100W of power output. Setting the Shargeek Storm 2 power bank even farther apart from the competition is the integrated informative IPS display.
You see, Shargeek loaded the Storm 2 power bank with sensors, and the IPS display lends real-time information such as:
- Current watt output, further distinguished by voltage and amperage current
- Current watt input, further distinguished by voltage and amperage current
- How power is being drawn, whether it’s via USB-C or USB-A
- How power is getting in, whether it’s via USB-C or a DC adapter
- Current battery cell temperature
- Current logic board temperature
- Operation time while charging or discharging
- Remaining power capacity
- And more…
This is by far my favorite feature of the Shargeek Storm 2. It’s so much more intuitive than a simple dot-system illuminated by LED lights as many power banks come with, and the ability to see active power draw and input feels like an ultra-advanced feature that I never knew I’d want until I had it in my hand.
Final thoughts
The Shargeek Storm 2 25,600 mAh power bank is superbly built out of materials that feel premium in the hand. The weight of the unit, the careful attention to detail in its design, and the extra features you get make it worth the extra few dollars you’ll pay. Even the carrying bag is thicker and tougher than the carrying bags I’ve received with older power banks. Shargeek spared no expense in designing the Storm 2, and it shows.
Using the Shargeek Storm 2 for the past several weeks has made me a returning customer. I now plan to pick up their newer slim model at some point to add to my battery arsenal, especially for slipping into my camera bag for charging my USB-C-based Nikon Z6ii on longer trips. But for charging my MacBook Pro and my iPhone, the beastly Storm 2 gets it done.
Here is a quick rundown of pros and cons regarding the Shargeek Storm 2:
Pros:
- Extremely high-quality construction with mind-boggling attention to detail
- Integrated IPS display shows real-time usage data
- Premium Samsung battery cells
- Charges very quickly
- Versatile USB-C, USB-C, and DC I/O ports supporting up to 100W
- Includes a 100W-supported USB-C cable
Cons:
- Transparent plastic case may scratch easily if not stored in the protective bag
- Could have more ports
How to get one
The Shargeek Storm 2 25,600 mAh power bank will set you back $229 on Amazon, however you will often see it dip below $199 if you wait for a sale. You can also opt for the slim version for $199, which sometimes sees discounts to $159 if you wait for a sale.