It’s actually very infrequent the number of times I’ve forgotten to charge my phone in the last as many years as I can remember, typically I’ll plug it in at night beside my bed, it’s a clock, and alarm for the next morning, a phone (remember them!) if I need to suddenly make a call in the dark wee hours… I digress, I very rarely omit charging my phone overnight, BUT… but sometimes I do.
Introducing the Belkin BoostCharge Magnetic Wireless Power Bank 5K + Stand – A review by Simon Pollock.
Just a note: My photos are of real-world actually reviewed use, so they aren’t perfect, they’re ‘used’ — Simon
Having to head out of the house without a charged phone, or worse, a phone that’s very nearly flat, can be problematic. I don’t like carrying a wallet (all my cards are in my phone, an iPhone 14 Pro Max) I want my music with me, my reminders and contacts and texts and if that phone goes flat, sure, I’ll live, but I’d rather have it with me.
For this reason I’ve previously purchased and have a small collection of external USB connectable batteries, they range from about 1000mAh (I think that was a branded giveaway thing that’s good for not a whole lot) right up to my 10,000+ mAh Anker battery that will happily charge my iPhone a few times… and my watch and my iPad, so that is generally what I reach for in the few cases where I need to leave the house and charge on the go… Until now…
Size matters… 95mm tall – Just a baby!
I was sent the Belkin BoostCharge Magnetic Wireless Power Bank 5K + Stand (which for the sake of typing that name out again I’ll just call the ‘Belkin’ in this article, eh!) to review and the first thing I noticed right out of the box was that it was about half the size of any of my bigger 10k mAh battery packs, and I guess that’s because it’s a 5K (5,000 mAh) battery – a handful of reviewers have suggested that this isn’t really enough? Enough to charge a phone between being ‘out and back’ is all I need, so it’s absolutely enough. It’s easily enough for my son to use with his iPhone 7+ (no, the 7+ doesn’t support MagSafe, but more on that later)
The iPhone 14 Pro Max (Who is Max?) on the Belkin BoostCharge 🔥
My iPhone, currently the largest one, has a 4,352 mAh battery, so the Belkin’s 5,000mAh (wirelessly, 7.5w with phones that support it) battery will charge it plenty to get you out of trouble – I guess really only if you’re going to be back on shore power soon enough to refill the diminutive Belkin. But I think that’s actually a great feature, it’s not super huge, it’s slim-line enough to fit in the smallest shoulder bags or backpacks. Keeping in mind that Qi charging isn’t quite as efficient as cabled charging, you won’t manage to use the whole 5000 of those sparkly little milliamps, but you’ll get maybe around 75% of the battery’s capacity. While you’re using the Belkin to wirelessly charge a compatible device, you can also plug the battery in via its USB-C port for pass-through charging, I noticed the devices would warm up a little when doing this, but the instructions assure me I can do it, and that Belkin have a $2500 connected equipment warranty should things get wildly out of hand! (You will need to read Belkin’s T’s & C’s to make sure you’re covered)
Annnnd here’s that same iPhone in sideways (Landscape) mode.. With a reminder that I should heed!
As well as the wireless charging, you can also use the USB-C port used for charging the battery pack as an outlet. USB-C to whatever you have that needs charging, any older phone that doesn’t support wireless charging, or a small toy or portable speaker for example, keeping in mind that the Belkin only holds 5,000 mAh and with devices that have a larger draw or a much bigger battery you might be in a spot of bother (or simply just not be able to charge them to full and that’s fine)
Charging while charging using my Tethertools 5v wall charger and cable
Up to this point, the Belkin, aside from the connected device warranty cover, is pretty standard! It’s reasonably priced for a well built battery device, and I’d feel fine having purchased it, but this battery pack has another leg to stand on! – Belkin went and gave this one a couple of extra little features that, at first I thought were a tad gimmicky, but have come to use them frequently, even when I’m not charging. The first is that the Belkin BoostCharge Magnetic Wireless Power Bank 5K + Stand is magnetic, so with newer iPhones the battery magnetically attaches to the phone or a compatible phone case and charging starts (sometimes you need to press the button on the side of the battery, the one located right beside a handy remaining charge light meter) this joins my iPhone 14 Pro Max and the Belkin battery together as one – the battery is about the same weight as my iPhone, so it makes it a little more hefty, but not wildly so. The second ‘extra’ is the stand. On the rear of the Belkin you’ll find a flip out leg that, when in its horizontal arrangement, allows your phone to stand up like a little television, allowing you to watch your Favourite Youtuber, or read or… well, whatever you like really. I found that I could use the stand with the phone in portrait mode, and while it’s not super stable, it’s completely fine if you’re reading an eBook or (gently!) flicking through some mind-numbing Tiktoks.
All said and done, the Belkin BoostCharge Magnetic Wireless Power Bank 5K + Stand is a good little unit! For around $60 if you shop around, it’s not awful value, either! Well worth a look if you’re after more than just a one-trip Pony charger to chuck in your bag OR on your bedside table!
