Verdict
A neat power bank with handy integrated screen, although it’s best to come with realistic expectations of its charging speed.
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Neat, informative built-in screen -
Packs a lot into a dinky casing -
Handy integrated cable
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Fairly rapid thermal throttling of charge rate -
Takes a couple of hours to recharge -
Not quite powerful enough to fast charge many laptops or Chinese phones
Key Features
Introduction
The Anker Nano 45W is an over-engineered but charming external battery whose features outpace its raw charging abilities.
But that may not really matter if you own, for example, one of the best iPhone models or Samsung Galaxy phone rather than one of the super-fast-charging Chinese brand phones. It also has enough power to get laptops recharged, even if it doesn’t have nearly the capacity to fully recharge almost any of them.
The Anker Nano 45W is a case of the user experience outweighing the actual charging results, slightly, but it’s a solid power bank.
Design
- 49 x 49 x 34.1 mm
- 229g
- Built-in screen
Anker has done a good job of trying to elevate the power bank from a raw tool into something approaching a lifestyle accessory. And that means making it a little more than a brick you sling carelessly to the bottom of a rucksack, to be forgotten until needed.
That requires more attention to design, which the Anker Nano 45W has received.
It’s basically a compact, cheaper version of the Anker Prime. Half of the side wall has an embossed texture, the rest is plastic, and the curved plastic of the front hides the Anker Nano’s best feature: the screen.
The finish on the plastic acts as a translucent cloak, meaning you can’t really see the screen border. What’s on the display appears almost to emerge out of nowhere.
This screen will tell you, primarily, the charge left and how much power is being fed through (or to) each of the connectors. We get three of them in this power bank.
Up top are a USB-A and a USB-C, and there is a retractable USB-C cable built into the side. This operates like one of those extendable tape measures. It will snake out in intervals and stick there, while a light tug will make it retract back into the casing. The Anker Nano’s built-in cable is 70cm long.
Is this a worry for long-term wear? Sure, given how most of us have experienced one of these retractable designs go a bit wonky over time. Anker claims it’s solid for 20,000 “retractions” or “bends”, designed to represent 10 years of use. And that the cable can hold 7.9kg of weight.
Getting a closer look, the Anker Nano’s cable is nothing too special but also sets off no alarms. It’s not particularly heavy-duty, as there’s no room for that in the casing, but the moulded connector feels solid and the flat cable retracts smoothly back into the body.
Testing these power banks has made me much more conscious about contact with water than anything else. The Anker Nano is not water resistant, so it should be treated with a degree of care.
The attached fabric strap is a minor red herring, then. I wouldn’t leave the Anker Nano hanging off a belt or bag while it’s raining. And, if you’re wondering, the entire casing here is plastic. Only the side button is metal.
Features
- Single button control
- Multi-screen interface
- No bundled case
That metal button is used to cycle through display screens. As already mentioned, these will tell you the charge level, the power output to each of the connectors.
You can also see screens that indicate battery health, the number of total charge cycles and temperature.
What else is there to note? Not much. The Anker Nano doesn’t have Bluetooth, to let you connect to the Anker app and see stats on your phone.
I don’t think this is a great loss. The Nano doesn’t really need any tertiary power drains (Bluetooth) and the screen tells you all you need to know already.
No bag or case is included, though, and I’d recommend at least putting it in a fabric sack before chucking it in a bag. The Anker Nano looks good fresh out of the box, but the plastics of the front panel are fairly scratch-prone.
Performance
- Significant thermal throttling
- Around 80% power efficiency
- Charging takes a little over two hours
The core Anker Nano stats are right there in the long version of its name. This battery has a capacity of 10,000mAh, and a maximum output of 45W.
Either of the USB-C connectors can reach that 45W ceiling according to the specs, while the USB-A’s limit is 22.5W.
When charging up my MacBook Air M4, the Anker Nano reached 43W output. And it hit peaks 39W charging a Dell Plus 16 2-in-1 laptop, although it did meander. To max out power, your device will need to support 20V at 2.25A or 15V at 3A.
However, this battery is not able to carry on at close to that level for its entire capacity. Before we hit 50% remaining charge, this had dropped to 30W output. And the Anker Nano spent a long time at 18W when charging a MacBook Air from flat to full.
The higher-end Anker Prime is far better at hanging onto much higher 100W (and even 200W) power output, making such feats look easy.
The Anker Nano 45W can actually tell you why this charge speed limiting is happening, too. When throttling output, you’ll see an Active Cooling status on the Temperature display page. It’s not active cooling in the traditional sense. That requires a fan (or alternative) which the Nano doesn’t have. The active part is reducing performance.
And it means the Anker Nano takes around 71 minutes to dish out its entire 10,000mAh store – an average of 30W output, rather than the peak 45W.
Does this matter? It’s only likely to be particularly noticeable when charging laptops, because phones throttle charging rates in a similar fashion too, in order to maintain battery health. Your results will vary depending on ambient temperature and other factors.
Anker is also a little conservative when charging.
According to my testing, the Anker Nano outputs around 30.46Wh, of its claimed 36Wh power. And when charging it takes in 38.04Wh.
This means the Anker Nano provides real-world efficiency of 80%, which is reassuringly on-par with the best I’ve used from Anker. However, the actual power delivered is below that claimed. It’s roughly enough to half charge the average ultraportable laptop. And in phone terms it’s equivalent to around 8232mAh.
Some external batteries slightly over-perform on capacity, to bring true supplied power to that of the specs, even after accounting for loss through heat and other inefficiencies.
Should you buy it?
You want a small battery with a screen
A handy screen shows you how much power is being sent through each connector. Neat.
You want a high-power battery pack
Capacity isn’t all that high here, and charging speeds drop fairly swiftly due to heat build-up, designed to increase the Anker’s lifespan.
Final Thoughts
The Anker Nano Power Bank 10K 45W is a delightful little external battery if you can make peace with its limitations. It has a handy little screen and the retractable cable means no other accessories are required.
It doesn’t really have the capacity to be a great fit for laptop charging, though. We found it struggles to hit its maximum charge output with some devices, and it will also throttle its output before too long in order to keep heat at bay. It’s less high-end and advanced than its superficial features might suggest, but is certainly enjoyable to live with.
FAQs
It has no official water resistance rating and should be kept away from liquids
It will charge laptops that use a USB-C charging, although not necessarily at full speed
No bag or case is included with this power bank.
