Review of Anker 2nd gen Astro 6000 mAh external battery w/lots of pics!!!

[twister6]

This is a review of Anker 2nd generation Astro 6000 mAh external battery. Anker 2nd Generation Astro 6000mAh Portable External Battery Charger

After rolling out new 2nd generation versions of Astro 3 (3 outputs) and Astro 2 (2 outputs), now is a turn for Astro with a single charging output. While Astro 3 was very impressive with three outputs and 12000 mAh capacity, it was a relatively large and heavy device, which is expected. Astro 2 shrunk it down to 2 outputs and 9000 mAh capacity with a more pocket friendly footprint. Here with single output Astro and 6000 mAh capacity the size was reduced down to an awesome compact size which you can store even inside of a very small purse. But don't let the small size fool you - you still get all new 2nd gen design with every bell'n'whistle of Astro 2 and 3. So let's take a closer look.

Continuing with their environmentally friendly packaging, battery came inside of a neatly packaged box which contained a battery itself, a manual (always very detailed), and accessory box with usb to micro-usb cable and a mesh draw-string storage bag for a battery and a cable. No 30 pin iphone adapter was included like with previous models, but I'm not sure if it was intentional or just my package was missing it. Either way, I personally don't care about apple connector and for those with apple devices - you probably have a ton of usb cables already. Now let me tell you about the size of this battery - its is SMALL!!! Weighting around 130g and with a size of 90mm by 45mm and thickness of 25mm - it will easily fit in a palm of your hand where you can make a fist hiding it inside. That's how compact it is. With a new rounded design and smooth edges, the hard plastic shell is lined with a soft touch rubbery finish. You get one micro-usb battery charging port (1A speed to charge the battery itself) and one full usb smart output port for any Android or Apple device. The output supports a maximum charging speed of up to 2A. In my quick test with OEM usb cable I confirmed a charging speed of 1.5A using my Note 2. The speed will obviously vary depending on the cable you use, so keep that in mind and use usb cables with thicker wires.

Just like with Astro 2 and 3, this 2nd gen device uses a new 10-segment circle LED indicator to show you the charging progress of the battery or the remaining charge on the battery in increments of 10% thus giving you a higher precision reading. Most of the other batteries usually include 4 LEDs to indicate 25% increments, but with Astro you are getting a better precision. There is no power button anywhere around smooth surface of this battery. To start the charging or to check the remaining capacity you just shake it and display LED comes alive. Also, considering actual capacity of any external battery is typically 30% less then advertised value, in case of 2nd gen Astro a more efficient conversion circuit is used which gives close to 80% efficiency, so you can count on about 4700-4800 mAh of charging power. Considering super compact shape of this battery, this is very impressive and perfect as a portable emergency charge you can take with you anywhere.

Overall, the design, the efficiency, the charging speed, and compact size of this battery makes it a very attractive package. It is also very unique and sets it apart from competition. Add to that Anker's 18-month warranty and great support - with introductory price of $29.99 on Amazon this is one fantastic value. I highly recommend it!

Here are the pictures, including a happy "family" of all 3 Astros together.

 

[Zolo185]

This is a review of Anker 2nd generation Astro 6000 mAh external battery. Anker 2nd Generation Astro 6000mAh Portable External Battery Charger

After rolling out new 2nd generation versions of Astro 3 (3 outputs) and Astro 2 (2 outputs), now is a turn for Astro with a single charging output. While Astro 3 was very impressive with three outputs and 12000 mAh capacity, it was a relatively large and heavy device, which is expected. Astro 2 shrunk it down to 2 outputs and 9000 mAh capacity with a more pocket friendly footprint. Here with single output Astro and 6000 mAh capacity the size was reduced down to an awesome compact size which you can store even inside of a very small purse. But don't let the small size fool you - you still get all new 2nd gen design with every bell'n'whistle of Astro 2 and 3. So let's take a closer look.

Continuing with their environmentally friendly packaging, battery came inside of a neatly packaged box which contained a battery itself, a manual (always very detailed), and accessory box with usb to micro-usb cable and a mesh draw-string storage bag for a battery and a cable. No 30 pin iphone adapter was included like with previous models, but I'm not sure if it was intentional or just my package was missing it. Either way, I personally don't care about apple connector and for those with apple devices - you probably have a ton of usb cables already. Now let me tell you about the size of this battery - its is SMALL!!! Weighting around 130g and with a size of 90mm by 45mm and thickness of 25mm - it will easily fit in a palm of your hand where you can make a fist hiding it inside. That's how compact it is. With a new rounded design and smooth edges, the hard plastic shell is lined with a soft touch rubbery finish. You get one micro-usb battery charging port (1A speed to charge the battery itself) and one full usb smart output port for any Android or Apple device. The output supports a maximum charging speed of up to 2A. In my quick test with OEM usb cable I confirmed a charging speed of 1.5A using my Note 2. The speed will obviously vary depending on the cable you use, so keep that in mind and use usb cables with thicker wires.

Just like with Astro 2 and 3, this 2nd gen device uses a new 10-segment circle LED indicator to show you the charging progress of the battery or the remaining charge on the battery in increments of 10% thus giving you a higher precision reading. Most of the other batteries usually include 4 LEDs to indicate 25% increments, but with Astro you are getting a better precision. There is no power button anywhere around smooth surface of this battery. To start the charging or to check the remaining capacity you just shake it and display LED comes alive. Also, considering actual capacity of any external battery is typically 30% less then advertised value, in case of 2nd gen Astro a more efficient conversion circuit is used which gives close to 80% efficiency, so you can count on about 4700-4800 mAh of charging power. Considering super compact shape of this battery, this is very impressive and perfect as a portable emergency charge you can take with you anywhere.

Overall, the design, the efficiency, the charging speed, and compact size of this battery makes it a very attractive package. It is also very unique and sets it apart from competition. Add to that Anker's 18-month warranty and great support - with introductory price of $29.99 on Amazon this is one fantastic value. I highly recommend it!

Here are the pictures, including a happy "family" of all 3 Astros together.

I read on amazon that you just shake it to wake or power on yo then charge. Would this cause a problem with draining the battery if I had it in a backpack , I don't want for it to be constantly waking because of constant movement while its in my back back. I feel like it would drain the battery either slightly or drastically if it continuously is turning on. Did you ever have this problem ? Is there any other way to prevent it from happening besides just keeping it in place? This looks like a great battery and your reviews are always great. If what I think about it draining because of the wake with shake is true what other battery do you recommend , I have a nexus 5 and would need something over 5,000 mah and my budget is $30-$50

 

[twister6]

I read on amazon that you just shake it to wake or power on yo then charge. Would this cause a problem with draining the battery if I had it in a backpack , I don't want for it to be constantly waking because of constant movement while its in my back back. I feel like it would drain the battery either slightly or drastically if it continuously is turning on. Did you ever have this problem ? Is there any other way to prevent it from happening besides just keeping it in place? This looks like a great battery and your reviews are always great. If what I think about it draining because of the wake with shake is true what other battery do you recommend , I have a nexus 5 and would need something over 5,000 mah and my budget is $30-$50

A good point. To be honest, I don't carry it with me all the time. Overall it has an amazing standby time. I had it charged at least 2 months ago, and it's still at 100% without any use (I just tried it out). I personally think it will not drain battery that much. You actually have to shake it in rotation manner rather than up/down, so even in backpack it should not trigger that much.

 

[Zolo185]

A good point. To be honest, I don't carry it with me all the time. Overall it has an amazing standby time. I had it charged at least 2 months ago, and it's still at 100% without any use (I just tried it out). I personally think it will not drain battery that much. You actually have to shake it in rotation manner rather than up/down, so even in backpack it should not trigger that much.

Thanks for your response. Just placed an order for it. While IM here , the wireless charger with built in battery I reviewed does it charge fairly quickly wirelessly . What was the most it could push out wired . Did it ever get hot?

 

[twister6]

Thanks for your response. Just placed an order for it. While IM here , the wireless charger with built in battery I reviewed does it charge fairly quickly wirelessly . What was the most it could push out wired . Did it ever get hot?

From using wireless charger with my Nexus 7 (HD), I noticed it gets hotter with a thicker case since distance between transmitter and receiver increases. With Qi enabled wireless charging you will get a max of 1A of charging current, typically a bit less and even lower with case on. It's there for convenience not the charging speed since it will be on average twice slower in comparison to your wall ac charger.

 

[twister6]

This is a review of updated Anker Astro 2nd gen 6400 mAh battery. http://www.ianker.com/product/79AN7902-B2A, available on Amazon in 4 new colors: http://www.amazon.com/6400mAh-Portable-Charger-External-Technology/dp/B00EF1OGOG/?tag=vectron00-20

I reviewed the original New Gen Anker Astro over a year ago. This new line of rugged smooth surface batteries was introduced over a year ago and still one of the best sellers on Amazon. It has a unique 10-led segment capacity indicator (in 10% increments), PowerIQ port which automatically adjusts to a maximum current draw of any device (even iPads), and high efficiency output (so you actually don’t lose too much of advertised capacity). I have been using Astro for close to 20 months in heavy rotation. I have a lot of other Anker batteries, with Astro 3 (3 ports) and Astro 2 (2 ports) and this Astro (single port), but Astro gets the most mileage in our household because it’s the smallest and the lightest one.

I guess all the gadgets go through wear’n’tear, especially when it’s in heavy use, and after I found a problem with my original Astro battery and looked online for replacement – I realized that Anker recently updated it with a new version that has a faster battery charging, multi-color surface finish, higher efficiency, and increased capacity from 6000 mAh to 6400 mAh, while still keeping it under $30. Kindly enough, Anker offered me a replacement of my original battery, and I got a chance to take a closer look at it now. Big props to their service/warranty department because even so their typical warranty period is 18-months, under circumstances they still supported me after 20-months of use. I heard similar support stories from other users in our community as well. Just something to keep in mind!

Battery arrived in a similar packaging with all similar accessories of usb to micro-usb cable and a nice storage pouch. With this battery being in white color (other colors are black, blue, green, and white), they actually included a white usb cable instead of a black one - a nice “matching” touch. I know that next to the original black one, the white battery looks bigger in the picture, but it’s just an “illusion” where they are actually IDENTICAL in size (93 x 46 x 25mm / 3.7 x 1.8 x 1.0in) and still lightweight at only 135g.

The first change I noticed was micro-usb charging input going up to 1A to 1.2A – the charging of the actual battery inside of the Astro. This means 20% faster charging of Anker battery itself when you don’t have time to wait. Just don’t confuse it with their 2A output port which charges your phone/tablet. Efficiency also went up to a confirmed 90% which means that now you have access to 5, 750 mAh of capacity, versus 4,800 mAh in previous version. Availability of different colors is also great since my daughter and my wife were the primary users of this battery, and having something other than in “black” always means “accessorizing” in their vocabulary

So here you have it, a very impressive update that really feels like a worthy upgrade. You will notice that various Astro colors are priced differently, with a black one starting at $21.99 and others going up to $28.99, but price usually fluctuates and I see special deals all the time.

Here are the pictures.