/The Struggle to Find the Perfect Chargers

The Charger

I recently returned home from a long summer vacation in Brazil and New York City. I usually pack light for traveling, sticking to a single suitcase and backpack. My bag carries my laptop, documents, personal care items, and most importantly, this post's titular charger.

The charger in question is the Oraimo HyperGaN 120W USB-C Charger, which I luckily picked up a year ago during an Amazon lightning deal for around $40. I wanted an all-in-one solution for my devices, something that charges extremely fast but still packed in a reasonable form factor. Plus, I wanted to fully adopt USB-C hardware. This product seemed like it was practically designed for me: 120-watt charging, 3 USB-C ports, 1 USB-A port, and small size.

At first, I wasn't too sure about the charger or brand, but for $40, I couldn't pass it up. When my package arrived, I was extremely satisfied with the performance and portability of the brick. In fact, a couple of weeks ago, I asked myself the question, "Why not get a second of the same charger?"

This is where my rabbit hole began. I dug up my old Amazon order to find the exact charger, only to see that it didn't exist anymore! Logically, I looked at Oraimo's Amazon store page, perplexed to see only vacuum cleaners, ice makers, and electric bikes? Weird. I even went to their official website and clicked on their "Chargers" button, which led me to a blank page.

No big deal, I guess. I looked on Amazon and browsed for alternatives from more reputable brands such as Anker and UGREEN. Listed for around $100 each, they practically cost twice as much as the Oraimo charger that I'm happy with.¹ Luckily, on eBay, there were a couple of listings for the exact charger I was looking for, and I purchased one.

So what happened to Oraimo? I couldn't find much information about the company, other than it being based in Hong Kong and more recently marketing towards Africa and other emerging markets. Perhaps they completely shifted their market focus, found it too costly to produce chargers in the US, or simply had some regulatory issues. They call themselves "Africa's No.1 Personal Audio & Smart Wearables Brand!" on their Nigerian Instagram, which surprisingly has 200K followers. Clearly, Oraimo isn't a household name like Anker, but they have found success elsewhere.

The Power Bank

While I was in Brazil for two months, I noticed my phone battery dropping faster than I anticipated a lot of the time. My iPhone 14 Pro reports that the battery health is currently at 88%. The urban lifestyle in São Paulo consisted of plenty of walking, which prompted me to consider buying a power bank once I returned home. I already own a standard Anker power bank but didn't travel with it because I typically don't need to charge my phone on the go.

The goal was to find something that follows my philosophy of fast charging, a slim 10000mAh capacity, and USB-C focused (at least 2 ports). I searched through Amazon, thinking this would be an easy purchase, yet seemingly the product I wanted simply didn't exist! Once again, I'm staring blankly at the Amazon app because something simple isn't sold. Not even Anker or UGREEN had power banks that met all of these specifications.²

The closest I could find was the Nitecore NB10000 Gen II, which I had heard of before on Reddit (probably r/EDC). It looks great with its carbon fiber casing, which in turn makes it extremely portable, and has a slim 10000mAh capacity. However, it only has a single USB-C and USB-A port, which I guess makes sense considering the power bank's size, but it's a letdown nevertheless.

I was practically one click away from buying this $60 (which is considerably more expensive than most standard power banks) battery when I stumbled across another contender: the CUKTECH 10 Power Bank. (Yes, it's really called that.) Looking past the name, this battery supports 100-watt fast charging, has a cool screen that shows charging information, and costs only $30.³ This too only had two ports and a weird tube-like shape, but for $30, I couldn't let this one go.

First impressions: I felt a bit let down; it was bigger and heavier than expected but still perfectly fit in my cross-body bag. I had the pleasure of using it during a week in New York City, where it performed just as well as expected. The screen is a cool gimmick, and I can overlook the fact that there's only one USB-C port as I'm realistically only charging my phone.

The Takeaway

So what's the moral of the story? Not really sure. I learned more about battery specifications than should be allowed for the average human. I'm more than happy with these products and was lucky enough to get some deals on them too. Perhaps one day I'll try their competitors, such as the UGREEN charger and the Nitecore battery, for comparison's sake. I find it funny how two times over for similar products I had to go down a rabbit hole but everything worked out perfectly in the end. So with that, I'll leave you with a quote:

Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.

— Søren Kierkegaard