SURVEY: A Flashlight on Your Portable Charger?

#1

The last time we emerged from the laboratory to have a product discussion with you, we were surprised to discover how many Anker fans want us to include a flashlight with the next PowerCore.

A Bolder flashlight and an Anker portable charger in one device! We admit the prospect sounds intriguing, but we’re still wondering what the utility would be, and how many people are interested.

So, we want to ask you a few questions, and open up a discussion around this topic:

  1. Do you think a flashlight is a missing feature that you would really appreciate having included on a portable charger? Why do you think it is needed?

  2. On which occasions would you use your portable charger’s flashlight? Why wouldn’t you just use your phone’s light instead?

We’ll give 100 experience points and 100 PowerBucks to the 3 comments that get the most “likes” in this thread. Let us know your opinions, and let’s get to brainstorming!:sunglasses:

Technically Yours,
AnkerTechnical

Winner Announced:

Thanks for all the sincere comments, and let’s congratulate @kumar.sachin, @Oggyboy , and @bobbleheaderman for winning the prize! Your 100 experience points and 100 PowerBucks will be updated in your account within 3 days! Thanks you again!:kissing_heart:

14 Likes
What products are on your wishlist for Anker to make next?
#2
#3

The first ever portable charger I bought was the Astro E4. I looked really deeply into the market before making the purchase. I knew nothing of Anker at that time.

I was working away for weekends on music festivals and found it hard to get to a power source working 15 hour shifts so needed one that would last all weekend. The bonus for me was it came with a built in torch. This and the epic reviews are what made me buy it.

Spending a weekend in a tent with no power meant I needed Light and Power. The Astro E4 was brilliant and I used the light all the time. Admittedly, this was before phones had flashlights but the phone light is too bright for these situations.

You need a multi (low/high) light option and and if it also meant you could charge your devices from the 1 product it’s a definite winner.

Maybe also add a ring or hoop so it can be hung up in camping situations.

5 Likes
#4

My first powerbank was the Anker® Astro E5 15000mAh. :sunglasses:
It still works today, the only thing that is annoying, if the powerbank
was in a backpack, then the flashlight often went on by itself.

An application field for me is, for example, camping, in the tent as a mobile lamp.
It would be nice if you can unfold the LED, so that the light cone is not only in one direction.
And then you can illuminate a whole table.

The light of the phone is for brief moments, the power bank’s light can shine for a whole night.
And if you even use the light of the phone you can not use the phone well.

3 Likes
#5

I work nightshift and often carry my batterypack with me, so having a built in flashlight would be great seeing as how it’s winter and we often lose power. So having a light always on me is handy…I mean I usually have a flashlight on me anyway but if I could have both a flashlight and batterypack in one, that would be awesomely great. Less I have to carry and keep charged

1 Like
#6

I will love that. I use my Bolder flashlight all the time and if it has a portable charger I can bring one less item during traveling. This is not a new idea but the previous items made by some companies are extremely expensive (in $200+ range).

3 Likes
#7

I carry my trusted Anker Astro Mini wherever I go. And I carry a small flashlight as well. So if I could get both those utilities in one device, I would certainly do it.

I only started carrying a flashlight around when I was gifted one small enough to fit anywhere without being too much extra weight, and at the beginning I suspected I would never use it, but I carried it around anyway. I never regretted the decision. From finding something that fell on the ground on a dark street to inspecting that one corner of your car’s trunk where the light don’t reach, a flashlight is a handy tool to carry. I even converted some friends to this habit. Here in Canada, where the sun goes away at 4pm in the winter, there’s no shortage of situations where a flashlight can make a difference.

The reasons I would use a flashlight instead of the phone’s light are simple: ergonomics - it’s much more natural to hold a flashlight than a phone in flashlight mode; and to save the phone’s battery.

3 Likes
#8

  1. Rather than a portable charger that has a flash light, why not a flashlight that has a portable charger built into the handle?

  2. Camping or I’d leave it in my car as an emergency flashlight in my winter kit. I’d be using that battery as a last resort if I’m stuck and the car is dead.

3 Likes
#9

A flashlight on a charger is mostly useless because all of them have cheap LEDs and they are too floody (beam not focused). Furthermore, the shape of chargers are not ergonomic; they aren’t made for extended holding.

A charger with a high quality light would be useful if it is:

  • highly portable
  • ergonomic
  • bright and efficient LEDs
  • has moonlight mode (@10lumens)
  • can charge 3000 mAh battery at least 25% for emergency use

There are high powered and high quality flashlights that have built-in power bank function, but they are too big for the average consumer. They are great for flashaholics though :slight_smile:

1 Like
#10

I had a flashlight on one portable charger and never used it.
I always have my phone with me and have been accustomed to using the flashlight on the phone before digging for anything else.
When my phone dies from using the flashlight at least I know my charger will still be full.

I would definitely like a flashlight on a jumpstart though and actually find it quite necessary.
. :sunglasses:

4 Likes
#11

I personally never thought much of the flashlight in the power bank only because the flashlight was never that good to begin with. I thought it was an unnecessary feature that does not need to be there. On the flip side, having the flashlight there could be handy but not by much really.

The only reason I would really look to get a power bank with a built in flashlight is if it is as bright as the ankers lc flashlight series. Hard to ask but I just don’t see myself using it when I can have a flashlight that is brighter on my phone or simply having a brighter, separate flashlight.

I think of it this way, if a powerbank had a mediocre flashlight and people actually used it alot, then why not get a lighter, much brighter flashlight? Or rather, why not whip out a lighter cellphone which possibly has a brighter flashlight?

If any company is to use their resources to put flashlight on a powerbank, I really hope it’s a good one, for the sake of the company’s expense and for consumers. I just don’t see the flashlight being the deal breaker for people these days because they all carry their phone anyway. I only see the worth in time and money only if the built in flashlight was a good one that can stand out on own.

2 Likes
#12

1st question is… Do I need a portable torch? Do I keep using the light on my phone to look at stuff and does it do the job?

Now, me personally, I have a handful of small 1 watt torches dotted around d the house and 2 work lights (1 picket version and a larger brighter version).

I have had a couple of powerbrick with built-in torches, but never used them. However, if I was still working as a plumber (or a sparky) I’d find it very useful and would pay a few bucks extra for that feature. As having a reliable rechargeable small torch that’s quite bright, was really useful as a plumbers mate.

The torch would need to be a 2 watt light at least to be of any real use. A nice cuboidic powerbrick with a bright light is obvs more stable than a round torch.

I also have a bright 1w keyring torch, and I’ve carried one for years n years. Originally it was because in winter a couple mates doorways were easier to find if you had a torch and I found the original mag-lite solitaire useless, but now we have LED which makes things so.much better.

So on the 2 questions,

1, it’s not technically a missing feature, but could be an option.

2, I think a someone who works in darker places or needs an independent light source, say under the kitchen unit or under the stairs etc etc, then yes, you want a torch. I think to make.maximum use of such a feature, it would need to be a decent sized powerbrick and a decent led (the new COB bulbs, are fantastic brightness to.oower usage about at the mo). But a led that doesn’t suck all your juice in 30 mins use. Otherwise you’d look at professional torches that use a drill battery (such as dewalt, ryobi, metika) but they won’t charge your tablet/phone.

2 Likes
#13

Think I would save the power from the portable charger to charge my phone instead and just use the phone’s flash light. It would be a nice feature but not really needed.

1 Like
#14

Many years ago, Apple often disliked the idea of having a flashlight function into their iPhones. Users had to use 3rd party apps to do it. However, they followed the trends of Android and had a flashlight built into iOS. The idea behind this was the portability and convenience of a mobile device.

  1. It would be a “nice” thing to have, especially on the small chargers. It could be used any time and anywhere, and by anyone. Flashlight on Bigger charges is overkilled, as people don’t carry those often everyday.

  2. The flashlight with a chargers is useful as it could act as an emergency gadget, especially at night and when you had no power. The high capacity of the charger will help the light to last forever. Flashlight with phone can be used while walking but when you need casual constant flashlight (e.g in the camping tent, checked out the car at night, etc.), a flashlight on charger is more useful. Another problem with flashlight on phone is: mobile phones are personal devices, with many things on it. you wouldn’t want to lend someone your phone to use flashlight. One more thing is: flashlight on the charger is cheap (compared to phone and other dedicated flashlight), so it has a decent value.

1 Like
#15

Whaaaat?!?

Is it only me that would find it useless?

I mean, our phones have a torch feature (or flashlight for our friends over the pond!) As long as the portable charger kept our phones charged, surely this would be easier?

I mean, I’d rather use my phone to light the way when I’m rooting around under the TV looking for a cable, than have to go and get my power pack and use that which would probably be heavier!

Possibly if I went camping, in the tent would be a great use as I can charge my phone whilst using the torch to finish my crossword (or whatever inane activity I was carrying out which needed light on the situation!)

I don’t know, maybe it is just me. I wouldn’t use it, I would rather a small lightweight torch or my phone to do the illuminating and save those precious mAh’s for charging something!!

1 Like
#16

I think this would also be a great time to implement the poll feature @AnkerOfficial has been testing lately! And then for the people who want to expand on their thoughts and reasonings, they can leave a comment! What do you think @AnkerTechnical?

The way I see it, it would really depend on how much power the light would take up. If it’s not very bright, there’s not much need, but if it draws to much power, then what’s the point of having the portable charger? Why not just use your flashlight or your phone? In my case, I have my phone on me way more than I have a portable charger on me? Is it different for you guys? Fill me in, here!

1 Like
#17

I’d say you should think it through this way:

  • you can serve only master well, if you serve two masters you serve each less well
  • therefore if you’re going to do two things, decide which is your 1st priority and make that your main design criteria or do a little to serve the 2nd priority.
  • so I think you’re talking 2 different product types.

So right now people are popularly using their mobiles as lights, but what if your phone is flat? That is the corner case i’m thinking of.

A light which can recharge

This is where you take a flashlight set of criteria and add an output capability

  • a good example is the newer LC40, it is very pocketable and focused on flashlight type problems like it is used outdoors in the dark when wet is going to be an issue
  • you could consider adding an output capability to this. But then the barrel is so thin you’d struggle to physically fit one. So consider a slightly wider barrel like the LC90 concept

A Powercore which has a light

  • Your scale-up solutions exist already, if someone wants a large Powercore they already are talking a larger bag, not pockets so they can pack a flashlight anyway, so I think a flashlight on larger Powercore is not worth the distraction
  • Your scale-down solution is where the gap is, so think ladies purse as the use case, it must be so small it is always there and it only is needed for brief times and the rarer problems, so it doesn’t need to do a full phone recharge, so a 3Ah - 5Ah is perfectly fine
  • Make the primary design criteria compactness
  • Make a secondary design criteria a flightlight
  • So you could merge the earlier LC40 concept with the Powercore+ Mini concept, a wider barrel to fit both input and output and make the light itself not that powerful, enough to not hurt yourself down a dark street, find your dropped keys, etc you’re not hiking or anything that deliberate.
  • to help make something pocket/purse stored friendly given an input+output+flight is going to struggle to find a place in a narrow diameter cylindrical shape, consider adding a light to the Powercore 5000 Slim shape. You could merge together two functions here, you could have one LED output but have it have different modes to represent the recharge status when it is being recharged, to show the current charge level when being used and in a high power mode to actually be a useful flashlight.
  • given output requires a cable, include a flip-up cable and make 3 different flavors of your chosen design, one each with lightning output, MicroB output, USB-C output then the person buys the one which matches their phone. Then they can leave home just with this one future product, their phone, creditcard, keys and can handle a flat phone type problem.

So I think that’s your choices, in summary, think of 2 products:

  • take a bright light like the LC40 and add an output.
  • take a small capacity battery like 3A-5A and add a low performance light
  • make trade-offs between size and functions, you’ll have to mock-up a few designs and beta test, I think a barrel shape is popular but you’re going to struggle to fit input+output in one end, so consider a slab shape as you have more area at the ends to play with.
1 Like
#18

A power bank with a high quality bulb would be good.

What about a cable with a high quality bulb on the end.
Could then use with any power bank, charger or socket.

Could be usefull for reading books, at work, in the car.
If paired with a waterproof power bank could be used as a bicycle light.

1 Like
#19

Black shell makes it a little difficult to see in the dark. Maybe ports that are lit. A flashlight would be a electronic version of a multi-tool

1 Like
#20

A light is always useful. it’s more comfortable in the power bank because the smartphone is uncomfortable and you’re always afraid it will fall off. If the light you need for a long time is more convenient already having it incorporated, that download the smartphone and have to attack the power bank., I would need for example to find the keyhole of the house, and for nights on the beach. Then there are many situations of use, as I said at the beginning a light is always useful :slight_smile:

1 Like