A Peek Behind the Curtain — Design Awards

#1

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At Anker, we’re passionate about our products. Inside and out.
In addition to creating high-tech, cutting edge charging hardware - we also spend endless hours developing industry-benchmark industrial design.

Participating in design awards not only gives our products prestige and our egos some stroking, it also gives customers confidence and impartial information.

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That’s why we want to shed some light on how our shiny Anker gear ends up with these impressive, yet mysterious accolades.

Award Agencies

Award bodies are naturally dependant on the market that you operate in, the PowerCore Fusion 5000 isn’t going to win a FIFA Ballon d’Or, or Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film (yet). Anker does, however, have ample experience dealing with some of the most prestigious, leading bodies within tech.

Tech design awards tend to be focused around quality craftsmanship, functionality and innovation.

  • Red Dot

Red Dot has existed since 1954. Held annually in Essen, Germany, the awards are concerned with product design, design agencies and design concepts. Red Dot’s Design Team of the Year award is one of the best known in the field, and has been won by industry titans like Apple (2001), Bosch (2015) and Ferrari (2016).

In 2017, the jury considered applications from 54 countries.

  • iF

The second big hitter is the prestigious iF (International Forum Design) which in 2017 received over 5,500 submissions from 59 countries. iF is also German founded (so you know it’s good). They acknowledge innovative design in a wide variety of forms — from architecture, through to digital UX.

  • Judges

The makeup of awards panels are usually semi-transparent and semi-secretive.

As a general rule, judges come from a wide variety of disciplines, as well as those specifically selected for their intricate knowledge of the industry in question.
In the case of Anker’s fields of interest, it’s likely that there will be more judges with a tech background, naturally with an appreciation for design and functional aesthetics.

How do I enter?

The entrance process is fairly standardized throughout design awards…

First of all you need to create a great product, with innovative design, and/or fresh functionality. If your gear doesn’t hit this prerequisite then it’s silly to proceed.
Secondly, manufacturers are required to submit a portfolio to be judged.
After a period of thorough assessment, awards are then decided.

What does it take to win?

There’s no secret formula to winning, but generally speaking, innovation and creativity are key. Something new, or a classic design reinvented is a great way to stand out from the crowd and be in with a shot.

Which Anker products have won?

The Anker award-winning family has grown rapidly and has received several more trophies in the past 18 months alone… :champagne:

PowerCore II 10000
AnkerBox
PowerCore Slim 5000
SoundBuds Sport NB10

PowerCore II 10000
Eufy BodySense Smart Scale

AND some of our award-winning designs haven’t even hit the shelves yet. :wink:

The most decorated recent release is Powercore II 10000, which has won both a Red Dot and iF award.

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Slim, sleek, upgraded material, and not to mention it works great - it’s as close to a winning blueprint as you’ll find.

How important is design to you when buying tech? Let us know in the comments!:blush:

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The All-New Award-Winning PowerCore II Slim: 15% OFF
Ankerbox ... Innovative business idea from Anker, in Seattle!
#4

Which ones haven’t hit the shelves yet?

#5

Design, functionality, speed and intuitiveness are important to me when choosing tech that helps me in my daily life. Kudos to you and your engineers :slight_smile:

#6

Congrats Anker for RedDot design award.
Love the idea of AnkerBox.
Anker Should start this program in Chicago next to Divvy Bike Station. Or Partner with Divvy Bike it will be great hit.
Thank You

1 Like
#7

Batteries spend most of their time in a draw or bag, when you leave home they are in a pocket or backpack.

So for most of their time it is their cost, size, weight. Design is not relevant, most of the time, it is technology.

The Powercore II 10000 is not a technology advancement, it is bigger and heavier than the Powercore 10000. The Slim 5000 (I own) is smaller than the Powercore II 10000 and it charges in 3 hours. Why does the Powercore II 10000 need 4 hours?

Oh, and you want to be paid more for it. $33 for something bigger and heavier than the $20 (discounted) Powercore 10000.

I am looking forward to true technology innovation, not aesthetic cosmetic changes.

#8

While a pleasing aesthetic is always a major bonus, I still value performance over design.

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#9

That seems weird. It made me wonder what was going on. On the Amazon pages, it looks like the PowerCore II 10000 can fast-charge Quick Charge devices, but the PowerCore 10000 can’t. That might explain the size and weight difference (though it looks like the PowerCore II might be slimmer). If you compare it to the PowerCore Speed 10000 which also has Quick charge, it looks liek the PowerCore II is smaller in every aspect.

It looks like PowerCore II only recharges in 4 hours if you use a Quick Charge 3.0 charger to do it. Still, it should be roughly twice the capacity of the Slim 5000, right? An extra hour of charging for double the power doesn’t sound so bad.

I don’t think I would qualify any of that as “true technological innovation” but at least it doesn’t seem completely senseless, either.

Ultimately though, I agree with you @nigelhealy. The PowerCore 10000 or PowerCore Speed 10000 would provide similar performance at a discounted price.

#10

Design is not my primary concern, but it comes in at a close third in terms of priorities (behind function, and cost… to be honest depending on how much visibility the particular tech is likely to have, it can definitely edge out cost in some cases)

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#11

This is a secret!:stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes:

#12

So you don’t consider the price when buying tech? :grin:

#13

You really have an investment idea!:sunglasses:

#14

I don’t own anything QC.

So anything QC is irrelevant to me.

I got the last best idea in a product of the dual 2A inputs as I do carry a Powerport2, that was done in the 26800 and Powerport2 II 20000. If they’d done that in 10000 would have been far more relevant to the greater whole.

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#15

Finally getting that recognition globally that we’ve been able to enjoy for years. Keep up the innovation! Cheers

Q

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#16
#17

I consider the price!!! In general, I feel as though some of Anker’s stuff is slightly overpriced. However, the considerable amount of discounts and giveaways make up for it! Thanks, Anker!

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#18

It isn’t overpriced when I buy it. It might take 6+ months til I buy it though. :confused:

BTW one of my chargers died today, a 6-port Choetech, less than a year old. Oh well. In general, Anker stuff lasts longer than any other of the same product family (USB chargers, etc).

2 Likes
#20

ok,very goood,verey good

#21

i think the product is high price

#22

Anker’s stuff does usually seem to be a little more expensive than the norm. But I’ve found they usually last longer and have better customer service (and, like you said, frequent discounts and giveaways) which more than makes up for the difference, to me.

3 Likes
#23

Looks amazing with the functionality of power core 5000 !!!
Any power user test available let me know

1 Like