Anker PowerCore Speed 20000 PD does not charge past 75%?

#1

I recently got a Anker PowerCore Speed 20000 PD. When unpacking the battery reported 2 out of 4 LEDs for its charging status. I then let it charge over night using my Nokia 8 Sirocco USB-C charger (technically “only” a QuickCharge device providing 3A).

However, the next day I noticed that it was still not at full capacity and only the 3rd of the LEDs is flashing. I let it charge even longer and still has not reached its full capacity.

I know that Anker recommends to charge the PowerCore Speed using a USB-C charger with PD capabilities - but I thought that I should be able to charge it with any USB charging device + USB-C (albeit with a longer charging time)?

#2

Ah, sorry, I was mistaken. The charger only provides 2.5A (at 5V). Since the input specification of the Anker PowerCore Speed 20000 PD lists 3A @ 5V… is that the reason then? It cannot be (fully) charged without a true PD charger?

#3

I dont know how long you had it charging, but given the size of the pack it will take anywhere from 12 to 20 hours to fully charge it with that charger you have.
To fast charge it you will need a true PD charger, and even then it could take 8 to 12 hours to fully charge it

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#4

I have one of Anker’s PowerCore chargers slightly larger than this one it and it take 15 or more hours to charge on a regular charger and a USB-C cable. When I plug it into my PD charger it takes about 8 to 10 hours. I’ve never timed it.

I would suggest contacting @AnkerSupport at support@anker.com and give them the specs of the charger you using and explain what happening to them. They can give you more detail about you need to get a full charge.

#5

It was connected for almost 24 hours - and it started at being charged already at ~50%. That’s why I found it so weird.

And when I finally connected it to a true PD charger, it went from the 3rd flashing LED to a full charge in under an hour o_0

I mean it’s fine, I’ll probably get a PD charger for my “charging station” anyway. I was just wondering if the PowerCore PD absolutely needs a PD charger. I’ll observe it further.

#6

The battery is probably fine. Most modern batteries/chargers slow the charge rate as they get full. Less than 80% charged they fast charge, but slow down at higher charges to protect the battery. If it takes an hour to charge from 50% to 75% it might then take another 2hrs to get from 75% to 90%, then another 2 hours to get to 95%. With a lower output charger you are charging at the slower rate all the time. So for the above example the total time could be 18hrs instead of 5 hours. With a large battery like yours it will take a while!

#7

I had to revive this thread to update others about what is actually happening with the PowerCore Speed 20000. (I hope the OP is able to see this, too.)

I originally had one of the Anker 20000 banks which had 2 USB female ports, and charged via Micro USB (not USB-C). I gave that bank to a friend when I bought the Power Core Speed 20000 since I was upgrading to a fast-charging powerbank.

Right off the bat I knew something was regulating the input charge rate to the P.C. Speed model because as described above, the thing was taking almost 24 hours to charge. The way I was charging was using my Samsung quick charger, which has a standard USB female port + male->USB-C cable, thus using the USB-C input on the PowerCore. This is the same way I would fast charge an S9+. But the P.C. Speed definitely wasn’t charging at very many watts.

Here’s what I did to get some actual data about what was happening. I grabbed various cables and chargers, and all cables were USB male to USB-C. The chargers ranged from 1A to 2.4A @ 5V output (USB 2.0 chargers), along with 2 Samsung quick chargers using same cables. I then monitored the power use by the A/C chargers using a Kill-A-Watt meter, and powered some D/C chargers from a digital lab supply to see what they were drawing in power while charging the Anker power bank.

Here’s what I found out: Irregardless of the charger, or cable, IF the cable had a male standard USB to male USB-C configuration, the Powerbank would only allow USB 2.0 conventional power input to the C port–which is 500mA @ 5V or 2.5W. This, is where your extremely long charge times are originating from! The older model power bank with Micro USB input accepted whatever amperage the micro USB charger delivered–so although it wouldn’t be quick-charging the bank, it was many times faster than 500mA @ 5V (2.5W).

Inside the PowerCore Speed 20000, if you were to open it up, you would almost undoubtedly find 6x 18650 3400mAH 3.6V cells. Each cell is about 12.25W/Hrs; multiply by 6 and you get about 73.5W/Hrs–the capacity of the P.C. Speed 20000. If you divide that by only 2.5W input (5V @ 500mA), you’ll see at minimal it would take 29.4 hours to charge from empty. Ah ha, sound familiar, anyone?

It turns out, as I found out, Anker implies that it accepts essentially any amperage you’ll ever see from a non-quick-charging USB charger–though in most situations people are used to, it will limit incoming power and take ~30hrs to charge up.

How do you get the faster charge rate, then? What you need, is any charger with a USB-C female port output (instead of a conventional USB full-size female port), and you’ll need a USB-C male-to-male cable. That’s it, the quality of the cable I found not to matter, merely the configuration is what unlocks the (USB-C) PD port to higher amperages (or wattages) both in and out.

I used a “MS” (no name gas station brand) 33W charger having a USB-C output port. Once I used the male-to-male USB-C cable, I monitored a 27-28W output power to the PowerCore Speed 20000–a much higher charging rate–for the first time ever.

73.5W/Hrs ÷ 27W = 2.72 Hrs total charge time I am now getting, and my S9+ now says “Fast Charging” instead of just “Charging”.

To recoup on everything: To unlock any form of decent charge rate of the PowerCore Speed 20000, you need a charger with USB-C port output, and a cable with a male USB-C on each end–not just on one end, and your problems will be solved.

It’s less hassle the above way anyways, as you pull the cable out of the charger and it doesn’t need to be flipped around to be ready to charge a phone. It stays plugged into the powerbank, never needing removal. The larger USB female port of course still works for power output, but the C port is where you will get the input/output speed from, and I’m definitely able to charge it up way faster than I could ever charge up the micro-USB version–3 hours for 20000mAH is fast, just make sure you have a 25-33W charger to be able to cover the ability. As I said, I have a 33W rated charger and the actual rate I’m seeing is just over 27W to the PowerCore.

Here you guys thought 8-10 hours was normal to top off the PowerCore. You should be really happy to know the future’s here and way faster than you thought it was! :grin:

#8

As i have mentioned time and time again in these forums you cannot use Samsungs fast adaptive chargers and expect to get fast charging speeds when trying to charge a powerbank. Those chargers will always revert to the slowest charging speed because the battery pack cannot tell it to enable fast charging like your phone can. There is no handshake to signal this fast charging, thus it takes so long to charge. Now if tou use a charger from Samsungs latest S10 and 10+ phones then it would fast charge because it doesnt use the adaptive charge rate

#9

Thanks for that additional info. I haven’t followed or read any other threads here, to be honest, about this stuff. Quite frankly, I had been curious what happens “behind the scenes” with various “high-speed” chargers–AKA how they “handshake” and what variable parameters are exchanged in what ways to trigger, or reject, a fast-charge rate to occur. But as I added in my post, even standard (let’s call them USB-2.0 spec era) “higher amperage” chargers claiming 2.1A, 2.4A, A/C or D/C powered, etc, wouldn’t deliver this to the PowerCore Speed–it wasn’t just the Samsung chargers. The way it really appeared to me was that, if it used a USB cable with a standard large USB male connector on one end, USB-C on the other, it simply would revert to 500mA @ 5V, 2.5W charging rate. It came across to me that it took a fast-charger/quick-charger with USB-C port output, combined with a “mirrored” USB-C (on both ends) cable to get the high-wattage charging to occur. I was relatively computer savvy on specs for a long time (I thought, at least), until the whole USB-C spec occurred; at that point I got a bit lost, be it lack of keeping up-to-date on the programming end of things, or even relatively simpler stuff with the USB3.0/3.1 protocol when it comes to mobile charging devices–I don’t know, but I definitely found myself confused for the first time in a long time with anything peripheral-related when it came to this charging spec stuff.

To try and save others the hassle of the research I needed and lacked, I reported it like I did; get a quick-charger rated over 25W that has a USB-C output port instead of a conventional USB female port like 99% of chargers have, then get a C-to-C cable, and I bet your problem will be solved. I’m sure, as Tank said, there are chargers that will trigger actual fast-charging that are not using a cable with USB-C on both ends, but then you will be flipping cables and swapping cables to go between charging the power bank and charging the phone. When I use the USB female port on the PowerCore Speed, my S9+ does not say “Fast Charging”, just “Charging”, when powered from the PowerCore. So for me, I had to use a C-to-C cable to get that to happen, which means I’m going out on a limb and telling everyone just to use a C-to-C cable with this PowerCore and you’ll have no regrets.

I love the thing now that I figured out how to charge it up in 3 hours, and the Anker woven cover I think is a good accessory to get, as I have dropped mine 2 times on concrete getting out of the car with hands full juggling keys around. The cover, for the most part anyways, blocked any major scratches, but I got a few dents in the plastic by the bottom edge–so I think the cover’s protection could be increased in that area where a hard strike pressure is likely if dropped on a hard surface. I think Anker should make a slim foam cover that fits like a coozie does on a pop can, with the draw-string closure on top, and a small cutout with woven material where the battery indicator lights are to keep them visible but protect the rest of the case. Maybe add a quick attach clip on the draw-string so you can snap the bank onto a key chain or belt loop when your arms are full. :wink: