Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

First I will state that Anker sent me this product to review for my honest personal opinion on the product. I received the Anker Astro E5 in the mail just in time for a scheduled meetup with Ingress friends. For those of you not familiar with this, it is an Android phone based game that combines augmented reality and geocaching. The game is VERY HEAVY on battery usage on the Samsung GS2. During these meetups, I usually end up switching a battery out or leaching off of someone elses battery pack. So when Anker offered this to me for testing, I was all over it. The pack came precharged about half way. As soon as I got it, I put it on to charge and it was fully charged within the 4 hour timeframe prior to the meetup. The device is charged using a micro USB port on the side. It did not come with a wall charger, which I found somewhat weird. What if I didn't have a USB option to charge it with? It did come with a USB cable that had multiple options for connectors at the end. I only used the micro USB for my GS2 during my review time. The device is very well built. It has a very nice little LED flashlight which came in handy during the late night meetup while walking down the streets of town. The device shows it's charge through 4 lights on the device. When they are fully lit, it has that much charge (think 25% per light). When I started, all 4 lights were lit. I will say that my use of the external pack is probably different from many. I believe it is meant to recharge your device when it gets low. I personally use it as battery for my phone. So Ingress was running on my phone the entire time that the meetup was going on. We walked around town for about 4 hours or more. Once the meetup was done and I got back to my car, I pulled the E5 out of my back pocket and noticed 2 things right off the bat. First thing I noticed, it was cool to the touch (or as cool as it could be expected after sitting in my back pocket on a warm night). Second thing I noticed, I still had 4 charged lights on the pack! HOLY COW!! After 4 hours of continuous use (on the 1A side) there was very little drainage of the E5! Very nice! It's great to have a product that I don't have to worry about if a backup power source is needed! No more need for my second battery pack!! WOOT WOOT! After this meetup, the E5 was stored in my car for almost a week. I checked it today prior to doing this review and it was still at 3 lights full! So now for the usual pros and cons of the review: Pros: Long lasting charge even after 4 hours of continuous use Charges both Android and Apple devices simultaneously. It has a dedicated USB port for each of the technologies. You can use both for Android devices, but the Apple port will charge faster and could possibly damage your device. LED Flashlight. Not a necessity, but it was really nice to have it as an option. Lightweight Multiple connectors on the USB cable. Allows for only one USB cable to be carried and quick switching between differently connected devices. It charges the Lightning Adapter Apple products. I don't have any of these personally. But I do know that it is the first Anker product that is built with that tech in mind. Cons: No wall charger. You are expected to have a USB charging option. I guess this makes sense since the device is for recharging USB devices anyway. But I just felt like a wall charger could have been useful, especially if my PC USB ports are currently charging my USB devices... Awkward to carry. I'd like to see a belt clip or something for these devices. Currently, it has to either go in my pocket or I have to carry it around. It may be different for you depending on your use. Overall, this product went above and beyond my expectations. Now, if I could just find a way to carry it around without having to hold it in my pocket, increasing the temperature around it... Need a new Lightning Cable to charge your Apple devices with? Here is a great cable available from Anker as well (I tested/reviewed it as well). http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00K4VQZCM