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- Strong wired charging speed
- Built-in wireless charging
- Great value
- Basic speeds for wireless charging
- No digital display
The Anker Zolo A1684 is a cost-conscious power bank and a cheaper alternative to the Anker MagGo 10K and the UGreen Nexode PB561, delivering wireless charging and fast 30W wired charging in a compact unit.
As it’s only £30 you can’t expect QI2 wireless charging, and speeds there are limited to 7.5W, but if you’re looking for a cheap and easy way to top up on the way home from work, that might not be too much of an issue. The question is whether there’s anything else that makes this budget power bank less of a steal than it first appears. I’ve been testing it over the last week to find out.
What do you get for the money?
The Anker Zolo A1684 is a compact power bank available in black, white, pink or light blue colourways, with a MagSafe QI wireless charging pad built into the top. A flip-out kickstand allows it to stand either horizontally or vertically for charging, while a captive USB-C cable on the right hand side forms a carry loop when the specially moulded plug fits into its slot on the front edge. The only physical socket is a single USB Type-C port, which supports 30W fast charging.
In typical Anker style, it’s a very solid little unit. The A1684 is a couple of millimetres wider than the similar Belkin BoostCharge Pro or the Ugreen Nexode PB561 at 69 x 21 x 103.5mm (WDH), and at 223g it’s not a huge weight to lug around. There’s no fancy digital display on this model, just a row of four LEDs to indicate the current charge level, plus a fifth LED that glows blue while it’s charging up another device.
What do we like?
If you’re after super-fast wireless charging, you need to look upmarket at the BoostCharge Pro or Anker’s own MagGo A1654. At 7.5W the Zolo A1684 charged my iPhone 13 Mini by just 9%, compared to 15% with Belkin’s QI2 power bank.
However, wired charging is another story. Where the Belkin’s USB-C port tops out at 15.26W with our test smartphone and 18.22W with a laptop, the Zolo delivered outputs of 21.15W and 26.87W with the same devices. It’s one of the best performances we’ve seen from a compact power bank.
What’s more, it can charge wirelessly while it’s being charged itself, and even charge a second device through the captive cable. This will have an impact on charging speeds, however. While I couldn’t measure the output, my Google Pixel 7 reported them as slow.
What didn’t we like?
There’s really not much to complain about with the Zolo. Sure, it’s wireless charging speeds are limited to basic QI speeds, but that’s reflected in the price. The worst thing I can say about it is that it doesn’t have the rubberised top of the Belkin BoostCharge Pro, which helps keep phones in place where they don’t have MagSafe to lock them to the charger.
Should you buy the Anker Zolo A1684?
It’s a great budget wireless charger, with the added bonus that you can switch to fast wired charging if you need a quicker refuel on the move. In many ways it’s similar to the UGreen Nexode PB561, but a little better thanks to its faster USB-C charging speeds. At £30 or less, it’s a bargain.
