CukTech 10 Power Bank Provides Portable Power [Review]

If you’re constantly on the move with your devices, a portable power source like the CukTech 10 Power Bank can be a lifesaver. With a 10,000mAh battery charged up and in your bag along with a USB-C and USB-A cable, you won’t have to worry about your gadgets running out of juice under normal circumstances (though a major power outage could change that).

If you’re looking for a portable power bank, hurry up: For a limited time, you can pick up the CukTech 10 for just under $30, which is a great price for a fully featured charger.

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CukTech 10 Power Bank Review

I wrote about the CukTech 10 Power Bank when it first came out, mainly because a compact 10,000mAh power bank for under $30 seemed like a bargain. Now that I’ve had a chance to try it out, I can say it certainly is a bargain for anyone who carries around gadgets and often finds themselves low on battery without ever finding a power outlet. This applies to your MacBook, iPad, iPhone, and Apple Watch, for example.

Snickers Bar Comparison: Not as Small as CukTech Suggests

CukTech achieves its compact size by modifying the shape of a typical power bank: it doesn’t spread the battery inside out across a flat surface, making the whole device roughly the same size and shape as an iPhone, but instead grows taller and narrower when laid flat, or stands up like a tiny monolith.

How small? The description on CukTech’s website says the bank is “about the size of a Snickers bar.” But frankly, this has to be the world’s largest Snickers candy bar, or at least a king-size version instead of the regular size. See image above. It’s probably no coincidence that the Amazon description says “large energy bar.” The CukTech 10 weighs about 10.1 ounces (the equivalent of a Snickers bar made of lead or plutonium).

CukTech also says it “fits in any pocket,” and while that may be true, I’d feel more comfortable sticking this chunky thing in a backpack pocket or the compartment of a computer bag than in a trouser pocket, especially if you’re carrying other items.

Charging is pretty fast, but could be faster

The CukTech 10 power bank is pretty quick at charging itself and other devices. It delivers up to 90W of power from your appropriate charger via a USB-C cable (the bank’s USB-C port can be used for both input and output). “Imagine being able to charge up to 55% of the power bank’s capacity in just 15 minutes – that’s enough to charge an iPhone 15 once,” says CukTech, which seems pretty accurate.

I used a 150W Anker charger to quickly charge the power bank to full capacity. The color TFT screen shows the input and output power as well as the current battery capacity. I used the power bank with a portable device, which I always take with me when I go out.

Charge your iPad Air via USB-C

With the tablet at 18% capacity, I connected my M1 iPad Air (5th gen) to the charger via a USB-C cable. The bank provided an average of about 25W of power (27.9W max) over about an hour and 5 minutes to charge the iPad to 80% capacity. It was at 39% in 20 minutes, and 66% in 45 minutes. Of course, the charger’s capacity steadily decreased during this time. By the time the iPad reached 80% battery, the charger’s battery had dropped to 23%, and if I continued charging at this rate, I had another 25 minutes before the power bank would run out of juice.

So taking an iPad from nearly empty to nearly full is a big job for a charger; keeping multiple devices from running out of juice is probably more common use for a charger.

Charge your iPhone 13 Pro via USB-C

The power bank charged my iPhone 13 Pro from 20% capacity to 93% capacity in an hour and four minutes. For a while it claimed to be moving up to 17.6W of power. In the first five minutes, my iPhone’s battery jumped from 20% to 32%. Typically, the fuller the target device’s battery is, the lower the transfer wattage shown on the bank’s display. When I plugged in my iPhone, the bank’s transfer rose to about 17.5W. When my iPhone was at about 90%, it was at 3.3W. During that charge, the power bank dropped from 100% capacity to 68%.

Charge your Apple Watch 6 via USB-A

The two devices above were charged with the USB-C cable that came with the power bank (or with any USB-C cable I had). For the Apple Watch Series 6, I used the Apple MagSafe USB-A cable, designed for wearables. Appropriately, the bank’s USB-A connector delivered 0.7W to 1.8W of power to the watch, boosting battery life by about 10% every 10 minutes, slowly slowing down over time. While not extremely fast, it didn’t take long to get the watch from 13% to nearly full.

Charge two devices simultaneously

According to CukTech, using both ports on the power bank simultaneously allows for a total of 133W of charging (about 100W for the USB-C). Charging both an Apple Watch and an iPhone, we found that it delivered a variable amount of power, between 9W and 12W to the handset and about 1.5W to the wearable. With an iPad and Apple Watch plugged in, the bank delivered 24W to 26W to the tablet and 0.7W to 1.5W to the wearable.

We also note that there may be efficiency issues with this device, as the Amazon listing notes: “Note: Due to energy loss during charging, the CUKTECH 10 Power Bank provides an estimated 5500mAh of power,” which seems like a pretty significant loss.

CukTech 10 Power Bank Features and Specifications:

• Automotive grade 21700 power cells manufactured by leading manufacturers
• Single port 100W charging, bidirectional charging via USB-C and USB-A (max power 133W)
• Compatible with PD 3.1 and PPS fast charging technologies.
• Length 143mm, width 45mm
• The TFT screen displays voltage, current battery level, power output, and remaining charge and recharge time.
• 90W PD fast self-charging (charges up to 55% capacity in 15 minutes)
• What’s in the box: CukTech 10 power bank, 6A 240W USB-C charging cable, instruction manual, 18-month warranty

Cuktech 10 is available to purchase on Amazon. $49.99 $42.49 (15% off) And, for an unknown period of time, you can lower the price even further by checking the product page for a 30% off coupon to see the price below $30 at checkout. That’s a great deal.

Where to buy: Amazon

Courtesy of CukTech Cult of Mac This is the review unit for this article. Please see our review policy and check out other in-depth reviews of Apple related items.

★★★☆☆