New Anker Nano 45W, 10.000 mAh Powerbank with retractable cable (A1638) - Impressions
Another deep dive into power banks
10,000 mAh Battery Powerbank THRU-HIKING
Anker Nano Powerbank - port easily broken
Videos
This is a English translation of my German written review you can find on this Sub -> Link
Anker, as is well-known, introduced a new Nano lineup this week. Following a first look at the 130W Desktop Charger, we now have the new 45W, 10,000 mAh Nano Power Bank with a retractable cable. Model: A1638.
You can find the model here - Amazon.de
The suggested retail price is €49.99. You should be able to get a 20% discount with the code "NANOPOWER."
Size & Weight:
8,19 x 5,09 x 3,65 cm, 228g
The build quality is, as is typical for Anker, impeccable. Everything feels premium. The dimensions are pleasantly compact. Attached are a few impressions and comparisons to the older Anker Nano 30W, 10,000 mAh power bank, as well as the screen displays offered by this model:
https://ibb.co/20w9Qf1B
https://ibb.co/tPDMSSDN
https://ibb.co/wFFhx3MR
https://ibb.co/VcqHRk4j
https://ibb.co/RTNK4xHS
https://ibb.co/bjkcwdt1
https://ibb.co/TMy1H8Kp
https://ibb.co/DPM9xjMs
Specs:
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5V 3A / 9V 3A/ 15V 3A / 20V 2,25A - Yes, no fixed 12V!
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C1 / C-Cable: 45W Output, 30W Input
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A1: 22,5W
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When using two ports:
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5V 4A: 10W + 10W
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PPS:
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C1 / C-Cable:
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3,3V - 11V bei 5A (u.a. Super Fast Charging 2.0 for recent and older Samsung phones)
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3,3V - 16V bei 3A (u.a. Super Fast Charging 2.0 for recent Samsung S25 phones)
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3,3V - 21V bei 2,25A (u.a. full power for Google Pixel 9 Pro XL, Nothing Phone (2), 3a, 3a Pro, etc.)
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Protocols:
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C1 / C-Kabel: PD3.0, QC3.0, FCP, SCP (20W), AFC, DCP, Apple 2,4A
A few bullet points:
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The PPS range is always perfectly tailored to 45W, providing full power for 11V, 16V, and 21V.
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The input is 30W, which is lower than the output.
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C1 and C-cable are completely identical in performance and functions.
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As is typical for Anker, a fixed 12V stage is missing.
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UFCS support is not present.
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Passthrough is available.
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The display shows the battery level in percentage, the charging power per port in watts, a very "approximate" temperature display (without °C values), and the charging cycles.
Capacity:
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30,91Wh bei 20V 2,25A (86%)
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30,00Wh bei 15V 2A (83%)
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31,12Wh bei 9V 2,2A (86%)
Unfortunately, the Anker Nano 45W cannot consistently output either 45W or 30W! When discharging at 45W (over 20V 2.25A), the power bank throttled down to 30W after 13 minutes and 10Wh at 73% battery. After another 27 minutes, it throttled down again to 20W at 34% and 21Wh, and then continued charging at 20W until empty.
When discharging via 45W PPS (9V 5A), the throttling occurred even sooner, after just 7 minutes, dropping to 25W. After another 23 minutes, the power bank throttled down again to 17W.
Even 30W over 15V 2A cannot be constantly output by the power bank. Here, the throttling happened quite late, at 5% after 55 minutes and 27Wh had been drawn.
That 45W couldn't be maintained constantly was expected. Similar compact 45W power banks, like the Baseus PicoGo 45W or the INIU 45W P50-E1, also don't manage it. However, both of those models can consistently deliver 30W and also hold the 45W output longer, especially when charging a phone via PPS. The Anker, in this regard, becomes very slow over time. Results can vary depending on the smartphone. Besides a Samsung S25 Ultra, I primarily tested a Realme GT 7 Pro with a large 6,500 mAh battery, which can charge at 45W up to about 80%. With this Realme, the power bank also throttled down to 17W when the phone was just at 54%...
As is well-known, Samsung smartphones can only charge at 45W for 5-10 minutes anyway. For owners of such phones, the throttling should play a slightly lesser role. However, the phone usually throttles down to the mid-30W range, but the power bank goes from 45W to 25W in this case, meaning power is still lost. Overall, it's unfortunately a weak performance and also weaker than the competition.
Charging:
With a 30W input, the power bank is fully recharged in an average of 1 hour and 55 minutes. However, it only charges at 30W for the first 12-15 minutes, then it throttles down to 20W. The 20W is then maintained consistently. A good 30W, 10,000 mAh power bank charges in about 1 hour 30 minutes to 1 hour 40 minutes, so while the Anker is a bit slower, it's still within an acceptable range at just under 2 hours.
Conclusion:
Ultimately, at an MSRP of €50 or a sale price of €40, you simply get too little. While it boasts great build quality, excellent features, and a super elegant integrated retractable charging cable, none of this can mask the fact that its charging performance, both in output and input, is below average compared to the competition.
If you're not specifically looking for the retractable cable, you should consider the INIU P50-E1, which can often be found on sale for around €20. Not only is it significantly smaller, but it also offers more power.
However, the utility of this power bank also depends somewhat on the hardware you plan to charge. If price isn't a major concern and, for example, you primarily charge Apple devices, the Anker Nano is still not a bad choice.
On my own behalf:
A List of all my written reviews: Link And my Google Sheet for all the data I collected over time: Link