Monday, June 26, 2006

The Q1 PowerBank has Arrived!

Samsung called their 9 hour battery for the Q1 the PowerBank. This made me suspect that it was not a simple replacement battery. I was expecting either a monstrous tumor-like battery sticking out of the bottom of the Q1 or a separate, add-on that may or may not attach to the Q1. Of course, no one bothered to include any photos on their site. What actually arrived was a small, flat, brick of a battery that plugs in as an add on to the Q1. This will actually work well for me, since I normally have a bag and should only need the extra battery when I have my bag with me anyway. It doesn't attach to the Q1 in any way and doesn't replace the default battery.


The Powerbank sits between the Q1 and the power brick to charge both the Q1 and the Powerbank. It has the same PUSH button lighting system to indicate battery charge. There is a small LED on the right,where the power cord plugs in, to indicate charging status. The output power cable to the Q1 on the left is not removable. Our scale here at work says is weighs 1.2 lbs. The Powerbank is about half the size of the Q1. This is actually very similar, but much smaller, to an IBM battery slice I looked at as option for the Q1. FYI, none of the 8 or 9 IBM tips that come with the product fit the Q1 and the IBM 6 hour battery was 3lbs. Of course, that's 6 hours for a laptop!


The thin, multi-language manual doesn't indicate a charge time for the PowerBank. It does say that when plugged in, the internal battery charges first, then the PowerBank. Mine is showing green for fully charged but the battery charge meter won't light. It's supposed to glow orange when charging. I'll guess we'll wait and see. Photos are below.


The Powerbank with the Q1.











Relative size comparison.












The sides. Front, Right, Back, Left.


4 comments:

Unknown said...

I REALLY like the Samsung Power Bank. I bought the powerbank and another external battery because they were hard to get and I had a trip coming up. I used them both and ended up return the generic one. The generic was just heavier. It got to the point that I didn't want to carry it even for testing. It was only 1/2 a pound heavier but it felt like a brick. I almost bought the other thinking "If I get another device I could use it with that device and get better value". Then I actually looked, none of our DVD or other PC's use a 16-20w connector. They were all 12w or way over 20w. So the chances of me being able to reuse it look really slim.

Even after seeing the middle size battery that sticks out the bottom of the Q1, I think I would have ordered the power bank. I just don't worry about power anymore, no matter how long the flight. I don't work with it plugged in at home at all, I'm always on batteries. I plug it in when I go to bed and when I'm at work. So long answer to short question. I'd buy the Powerbank again, even though it's more expensive and probably has a shorter battery time than some of the generics. It's really light and a lot smaller than generic options and let's face it, once you're at 7+ hours, battery is no longer important, weight is.

WizardList said...

I'm a fan of the power bank. It's always with me! Great for flying. Seems to recharge very quickly... I don't necessarily believe the "full" indicator...

Anonymous said...

Hello Mark,

I have what I didn't think was a unique situation, but after spending a couple of hours online tonight looking for a solution, you might be the guy to help me with a couple of questions.

First, what is the minimum running time that you've experienced with the Power Bank? Eight hours would be nice, but obviously actual performance is measurably reduced in real-world applications, and I'm just curious what you've experienced when pushing your Q1&power bank to the limit.

And second, how long is the built-in cable? I would be wearing the Power Bank in a pouch on my tool belt, and if it's shorter than about 18", it just might be useless to me.

Thanks, Tom

kawarays said...

Hi Mark,

I am interesting in the Q1 Power Bank. I want to know can I recharge it separately without connect to the Q1? Does it have standalone charger? Many thanks.