Portable power banks are a fact of life in 2021, because we all own smartphones, wireless headphones and other portable devices which are so power-hungry they need charging on an almost daily basis. Keeping this in mind, it takes something truly special to grab our attention, and the recently-Kickstarted Storm 2 does just that – in more ways than one.
Arun, CARIT and NAXIM – the collaborative team behind this 'Sci-Fi EDC Power Bank For Digital Nomads' (their words, not ours) – are making a big deal out of its 'cyberpunk' stylings (perhaps not the best connection to make at the moment), but we have to admit, this effortlessly ranks as the coolest-looking portable battery we've ever laid our eyes on. Batteries aren't exactly sexy, but this one somehow is.
We were lucky enough to get a unit to review, and it looks even nicer in the flesh – as we all know from the special editions of the Game Boy and Game Boy Color, everything looks better when it's transparent, and the tiny screen which shows data such as charging levels and total battery capacity makes it look like something out of an episode of Star Trek.
However, looks alone will only get you so far, and thankfully, the Storm 2 impresses on a technical level, too. It's got 2 USB-C charging ports that can fast-charge most modern devices and an old-school USB-A port, and its 27600mAh / 99.36Wh capacity is going to be enough to satisfy the needs of most people. Via a USB-C connection, it charges in around one-and-a-half hours.
What impressed us the most is that this beast is capable of providing power not only to our docked Switch, but also to a portable 1080p monitor – which means you can take your big-screen experience anywhere, even when you're away from a plug socket. Fancy some large-format 1080p Switch gaming in the park? Now you can! Even if you're of the opinion that the Switch's 720p display is perfectly fine when you're out of the house, the Storm 2 can charge your console (and all of your other devices) many times over, making it the ideal portable companion (you can even charge multiple devices at once, which will make you a real hit at parties).
The Storm 2 has clearly found its market already, as the Kickstarter campaign has reached more than £123,000, utterly destroying the initial goal of £7,286. You can secure your own 'early bird' unit for around £77 / $99, which is a lot for a portable power bank – but then again, this isn't just any portable power bank.
[source kickstarter.com]
Comments 31
Between this a Hori switch pad pro and a mclassic cable who needs a switch pro? Just give third parties your money. Nintendo only wants monies for ports.
wake up samurai, we've got a switch to charge
Will it be unusable on release?
Will only work on Switch Pro.
Only for real geeks in my opinion. For this price you can get enough power banks to charge your Switch 24/7 for.one week...
Don't see what's so special about this, just a power bank, already some great ones that I can also use to jump start a car.
You lost me at $99. I can find that type of power for far cheaper and dont need the look.
This guy is way to excited for a power bank
This reads more like an advertisement than a news article. Were you paid for this, other than receiving a review unit?
Kick starter from Hong Kong, China? No thanks, already been burned by something like this before
I’m pretty skeptical of any sort of power management stuff for the switch after the 3rd party docks. Not gonna risk it.
@C-Olimar Nope. We were sent a sample to try out.
I think they could lose the flashy looks and display and save a few bucks. This kind of capacity in this form factor and functionality isn't exactly common, but the price is just way too high.
@bobzbulder it's just a powerbank, not a dock. They're vastly different things.
@Savino get the life support
After losing power for 4 days I bought a 26,800 mah 30w RavPower with USB c. I wanted capacity for multiple phone charges, and the capability to charge the switch like the dock while playing. RavPower model PB058. Been happy with it since last summer.
Reminds me of the battery pack I once had for the Game Gear to avoid using AAs
how is this thing capable of powering a dock? Is there a cable im missing?
It looks nice but for the price it is not a go for me when I can find better ones at a cheaper price.
This is a very niche piece of kit, it seems to be going after a similar market to the Omnicharge battery but it's a bit less versatile, though cheaper (they're quite expensive but worth it if you need it). Definitely overkill if your goal is switch charging.
@HyruleanKnight Yeah, but you gotta differentiate from the competition somehow. Theres a million white box power banks. bringing another into the market won't net you any profits
they lost me at the price, i have a ravpower bank that does fine for most devices including my switch and cost about a third of this
@pixelpatch the dock just runs on USB-C the same as the Switch itself.
@Frobodobo No, actually. There aren't that many high quality stuff that gives you this kind of capacity for something this small. The only other one that comes to my mind is Anker's stuff, but they're hella expensive too. And quality matters too, I've bought enough chinese rip-offs that never delivered their advertised capacity and instead degraded heavily after a few recharge cycles to know quality. I bought a 10,000mAh from Anker and while it was expensive, it's still at over 80% capacity after two years. I don't know if this kickstarter is using the same quality of batteries as them but if they are, they have a reason to charge way more. Not that they should, but there's nothing stopping them.
@Savino they always have been. Perhaps you never really looked into this. I don't remember why 3rd party docks bricked Switches, but it had something to do with display output. Powerbanks are just juicing up your battery mate.
@N64-ROX Wait what? Since when? Like the standard dock can just hook up to a USB C cable?
edit: oh my god im an idiot. Wow, yup there it is.
@pixelpatch I don't think I've unplugged the power cable from my dock since 2017 either so you're forgiven haha
@Damo Yeah after a bit you just think "This is where the wall plug cable goes" instead of "This is a USB C connection"
"Portable power banks are a fact of life in 2021" I dunno - I think most of us stay in and don't need them as much as we used to. Having something charged on hand for when the power is out is nice tho.
@HyruleanKnight Yes, but the reason that switches bricked was because of power management. Wulffden did two videos on 3rd party docks monitoring the power intake. The 3rd party docks did fine while the console was on, but when off they send too much power. I would imagine that the same goes for power banks. Especially if you are using it while the console is off.
@Savino
@HyruleanKnight Just checked the price and the normal price is over 200! I dont think slapping on some bells and whistles are that expensive in the big picture. Like if it was 10€ cheaper it really wouldnt make a difference
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