Skip to main content

Digital Trends may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site. Why trust us?

Anker’s 150W charger has completely changed how I charge my gadgets

Let’s face it: chargers aren’t an exciting thing to talk about. Everyone uses them, and they’re a necessity for any modern tech gadget. But reading an entire article where someone gushes over how cool a charger is? Sounds pretty nerdy!

Well, buckle up, nerds, because that’s exactly what I’m doing for the next few hundred words. A few months ago, Anker sent me the 747 Charger — the latest addition to its GaNPrime lineup of chargers. It’s probably smaller than the fast charger you’re currently using, has significantly more ports, and is a whole lot smarter, too. It’s not the flashiest piece of tech I’ve used this year, but easily one of the most impactful.

Heavy on ports, light on size

Anker 747 charger on a table.
Joe Maring/Digital Trends

The biggest immediate benefit of the Anker 747 is its port selection — flaunting three USB-C ports and one USB-A port. Amazon has no shortage of multi-device chargers with five, six, or even ten ports, but those are almost always limited to slow USB-A outputs.

What’s impressive about the 747 is that you have three high-speed USB-C outputs at your disposal, plus that full-size USB-A port when you need that instead. And even more impressive is how Anker crammed all of those ports into a shockingly small body.

Despite offering a max power output of 150W, the Anker 747 is smaller than both the 140W and 96W chargers Apple includes with the M1 MacBook Pro. And don’t forget — those offer just a single USB-C port with less total power output. Hell, it’s honestly not that much bigger than Apple’s 30W charger. It’s a ridiculous amount of ports/power for a charger of its size, and that’s been a huge reason why I’ve been using it so much.

Anker 747 charger next to an Apple charger.
Anker 747 next to Apple’s 30W charger. Joe Maring/Digital Trends

When I’m home, the Anker 747 stays plugged into the power outlet by my nightstand. It powers a MagSafe charger for my iPhone, an Apple Watch charger, and always has two free ports when I need to connect something else. And when I’m traveling, the 747’s allowed me to go from lugging three-to-four chargers to just one.

It’s not that those multiple chargers took up a ton of room in my backpack/suitcase, but the peace of mind is incredible. Instead of triple-checking that I have every single charger I’ll need for a trip, I now just have to make sure I packed the Anker 747. If I did, I know I’m good to go.

Fast, smart, and reliable charging

Anker 747 charger on a table.
Joe Maring/Digital Trends

But it’s not just the Anker 747’s design that’s kept me coming back. I also love the charger because of how fast it is. If you’re just using one port, the Anker 747 has a max power output of 100W. But if you use two, three, or all four ports, it kicks out 150W of charging horsepower. That’s more than enough speed to fast-charge an iPhone 14 Pro, Pixel 7 Pro, or Galaxy Z Fold 4. Hell, you can even quickly charge large tablets and laptops like a 2022 iPad Pro or M2 MacBook Air.

What’s especially cool, though, isn’t the rate at which the Anker 747 chargers devices, but how that charging happens. Using its PowerIQ 4.0 tech, the Anker 747 can detect the current battery life of devices plugged into it and prioritize charge speed to whatever needs it the most.

Hell, you can even quickly charge large tablets and laptops.

Say you plug in an iPhone 14 with 50% battery remaining and a Pixel 7 with just 10% battery left. The Anker 747 knows the Pixel is lower, and therefore knows to charge it faster. And this isn’t a feature you have to manually enable at any point — it’s just always running in the background and ready to go.

This is far less flashy than a retro battery pack with a transparent design, but it adds a level of reliability that I appreciate far, far more. There’s no guesswork involved when it comes time to charge. I just plug everything in, walk away, and know that everything’s going to charge quickly and efficiently.

My new go-to charger

Anker 747 charger next to phones and other devices.
Joe Maring/Digital Trends

Before getting the Anker 747, my charging setup was … not great. I have a smattering of single-device USB-C chargers in my office and would typically just grab the nearest one when something needed a top-up. It was an inefficient and clunky method, but it’s the habit I fell into.

The Anker 747 has completely broken that habit, and for the better. It’s changed my charging life both at home and while traveling, and it’s made my life significantly easier because of it. Is it something I actively think about every day? No. But I use the 747 every day and am regularly thankful for just how good it is at what it does.

There aren’t many chargers I would recommend spending over $100 on, but the Anker 747 is more than deserving of its $110 asking price. And, apparently, it’s also worth around 800 words of nerdy praise.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Joe Maring
Section Editor, Mobile
Joe Maring is the Section Editor for Digital Trends' Mobile team, leading the site's coverage for all things smartphones…
This 3-in-1 MagSafe stand charges your iPhone with a twist
Ugreen 3-in-1 MagSafe charging stand.

Many iPhone owners these days have more than just their smartphone to charge up at night. because of Apple’s robust product ecosystem, an iPhone is often joined by an Apple Watch and a set of AirPods, and there’s no shortage of accessories designed to make it easy to manage and charge these devices together.

Such is the case with the $130 Ugreen 3-in-1 MagSafe Charging Station, which takes advantage of the MagSafe technology built into iPhone 12 and newer models. Ugreen's charging station holds your phone in place while fast charging it and juices up your Apple Watch and a set of AirPods (or other small wireless charge-capable earphones) at the same time. It's an impressive-sounding package on paper. But what's it like to use?
MagSafe vs. magnetic charging

Read more
How the iPhone 13 Pro Max helped kill my low-battery anxiety
Apple's rumored hardware subscription service is a compelling rental service

Low-battery anxiety is real. The fear of running out of battery while I’m on my way home has bothered me for as long as I can remember using flagship smartphones. It was only two months back when I bought the most expensive slab phone that helped me end my battery anxiety.

Even almost a year since its release, the iPhone 13 Pro Max is still the battery champ in 2022. No flagship smartphone of the current year comes close to last year’s top-notch iPhone in terms of battery life. And with the way I use my phones, it's been something of a game-changer.
The iPhone 13 Pro Max is still the battery king in 2022

Read more
Anker’s next-gen GaN chargers offer more power in smaller packages
Anker 747 Ganprime charger in black.

Anker has just unveiled the next generation of Gallium Nitride (GaN) technology with a series of powerful new chargers that can keep up with even your most power-hungry mobile devices on the go while still letting you travel light.

The company's new lineup of GaNPrime chargers offers power levels from 65 watts to 150 watts while coming in at up to 53% smaller than most other chargers. And thanks to the new PowerIQ 4.0 feature enabled by the latest advancements in GaN technology, Anker's multiport GaNPrime chargers can dynamically adjust the power output on the fly to ensure that every connected device gets the current it needs for the fastest and most efficient charging.

Read more