Easily, one of the most frustrating things about portable power banks is that you often need to carry around a bunch of additional, bulky cables.
If you have an iOS device and an Android device, then you need to make sure you have both your lightning cable and a micro USB cable. And if you also want to recharge the power bank itself, well then you need a power adapter or a USB power source. What you thought would be a nice convenient way to charge your device on the go, quickly becomes a packing nightmare.
Good news…intelliARMOR has come up with a brilliant solution to this charging conundrum, and has just launched an Indiegogo campaign to fund their upcoming Scout Wireless and Scout Max portable power banks.
These ultra-slim, light-weight power banks feature built-in AC wall chargers, embedded lightning, micro USB and USB-C cables as well as a quick-charging USB port and a USB input port for charging the battery itself.
Coming in two different flavors, the Scout Max has a capacity of 10000 mAh allowing for plenty of top-ups to all of your various devices, while the Scout Wireless has a smaller, 5000 mAh capacity (half that of the Max), but adds 5V/1A wireless charging capabilities, giving users the widest variety of charging options possible.
“We wanted to make portable power as seamless as possible and eliminate the need of carrying multiple cables, so we designed Scout with multiple, built-in cables that tuck away and are hidden when not in use, ” said Adam Anderson, founder of intelliARMOR. “And of course, the feature we’re most proud of is the built-in wall plug to make recharging as easy as possible….and since Scout fully supports pass through charging, you can directly charge your devices from any outlet.”
I was sent an early review unit of the Scout Wireless, which I used to charge my phone during the PAX Unplugged event this past weekend and it performed beautifully! Just slightly larger and thicker than my iPhone X, the Scout was so convenient and a delight to use. At night I simply unfolded the AC power prongs and plugged it into a standard wall socket in my hotel room to charge. On my way out the door, I grabbed it and put it in my bag for the day. While playing board games, I simply placed the Scout on the table and then my phone on top to charge it wirelessly and for times when I didn’t want my phone out, I just used the embedded lightning cable to plug it directly into the phone and I could still easily fit both Scout and iPhone, stacked together in my pocket. It felt so freeing not to have to worry about carrying around extra cables, I had everything that I needed all in one simple package.
I’ve only been using the Scout Wireless for a few days now, so I can’t speak for its longevity, but so far I’m really impressed by my initial experience! I have no hesitation recommending that you back the project and pick one up, especially if you can get in on the campaign’s $19 Super Early Bird (75% off retail), $25 Early Bird (68% off retail) or $39 combo pack pricing perks. In fact, in the interest of full disclosure, I have personally backed this project at the Super Early Bird Combo level for two additional Scout Wireless units.
Rewards are estimated to ship in March 2019, and the campaign has a flexible funding goal of $10,000.
You can check out the full details of the campaign and back it here.
