Ukonnect Bluetooth Ultra-compact Foldable Keyboard Review

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this product for free so that I could provide product feedback to the company and post a product review. I was not required to write a positive review and I do not rate products higher than they should have been. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's requirements.

I recently received a Ukonnect Bluetooth Ultra-compact Foldable Keyboard for a product review. When folded up, the keyboard is fairly small - about the size of a smartphone, just a bit wider than my Moto X.  The keys are about the same size as the keys on my laptop, and when unfolded the distance between the keys on the top row ( from Q to P ) is about the same as my laptop.

Basically this is a compact keyboard that still is usable -- not something so tiny that you have to peck at the keys to even use it.

I tested the product on my Nexus 7 tablet and a Windows 7 laptop, both completed the Bluetooth pairing without any problems at all.  The special keys ( such as controlling volume ) worked great on both device.

Keyboard unfolded

Here are the main points I noticed about this product:

Compact: When folded up, this keyboard is about the size of a standard smartphone and when unfolded the key size and spacing is similar to a normal laptop.  There isn't a dedicated row at the top for numbers or function keys, and that is where some of the space savings happens.

Ease to Use: I had no problem pairing this keyboard with various devices I tested.  It folds up easily, and there are no special tricks you have to learn to use it.

Bottom line: If you are looking for a portable Bluetooth keyboard, this is a great option to consider.

Amazon Product Page: http://amzn.com/B00O5CGN2I

RAVPower 7800mAh Power Bank with iSmart Charging Review ( Model RP-PB31 )

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this product for free so that I could provide product feedback to the company and post a product review. I was not required to write a positive review and I do not rate products higher than they should have been. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's requirements.

I recently received a RAVPower 7800mAh Power Bank ( Model RP-PB31 ) for a product review.  In addition to the charger itself, a USB to microUSB cable was included.

Charger and USB to microUSB cable

The charger was pretty small compared to what I have recently tested, but that was expected since my recent tests were higher capacity (over 10000 mAh) units.  This one was small, and actually felt pretty light.  I was able to carry it in my pocket without really noticing it.

Size Comparison
Top : 7800 mAh battery pack
Bottom : 18200 mAh battery pack

The charger is rated to support 2.4A output, so I used my DROK testers and loads to see what it could handle.  Here is what I found:

- 2A load : Unit was able to handle it
- 3A load : Unit maxed out around 2.6A of output
- 4A load : Unit shut off, likely a built-in overload protection

So bottom line, it was able to handle just above the rated 2.4A rated max current.

For real world tests, I just used it from time to time to keep my devices charged and never ran into any problems.

Here are the main points I noticed about this product:

Compact: The battery pack is fairly small and not too heavy, so carrying it in a pocket or purse shouldn't be a problem.

Ease of Use: Like most USB battery packs, the use is very simple.  It has 4 LEDs to show 25% increments of remaining capacity.

Bottom line: If you need a USB battery pack that is good for daily use, enough to keep your devices topped off, then this 7800 mAh unit is a great option.

Amazon Product Page: http://amzn.com/B00UV9OXNU

Inateck 7-port portable USB 3.0 Hub with BC1.2 charging ( Model HB7003 )

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this product for free so that I could provide product feedback to the company and post a product review. I was not required to write a positive review and I do not rate products higher than they should have been. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's requirements.

I recently received an Inateck 7-port portable USB 3.0 Hub with BC1.2 charging ( Model HB7003 ) for a product review. The package came with the hub, the power adapter and a USB cable.

Left to Right : Power adapter, Hub and USB cable

The hub itself is actually not that big, and feels very light.  In addition to acting as just a hub, it supports BC1.2 charging.  Basically normal USB 3.0 can support 0.9A output but the BC1.2 standard can support more ( I believe 1.5A ).  With the BC1.2 charging capability, this essentially makes it a 7 port hub and 7 port USB charger.

To test the hub functionality, I wanted to see what impact (if any) it had on the performance of an external hard drive.  I used Ubuntu ( booted from CD ) to do hard drive benchmarks.  I first tested with the drive connected directly and then tested again with the hub between the computer and the drive.  The hub had no real impact on the measured average read/write and seek times.

Size Comparison : Hub next to a 2-port USB charger and a 5-port USB charger

To test the power output it was a bit more tricky.  Using my DROK load tester, I was getting around 0.8A on my Nexus 7 which is right around the USB 3 spec.  However, when I removed the DROK tester and directly connected the Nexus 7 to the hub there was an increase of about 0.2A (measured using an app called Ampere.  That would put it at around 1.1A, which is over the USB 3 spec and likely the BC1.2 standard kicking in.

Using my USB 1A/2A adjustable load, I was actually able to max the port out at 2A.  I think the BC1.2 standard just tells the attached device that it can safely pull more than the 0.9A rating for USB 3.

Here are the main points I noticed about this product:

Compact: This hub is pretty small, smaller than another 7-port USB 3.0 hub I tested.  For travel, you should be able to use this hub to also charge devices letting you reduce the amount of devices you need to drag along.

Performance: The hub did not demonstrate any real impact to the benchmark tests performed on an external USB hard drive.

Bottom line: If you are looking for a solid USB 3.0 hub, this ones seems to do the job without impacting performance as an added bonus can also act as a charger for your devices including BC1.2 compliant devices that can charger at a higher rate than normal USB devices.

Inateck Product Page: http://www.inateck.com/inateck-hb7003-7-port-usb-3-0-hub/
Amazon Product Page: http://amzn.com/B00QHULZH4

Bestek 8A 5-port USB charger Review

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this product for free so that I could provide product feedback to the company and post a product review. I was not required to write a positive review and I do not rate products higher than they should have been. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's requirements.

I recently received a Bestek 8A 5-port USB charger for a product review.  The charger itself was fairly small, and the package included the A/C cord to plug it into a wall socket.

Charger and power cord

The charger is rated at 8A, unfortunately I wasn't able to fully max it out with the items I had available but here is what I did test:

- Nexus 7 tablet pulling 1.17A
- Moto X pulling 1A
- Two 2A loads

Total current tested 6.17A, which is under the 8A rate maximum but still pretty good.  Unless you are a power user with many tablets, you may never hit the 8A rated maximum.

5 USB ports

Size Comparison : 5 port charger next to two different 2-port chargers

For real world tests, I will be using this on my night stand to charge a smartphone, tablet and smartwatch on a nightly basis.  So far I have not run into any issues.

Here are the main points I noticed about this product:

Design: Considering this is basically replacing a bunch of single port chargers, it only takes up a bit more space than two chargers would take.  The power cord lets you place the charger itself where you want, instead of having to plug it directly into the wall like another unit I recently tested.

Multiple-ports: If you are in a situation where you only have one available wall plug, being able to get 5 USB ports is a great thing.  In many hotels, you only have 1 plug available near you since the other one is typically used by an alarm clock or lamp.

Capacity: Although I only just over 6A of the total rated 8A, this charger should be able to handle multiple devices without a problem.  You don't have to worry about certain ports being rated certain amount, each port can handle a max of 2.4A ( 8A total for the device ).  I have tested other chargers that have ports labeled for just 1A, and others for higher amounts.

Bottom line: If you are looking for a multiple port charger, this is a great option to consider.

Amazon Product Page: http://amzn.com/B00UMYHO2Q

Bestek 5000 mAh 2-port USB charger Review

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this product for free so that I could provide product feedback to the company and post a product review. I was not required to write a positive review and I do not rate products higher than they should have been. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's requirements.

I recently received a Bestek 5000 mAh 2-port USB charger for a product review. The charger just comes with an instruction manual, but no carrying case or cables which isn't really an issue.

Bestek charger ( middle ) with regular 2 port USB chargers on each side for size comparison

As far as design goes, the wall plug can flip in/out so it is more compact for travel and you don't have to worry about the plug getting bent when it is packed up.  The unit itself is larger than the average 2 port charge, but that is expected since it is also a battery pack.

Two standard USB ports.  The unit has no power button, you shake it to turn it on

If you have the unit plugged into a wall, it is rated to handle a total of 3.4A ( max of 2.4A on a single port ) but based on reading the instructions if you use the full 3.4A the internal battery will not charge.  If you are using the unit as a battery pack (not plugged in) it can handle a max load of 2.1A.

I used my DROK USB testers and adjustable 1A/2A loads to do some tests to see if the product can handle the rated capacity.  Here are the results of my quick tests:

While plugged in:

- I was able to get over 2.4A out of a single port
- I was able to get over 3.4A out of two ports together
- 4A of load seemed to make it reset ( probably triggering the built-in protections )

While unplugged (acting as a battery):

- I was able to get 2A from a single port
- I was able to get 2A across two ports
- Trying to pull 3A across two ports made the unit shutoff

Overall, the unit seemed to handle within (or above) rated specs and would seem to protect itself if the load was too much.

For real world tests, I have been using it both as an A/C adapter and as a battery pack without any problems.

Here are the main points I noticed about this product:

Compact: Although this is larger than the average 2-port USB charger, it is still fairly compact considering it also has a 5000 mAh capacity.  For the traveling power user, being able to carry one devices to support multiple functions is always beneficial.

Ease of Use: Nothing complicated here, you just plug it in and use it.

Capacity: The output of 3.4A as an A/C adapter and 2.4A should be able to handle multiple devices, but of course two power hungry devices may give you some trouble.

Bottom line: If you are looking for a good capacity battery pack that is compact and great for travel, this is a great option to consider.  Basically you are combining a 2 port USB charger and 5000 mAh battery pack into a single unit.  Less things to haul means less clutter and less chance of forgetting an important piece of your setup.

Amazon Product Page: http://amzn.com/B00UVCA5YS