Product review: BESTEK® Wall charging station power strip

I rate this charger as OK. This model addressed some of the issues of the original model (for example, there is no brightly lit logo on the front) but there are couple of things that prevent me from loving it.

1. This charger combines USB port and AC ports, however it has a cover which covers USB ports. When the cover is opened it make a bulky unit even more bulky because it extends out more than an inch. I did not like that it took extra room. However, the good news is that it can be removed - if you flex the plastic the cover pops out.

2. This wall charger has a dock which is compatible with the older (pre-iPhone 5) models of the iPhone. This is a bit dated now plus the dock is not compatible with any Android phone. It would have been better if this dock was just another USB outlet.

3. The unit overall is quite bulky:
Wall charger size: 4.25"W x 6"H x 1.5"H
Wall charger weight: 11.55 oz

4. I measured charging performance with a current monitor and the charging for Android devices is at USB level not AC level. This is disappointing and below average compared to other wall chargers. The performance for my iPadMini was OK (average). I am including details below for those who are interested in the specific numbers.

The outlets are spaced close together so the first two can only take regular plugs, however the bottom plug on each side allowed to plug in two fairly large plugs - my vaccum cleaner plug is shown in the video.

I dislike chargers that have bright charging indicators, I am happy to report that this wall station does not. I read that the older versions of this charger had a brightly glowing logo - the logo does not have any light at all now. I included a photo of the charger in the dark. The station does have a light which can be turned on my pushing a button. If the station is plugged into a wall, the light shines down and does not provide too much light. It could work as a night light but you need to turn it on my hand (it is not photo sensitive). I am not finding the light useful but it is not a negative since I can control whether it is on or off.

Charging test results:

There are two 1A port and two 2.1A ports. I measured their performance with a current monitor and found them a bit disappointing, they did not provide optimal charging power like some of the better USB chargers.

Nexus Phone
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Port 1: 0.53A / 4.99V (USB rate)
Port 2: 0.56A / 4.98V (USB rate)
Port 3: 0.68A / 4.99V (USB rate)
Port 4: 0.69A / 5.00V (USB rate)
(for comparison the best charging monitor result for this phone is 1.00A/5V)

iPad Mini Tablet
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Port 1: 0.64A / 4.99V
Port 2: 0.73A / 4.98V
Port 3: 1.30A / 5.01V
Port 4: 1.26A / 5.02V
(for comparison the best charging monitor result for this tablet is 1.70A/5V)


You can find it on Amazon by following this link.



Ali Julia review ★★★☆☆