INTRODUCTION

   We are counting only a few hours until Christmas so as I’m sure all of you can understand writing a review at this time is not exactly easy for me, however it's not every day that we receive a unique product to review and since we will be hitting the mountain to spend new year’s eve we feel that this can come in handy to you as it will to us. A few days ago we reviewed the Patriot FUEL+ 7800mAh Mobile Rechargeable Battery which left us with the best impressions thanks to its design, size and real battery capacity. However although 7800mAh and even 9000mAh (capacity of its larger brother) are more than just enough for use with smartphones, MP3/4 players and small tablets they are simply not enough for people who happen to own large screen tablets and this is where XTPower comes in with their latest and quite massive MP-23000A 23000mAh Ultra-High Capacity External Power Supply Battery Pack.

   We are your technically competent and reliable partner in matters of mobile energy supply and offer you a wide selection of High Quality Power Banks. Through many years of experience in the field of batteries and electronics, close contact with the design team and the manufacturing facilities we know what is important and always have the goal to implement your needs on the available mobile power models to your complete satisfaction. We want to show you new possibilities of mobile energy supplies and are happy when our range of USB battery and solar panels attract your curiosity. XTPower (www.xtpower.de) is a registered trademark of Batteries and Power Solutions GmbH and stands for innovative products in the field of batteries and portable battery chargers. All our Power Banks and solar panels are sold by Intecro a company that offers excellent service and expert advice to all our satisfied customers. We look forward to you, your team of Batteries and Power Solutions and Intecro (www.intecro.de).

   Much like most high capacity portable batteries the MP-23000A by XTPower wears a massive Lithium Polymer rechargeable battery with a rated capacity of 23000mAh which thanks to its 3 available output ports (DC Out/Dual USB Ports) and 6 available output voltages (5/9/12/16/19/20v) can be used to charge a wide range of portable devices from smartphones, MP3/4 players, GPS devices, handheld consoles and small tablets to large tablets and notebooks. The really nice thing about this device is that you can check the current battery charge level via a small LCD screen placed at the top indicating the remaining charge both with a battery icon and a percentage indicator. As you can see it doesn't take long to understand how special the MP-23000A Ultra-High Capacity External Power Supply Battery Pack really is but that only applies if the advertised features are actually real and so to check that we have been using the MP-23000A for slightly over a month.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

XTPower ships the MP-23000A inside a large black box with a product picture at the front right next to the features list.

A list advising you to use caution when using the device is present at the bottom of the box.

Both the features and specifications lists are placed at the top.

After removing the exterior cover the interior box opens up like a book to reveal the device sitting at the top right above the rest of the bundle.

The bundle is by far the richest one we've ever seen with such a device. To be more precise along with the MP-23000A XTPower has also bundled 10 DC tips for notebooks and portable consoles, 10 USB tips for smartphones MP3/4 players and tablets, USB to tip port cable, DC to DC cable, power adapter with cable and the user’s manual.

THE MP-23000A

23000mAh capacity Lithium Polymer batteries don't come small and neither does the MP-23000A since it measures 184mm in length, 123mm in width and 18mm in height with a weight of 585g. Worth mentioning is that the top of the battery is covered with a nice brushed aluminum plate.

The difference between some other portable battery models we have here is massive but fortunately the MP-23000A is not as thick as the rest (actually it looks like a small tablet).

You can rotate between all the available output voltages and check the current battery charge via this button and the LCD screen at the top of the device (to rotate between voltages you need to keep the button pushed for a few seconds).

Right in front of the LCD screen we see the two USB charging ports (5v/1A, 5v/2.5A) and the DC In/DC Out ports.

To know which is which XTPower has labeled them at the bottom of the battery.

The electrical specifications and country of manufacture are also present at the bottom.

The MP-23000A fully charged and good to go.

CONCLUSION

   When we received the MP-23000A sample by XT Power we couldn't believe that it had a battery capacity of 23000mAh so we started testing immediately with every smartphone, tablet and portable battery we have here only to find out that after the first charge the battery capacity was at around 15000-16000mAh so although quite impressive as well still it was nowhere close to the advertised 23000mAh. As it turned out we had to empty and recharge the battery 4 full times (takes quite a bit of time) to hit a steady 16000-17000mAh and although still somewhat far from 23000mAh we consider it quite normal since we've yet to see a single portable battery offering 100% of the advertised capacity. However that's not all and so the available power output ports and voltages that let you recharge pretty much anything portable and the LCD screen indicating the remaining battery life are also great features which we haven't seen before. The only downside we can think of is the sheer size of the MP-23000A which is in fact almost identical to a small 7" tablet and although we do realize that you need to make sacrifices to have such a massive amount of power with you at all times some people will probably not like that.

   Although XTPower has designed and manufactured a portable battery with many times higher capacity than most solutions in the market it seems they are following a very aggressive pricing policy since currently the MP-23000A Ultra-High Capacity External Power Supply Battery Pack retails at around USD90 inside the USA and 108Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk). Certainly if you're 100% that you will never need such a high capacity portable battery pack i see very little reason to even consider purchasing but if that's not the case and you like camping or generally staying away from electricity for long periods of time then i can't think of a better device to accompany you. Sure it's not what many people would call small but it's actually quite thin and that makes it very easy to carry around inside a bag. Size aside until a better portable battery comes along the MP-23000A has secured a place in my backpack and because of that it gets our Platinum Award.

PROS

- Build Quality
- Design
- Very Thin
- Massive Capacity (23000mAh)
- 3 Different Output Ports (2xUSB/1xDC)
- 6 Different Voltage Outputs (5v/9v/12v/16v/19v/20v)
- 20 Different Charge Tips
- LCD Screen
- Electrical Protections (Overcharge/Overvoltage/Overcurrent/Short circuit)
- Price (For Some)

CONS

- Size (For Some)