"If something looks too good to be true, then buy it for the entertainment value." That is a wonderful life motto.

The use of a large printout of the board is brilliant 5*

I've seen ones with Duracell batteries inside that still have the branding on

After watching this video I got myself the exact same one and found two of the cells were filled with sand , eh you've got to laugh.

"10400mAh powerbank" ... "Guaranteed 10600mAh capacity"

When I was in Shenzhen two years ago, these were all over the markets. They cost around $1 USD with no cells. Strangely (though not unsurprisingly), even without cells they had 10400 mAh permanently written on the case. Put whatever cells in you want and through magic, it will be 10400 mAh!

I had for several years one EXACTLY the same apart from the marking; it was marked 5400 mAh. It served me well until one of the cells died. I took it apart and kept the good cells. Together with one other cell from another powerbank where the electronics failed I populated a powerbank from Banggood in which you can exchange cells and they have now a second life! So the cheap powerbank was a good investment after all!

The design of that bank is almost identical to that of the old iPod Mini, with the end caps and sliding drawer-like design. Nifty!

All my life I've been searching for a chili pepper shaped USB power bank....

Fair play Clive you produce some top quality macro shots

You should read audiobooks for a living. Your voice is so soothing

Thank you Clive you have re-invigorated my interest in electronics. Merry stuff and a happy new year!

I have the genuine Xiaomi version of this usb power bank. Xiaomi put out videos showing you how to verify that you have a genuine one, as well as there being a scratch panel on the packaging with an activation code you put into the Xiaomi website to verify your serial number is genuine and has not previously been activated/verified. The genuine one is superb quality, best power bank I have ever seen

holy cow i skipped thru the video and i saw that huge print out next to his hand. my brain stopped working for a sec lol jeez

I like how I watch these videos when i'm half asleep. Can't understand a word

I learned so much from this simple vid. Also your voice is very melodic and easy to listen too while I learn.

The design of it - the aluminum case with rounded sides, the interface plate, even down to the layout of text on the spec plate - is a rip-off of a series of popular Xiaomi power banks. I have a number of the original ones and they're truly excellent - quality, high-density cells, efficient boost circuit, etc. The fact that they really are excellent is of course why there are so many lookalikes out there. Quite a few videos exist here on KZfaq about how to identify a fake versus an original Xiaomi. Xiaomi power banks actually tend to *understate* their capacity and list it as watt-hours as well, which is really nice. (They're not the only ones who do that, but they were the first power banks I encountered that do.)

I want to get one of these but instead of charging it with 5 volts I'll use 120v wall current. That way I can get 24 times as many milliamps out of it. I bet it would power my house if we lost power in a storm. ;)

I think I just stumbled upon my new favorite KZfaq channel by chance! SSOO EXCITED!

I don't know why I'm watching this old video again Clive but KZfaq is recommending it again so I'll watch it again

I bought the chassis of one of these on eBay (no cells = cheap) and put my own good cells into it. I noticed the strange charging too and luckily enough my one has spring terminals so the batteries slot in, so I charge the cells in a dedicated 4 way charger.. much faster and better for the cells too. The boost circuit works great so I keep it around still

I had this exact one a few years ago except I bought it from a store called marshals here in the US. It actually wasn’t too bad lol. Would charge my iPhone 6s + like 2 times

Rule of thumb with any power bank: If it's completely unbranded, it's probably got something to hide. Though you may have some brand loyalty, I'd trust an Aukey, Anker, RavPower, etc long long long before one just advertised as "2000000mAh power bank".

Thank you for the video! I was having trouble falling asleep each night, but not anymore. You have a calming voice that sould make you money reading bedtime stories.

It's weird, i have an ASUS one, it's EXACTLY the same design. Makes me want to check the cells now :o

I thought the picture of the circuit board was just a really big board

Thank you Clive. Another superbly presented and informative video from you even though I've only just picked it up two years after you posted it! I'm always amazed how manufacturers tool up for such a great product presentation yet fall short of the mark with cheap components. It's the same with cheap workshop tools too. I have to smile though as all these power packs are rated in mAh rather than Ah. I suppose that stating 10400 mAh appears much more impressive than 10.4 Ah :-) I've only just subscribed to your channel, and it's my ambition to watch all your videos. My word, there are so many!

Very informative and thorough (as usual), and more or less entertaining depending on your interests. Thank you for the lesson!

5:52 I looked away from the video for a minute and then looked back, I was briefly surprised by his tiny hands.

That looks like a knockoff of the Xiaomi 10,000,mah power bank that uses 4x 18650 cells. The legit ones are pretty good.

You are a man after my heart, I take apart pretty much everything I get in. The main reason is to discover planned obselesce circuits. That same circuit is in a 20AH Black Friday pack I got on clearance from Menards except it delegates charging to a separate chip so it charges quicker.

Was sent by AvE. Fantastic content, don't know how I missed you before, but you have a new subscriber.

WOW!!! That's a really big PCB :O

"If something looks too good to be true, then buy it from the entertainment value!" -my new motto

Good autopsy and analyses of the device. Keep up the great work Clive.

i think this video was the first one i ever watched from this channel ... and introduced me to a whole new for me undiscovered youtube universe ... :D

Ah a fake Xiaomi.

That capacitor marked CLX on the schematic seems really strange. It is right across the shunt switch and the flyback voltage. I wonder if it is really there?

I really like this fella, his reviews are awesome and very educational. Top Notch!! 😊

Dang, I heard you say it was a photo and yet still my eyes were convinced it was a real giant sized pvb. BTW, that is one of the single best ideas I've seen on YT in quite a while. Subbed.

"Sand filled cells" 3:06. Please show us a sample of sand filled cells. Edit: I found this kzfaq.info/get/bejne/nttolLBip5nVl4k.html

This is a knock off Xiaomi powerbank. The original ones are real capacity. The model i have (a bit slimmer and longer so probably not 18650s inside) support QC2.0 so its quite practical. You should take one of the real ones to bits but they are a bit pricey and hard to find originals.

Based on the recommended videos, I can see this channel is worth a subscription. Down the rabbit hole we go!

I worried about being scammed when I purchased my powerbank, so I just decided to buy an Anker 26k from Best Buy. Super happy and very impressed with the performance and quality. My opinion, just dig deep in your wallet, and purchase a well known bank from a reputable company. Can't go wrong with Anker from Best Buy. I'm loving it. Very interesting video. Thanks.

Thats why ï have an xiaomi MI power bank It's being sold as a 20.000mAh powerbank but it said that was the PACK power of the cells The true capacity (also stated again at the back) is 14000 given.. Although I measure around 14500 15000 what in my opinion is absolutely awesome! I can charge my phone around 9 times when not fully empty and 5 or 6 when full This thing is a beast... It's quite big, and heavy... But it's awesome! Totally recommend!

i have one of these from a major reputable chain store in Australia. It is stamped 8000mAh on the bottom and advertised as such, yet on when i ran a number of load tests, it only just goes past 5000mAh. Ripped em a new one and got it for free, and still reported them to the ACCC.

Great video! You have a new subscriber :) - Keep up the good work!

How did I just find this channel? It's great!

It's a clone of already a Chinese company Xiaomi

the shell is from a xiaomi powerbank, they are high grade chinese power bank,i have one with the advertised capacity but look like you have a unbranded one fake one

great vide Clive excellent camera work and very knowledgeable with electronics.

Very educational and I found it very enjoyable as well, good work!

Imediately I saw, those 18650 Samsung cells are rated at 2100mAH.. 4 in parrellel only 8.4Ah. What a rip off haha! Not to menton they are only 3.7v nominal so will also need a step up! How companies get away with this is beyond me :(

"still chaaaarrrrrged" xD

I enjoy your videos you do a great job at explaining everything you do

Hah I skipped forward to 5:33, and that picture totally got me, I saw Clive's hand for scale and thought "Daaaamn, where did he find a USB socket the size of his hand? Why is that circuit board nearly a foot long", the shadow properly fooled my brain!

Its knockoff of the Xiaomi Power Bank 1... The original is excellent quality with LG 18650's and cell temperature monitoring and output short circuit protection... (Yes I have it since 2 yrs and I tore it down and it is still working fine..)

Woohoo First! 😄 I have a Xiaomi 10000mAh power bank, it wasn't cheap and appears to be the "full monty" I haven't pulled it apart as that would destroy it. I started to but decide it wasn't worth the risk. The Xiaomi brand provides special labelling on their products to prove they are genuine not fakes. I always find that amusing, a Chinese company providing a way to check if they are genuine and not a "Chinese" knock off. Don't you just love the irony! 😂

Thanks Clive, that was an interesting look inside.

You sir are a smart man great video and you now have a fan from the states

I would buy one of these for the case and install much better batteries.

It's just bad luck Clive you keep getting the crap ones. By the laws of odds one day you will pick up a power bank and it will be 1000 Giga Amp Hours.

I wasn't really that interested in the charger but I just couldn't leave because I love listening to your voice and the way you talk! Haha

Your voice is very addictive i kept watching yr vids non stop

Can you change the resistors to get it to put out more current?

This is a fake version of the 10400mah XiaoMI powerbank. The XiaoMI one costs the same or less too.

I had 0 interest in this and don't know why I started but I've never been so interested in something so personally uninteresting before. You are a great talker and do very well with illustrating points you're making.

Wow you went deep! Great video.

That's a counterfeit of the real version which is a Fremo 10400. They even ripped off the chassis and font and everything. I have the real one and it actually is 10400 mah.

Ok. I like it when you show how shit stuff is, but it would be really useful if you showed us what are good to buy!

This same mAH CLAIM problem has existed for a very long for just cells and batteries by themselves...never mind when in an active power-pack like this. Manufacturers have setup test conditions that favor their product and can thus make it look competitive with another brand even when it's not even close. Unless they stipulate an specific electrical standard with which they are complying, the rating they CLAIM can be just about ANYTHING they wish. All they have to do is setup a test that involves sufficiently low drain, and/or intermittent drain that allows some cell recovery, a self-selected cell test "cut-off" voltage, and they can CLAIM a very high mAH rating that has nothing to do with an real-life application. For example, they could use a test setup that applies a 10mA load for 5 seconds once every 10 minutes, and set their cut-off voltage to 1.0Volts (even though draining any of those 18650 cells to that voltage would compromise the future performance of the cell(s)) and if it tests to "10000 mAH" under THEIR conditions, then they can claim it...even if it's totally misleading in practice. If the mAH rating test conditions are not specified then you can't assume a CLAIMED mAH rating is meaningful for your application.

Very informative. I use a number of power supplies for various things and was wondering what the differences are between lower cost units and quality units.

that voice... i almost fell asleep😂

Excellent video. Well done!

When I'm troubled... feeling small, I listen to the soothing voice of Big Clive and then it's all water under the bridge !!!

I didn't need to know this and didn't understand most of what he said. But his voice is so awesome, I'm subscribing.

Love your angle! Good show!

Excellent video quality!

Sadly, I've auctally bought this before, about two years ago in South Korea. They were selling it for $9 per power bank, and I thought that it was a pretty good deal and bought one because my Galaxy S5's battery life was really bad, and I didn't have one. Unfortunely, the whole thing wouldn't charge after about 15 times after use and it honestly became a paper weight after the battery wouldn't even turn on the LED's. Thanks for making the video, I've been wondering what the auctal hell was wrong with the battery bank, and 2 years later, I've finally realized that it was nothing but a scam. By the way, I now happily use a Samsung Battery back, at least 150 times better than the one I bought 2 years ago. ;)

i sure learn a lot from these videos

You can now get these as a kit, without cells, with spring connectors, so you can fill it with your cells of choice. I have Two.

I didn't understand a word you said (regarding the electronics) but I found it highly enjoyable regardless

Hi Clive, can you test a current drawn from battery pack when board is in stand-by/idle mode? It quite handy to know how quickly it will self discharge... And also what about over&under voltage cutout threshold? ... As you mentioned low current application like running an esp8266 or so... Thanks!

Several years ago, I purchased 4 of those, they were, however "kits" with no cells. They were a bit longer and have the spring ends so you can insert your own 18650 batteries. I had a good supply from all the old laptop batteries i tore apart when disposing of "bad" laptop batteries. I found that usually there were one or two bad cells and the rest were quit servicable. I haven't used them now for some time, but when we took a trip to Yellowstone National Park a few years ago with my sister and her husband, we found that most of the places where we camped had no shore power so we had to rely on our generators for power I took along the little power banks, and gave one to my sis and one to her hubby, they kept their cell phones charged with them for 4 days I had a solar panel I could charge mine with when the sun shone but it was rare that week for much sun to poked through so I and my wife also used a couple of them. The other day I was building a calculator kit, and using a headlight that took tow 18650's. the cells petered out on my about half way through so I grabbed one of those old banks, the cells in it still had a good charge and they are still powering my headlight (well 2 of them are) The calculator kit (complete with LED/resistor function and resistor color code function is working great! What will they think of next!

I really love your manner of speaking.

Yet another entertaining and informative tear down, but Clive, how much do you spend on junk on ebay?

I come to this video every once in a while just to hear your voice. You should be a narrator!

Hey! Thanks so much for featuring our product in this video for reference of how a true 10,400 mAh battery should operate. We really do appreciate the gesture and hope you are able to continue using and enjoy our POM Gear Powerhouse. It is unfortunate so many online manufacturers attempt to deceive customers and even offer product with health and safety concerns! We just want to give consumers Peace Of Mind, as that is what P.O.M. stands for. We definitely do not recommend opening power banks in general for safety reasons so we can not condone this video investigation but are sure you will find everything up to par inside our unit. Also please be advised that opening the power bank will void your 3 Year Hassle-free Warranty included for free with every POM Gear purchase. Happy Charging :)

Amazingly similar to one I fixed this weekend, but some internal differences. Mine has flat lipos, not 18650's, and some associated changes to the drawer. I'd be curious to find out if this is the Xiaomai battery or a closer copy of it.

The last one I bought had an insanely high capacity claim but the ebay seller stated that it was the manufacturer's claim, not his. One dead give away is to look at the charge rate and time. If it says it charges fully in 8 hours at a 1A rate, there's no way it's over 8000mAH (2000mAH per cell) capacity. I've noticed that some will use the cells' capacity but then combine that and the 5v boosted output to calculate a higher output capacity claim, then (accidentally or intentionally) shift the decimal one more place to the right (giving something like 100000 rather than 10000mAH in my case when the actual combined cell rating was 8000mAH at 3.7v not 5v). Knowing my electronics, I still thought it was a good price for the actual capacity and solar charging (be careful also against a large panel made up of smaller segments spaced out to 1/4 or less coverage like I've seen on cheap solar walkway lights).

Thanks for uploading stuff like this, i was looking at them the other day and expecting they wouldn't be great but just buy more of them and use wisely cause they're cheap, but i think i'll spend the extra $10 for a slightly decent one locally, lol

I'd love to know what your favorite bits of kit are. Love the videos mate :)

The best portable power bank that I have ever purchased was the PowerAdd Qualcomm 3.0 available on Amazon. It even has a digital screen to tell you the percentage of charge left. I charge it up one time and it can recharge my Galaxy Grand Prime about 7 full times from flat dead. It was about $40 if I remember correctly. A little over 20,000mAh and about 72Wh. Charges completely in about 8 hours. Oh, and no, I don't sell any of that stuff. Just a happy consumer. I've had mine for a long time and it is solid and genuine.

I have one of those, i replaced the cells with 3400mah Tesla cells and use it to power a wireless battery meter for my solar system that I keep in the kitchen, it lasts about 3-4 days between charges

These "10400mah" battery bank cases are mass produced at a factory in China somewhere. I have 3-cell versions of the same design that say 10400mah on them despite coming with no batteries, I bought them empty off Aliexpress for $2 and stuck some spare 18650s in them.

I don't really understand what you're saying but I feel smart when I watch it so I'll keep watching

Hey Clive, Do you have a recommended USB Tester? I.E. shows you the voltage and current draw etc?

Mr Clive ,It isn't to be seen input & Output mentioned, where we can connect either way interchanged between two types of USB ports and it contains fragile USB power cord.what is your opinion about it?

Interesting. I have a very similar (identical) looking model made by Intempo that I bought from B&M, it is rated at 8000mAh. Haven't tested it, but it does charge a large phone two or three times.

Regards to the power bank at 11:58, it's been 5 years since this video was uploaded yet to this day I can't seem to find the full video about that other power bank, was it ever made?