The humble power bank has transformed from a simple pocket-sized battery into a feature-laden gadget that now sometimes includes screensavers, Bluetooth connectivity and built-in Wi-Fi hotspots. The Verge’s Thomas Ricker highlighted the $270 EcoFlow Rapid Pro X Power Bank 27k at CES 2026 as a prime offender – a device he declared “too expensive, too big, too slow, and too heavy.” Its giant display takes 30 seconds to wake from sleep, plays swirly graphics and blinking eyeballs, and requires a screensaver while slowly draining the battery it’s meant to preserve.

The feature creep is industry-wide. Anker no longer lists a display-less model in its 20,000mAh range, and both companies sell proprietary desk chargers. Basic alternatives exist – Anker’s PowerCore 10k runs $26 – but they’re becoming harder to find.

Didn’t even have to add my own snarky gripe to this one.

I’ve got two of the older Anker 10k and they’re nice. Just a simple 8 digit seven segment display for the battery percentage and a tiny green LED for “trickle charge mode”. I’ve also got the 20k version that’s just as simple.

Lord help me when I have to replace them. Power banks are one of the few things I’ve learned not to cheap out on. The no-names are either wildly misrepresented in their specs, straight up fire hazards, or only last a year or less; sometimes all 3.