The Lander Cascade Powerbank

I received the Lander Cascade Powerbank (5200 mAh) several weeks ago.  This battery pack has been run through quite a few cycles of charging my phone and re-charging itself without any problems.  The Cascade Powerbank works as promised and is super easy to use.

Lander is offering the Cascade Powerbank in three sizes.  For anyone who does not know a lot about batteries, the size of a battery is measured in milliamp hours or mAh.  The bigger the number, the more energy a battery will be able to store.  The Cascade Powerbank is offered in 2600, 5200 and 7800 mAh.  To find out how many times a Powerbank will charge your device, find out the size or mAh rating of your device’s battery.  The device used in testing is a Samsung Galaxy S5.  Starting with a drained battery, the 5200 mAh Cascade Powerbank charges that battery once fully and then typically had enough juice to turn the phone to about 40 percent on the second charge.  This performance is right in line with what I would expect.

The Lander Cascade Powerbank takes about take three hours to fully charge from empty. This is pretty standard for an external battery charger.  My Samsung Galaxy S5 usually took three to four hours to fully charge.  On some occasions, the charge time for my phone was a bit longer.  After a bit of study, I found that my phone was updating software and apps and actually used more power than is normal for just lying around.

Lander used their Smart Charge Technology in the Cascade chargers to maximize the usefulness of the Powerbank’s charge.  When a device cannot take anymore charge, the battery stops transferring power.  Without this feature, the Powerbank would continue to charge the device’s battery and waste its own charge.

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For on-the-go use, the Lander Cascade Powerbank came packaged in a nifty carrying case.  Reusable packaging is a great thing, and this one from Lander is pretty handy.  The charger, needed cabling, and my Ipod will all fit in the carry case.  The case isn’t tough enough to be stepped on or anything like that, but it is plenty sturdy to provide some protection and keep everything together.  A lanyard with reflective accents comes attached to the Powerbank to help you find it in the dark.  Four LED charge indicators are placed near the USB ports.

The 5200 mAh Cascade Powerbank measures about 7/8″ x  1-1/2″ x 4 inches and weighs about 4.6 ounces.  No covering for the charging ports is provided, so I carry the Powerbank in a Ziploc bag when backpacking.

So what’s the cost of being able to charge your phone while camping? The Lander Cascade Powerbank 5200 MAH has an MSRP of $49.99.  For that, you get a device that is sturdy enough to handle an accidental drop, with a housing which provides plenty of grip to hang, all with a nice rugged look.  For more info, click hereto visit the Lander website.

– Mark

I’d like to thank Lander for sending out the Cascade Powerbank for review.  We at Industry Outsider have budgets just like everyone else.  Being able to pass along information on the gear we test lets us pay it forward and hopefully benefits everyone.