Realme 30W Dart Charge Power Bank (10,000mAh) review

Realme has been one of the only companies to bring fast charging technology from its flagship devices to budget devices. It currently has fast charging tech from 20W to 65W speeds and soon the company will have a smartphone with 125W charging tech. With mobile charging speeds reaching new heights, the capabilities had been reserved for wall adapters only. The Realme 30W Dart Charge power bank changes that.

Most power banks top out at 10W of output, with a few touching 18W. Oppo had a 20W power bank but it was limited to its home country. The Realme power bank is thus one of the only real fast charging power banks currently available. It comes to India soon after its launch in China.

The best part is that all of these features are not limited to Realme devices, and also extend to smartphones from Oppo and OnePlus (they function over the same charging standards). With support for USB Power Delivery as well, it can also charge new laptops such as the MacBook Pro, apart from any other device that charges over USB.

Realme 30W Dart Charge 10000mAh power bank price and release date in India

Realme’s third power bank in India, the 30W Dart Charge 10000mAh power bank is priced at Rs 1,999. It was launched in India in June 2020 along with the affordable Realme C11 smartphone. The power bank is available on Flipkart as well as Realme’s e-store. It is available in two colour options: Black and Yellow. 

Check out the Realme 30W Dart Charge Power Bank on Flipkart

Design 

Design is one aspect where the previous two Realme power banks stood out, especially the bright yellow colour which pops and attracts people. The power bank itself weighs 230 grams and is 17mm thick. You get curved edges on both sides with a carbon texture design that is pretty unique for a power bank. The power bank comes with a skin pre-installed. The carbon fibre design makes the power bank smooth to hold and so, you won’t get a very solid grip and in-hand feel, it can easily slip away from your hands often. 

On one side, you get Realme branding written in huge font and on the other side, there is ‘Dart’ branding. Towards the top, there is a USB Type-A output port, a Type-C port, four LED indicators, and a button. At the bottom, there is a plain surface and the power bank can be kept flat on a surface. Overall, the power bank is portable, comfortable and easy to carry around. And, yes, it’s easily pocketable.  

If you are a kind of person who takes calls while charging your phone using the power bank with the same hand, the carbon fibre texture will give you a good grip to hold and helps you keep your phone and power bank in the right place. 

Performance 

The Realme Dart power bank 30W comes with a capacity of 10,000mAh. The battery is built with Lithium-ion polymer. You get dual output ports - USB-A and USB-C. For charging the power bank, you should use the Type-C port. Realme says the power bank comes with 15-layer charging protection including 1 layer of circuit protection to keep the thermals under check and prevent overheating and charging. In the box, you get a short Type-A to Type-C port. 

First, let’s talk about the power bank charging speed. The 30W Dart power bank takes 90-100 minutes to charge from 0 to full, which is quite impressive and unseen till date on a power bank. To achieve this changing speed, you will have to use the provided cable or any Type-C cable that is capable of charging at 30W speed. 

The USB Type-C port supports a maximum output of 30W. The single-port changing is also maxed out at 30W. For dual-port output, you get the max simultaneous output is 25W with both Type-C and Type-A ports. To check the battery capacity of the power bank, you will have to rely on the LED indicator which lights up when you click on the button. 

Apart from Realme’s Dart fast charging technology, the power bank also supports multiple fast-charging protocols such as OnePlus’s Warp, Oppo’s VOOC, USB Power Delivery, Quick Charge, Adaptive Fast Charging protocols. You can check the list of compatible devices in the next section. 

As far as my experience goes, I used the power bank for over two weeks with multiple devices like the OnePlus Nord, OnePlus 6/6T, Realme 5 Pro, and accessories like headphones and a smartwatch. Primarily, I used it with my OnePlus Nord and the rest of them were used for testing purposes. The OnePlus Nord, which packs in 4,115mAh battery, could go from 10% to 100% in just 70 minutes with the Realme 30W power bank, which is similar to the adapter’s charging speed. When the data and Wi-Fi connection is turned off, I could charge the OnePlus Nord from 10-100% in just 59 minutes. 

The OnePlus 6 with 3,300 took around 90 minutes to reach 100% from 10% using the power bank and the OnePlus 6T took around 80 minutes to completely charge from 10%, the OnePlus 6T packs in a slightly larger 3,700mAh battery. Also, these two devices support only 20W max output and so this timing is pretty much acceptable here, as the difference is only 10 minutes compared to the regular adapter charging time. 

Similarly, the Realme 5 Pro, with a 4,035mAh battery, took around 80 minutes to charge from 10-100%. The device also supports the max speed of 20W only. And, the charging speed is pretty much the same as the conventional charge. 

With the Realme 30W Dart power bank, Realme brings the first low voltage and high current power bank, and isn’t even expensive. This is an industry-first and the pricing is pretty sweet. For those who like to charge the device on the go while travelling (except 2020), this can be an ideal device to carry. This also eliminates the need to look out for a power outlet in public places or having to put up your device to charge slowly with other power banks. 

The Realme 30W Dart power bank makes life easier with two-way fast charging, Type-C port, and a wide range of compatible devices. However, one feature I wish the Realme power bank had was pass-through charging, allowing to charge a device while the power bank is charging at the same time. But, considering the big picture, which is the speed and convenience, this is barely a deal-breaker. You can charge the power bank to 50% in just about 40 minutes, which itself is sufficient to charge most phones at least once.

Compatible devices

The Realme 30W Dart power bank is compatible with multiple devices. However, Realme’s official support pages have listed the following devices. Realme devices compatible with the power bank include Realme X, Realme 3 Pro, Realme X2 Pro, Realme 5 Pro, Realme XT, Realme X50 Pro. These devices support 20W fast charging. Realme devices supporting 30W fast charging includes Realme X2, Realme 6, Realme 6 Pro, and Realme X3 series.

The OnePlus 8 series, OnePlus 7 series, OnePlus 7T series are compatible with 30W Warp charging and the rest of the OnePlus devices are compatible with 20W fast charging. Oppo F15, Oppo F11 Pro, Oppo Reno 2, Oppo Reno 2 Z support 20W and Oppo Reno 3 Pro supports 30W fast charging.

Apart from the above-mentioned devices, the power bank also supports a max output of 18W via USB Type-A port and 30W max output via Type-C port using USB power delivery protocol. It can also charge TWS, headphones, wearables, and laptops with USB PD support, many more devices. 

Verdict 

At the price of Rs 1,999, the Realme Dart Charge power bank will not win any prizes for its capacity. However, its charging speeds are currently unparalleled, even without considering the price. If you use a supported device, it’s a no-brainer.  

There aren’t really any alternatives that can match its charging speed. The max we get from every other power bank is 18W speed and these include power banks from Xiaomi, Realme power bank 2, and power banks from brands like Boat, Ambrane, Urbn, and more — all of which are priced under Rs 1,000. If wireless charging is a priority, you have a few options from Samsung and Xiaomi. 

Check out Realme 30W Dart Charge Power Bank on Flipkart

In some ways, it’s great to see manufacturers finally find a way to support high current outputs on power banks without byproducts such as heat. While some smartphones have already crossed the 30W threshold, we wouldn’t be too optimistic for a faster-charging power bank. The only downsides with this one is that there’s only a 10,000mAh capacity variant. An extra USB port would’ve been nice but we’re not going to complain. The Realme 30W power bank is a worthy addition to your tech backpack.

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