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Romoss Pulse 30 Power Bank Review: A WFH Essential

You are probably tired about hearing that we live in a new normal, don’t worry so are we. That said, the reality is that life has changed immeasurably over the past 18 months and part of that change for those working from home (WFH) is grappling with the necessary hardware to work effectively at your residence.

By now, you should have a WFH setup all sorted, with the likes of a monitor, comfortable chair and USB hub all a part of the mix. There is, however, another crucial element we need to consider, especially when working in South Africa and its ailing utility – a power bank.

This brings us to the Romoss Pulse 30 power bank, which was sent to us for review for the past couple of weeks. Luckily no impromptu loadshedding occurred during this time, but the two weeks was more than enough to test out the usefulness of this 30 000mAh power bank.

With that in mind, here’s how it performed and why it should probably be a key part of your WFH setup moving forward.

A handsome brick

It isn’t often that we can wax lyrical about the aesthetics of a power bank, where function always carries more weight than form. Luckily, in the case of the Pulse 30, you need not worry about either.

Starting with the design, and the Pulse30 is akin to an accessary we might see come out of the studios at Cupertino. The mix of White and Light Grey are indeed very Apple-esque, but unlike other Apple-made accessories, this one is not walled off from those with other brands of devices that need charging.

Given that it is a 30 000mAh unit, the Pulse 30 is relatively compact. It does not take up much desk space and the 16.7 x 8 x 3.3cm dimensions means it should slip relatively easily into a draw or bag when not in use. While the real estate is manageable, there is a surprising bit of heft to the Pulse 30 at 671g.

That might sound like a lot, but in hand you realise just how heavy this power bank is. Much like the weight of a racket or bat, the heft here feels reassuring.

Looking at the underside of the power bank reveals what it is capable of from a charging perspective.

Here both input and output is listed at 5V, with the former yielding 2.1A and the later delivering 1A.

The only downside on the unit is the amount of time it takes to charge, as I regularly left it charging overnight to ensure I had full capacity the following day should disaster strike. That said, if you miss a day or two, there is enough capacity available to see you through one or two bouts of loadshedding.

What’s on offer

Crucially on the input side of things, one Lighting, two USB Type C and one microUSB ports are found, covering a fairly wide gamut of devices you may need to charge. One important thing to note here is that older notebooks will not be catered for as there is no DC plug port, so if you have a notebook that features such a setup, the Pulse 30 may not be able to cater to everything in your WFH.

Anecdotally in my own personal setup (2019 MacBook Pro, iPad Mini 2 and Huawei P30 Pro), I am able to charge all three devices at once. My notebook and smartphone are the most important of the mix, as I can simply switch to a mobile hotspot for connectivity when loadshedding hits.

Of course any scenario when power is not readily available is less than ideal, but with the Pulse 30 on hand I am still able to work as effectively as I did before, with the only key difference being a switch to my 13″ MacBook screen from my 24″ Dell monitor one.

It is a small price to pay given almost everyone working from home these days is expected to do so regardless of whether loadshedding is in effect or not.

As for how long it can keep me working, the Pulse 30 can charge my phone up to six times, which means I can go almost a full week if needed. As for the MacBook, it was able to be charged full one and a half times, which again gives me almost two full work days should the power not be available.

In terms of handiness in a bind then, the Pulse 30 certainly ticks the boxes.

Final verdict

At R589 (RRP) depending on the retailer, the Romoss Pulse 30 is certainly one of the more affordable power banks out there.

Its 30 000mAh capacity is also large enough to ensure you can charge three different devices simultaneously to keep you going in an emergency. Given that a mini UPS will set you back several thousand Rands, a power bank of this ilk is definitely a solution for those unable to handle the outlay for a larger and more expensive option.

It will also serve you well down the line and even if remote working is not a reality anymore, giving the higher capacities of smartphones each year and the general demands of other pieces of tech in your arsenal, the Pulse 30 will serve a purpose over the next couple of years at least.

If you are going to opt for an all around power bank that ticks many a box, you’d be hard pressed to find better value for money options than the Romoss Pulse 30. It therefore comes highly recommended.

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