Xiaomi has always produced high quality power banks. With the advent of USB-C, it was about time Xiaomi released a power bank that could deliver USB-C charging in a high capacity power bank. It seems that any USB-C charging capability will hold the “Pro” moniker, with the 10,000mAh Mi Power Bank Pro being the first power bank to support USB-C charging.
Finally, the 20,000mAh version was released by Xiaomi, and it is called the 20,000mAh Mi Power Bank 3 Pro. The 20,000mAh has gone through a few generations as seen in the picture below:
Unboxing
The power bank comes in the standard white box, and in it contains the power bank, Type A to USB-C cable, and some paper work.
Design and build quality
Unlike the previous generations where they were all white in color with a stubbled grain finish, the new 20,000mAh Mi Power Bank 3 Pro rocks a matte black color with a smooth finish. The upper and lower parts of the power bank have a shiny gloss finish, which leaves fingerprint marks very easily. Having said that, I prefer this new look of the power bank as it looks very premium and well-built. The new Gen 3 power bank is also slightly bigger than the Gen 2, measuring 7.35cm*2.75cm*15.35cm.
On the top of the power bank, you will find two traditional USB-A ports and one USB-C port. Using the USB-A alone can provide 5V/2.4A, 9V/2A, and 12V/1.5A output power. And using both USB-A ports at the same time will provide a 5V/3A output, which is suitable for fast charging of smartphones supporting Qualcomm QC.
Tech specs & Features
Below are the specs of the new Gen 3 power bank.
What should stand out apart from USB-C charging is that it is able to deliver a maximum output of 45W (through the USB-C port). This means that the power bank is able to charge USB-C laptops such as the MacBook Pro.
The laptops that Xiaomi have tested are found below:
The USB-C port also supports Power Delivery (PD) so you will be able to fast charge PD-compatible smartphones and even other devices such as Nintendo Switch and mirrorless cameras.
As for charging the power bank, Xiaomi says that if you’re using a 10W charger it will take 11 hours to get a full charge, and if you’re using a 45W charger, it will only take 4.5 hours.
Performance
To test the power of the new Gen 3 power bank, I decided to use it to charge my MacBook Pro 15-inch 2018 (which uses a 87W power brick). I tested charging the MacBook Pro in two instances, when the battery was: (1) from 25% onwards, and (2) from 80% onwards.
In both cases, it took around 30 minutes to bring my MacBook Pro from 25% to 45% and 80% to 100%. And this was done while I was surfing the net on Google Chrome, to simulate real-life user experience.
In both cases, a fully charged power bank went from “4 clicks” of battery to about “3 clicks” of battery. But this again depends on the type of laptop you are charging. The MacBook Pro 15-inch 2018 will definitely draw more energy from the power bank. With that being said, I believe the Xiaomi power bank is able to provide you with enough portable power on the go for all you devices in a day.
Conclusion
If you own a USB-C laptop or device (eg. camera), and wish that you had a mobile or portable power source, this is the power bank you have been waiting for. At a maximum output 45W, it is good enough to charge most devices and beats the competition out there from Anker and RAVPower. And besides that, the price is way lower than them.
Right now, this is the best value USB-C power bank / portable charger in the market. It performs great and is well-built. What more can you ask for? (maybe two USB-C ports instead of one, but nitpicking here)
Where to buy
I bought mine from Qoo10 since you can use coupons to bring down the cost. Here are some sellers that I recommend: