This tiny power bank solves the biggest problem I had with charging my phone

I own a lot of power banks, but I’m drawn to big, bulky, industrial-looking ones. It’s not often that something dainty, and dare I say, stylish catches my eye. But the Flow Mini 2 from Sharge is one such charger that I can say that I’ve fallen in love with.

Also: The best power banks you can buy

It’s not big — it has a 5,000mAh/11.25Wh battery, putting it at the smaller end of the power bank spectrum, and something more suited to topping up smartphones than charging tablets and laptops. It measures 3.1 x 1.0 x 1.3 inches (79.4 x 25.8 x 33.5mm) and weighs 3.5 oz (100 g), and fits nicely into the palm of the hand, pocket, or bag.

It features a built-in USB-C cable (which doubles as a handy carrying loop) and a separate USB-C port. That port can take one of two adapters — one featuring a USB-C connector, and another with a Lightning connector — and can be used to connect to smartphones (it supports cases up to 0.15 inches thick) or connected to a charger.  

The unit can charge and be recharged using either port for maximum flexibility and convenience, and it also supports pass-through charging, so you can simultaneously be charging the Flow Mini 2 and using it to charge another device. It can take in power at a rate of up to 18W, and output at a maximum of 22.5W. However, you can’t charge two devices concurrently using the ports.  

Also: The best portable power stations you can buy

I’ve tested a lot of these power banks that fit onto the bottom of a smartphone, and many suffer from the same issues. They can be too heavy to dangle off the bottom of the phone, the connection can be unreliable or unable to work with a case, or the power capacity of the battery too little to make much of a difference.  

Luckily, this device gets past each one of these obstacles, even fitting securely to my phone with a thick case attached. 

ZDNET’s buying advice

The Sharge Mini Flow 2 is one of those style of power banks that falls into the well-designed, well-engineered category. It’s functional, practical, and, I had to admit, blooming stylish. It’s small enough to slip into my pocket and flexible enough to allow me various ways to use it to charge devices.

And the price is right, too. At only $29 at the time of writing, (but 20% off on Amazon, bringing the price down to $23.92), it’s affordable enough for a power bank that you might only have with you all the time but only use occasionally.