The ZAGGsparq is the latest line of portable backup battery for mobile devices from Zagg. Setting itself from competition, it comes with built-in plugs to allow the ZAGGsparq to double as a wall charger, hence, eliminating the need for an extra power adapter. Coming in 3 different flavours to target different consumers, the Zaggsparq is one stylish portable charger.
The 3 different flavours also comes in different specifications:
- ZAGGsparq 1220 – a 1220 mAh battery, weighing at 101 grams, with a single 1A USB port.
- ZAGGsparq 3100 – a 3100 mAh battery, weighing at 150 grams, with a single 2.1A USB port.
- ZAGGsparq 6000 – a 6000 mAh battery, weighing at 218 grams, with DUAL USB port sharing a maximum current of 2.1A.
Here we have a ZAGGSparq 6000, how does this hold up in lieu of competition?
In its retail packaging, Zagg lists out its unique points. The little flap is even magnetic lockable!
The ZAGGSparq 6000 is the largest of the pack and of course, the heaviest of the lot. So how does this measure up to our BlackBerry10 Alpha?
Its pretty a big beast as we can see from the above. But packing with juice of more than 3 times the size of the original battery, with a built in wall charger, I guess this is actually pretty handy!
Charging, is a simple affair. There is absolutely no need to fumble for external charger, adapters or what so ever. This is one edge this charger gives you especially if your traveling. Though the only bad part is this run on the USA 2 Blade plug, which means if your traveling overseas such as European countries, you will need to get a adapter. But fret not! This only needs a adapter and not a transformer because the in-built mains adapter accepts voltages from100-240v, hence, any cheap plug adapter will do the trick.
The charger comes with 5 LED lights built-in to the device itself to indicate the amount of juice available to charge your devices. This is a must have in any portable chargers. In addition, this lights up when your charging it which lets you know the progress of it charging.
Whilst charging your devices, the light will not actually light up; but upon pressing of the button as shown above, it will also light up the LED to show the battery status.
Another plus point is that you can have this plugged into the wall socket and use it as a USB charger for up to 2 devices (well, it only has 2 USB ports) and charge this device as the same time!
In conclusion, priced at usd$99.99 for the ZAGGsparq 6000 from Zagg.com, I was able to charge my 9900 about slightly more than 4 times, my Dev set and BlackBerry 9780* about slightly more than 3 charges, this is indeed one powerful battery. I also tried with my S3 though I am able to get only a little pass 2 full charges. This is similar to my much smaller Sanyo Eneloop Battery pack (5000 mAh), though my BlackBerry Charges are much more than the S3. This can be considered to be a rather premium battery pack, as well, due to the influx of the cheap chinese unbranded battery packs into the market these days.
Pros:
- Built-in Charger, makes traveling (especially for long distance easier – less clutter)
- Sleek design
- Multiple LED Indicators (for power)
- Able to support mains 100-240V to charge
Cons:
- Heavy for normal daily use
- Only US-Blade pin, not interchangeable, can be a hassle overseas
- No USB cables provided*
Check out the comparison photos between my Sanyo Battery Pack and Zagg below!
*Note: The ZaggSparq, similar to the Sanyo battery pack, requires a special charging cable which is not the standard cables provided RIM or other phone manufacturers. This was provided for in the Sanyo packaging but not in the ZaggSparq packaging. This cable is required to charge your BlackBerry devices, especially OS 7 devices. I found some of these cables but i have NOT tried the cables. They are from Amazon, Seidio, Ebay and Ebay respectively. Alternatively there is a setting you can change in the engineering screen that will make any cable work.
