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One of the best GaN USB-C chargers I've tested can top up 6 devices at once
ZDNET's key takeaways
- Anker's 200W Prime 6-port USB charging station is available on Amazon for $80.
- It has excellent quality, outputs exactly what it says in the specs, and never gets hot.
- It's too heavy to be a portable travel charger.
The charger market has opened up dramatically over the past couple of years thanks to the introduction of chargers that make use of the far more efficient GaN (gallium nitride) transistors. This not only made it possible to have smaller chargers, but also ones that offer more power and that run cooler.
It's a win-win situation all round.
Also: The best GaN chargers you can buy
Anker is one of the biggest names in the charger business, coming up with one hit product after another, and Anker's new 200W Prime 6-port charging station is no exception.
View at AmazonAnker 200W Prime 6-port charging station tech specs
- 200W max total output
- 4x USB-C, 2x USB-A
- Input: 100V to 240V AC, 3.2A to 2.5A, 50Hz to 60Hz
- USB-C Output: USB-C1 / C2 / C3 / C4: 5V⎓3A, 15W / 9V⎓3A, 27W / 10V⎓2.25A, 22.5W / 15V⎓3A, 45W / 20V⎓5A, 100W (100W max)
- USB-A Output: USB-A1 / A2: 5V⎓3A, 15W / 9V⎓2A, 18W / 10V⎓2.25A, 22.5W / 12V⎓1.5A, 18W (22.5W max)
- Weight: 1.24 lb/563 g
- Dimensions: 4.4 × 3.0 × 1.4 inches / 112 × 76 × 35 mm
- 5-foot AC power cord
- 24-month warranty
The Anker 200W Prime charging station has one-port, four-port, and six-port output configurations.
Right out of the box, it's hard not to notice that this is one big, beefy charger, weighing over a pound. The weight is itself an advantage since it keeps the charger planted on the desk while other lesser chargers get dragged about by just the weight of the attached cables.
There are a few things that I look for in all chargers that I test.
First, I need to know that they output what the spec sheet promises, and are able to continually output that over many hours without fail or getting hot. I've seen plenty of chargers promise high outputs, only to see them falter once they've been on for a while and warmed up.
The metal shell of the Anker 200W Prime does a fantastic job of dissipating heat.
Anker's 200W Prime charger performed perfectly no matter the load, rarely even feeling warm to the touch. You can have two laptops connected to this unit, each pulling 100W loads continuously and not have a problem.
Anker has built MultiProtect and ActiveShield 3.0 into this charger to continuously monitor temperatures, along with power inputs and outputs, to ensure all your devices charge safely.
Here are the specs of the Anker 200W Prime. (You can also see the rubber feet that help keep the unit planted on the desk.)
Speaking of 100W loads, bear in mind that in order to support this kind of power transfer, you will need to be using E-Marker chip cables.
Build quality is also important to me, including for the ports and AC cables, as these parts experience continuous wear. Ports especially get a lot of usage, and tight or crunchy or odd ports are only going to get worse in use.
Ports galore!
ZDNET's buying advice
The Anker 200W Prime 6-port charging station is a solid, powerful, well-made charger, and is perfect for those who need to power multiple devices. I particularly like that this charger can support dual 100W output on the USB-C ports, as this means it can power a couple of MacBooks Pros simultaneously. Sure, you don't get the full 140W that the laptops can take, but 100W is perfectly adequate as long as you don't want the fastest possible charge rate.
The two USB-A ports are handy for legacy devices that don't draw a lot of power, while the bank of four USB-C ports is more than enough for the majority of users.
Then there's the price. $80. Yes, this charger is only $80. When I review chargers, I try not to look at the price until I come to writing the review, and I was expecting this one to cost $100+.