You and Me, Surviving the APokelypse with Xiaomi (Where to Buy Xiaomi Powerbank in Singapore)

Terrible puns aside, I just had to hop on the Poke-bandwagon with this PSA blog entry. A couple of days ago, I was out hunting Pokemon with friends – well, technically, I wasn’t hunting; I was just watching my friends try to catch ’em all – because my powerbank had failed and died a horrible death on me. Like the last time I got conned by a terrible Taobao seller, I’ve decided to do up this blog post just encourage y’all to buy a proper powerbank from a legit source.

IF IT’S TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE…

I’d chanced upon this powerbank online at Qoo10, and it sounded promising – 26,000mAh, slim, champagne gold, and could be charged up via solar. All that chioness for just SGD$30 – I was sold.

After just a couple of days’ wait, the powerbank was delivered to my house. I left it to charge up overnight – my previous 10,000 powerbank needed an overnight charge, which meant that this would require at least a full day’s charge. But hey wait, this was fully charged up in a night. Hmmm.

Ah well. I had a full day ahead, so I merrily (and somewhat smugly brought it out) – I haz backup power, I don’t have to worry or compromise on using my phone. After all, an iPhone has a battery capacity of about 3,000mAh, which means that despite my terrible mathematical skills, this 26,000 powerbank should still last about 5-7 rounds of charges, yes yes?

I got about 1-2 rounds of full charge. That’s it. This isn’t even a 10,000mAh battery – how can you pass this off as a 26,000 one??

I wasn’t even fussed about the extremely slow(poke) rate of solar charging – I knew from the start that this was gonna be a secondary source of power, but c’mon guys – overselling the power capacity of the battery by more than 2x?

To be honest, I didn’t have anyone to blame but myself – if it’s too good to be true, it probably is. Cheap, good, stylish, multifunctional? Meh😦 Ballocks to me for indulging my inner cheapskate when it comes to these gadgets. I’m just glad it didn’t blow up in my face or damage my iPhone.

MY NEW XIAOMI BABIES

Resigned rant aside, I am glad to say I am now the proud owner of not one, but two Xiaomi powerbanks – one 10,000mAh and one 20,000mAh. And guess what? I didn’t even have to get them online (aka no waiting) – cos I found a store (or rather, a chain of stores) selling authentic Xiaomi powerbanks!

My brand new Xiaomi power banks😀

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Here are some of my Pokemon hunting essentials – check out my swanky new 10,000mAh Xiaomi powerbank in red from Toy Outpost. Why, even Pikachu and Charmander are happy for me hurhurhur.

Now the first time I opened ripped open the packaging of my smexy new red 10k Xiaomi, there was only 1 led light flashing (which meant 25% or less of the full capacity). Since I was in dire need (aka I was situated in the middle of several Lures and really wanted to catch something!), I plugged it in to let it charge anyway – it somehow managed to charge up my phone to near 90% from 30+%. YAY! This is way, way better than that crappy powerbank that dies after just 1 charge.

Loving the brushed and smooth finish of the 10,000mAh one that’s surprisingly small and portable.
I also decided to get one in 20,000 for standby purposes. It’s slightly larger and heavier than the 10,000, but still fits into my hand😀

This comes with 2 USB ports so you can share the battery juice with a fellow Pokemon hunter (and they both work – unlike the crappy power bank I ordered. hmph). in fact, this one has so much battery that I sometimes use it as a bedside charger (cos I don’t have a power point there) – it can go a full week of charging my iPhone before going flat. I yam very mucho impressed!
The 10,000mAh power bank has just one USB port

Anyhoos, whether you’re a Pokemon hunter or not, an extra powerbank can come in pretty handy these days – especially when you’re having a long day and don’t wish to be caught standing around a power source and wired to it. If you’re keen on getting one, here’s where/how much I got my Xiaomi Powerbanks for (and no, I am not paid to endorse this – I am simply sharing the love, especially if you’re like me and have been having unpleasant online shopping experiences).

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HOW MUCH DO THEY COST?

After paying a seemingly “cheaper” price and finding out that it’s all for a crappy product (that I eventually hurled into the bin), it turns out that my perceived “savings” are just a complete waste of money. Tsk. This is why I’m more than happy to spend on a proper powerbank that works.

• 10,000mAh: S$27.80 – Available in Red, Silver and Champagne Gold
• 20,000mAh: S$49.90 – Available in White
• 10,000mAh (Powerbank Pro version, utilises USB Type-C): S$49.90 – Available in Dark Gray

All powerbanks sold at Toy Outpost outlets come with a 6-month warranty, a free i-Ring (worth $3.90), and a silicon casing (worth $5.90).

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WHERE CAN YOU GET THEM?

Now Xiaomi is mostly available online, but their website has no stock. If you’re not too keen on waiting for a restock, here’s where you can get your authentic Xiaomi powerbanks (I got mine here too!).

Toy Outpost / Hako branches:

• Hako @ Bedok Mall
• Hako @ NEX (Serangoon MRT)
• Hako @ AMK Hub (Ang Mo Kio MRT)
• Hako @Parkway Parade
• Toy Outpost @ Waterway Point (Punggol MRT)
• Toy Outpost @ VivoCity (Harbourfront MRT)
• Toy Outpost @ Bugis Junction (Bugis MRT)
• Toy Outpost @ Plaza Singapura (Dhoby Ghaut MRT)

And voila~! You will now feel as (digitally) empowered as I am with my power banks (this must be what Arnold or Rambo feel like when they walk into war) – go forth and catch ’em alllll xoxo~