Phone accessories

Triangular 24,000 mAh power bank with a nicely integrated display, let down by a frosted battery area.

A monstrous 300W power bank with the nicest display he has seen, earning a place on the setup.

A good attempt, but wireless charging wastes so much energy that it makes little sense as a travel power bank.

The most cost-effective way to be able to recover a lost bag, and category-leading despite being affordable.

He likes its built-in cables, but chose the plain power bank since you need your own cables anyway.

His favourite plug to travel with, combining charger, travel adapter and USB sockets, with 70-100W the sweet spot.

A fancier optional retractable 100W cable that saves space and avoids tangles but adds weight and cost.

An affordable, flexible phone stand that works on flights, trains, cars and even a chair back.

The cheapest reliable USB-IF certified cable he has used, with charging and data fast enough for this setup.

Costs about four times a basic 20,000 mAh bank but is worth it for efficiency, 200W output and useful software.

Never arrived from Kickstarter, and the Amazon copy is a decent but flawed charger that others have done better.

A brilliant AAA battery charger and organiser that he considers a Hall of Fame product, though limited to AAA.

A power bank that doubles as a second screen, never arrived, and solves a problem nobody has.

A good-looking, capable charger that is exactly what it claims, but lacks portability and has a clumsy watch charger.

A foldable 40,000 mAh solar power bank that never arrived; he thinks solar charging is too inefficient anyway.

The tips can write on paper as well as an iPad, a great party trick, but they make a mediocre pencil.

Backers paid for an all-in-one charging gadget that never shipped and got no refunds or updates.

Very thin and nice to hold, but scratches easily and is hard to justify at $60; 5/10.

A bulky, heavy BlackBerry-style keyboard case with a few good touches, but too many compromises for him; he gave it 4/10.

More watchable than expected on a modern bright phone, despite edge distortion.

The adhesive wasn't strong enough and the touchscreen failed to work under the water.

Generated so little power it couldn't even boot a dead iPhone, so he wouldn't rely on it.

Claims 30 watts, but in the test it could not get a dead iPhone to boot and he would not keep it.

Pedalling for 30 minutes failed to get a dead iPhone to boot, so he wouldn't keep it.