Baseus Nomos Qi2 Magnetic Power Bank review: fastest possible iPhone battery charging

Macworld

At a glanceExpert's Rating

Pros

Built-in USB-C cable

15W wireless or 45W wired charging

Cons

Less useful for older iPhone users

Our Verdict
The Baseus Nomos Magnetic Power Bank boasts a high battery capacity, 15W Qi2 wireless charging, and the fastest wired charging we’ve tested so far on any iPhone power bank.

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Capacity: 36Wh (10000mAh)

Input charger: USB-C (30W)

Output charger: Wireless (15W Qi2) & USB-C (45W)

On test charged iPhone to: 170%

Weight: 8.2oz (232g)

Dimensions: 4.25 x 2.7 x0.8 inches (10.8 x 6.8 x 2cm)

Colors: Gray, Black

Compatibility: All iPhone 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16 models

Unless you are a work-from-home obsessive or recluse, a power bank for your iPhone is an essential accessory to your mobile life. Since Apple introduced magnetic wireless charging to the iPhone, these power banks have become increasingly convenient while decreasing in size.

Apple’s MagSafe has been available on all iPhones since the iPhone 12, allowing us to magnetically clamp a compatible accessory to the back of the iPhone. Wirelessly charging the iPhone is as simple and efficient as it can get. But it’s not the fastest way to get power into your phone.

If the charger is certified by Apple as MagSafe it should wirelessly charge at 15W. If it is merely “MagSafe compatible”, charging speed is at a lower 7.5W. The newer Apple-approved Qi2 wireless charging standard is rated at the same 15W as MagSafe. For more information read our MagSafe vs Qi2 comparison.

While wireless charging is convenient, charging with a cable is nearly always faster as it is a more efficient method of transferring power. The problem with wired charging is it requires a cable, and these are both messy to carry with you and easy to forget.

Check out our roundup of the For a full comparison read our roundup of the best MagSafe and magnetic power banks for iPhone. for more choices.

Like a few of the most recent magnetic power banks, the Baseus Nomus Magnetic Power Bank boasts its own built-in USB-C cable so is especially useful for iPhone 15/16 owners whose phones feature a USB-C charging port—but wirelessly it works as well for Lightning-port iPhone 12/13/14 users too.

The cable can be used to output power to an iPhone 15 or 16 and connect to any USB-C charger to charge the power bank itself.




Simon Jary / Foundry

Battery test results

The Baseus Nomos Magnetic Power Bank has a high battery capacity of 36Wh or 10000mAh. Slimmer iPhone power banks offer less than half of that capacity but 10K is a sweet spot for lots of top-up power and portability.

Our testing process involved running an iPhone down to 5% and then using the power bank to take the phone back to 100 percent. Then we run the phone down again until the power bank runs out of juice to keep the phone charged.

The Baseus Nomos power bank took the 5 percent-charged iPhone to 100 percent, and then reached a further 71%—meaning the total recharge adds up to a 166% score (95 + 71).

That’s not as high as some of the 10K wireless power banks we have tested. The highest any other similar wireless battery pack, the Anker Zolo Magnetic Power Bank, has reached in our tests is 191 percent.

Charging speed

While the Baseus Magnetic Power Bank came up a little short in our charging tests, its fast-charging performance blows the opposition away.

As it uses Qi2 technology, its wireless charging is rated at 15W, which puts it at the top of the pile in this respect. The Anker Zolo is still pegged back at 7.5W. Anker does have a Qi2 power bank—the svelte Anker MagGo 10K Slim Power Bank—but this doesn’t feature a built-in cable.

For ultimate charging speed you should charge using the power bank’s built-in USB-C cable that can reach an impressive 45W. That 45W is more useful for some Samsung phones that can suck up that amount of power. It’s likely that even the most recent iPhones won’t accept much more than 30W during charging. Whatever, it’s still much faster than even 15W wireless charging.

The integrated 5.5-inch cable is a real benefit when it comes to refilling the power bank as it means you don’t need to find a spare cable when you need to. That’s useful to all iPhone users, but only the 15/16 iPhones can draw power from the power bank using the built-in cable.

To charge older iPhones at the fastest speed, the Nomos features a spare USB-C port that you can use with a USB-C to Lightning charging cable instead of using the built-in cable.

That port can or the integrated USB-C cable can input recharge the power bank at 30W.




Simon Jary / Foundry

Size and design

Measuring 4.25 x 2.7 x 0.8 inches (10.8 x 6.8 x 2cm) the Baseus Nomos Magnetic Power Bank is around the same size as the Anker Qi2 MagGo Power Bank that matches it on battery capacity and fast wireless charging.

That Anker power bank lacks an integrated USB-C cable, however. Anker’s Zolo Magnetic Power Bank is the closest rival in terms of capacity and built-in cable but is pegged back at MagSafe-compatible 7.5W wireless speeds.

Like the Zolo the Nomos features a built-in kickstand.

It also has a small but useful charging display that shows battery level and input and output power.

It weighs a reasonable 8.2oz (232g), which is acceptable. It is available in two smart but hardly exciting colors: black and gray.




The integrated USB-C cable neatly folds away into the power bank body. Simon Jary / Foundry

Price

The Baseus Nomos Magnetic Power Bank (Qi2 45W 10000mAh) is priced at $81.99 and is currently available only in the U.S., either direct or via Amazon.

In comparison, the Anker Zolo Magnetic Power Bank is cheaper at just $49.99 but charges wirelessly at 7.5W rather than 15W, and its built-in cable maxes output at 30W. As the iPhone can’t be charged at much more than 30W, this isn’t a significant difference, and that price point might appeal to you.

Verdict

With its built-in USB-C cable, fast 15W wireless and faster 45W wired charging speeds, the 10K Baseus Nomos Magnetic Power Bank has just about everything a magnetic power bank can offer at the highest levels.