The Three Treasures of the Middle-Aged: Anker 140W Charger Unboxing

Preface

Previously bought a Cuktech No. 10 charger, and somehow inexplicably awakened some kind of middle-aged hobby 😂

I've actually been craving this Anker 140W charger for a long time, but there was never a good price. On August 16, while I was out waiting, I was browsing Pinduoduo and saw a good deal at 190+, so I bought it immediately.

But I've always been lazy, so it sat on the storage shelf unopened until I unboxed and photographed it half a month later on September 8.

Then it took more than a month of use before I got around to writing this article 🤣

I originally planned to use this charger to PD-power my ThinkBook 16+ laptop, but found that even with a 140W PD charger, it still draws from the battery. I guess that's just this laptop's power strategy—not going to fuss over it.

Packaging

This packaging is a lot more understated than Cuktech's flashy tech-style one.

Front

Back

Side

Unboxing

Still very minimal.

Accessories

Manual and charging cable.

Manual.

Close-up of the cable.

The Charger

Let's take a look at the charging cable and charger on their own.

Standing it up.

Front.

Comparison with Cuktech No. 10

Let's look at a comparison of these two chargers—which one do you think looks better?

Laid flat.

Standing up, looking at the port side.

Laid flat.

The Small Screen

The Anker 140W's signature feature is this little screen, which is indeed cleaner and better-looking than Cuktech's.

However, this one doesn't support connecting to Mi Home. Although Cuktech's screen UI isn't as good as Anker's, being able to connect to Mi Home makes up for that.

I've even seen people online flashing custom firmware on the Cuktech charger so the small screen can display remaining Codex quota—that's wild. Not sure if Anker can be flashed too.

Checking the output power of each port.

Checking the temperature.

Wrap-up

Both chargers are quite refined, with a solid feel—they feel hefty in the hand. As for the looks, that's a matter of personal taste.

Right now I'm using this charger to power Brother Ji's laptop, and also to charge a small fan.

Heat generation is about the same as the Cuktech No. 10—six of one, half a dozen of the other. It gets quite hot with even a bit of load. Seems like severe heat is a common problem with this kind of GaN charger; other than that, it's pretty good.

PS: To use these chargers better, I even bought a separate power strip 😂