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Belkin BoostCharge Pro Portable Fast Charger for Apple Watch
What we like
What we don't like
Belkin BoostCharge Pro Portable Fast Charger for Apple Watch
It’s no secret that the Apple Watch could use a boost in the battery department. Until then, a reliable charger is key to getting the most out of your smartwatch. For portability, convenience, and an unobtrusive aesthetic, Belkin has you covered. Find out more in this BoostCharge Pro for Apple Watch review.
What you need to know about the Belkin BoostCharge Pro for Apple Watch
- Belkin BoostCharge Pro Portable Fast Charger for Apple Watch: $59.99 / €64.99 / £59.99
Belkin’s BoostCharge Pro Portable Charger for the Apple Watch offers a travel-friendly charging solution. Weighing in at 192g, the 4.8-inch square platform sits just .63 inches high, seamlessly blending into any space. With a magnetic fast-charging module, the device taps into the time-saving charging capabilities of the Apple Watch Series 7 and Series 8, and the Apple Watch Ultra.
Though a wall charger is not included in the box, the charger utilizes a 1.2M USB-C cable with convenient cable management to keep your space neat. It also features an adjustable design with a pivoting charging puck, so you can lay your Apple Watch flat or charge it upright in Nightstand mode.
The BoostCharge Pro Portable Charger is available now from the Apple store as well as from third-party retailers like Amazon. You can purchase the charger in either black or white for $59.99.
What’s good?
As creatures of habit, most of us benefit from structured convenience. Belkin’s portable charger offers exactly that, streamlining your Apple Watch charging habits. The Belkin BoostCharge Pro for Apple Watch is compact and reliable with a minimalist aesthetic you can easily slip into any room of the house. I tested the black model and it didn’t look out of place in any of the typical landing zones. It also features a hinged charging puck you can leave flat or raise up to provide a backboard for your watch. This allows you to turn your wearable into a bedside clock by charging in Nightstand mode.
The Belkin BoostCharge Pro's compact, adjustable design makes a big impact without taking up much space.
More importantly, the charger delivers the power you need at a respectable speed. Even with Low Battery Mode, the battery life on the Apple Watch lineup still falls short compared to devices from Fitbit or Garmin. Fast charging helps minimize these shortcomings. With a magnetic fast-charging module, the BoostCharge Pro Portable Charger powers up Apple Watches Series 7 or newer at a respectable speed. The charger is compatible with older watches as well, but previous generations lack the internal charging architecture to access fast charging.
When I put the BoostCharge Pro Portable Charger’s claims to the test, I was pleasantly surprised by how closely the performance measured up against regular Apple Watch charging times.
On average, it took roughly 30 minutes to charge my Apple Watch Series 8 and Series 7 from zero to 40%. That means enough juice to power a full night of sleep tracking by the time I took a shower, changed into pajamas, and brushed my teeth. After an hour, the watches both reached right around 75%. A full charge took under 90 minutes. Granted, that’s not as quick as the rates we were able to hit during our Apple Watch Series 8 review tests with the provided charging cable, but they’re fast enough to mitigate exhaustive charging times. If you’re sporting the Apple Watch Ultra, a full charge will take about an hour and forty minutes. This matches the timeframe we hit during our Apple Watch Ultra review tests; charging to just 75% took the Belkin charger one hour.
The charger’s cable is my favorite feature of the Belkin BoostCharge Pro for two reasons. The first is its fool-proof cable management. When I spend money to solve a problem (in this case, mediocre battery life), the last thing I want is a new problem to solve (i.e. an unruly cord). The attached cable easily wraps up within the designated space with a small divet to exit so that the charger can lay flush to your table.
Built-in cable management keeps your charging station tidy.
This design is particularly helpful given the extra length of the 1.2M cable. A standard Apple Watch charger is typically 1M. With extra reach, the BoostCharge Pro Portable Charger can plug into harder-to-reach spaces so you can set up your charging station wherever is most convenient for you. Throughout this review, I had the cable stretched along a coffee shop booth, reaching up a credenza, and snaking underneath my bed to an otherwise buried outlet. I didn’t encounter a single space I couldn’t make work.
The second welcome feature of the charger’s cable is that it’s USB-C. Some BoostCharge Pro Portable Charger reviews note this is a negative as many people still rely on USB compatibility. If you have a desk with a built-in USB outlet, for example, you may prefer a different product.
However, as European regulations demand, USB-C is here to stay. If you want to invest in a future-proofed charging solution, the BoostCharge Pro Portable Charger is it. As mentioned, the charger does not come with a charging block. You will need to purchase a compatible wall charger separately.
Finally, Belkin added a precision dial to the charger to ensure perfect alignment with your wearable. Choosing the correct dial setting is very straightforward but turning it takes a little muscle. Once you align the arrow with your device’s icon, the height of the charger will adjust so that the puck perfectly lines up with the back of your watch. This allows for a perfect fit even if you use a watch case or bumper.
What’s not so good?
As is always the case when a straight-forward product delivers its prescribed feature set, it’s hard to find fault with Belkin BoostCharge Pro Portable Fast Charger for Apple Watch. Sure, it’s pricey at $59.99 compared to the free cable in your Apple Watch box. In an ideal world, we would also love to see more emphasis on the “Fast” moniker with even quicker charging capabilities. Until then, we’ll nitpick the details.
Harking back to my aversion to messiness, I wasn’t a fan of the charger’s build material. The matte black is refined and attractive out of the box but collects dust instantly. If you’re wondering if your fingers are greasy, the charger will let you know at the slightest touch. Additionally, I would have preferred the design in all-black, rather than black with a white puck. The white model is solid white. As a result, its lack of contrasting colors seems like it would blend more easily with existing decor.
The build material tends to attract dust and the contrasting colors stick out when there's no device charging.
Finally, the charger could probably be smaller. In an effort to tap into every spec, I tested the Belkin BoostCharge Pro’s portability in every bag I could think to try. It easily slips into backpacks, purses, and even a fanny pack. However, it’s tight in a pants pocket and couldn’t squeeze into some of the built-in divisions of my go-to bags. For what it offers, it doesn’t seem unreasonable to imagine it could’ve been slightly smaller.
Belkin BoostCharge Pro Portable Fast Charger for Apple Watch review: The verdict
The Belkin BoostCharge Pro Portable Fast Charger for Apple Watch is worth it for anyone that wants a great, portable charger for their Apple wearable. It provides consistent charge times, an extra-long USB-C cable, and an aesthetically pleasing platform for building better charging habits. The versatile two-way design is especially useful for Apple Watches with loop bands that struggle to lay flat (especially the oversized Apple Watch Ultra). While something like the Belkin BoostCharge 3-in-1 with MagSafe ($149 at Amazon) offers far more flexibility and charging options for multiple Apple devices, the BoostCharge Pro Portable for Apple Watch is better for trips away when you’re only concerned about keeping your Apple wearable topped up.
That said, the portable charger isn’t cheap. From a functional perspective, it doesn’t offer much beyond what you get from your out-of-the-box cable. That is unless, of course, you struggle to keep your watch charger neat. In other words, it is most useful if you value a stable, dedicated home base for charging, you despise sloppy cords, or you want to make the most of Nightstand mode. Essentially, it combines Belkin Travel Stand charging stand ($14.99) with a reliable charging puck for a one-stop charging spot.
Top Belkin BoostCharge Pro Portable Fast Charger for Apple Watch questions and answers
Charging times vary among Apple Watch generations. We found that the latest model, the Apple Watch Series 8 charges in about 45 minutes with its proprietary charger and about 90 minutes with the Belkin BoostCharge Pro.
Yes, the Belkin BoostCharge Pro can charge older Apple Watches and the Apple Watch SE series, though you won’t get the faster charge times of the Series 7, Series 8, and Watch Ultra.
The Belkin BoostCharge Pro is a great charger if you still have access to a power supply. However, Anker offers a wider variety of products which includes the Anker Portable Magnetic Charger ($38) that also has power banking capabilities.