Kovol Sprint 65W Review QC 3.0 PD 3.0 Charger With PPS 25W Fast Charging
The Kovol charger pictured is compact enough to travel with and provides enough power to meet any demands! It is a 65 watt GaN charger with two USB-C power delivery (PD 3.0) ports and two quick charge (QC 3.0) USB-A ports.The Kovol Sprint 65W works via mains power electricity and supports any global voltage (100V-240V).
The total power output of the Kovol Sprint charger is 65 watts when charging a single device via the USB-C port. The Kovol Sprint charger has smart circuitry built-in to regulate voltage and amperage according to the input device. For example, if you use the USB-C ports to charge a 15.4-inch MacBook Pro and iPhone 13 at the same time, the Kovol Sprint charger will send 45 watts to the MacBook and 20 watts to the iPhone.
Maximum output via a single USB-A port is 18 watts and, 15 watts when using both USB-A ports at the same time (7.5 watts each). If you use a USB-C port + one USB-A port, the charger sends 45 watts to the USB-C port and 18 watts to the USB-A port. If you use both USB-C ports + a USB-A port, the charger sends 30 watts to one USB-C port, 20 watts to the second USB-C port and 15 watts to the USB-A port. When using all four ports at the same time, the Kovol charger sends 30 watts to one USB-C port, 20 watts to the second USB-C port and 7.5 watts to each USB-A port.
USB-C power delivery is only supported by some devices. For instance, all new Android 10 devices support USB-C power delivery. iPhones and iPads do not support quick charge (QC), although you can still use the Kovol charger QC ports to charge an iPhone/iPad at standard charge (5 watts). Most Android phones support quick charge or power delivery but, if you want to benefit from 18 watts (QC 3.0) fast charging and PD 3.0 fast charging, the device has to support quick charge 3.0 and power delivery 3.0.
QC 3.0 supported devices include Xiaomi Mi 9, Nokia 7.1 and Galaxy S10 Plus. PD 3.0 supported devices include the Note 10 as well as all Google Pixel phones, iPhone 8 (and newer devices), and the iPad Air (3rd gen), iPad mini 5, iPad Pro 10.5″, iPad Pro 11″ (all generations), and iPad Pro 12.9″ (all generations). You can also charge the iPad Air 4 and iPhone 12 at full speed (20 Watts) with a C-lighting cable.
You can also charge power banks too. For example, the 20,000mAh powerbank, seen pictured, gets capped at 30 watts so, it takes 3.5 hours to fully charge it. Same with the new 2021 iPad Pro and the MacBook Air 13-inch, which also get capped at 30watts when using this Kovol charger. The Kovol Sprint 65W charger weighs 166 grams and measures 4cm long, 4cm wide and 7.5cm deep.
The Kovol charger has a long cube shape with flat equal sides, allowing you to lay the charger flat on a desk. The output ports are located on the front with a 2 by 2 formation. The input port is located on the rear of the charger and consists of a female figure8 port where the included power cord connects to. The included power cord measures 1.3 meters long and has a flat heavy duty rubber sheath with a male figure8 connector (at one end) and a US plug with two flat pins at the other. You can use the Kovol Sprint 65W charger with international electrical outlets but you will need a plug adapter (not included)
The Kovol Sprint 65W charger has a rubbery body shell with a matte plastic fascia, housing green color USB ports and three small green status leds to indicate power. When removing the Kovol charger from the an electrical outlet, it takes a few minutes for the charger to safely discharge power off the circuit. The green status leds will turn off when discharge is complete and that can take several minutes depending on how long you have been running the charger. Other than that, the green status leds do not serve any other purpose.
If you're wondering why the USB-C and USB-A ports are green color, it is mainly an aesthetics feature rather than a standardized USB specification. Sometimes green USB ports indicate "QC 3.0" and other times green USB ports indicate USB 3.1 standard. It is entirely down to the manufacturer so, it's a bit confusing. The Kovol charger could have benefited from color coded USB ports - for example green USB-C ports green and the blue USB-A ports to differentiate. This, of course, doesn't affect functionality since USB-C ports are clearly different from USB-A ports, although it would just make it more user-friendly.
The Kovol Sprint 65W charger is a neat compact GaN charger solution that works well without overheating, thanks to overheating protection that prevents the charger from becoming hot to the touch. A 1.3 meter long power cord is included too so, you can start using it right out of the box. You don't need a special cable to benefit from quick charge 3.0 but, you will need a dedicated USB-C PD (Power Delivery) cable if you want to get full speed.
Best thing to do if you already own a PD or QC charging device is to use the cable that comes with that device. While the Kovol Sprint charger can output 65W, it only supports PPS 25W fast charging. This means, you cannot fast charge the Samsung Galaxy Note10+ at full speed because the Kovol charger does not support PPS 45W fast charging.
The Kovol charger can charge a single 15.4-inch MacBook Pro from 0–100% in just 2 hours at full 65W, which is pretty good. That said, the charger is better suited for charging smaller devices long term to prevent over stressing it. If you plan to use it as a daily charger for laptops, it is best getting the 120-watt version of the Kovol charger, also sold on amazon. You can buy the Kovol Sprint 65W charger from amazon
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