Technology in the promotional market is back on the up and due to represent a double digit percentage of total spend on B2B promotional speed in the coming years. Getting to grips with this complex and ever changing product area is not easy for many distributors who have to be ‘experts’ in the eyes of their clients on so many products when assessing the needs / requirements of their clients.
Based on this we decided to look at some of the hot topics and breakdown some of the jargon into clear and concise tips and male it easy to understand and hence profit from this constantly changing area of our industry.
So here goes as we look at a few answers to regularly asked questions from our clients during meetings.
What is mAh in a battery / power bank?
So mAh is the abbreviation for the word milliampere-hour. It is a unit that measures electric power over time. Normally, it is used to measure the energy capacity of a battery.
This is a measure of a battery power and stands for milliamperes per hour and can vary from 500mAh to 72,000mAH. An average smart phone has a battery around 3000mAh, a watch around 300mAh, a pair of earbuds (25mAH)) a tablet around 10,000mAH and a Mac Book Air around 6000mAH. To charge such batteries requires diff power banks that correlate to the device to be charged - the average would between 5000 mAh to 10,000mAh but these can go upto very large units at 70k plus mAh ! This is a good thing to consider when helping a client to choose what power bank suits their audience - client base.
Can I ‘Fast Charge’ from my laptop or an older style plug?
No to achieve a technical fast charge you need either at least a mains 20W USB-C plug or special PD fast charge power bank any device below this won’t give you the technical Fast Charging.
Can I Fast Charge using a USB-A wall plug or socket in my kitchen or office / hotel room?
No fast charge is always USB-C to USB-C / lightning (for Apple) but the older style ports will charge at standard speed which is approx 3 times slower often the diff between fast and standard is indicated via an LED on the charging cable for clarity.
Why do your charging cables not have micro USB plugs any longer?
USB-C has now superseded micro usb as a charging plug / port and with Apple moving to USB-C from IPhone 15 and all its other products this faster, smarter and more powerful application will become the universal connector / port over the coming years - for devices that still have micro ports there are still multi adapter cables that will accommodate this also.
What cable do I need to charge my different devices? Will the sMe cable charge everything?
Generally shorter cables are made to allow a max of 10-12W suitable for a smart phone at regular speed, next up are cables to around 27W (often with data and charge making them good for connectivity) making them suitable for phones / tablets at a faster speed, then there are cables that will charge to a max of 60W (which is often described as PD or power delivery) making these cables suited to phones, tablets and laptops/Macs at this fast speed and finally the top of the tree are newer 100W cables which for high end laptops/Macs, phones and tablets at high speed.
What’s the diff in speed between wireless and wired charge?
Wireless charging is currently a max of 15W of power so slower than charging with a cable which is approx twice the speed of wireless. For example a fast charge wired connection with mains plug will charge a dead battery to 50-70% in approx 20-25 mins where as wireless charging will be somewhat slower around 50 mins
What’s the next big thing in charging?
Magnetic wireless charging will become the norm across all phone brands, currently Apple has the only system with its MagSafe charging across all iPhones but soon all other brands will have such phones working under a new standard called Qi2 which basically means your device is magnetically held in place so the power moving from the charger to the devices battery are as close together as possible
Can I charge all my gadgets and devices from one wireless charger?
Different devices need diff power to recharge their battles and these vary in size a great deal. For example an iPhone 16 battery is 3000mAh where as a pair of AirPod earbuds is only 25mAh and a watch around a 300mAh battery. Hence the power required is different and needs a diff charge plate. Many have tried to make the one flat platform suitable for all (even Apple failed) so now we wireless chargers with a specific area for a phone, watch or earbuds often split at 15W, 10W and 5W output for the diff items to be charged.
What is the latest Bluetooth version and what benefits is there for me from it?
The latest version of BT is version 5.4 with 6.0 around the corner. This supersedes previous and allows for multiple device connection simultaneously, longer distances between tech, retail options and marketing, developments in AI , low power modes of products and developments in the so called Internet of Things. Bluetooth has fast become a driver of the future and not just a way to stream voice, content and audio over short range, by 2028 experts predict the world will be shipping over 7billion devices enables with Bluetooth !
How does ‘Apple Find My’ software tracking allow me to see my Air-tag , friends or other device location anywhere in the world?
Software solutions like Apple Find My are becoming ever popular in items such as Airtags, backpacks, luggage and even now charging cables making them new smart solutions for our industry. These devices use the entire iPhone network globally so wherever your device is you can track it as any iPhone near the lost device helps to locate it via GPS within iPhones and location software.
Questions on what tech means and how it benefits the user if the product are varied and today we just looked at a few regularly asked questions. It’s key when understanding your clients needs to understand the basics and that’s why an expert in such areas is valuable so you can make the right suggestions for your client to allow them to max their return on investment, gain the most from their promotional activity and get value for money. Tech is here with us all and is again growing in the promotional industry - be part of it, learn about it or get lost behind.
For help or advice about how promo tech can be used in your next campaign, get in touch with the team @ DTI - contact 0844 875 7624 or sales@desktopideas.com.
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