If you’ve ever wanted more information about how your phone is charging, or even a bit of control over the charging process, Anker’s newest charger might just be for you.
Anker launched its new Nano Charger with Smart Display earlier this year. While at first glance it looks like a typical charging brick, it’s got a few neat features tucked inside that make it stand out. I got to try out one of the Nano Chargers firsthand to see just how it works.
First up, let’s start with the specs. The Anker Nano can support up to 45W charging — pretty impressive given how small it is. It’s also got 180-degree foldable prongs, allowing you to adjust how it plugs in (or fold them out of the way for travel). And finally, the Nano charger has a display.
While not the first charger I’ve tried with a screen on it, the Anker Nano has a few more smarts to it. The display reads out information about the charging status, including the charging speed, temperature data, and phone battery level. Most of the screens also have a cute little blue blob that hangs out and makes faces or moves around. For example, when you plug in the charging brick, the blue bob bounces onto the screen.
Helpful charging info at a glance
The Nano charger also sports a touch button on the top of the brick, which lets you toggle between a few displays. The first display shows the current charging wattage and battery level, the second shows the temperature gauge, and the last is a settings screen to toggle between charging modes. There’s an auto mode and a ‘Care’ mode that aims to keep your phone’s battery temperature lower than other 45W chargers. You can also press and hold on the touch button to flip the display. However, I found the button controls were finicky, especially when it came to switching between charging modes — this required an awkward swipe gesture that the touch button rarely interpreted correctly.
Anker says the Nano charger can recognize various Apple devices and automatically adjust charging to meet the needs of those devices. Specifically, the company says the charger can recognize the iPhone 15, 16, and 17 series, as well as some iPad Pro models, including the 11-inch (2020-2024), 12.9-inch (2020-2022), and 13-inch (2024). I only had an iPhone 16e at hand to test with the charger, and it worked great.
While Anker didn’t specify Android compatibility, the charger also seemed to work fine with my Pixel 10 Pro, though it didn’t max out the charging speed. Google rates the 10 Pro for up to 29W wired charging, but when I tried it with the Anker Nano, it stuck around the 20W mark, possibly a factor of the Nano being geared toward iPhones.
Cool idea, imperfect charger
Slightly slow Pixel charging aside, I came away from my testing of the Anker Nano fairly impressed. It’s a wonderfully compact charging brick, making it a great option for travel, and the tiny display offers interesting charging insights and fun visuals.
That said, the charger isn’t perfect, and I think there are a few things holding it back. For one, the size is great but I wish Anker had included another plug in the brick, even if that meant increasing the size a little. With only one plug, the Anker Nano won’t be able to replace the compact charger I already keep in my backpack, which has two USB-C ports and a USB-A port.
More than that, I found having the display on the charging brick to be somewhat inconvenient when I wanted to read it. Most outlets in my house are tucked behind furniture of some kind, and even where I use powerbars or extension cables, I try to keep things out of sight. So when it came time to plug in the Anker Nano, I didn’t have many spots where the brick would also be visible without rearranging things. And unfortunately, the Anker Nano needs to be visible if you want to benefit from the display.
It’s a small thing, but I can’t help but feel like having a small display built into the cable itself would serve a little better. That way, you can keep your charging brick tucked out of sight, but still see the relevant information on the cable. That said, it is nice that the Anker Nano is an all-in-one solution that works with most cables and outlets — it keeps things simple.
The Anker Nano charger is available from Anker’s website for $49.99. It comes in four colours to match the most recent iPhone 17 Pro models: Aurora White, Black Stone, Misty Blue, and, coming soon, Orange.
The black and white colourways are also available from Amazon Canada for $44.99 (though at the time of writing, it was on sale for $39.99).
