By 'Doctor Dave' Greenbaum

When you are looking for true charging power on the road, few external batteries can beat the RichardSolo 9000 Mobile Charger (http://www.richardsolo.com). The US$19.95 9000 mAh battery will keep your iPhone or iPad charged for a long, long time!

RichardSolo has been an industry leader for iPhone chargers and the 9000 continues that tradition.  The device comes in an attractive carrying case that contains a retractable USB charger, as well as a standard USB charging cable (to be used as a spare).   

It does not come with any wall charging unit, so you’ll either have to use the AC to USB adapter that came with your iPad or iPod or purchase one from RichardSolo (I’ve been using their dual USB car charger for years). There’s room for it in the case. I’m slightly annoyed that the device doesn’t charge via more standard USB Mini or Micro chargers, but, obviously, with the 9000 mAh some concessions need to be made.

The device charges in about eight hours and has indicators for 100%, 70% and 30% charge. In actual usage I got almost a full charge for my iPad. The charger is smart enough to know what type of USB charge to provide. It comes with no charging cables, so you will have to bring your own and it can charge any device that uses a USB port.  

I did notice the smart charging was a bit more particular about the cables I used.  Not all my USB cables worked on the device, but that wasn’t a real problem. I was delighted to have so much power on the road. I used it to charge a wide variety of USB devices such as my iPad, my iPhone, my personal hotspot, my BlueTooth headphones and more. My laptop only has two USB ports so the Richard Solo 9000 allowed me to be truly mobile without sacrifice.  

Of course with that much capacity, the device is going to be heavy. It weighs in at about 10 ounces and is a bit bulky, but the case makes it much easier to travel with.  The black and silver accents match nicely with Apple’s current design aesthetic. If you didn’t know better you’d think Apple made it.  

If you are looking for maximum portability with your iPad or iPhone, Richard Solo’s 9000 mAh mobile charger will keep your going on the road!  Excellent capacity and compatibility make this an ideal choice for road warriors like myself.

Pros:   Outstanding capacity and compatibility with thoughtful accessories.
Cons:  Non-standard USB charging cable, bulky

Rating: 8 out of 10