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Powerall puts 12 jump-starts in your pocket

The Powerall Slim 9000 can charge your phone or tablet jump-start your car 12 times, yet it is small enough to fit in a coat pocket.

Wayne Cunningham Managing Editor / Roadshow
Wayne Cunningham reviews cars and writes about automotive technology for CNET's Roadshow. Prior to the automotive beat, he covered spyware, Web building technologies, and computer hardware. He began covering technology and the Web in 1994 as an editor of The Net magazine.
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Wayne Cunningham
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LAS VEGAS --Portable jump starter company Powerall took the opportunity of CES 2015 to show off its latest device, the Slim 9000. Even smaller than its previous PowerBank product, the Slim 9000 can still jump-start a car, and includes a USB port to charge up personal electronics.

Powerall Slim 9000

MSRP

Rather than the black and red case of the Powerall PowerBank, the Slim 9000 comes in an anodized aluminum case, giving it a look more similar to personal electronic devices. About the size of two stacked Samsung Galaxy S5 phones, the Slim 9000 feels light, and could easily stow in a coat pocket or backpack. The rectangular device's rounded edges won't snag on other items.

A button mounted in one end is the device's sole control, along with a charge level indicator. The other end has a standard USB port, a micro-USB port, a jumper cable port and a white LED flashlight. The micro-USB port lets you charge up the Slim 9000 from a wall outlet, and you can plug in a phone or tablet to the USB port.

The flashlight is a useful feature when trying to hook the Slim 9000 up to a car battery at night, or just trying to find your car keys under the seat. The light can also be set to blink, helpful as an emergency indicator to passing motorists.

The Slim 9000's really unique feature is its ability to jump start a car. Powerall includes a battery clamp adapter, with short cables that plug into a special port. The battery clamp cable includes a MOSFET rectifier, serving as a circuit breaker should you hook the clamps up to the wrong terminals.

9000 in the device's name refers to its 9,000 mAh lithium-ion battery. That is enough capacity to charge most smartphones a few times over, and even fully charge most tablets. The single USB port means you can only charge one device at a time, but that should be adequate for most people.

As for the jump-start capability, the Slim 9000 outputs 350 amps. Powerall says that is enough amperage to handle a typical passenger car or light SUV, with engines up to six cylinders. The battery capacity means the device can handle about 12 jump-starts before it needs to be recharged.

The Powerall Slim 9000 goes on sale next month, for a price of $119.