Energizer XP4001 Universal Rechargeable Power Pack

I purchased both the XP18000 and XP4001 in March'11 and have not regretted it once! I velcroed them together for convenience and portability. It's a little bulky but more than manageable, even in a medium laptop bag/bookbag or briefcase. This is great for long plane rides and road trips to maintain power on pretty much all electronic devices. I'm yet to have a device that one of the included tips did not fit, but I primarily use the mini and micro usb tips and the ones specific for my two laptops...only using/charging one laptop at a time with XP18000.XP18000I have a lot of business related trips across the Atlantic that last anywhere between 9-12hrs. I normally charge both XPALs the night before (fully charged in roughly 3-5hrs) my trips and also have my laptop fully charged as well. When I run the battery down to about 15-20% (roughly 3hrs), I hook it up to the XP18000 and all is well in the world again.XP4001I use this smaller XPAL to charge my cell phones so as to not take away from the power that the XP18000 provides to my laptop(s). The XP4001 is great by itself for smaller devices but even better as supplement to the XP18000. Its a bit overkill to have both XPALs but I hate not having my juice when I need it & I'm sure you can agree!With both XPALs (as long as they're charged at the beginning of my trips) I never have to rush to find an AC outlet to keep my devices juiced up.The beauty of the XPALs (and the competitors power packs as well) is that devices are provided power and are being charged at the same time. So if your XPAL runs out of juice while powering/charging your device you'll still have a device that's most likely fully charged; it's just like your plugged into an AC outlet.Devices I charged with XPALs: Sony Vaio, Dell Lattitude, Toshiba Satellite, Blackberry, Samsung Nexus S, Samsung Galaxy Note 2Pros: LED lights indicate charge statusRechargeableCompact AC adapter (XP4001 only)Unlimited replaceable tips once registeredAll tips included with XP4001 also come with XP18000 (spares)Simultaneous charging of up to two devices (XP4001), three devices (XP18000) at onceCons: Seems bulky at times (XP18000 only)Bulky AC adapter/power brick (XP18000 only)Keeping up with detachable tips (but a pouch is provided)...buy one or both, you wont regret it!

I am just beginning to use this product so I can't comment yet on how well it works but so far it certainly seems to work well. I bought it to go in my electronic gear bag for traveling. What I do not like is how the "free tips for life" seems to work. I can understand needing to register the product for warranty and tip replacement purposes but I do not wish to create an account and give personal information. Why do they need my date of birth, occupational field or number of children? This is marketing not registration. I already paid. I should be able to receive the free tips, as advertised, without providing personal information to complete the online registration.Vernon B.

So, what is not to like? A small but powerful external battery that holds a charge for a year and can charge your cell phone multiple times before the device needs recharging, and you can charge two cell phones at once? Sounds like nirvana. This is clearly the reason I bought it. However, I was fooled.For the first month or so, it seemed great. I kept in my briefcase for when I traveled and I never ran out of juice on my smartphone, which loves to run out of power well before the day is over. However, after using this about 10-15 times charging my cell phones, I ran into a problem. First, I went to go use it and the unit is totally dead. Well, that makes no sense as I had just charged it, but no problem, charge it and then when it says the battery is fully charged, I use it the next night to charge my cell phone as my real cell phone charger isn't readily available. Cell phone is fully charged in the morning but when I go to use it again the following night, the unit is dead, again.OK, so there is a problem. No big deal, this thing comes with a 3 year warranty. I call the company and to my surprise, I can't speak to a live person. OK, no biggie, I leave a message. 4 days later, no one has called back. So, I go back to the website and scour it looking for other numbers or live support, which the website says it supports, but no link to a live support app and no other numbers. So, I decided to call Energizer as they put their name on this piece of (fill in the blank) and they try to reach someone, and guess what, they also strike out. So...I have spent about $50 for a product which essentially doesn't seem to do any more than replace my misplaced cell phone charger. Not a good investment.