We’re not selling this deal anymore, but you can buy it at Amazon

Digital2 Multi-Port USB Charger

  • Charge four USB gizmos on one AC outlet
  • Each port is 2.1A, the total is 4.5A, so you can charge four phones or a couple of tablets at once
  • Always use 2.1A to charge your phone if you can, it’s a lot faster
  • Travel with it and stop unplugging hotel lamps and searching behind hotel mattresses for outlets to charge your stuff
  • Model: AWA4P4 (those A’s and 4’s together are confusing and visually jarring)
see more product specs

Amperage, Sex, and You

There’s no sex in this story, aside from whatever you may use batteries for in the privacy of your own home. We just needed to get your attention because it’s time we cleared something up. What are amps? What is mAh? Why are they important? Why the hell is your damn iPad taking so long to charge?

Start with the simple stuff: some devices need more power than others. Any outlet, port, charger, or battery pack can only channel so much current at once. The limit, measured in amps, is their amperage. It’s the A in 2.1A, which will charge tablets at regular speed and rapid-charge phones, and 1A, which will charge phones and whatnot, if you must.

But! The higher the amperage, the faster it’ll charge. So, given the choice between a 2.1A USB port and a 1A, take the 2.1A, even if you’re only charging a phone. We’ll even save you a click on this clickbait article from Forbes that asks if rapid charging can hurt your phone. The answer: no. There’s no reason not to use a 2.1A charger for your phone.

This, too! Chargers - whether AC-powered devices like this, or battery packs - also have a total amperage that is divided among the various devices connected to it at the time. This charger has 4 separate USB ports, all rated at 2.1A. But its total amperage is 4.5A. So you can rapid-charge a couple of phones or tablets at a time. That’s in contrast to a lot of these kinds of charging hubs, which only have one 2.1A port.

What if you measure a 2.1A port and discover it’s only putting out 1.4 amps? Did you get ripped off? Is it broken? No and not necessarily. The amperage is the upper limit of power available through that port. If it’s putting out more than 1 amp, it’s a 2.1A port.

And while we’re at it, let’s clear another thing up. 1 amp and 2.1 amp are not release numbers. They don’t denote some different standard or protocol, like USB 3.0 or HTML5. It’s purely about how much power the port can output at a time.

If you need to know more, this explains it pretty well, along with even more helpful insight into batteries (which this is not), which introduce mAh into the mix. A proper understanding of amperage will make you a more informed and conscientious consumer.

What we’re saying is: no give-backs if this takes too long to charge four iPads at the same damn time. If you can afford four iPads, buy two chargers.

So far today...

  • 40990 of you visited.
  • 38% on a phone, 9% on a tablet.
  • 4190 clicked meh
  • on this deal.

And you bought...

  • 1713 of these.
  • We sold out at 10:53pm.
  • That’s $13420 total.
  • (including shipping)

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