Ruinovo Battery Pack Problem

I’ve suddenly ran into a problem with my Ruinovo battery pack and I’m hoping one of you guys will be able to shed some light on my issues. I purchased this battery pack a while back;
Ruinovo 302 1A/2.1A 3*18650 Dual USB Output Mobile Power Pack

For months it’s ran perfectly. I put some Panasonic 3400mAh batteries in there and it charges anything and everything while I’m on the go. Now, it’s become picky about which cable it wants to use. I used to be able to connect any USB to micro-usb cable to it, and it would charge my Samsung Note 2 (or any other device) without a problem. No matter if the cable was 6 feet or 6 inches long. Now it will only charge with a super short cable; usually less than 6 inches. I’ve even tried using my stock Samsung cable (about 3 feet) and it will kick off. Once I connect the phone to the battery pack, and hit the button on the side to turn the pack on, it’ll charge for exactly 35 seconds before turning back off. Short cables, however, continue to charge my phone without an issue.

Has anyone had this problem before? Seems strange that it would suddenly decide it only likes short cables as it’s been using long ones since I’ve had it. Any insight would be great!

Sorry, I don’t have an advice but…whoever came up with that brand name must not have done much due diligence. As a consumer, I think I’d be wary of any product with “ruin” in the brand name…

Try another power bank before the current one “ruin” your life :bigsmile:

Haha, asside from the name (reminds me of Nitecorn), it’s been a pretty good power bank. Dual usb output at two different amps, replaceable 18650’s (I like the 3 18650 form factor), solid construction (no plastic)… if it would continue working with long cables, I would probably keep this power bank for the long haul.

Do you guys have any recommendations with the above specs in a higher quality?

Xiaomi got you covered. For about 12 dollars, you get 3x high quality cells plus high quality circuit. Not even brand names stand a chance against xiaomi powerbanks in price/performance ratio.

I do like the Xiaomi power banks, and have heard that they are some of the highest quality power banks that you can come by. The reason I went with the Ruinovo is because I can easily replace the batteries with newer ones. Panisonic, Sony, LG, etc continuously come out with higher capacity batteries. So instead of buying a whole new power bank, I can just swap out newer batteries and now have even higher capacity.

For instance, the Xiaomi 10400 mAh power pack has 4 2600 mAh batteries. My current Ruinovo has 3 3400mAh batteries totaling 10200 mAh. So I’m getting almost the same capacity, in a smaller package, with the ability to increase capacity as new technology comes along… if Xiaomi made it easier to swap out batteries, I’d be a customer for sure.

The first Ruinovo 4 bank unit I bought was good. When I ordered more about a year later they changed the design and the new ones will NOT charge an iPad. They WILL output 2A but now in a non Apple compatible way.
Just more of the same Chinese crap. I am at the point where I will not order any more of it online, I’m done.
Retail stores only from now on. I wait for the sales.

As to your length of cable issue, it could be a weak connection on the USB port in the Ruinovo. Check the connectors and you will see a way to bend them to make better contact. This worked for me on another device. Be gentile

I’ve had the same problem since I first purchased the Ruinovo of connecting my iPad to the 2A USB port; it will only charge on the 1A port. My Samsung phone will charge on both, which is what I usually use it for.

After reading your comment about the USB port, I did notice that there is quite a bit of “play” in the cable when it’s connected to the power bank. I wonder if this is my problem :weary: I’m about to take it apart and see if I can move the pins to make a better contact.

Some of the equivalent power banks at retail stores like Best Buy are REALLY expensive. Last time I went in there, they were $75-$100! I may just get the Xiaomi and hope my Ruinovo changes its mind about long cables :smiley:

Check out xiaomi 10000 mah, uses 3 lg/samsung 3350 mah batteries for 12$. At that price, its like buying 3 batteries with free powerbank case.

How much does your powerbank and batteries cost anyway?

I actually just came across the 10,000 mAh Xiaomi and put in an order for one through Banggood. Nearly the same size as the Ruinovo and nearly the same capacity (probably does better than mine after reading about Xiaomi’s reputation for having a fairly high efficiency rating). It’s on sale, like you said, for $12 so I couldn’t resist.

My setup was; $13 case, 3 x $9 for the batteries. 40 bucks total. Xiaomi for the win! Probably end up putting my Ruinovo in my glove box for emergency use only. I had originally thought about using only laptop pull batteries in the Ruinovo, but a couple extra panasonic 18650’s managed to sneak their way into my shopping cart one day :party:

so if the o.p is jewish the contact bending trick wont work?
all jokes aside the quality of the connectors in many of these banks is poor.
try some deoxit too.

HAHAHA I didn’t even notice the misspelling!

I did take the connectors apart and pried them out a little more. Still no luck. I ended up buying a Xiaomi and never looked back. Problem solved!

Mine has always been picky about charging cables. Actually it’s the device you’re plugging into it that’s picky. What I did was get a “charging cable” which is just a regular USB cable with the data pins shorted I believe. Charges everything now.

And there’s nothing wrong with the brand. It’s a good battery pack, and I don’t care what they call it. Having 4 NCR18650B cells in it is the bomb diggity.

I think the all metal design is pretty awesome. Very sleek look for sure. I have some Panny 18650B’s in it as well, but when you factor in the cost, there’s just no way to beat Xiaomi on the $$ per mAh ratio.

I’ve got the same problem as OP on my 2x 18650 version. Except even short cables don’t work.

It’s being used as a rechargable flashlight…

Avoid ruinovo!

I bought my 4x18650 Ruinovo last summer and it works fairly well, but my 2A charging INPUT has crapped out on me and I can only charge it back up at 1A, which isn’t major hassle, but it just stopped working one day.

My unit has the latest (1.52?) PCB and mine does charge up Apple 6+ and my GF’s iPad 2, although with the latter, it takes a bit.

For $32 shipped and four Sanyo UR18650FMs, it’s not a bad deal. A little tricky to open up, but oh well…

I have no cable issues with mine.

Chris

I think that last statement is starting to become more and more true. I’ve been using my Xiaomi battery pack for a month or two now, and really like it. It will handle any size cable, but I normally use the short one that it came with. After trying out so many different cables, I was really surprised at the “parasitic drain” long cables have.

Ruinovo battery packs look awesome, but I’m not sure I would rely on it if I REALLY needed battery power.

First is that USB was never intended to carry more than 500mA (1/2 Amp) even though many will happily go a lot further. Nor were they intended for highly numerous connect cycles. So we’re beyond the design parameters where problems can occur.

Second is that cable-to-port fitment is awful because people complain when their oversize cables don’t go in so the port is oversized and most cables undersized to keep people happy. With room for the cable to move around the contact becomes weak over time.

Third is that a lot of USB ports are minimally soldered; some have just one side soldered to ground! So they tend to break loose over time and use.

Check the soldering and reflow it. Google “USB fix” and you should find where to bend the port connector shell and how. Buy new cables more frequently if you coil or bend them a lot. Premium cables only- Monoprice has good ones.

I learned this stuff from dash-cams which give similar troubles if they get switched between vehicles a lot. There needs to be a better connector brought into use but once again people will gripe if they have to change or buy something else when they think there’s nothing wrong with what they have. Yes be gentle (or Gentile if you prefer) with these connections, they are not meant for any abuse at all and we’re already doing that with them.

Phil