Will external battery power banks work on my ZBook G3?

[Vanon66]

Hello!

I just recently purchased a refurbished ZBook G3 and was wondering about using external power banks on it.  

I have owned an Envy 360 Convertible for several years and have used both an HP power bank as well as a MaxOak power bank on it with no issues.  However, when I tried out these power banks on my ZBook, the charging light comes on white for about 30 seconds or so and then turns off indicating that the battery has been fully charged which it has not.  Note that I also just posted about my battery charging light indicator light staying white all the time so I am not sure if that is what is affecting how my laptop is responding to my external power banks.

I would appreciate any suggestions that I can get.

[banhien]

@Vanon66 

What is the rating of your Power bank ? Your machine requires 150W charger. You need a power bank which have rating closer to 100W to be able to charge your machine when it is off.

Regards.

[Vanon66]

Thanks for the fast response Banhien!  I was figuring that this might be part of the issue and was planning on running down that very information today, in fact.  When I get those stats I will let you know.

[Vanon66]

Hello again Banhien,

I ran down the specs for the two power banks that I have and came up with the Maxoak rated at 130W max and the HP power bank showing only the milamps rating of 27,400.  

Be that as it may, I would think that at least the Maxoak would work, but it won't.

[banhien]

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@Vanon66 wrote:

... I ran down the specs for the two power banks that I have and came up with the Maxoak rated at 130W max and the HP power bank showing only the milamps rating of 27,400.  

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@Vanon66 

Machine uses 4-cell, 64-WHr, 4.21-AHr, Li-ion battery. How long do you think a "milamps rating of 27,400" power bank can go ?

Regards.

[Vanon66]

That I cannot tell you, but I can say that my Maxoak powerbank has a rating of 185wh and a rating of 130 watts so that should be enough power to charge my laptop battery, but it won't.

[banhien]

@Vanon66 

Its specs says

Long-lasting DC Power Bank for Laptops:Ultra High Capacity 50000mAh(3.7V)/185Wh(130W Max.).Compatible With a Wide Variety of Laptops(Max.130W)- Dell HP Lenovo Surface pro 2/3/4(DC12V) Sony Samsung Acer Toshiba IBM NEC.We Include 14 DC Connector for Various Laptops. Once Fully Charged, K2 Portable Battery Pack Can Charge Laptops(65W) About 2.5 Times and Smartphone About 11-18Times without Using your Laptops/Phones While Charging,It is Much Power Saving than AC Outlet Power Bank.

I can see a hole here, no HP looks like it is NOT compatible. Please also read the following note

           https://support.hp.com/au-en/document/c04723006

Regards,