Aside from being a tongue twister, Juno Labs’ Juno Power Junojumpr ($100) is the world’s first – and as far as we know, only – battery pack that can both charge your mobile device and jumpstart your car battery. Junojumpr promises to help bring a car battery back to life by providing 12v of power (peaking at 300 Amps), or restore significant power to an Apple device over USB.
The Junojumpr is a 6000mAh battery pack that features a proprietary output port for the jumper cables, a Micro-USB recharging input, and a 14-Volt input for the included cigarette lighter power adapter. By supplying your own USB cable, you can charge any USB-compatible iPod, iPhone, or iPad with the Junojumpr, which is slightly larger than an iPhone 5/5c/5s. The Junojumpr also features a small LED flashlight which could come in handy if your car breaks down or won’t start at night, but don’t expect to see too far in the darkness with it.
We tested Junojumpr with an iPad Air, noting that the battery ran warm to the touch above and below the USB port. The warmth generated didn’t make the pack unbearable to hold, but was noticeable. One thing that normally isn’t critical but is noticeably missing from the Junojumpr is rubber feet to prevent the pack from sliding. Without feet to stabilize it, the battery slips relatively easily on a variety of surfaces; the last thing you want to do while jumpstarting a car is worry about the battery pack falling, so some stabilization would be welcome.
The most important question to ask when considering the Junojumpr is whether you’re really buying it to jumpstart your car or to simply charge your device.
If you’re primarily looking for device charging, you’ll be pleased by the results—our test iPad Air went from 0% charge to 46%, which is 4-5% higher than recent Incipio offGrid batteries we tested with the same 6000mAh capacity. This took two hours, which is right in line with the full-speed charging we’d expect for Apple’s latest iPads; iPhone users should expect 2-3 full recharges, depending on the iPhone model you have. It’s worth noting that Junojumpr’s price is around $20 higher than you’d pay for an otherwise comparable battery pack without car jumping ability, but Juno’s included jumper cables and cigarette lighter adapter bring it up to par in value with lower-cost options.
If you’re planning to use it to jumpstart a vehicle in the middle of nowhere, you’ll need to make sure that you actually have it with you—and charged—at the point when the car’s battery is dead. We didn’t have a dead car battery to test it with, but given that the mobile device recharging performance was as solid as it was, the jumper functionality can be considered a bonus to its otherwise solid iPhone/iPad fueling abilities.
Overall, the Junojumpr is a good option for charging your iOS device.