Anker ROAV – SmartCharge 2-Port USB Vehicle Charger – Black
Keep gadgets powered and your vehicle in check with this dual-port ROAV SmartCharge Spectrum car charger. Its built-in car locator and engine battery monitor functions relay important vehicle information on the ROAV app, and the 30W Quick Charge 3.0 and PowerIQ 2.0 USB ports provide efficient performance.
Additional information
| Product Height | 2.87 inches |
|---|---|
| Product Length | 1.3 inches |
| Product Width | 1.3 inches |
| Product Weight | 0.066 pounds |
2 (two) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3. It is the smallest and the only even prime number.
Because it forms the basis of a duality, it has religious and spiritual significance in many cultures.
Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have often been used to describe opposites such as good and evil, the Dark Ages versus the Age of Enlightenment, and night versus day. Since the Middle Ages, black has been the symbolic color of solemnity and authority, and for this reason it is still commonly worn by judges and magistrates.
Black was one of the first colors used by artists in Neolithic cave paintings. It was used in ancient Egypt and Greece as the color of the underworld. In the Roman Empire, it became the color of mourning, and over the centuries it was frequently associated with death, evil, witches, and magic. In the 14th century, it was worn by royalty, clergy, judges, and government officials in much of Europe. It became the color worn by English romantic poets, businessmen and statesmen in the 19th century, and a high fashion color in the 20th century. According to surveys in Europe and North America, it is the color most commonly associated with mourning, the end, secrets, magic, force, violence, fear, evil, and elegance.
Black is the most common ink color used for printing books, newspapers and documents, as it provides the highest contrast with white paper and thus is the easiest color to read. Similarly, black text on a white screen is the most common format used on computer screens. As of September 2019, the darkest material is made by MIT engineers from vertically aligned carbon nanotubes.
Charger or Chargers may refer to:
- Charger (table setting), decorative plates used to fancify a place setting
- Battery charger, a device used to put energy into a cell or battery
- Capacitor charger, typically a high voltage DC power supply designed to rapidly charge a bank of capacitors in pulsed power applications
- Whipped-cream charger, a cartridge designed to deliver nitrous oxide in a whipped cream dispenser
- Charger (firearm), a common and chiefly British term for a stripper clip, used in the reloading of firearms
- A war horse
- A type of special infected in Left 4 Dead 2
- The squadron name for US Navy Strike Fighter Squadron VFA-161
- USS Charger
- HMS Charger
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manchester and Duluth; these access the sea via rivers or canals. Because of their roles as ports of entry for immigrants as well as soldiers in wartime, many port cities have experienced dramatic multi-ethnic and multicultural changes throughout their histories.
Ports are extremely important to the global economy; 70% of global merchandise trade by value passes through a port. For this reason, ports are also often densely populated settlements that provide the labor for processing and handling goods and related services for the ports. Today by far the greatest growth in port development is in Asia, the continent with some of the world's largest and busiest ports, such as Singapore and the Chinese ports of Shanghai and Ningbo-Zhoushan. As of 2020, the busiest passenger port in Europe is the Port of Helsinki in Finland. Nevertheless, countless smaller ports do exist that may only serve their local tourism or fishing industries.
Ports can have a wide environmental impact on local ecologies and waterways, most importantly water quality, which can be caused by dredging, spills and other pollution. Ports are heavily affected by changing environmental factors caused by climate change as most port infrastructure is extremely vulnerable to sea level rise and coastal flooding. Internationally, global ports are beginning to identify ways to improve coastal management practices and integrate climate change adaptation practices into their construction.
Universal Serial Bus (USB) is an industry standard, developed by USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF), that allows data exchange and delivery of power between many types of electronics. It specifies its architecture, in particular its physical interface, and communication protocols for data transfer and power delivery to and from hosts, such as personal computers, to and from peripheral devices, e.g. displays, keyboards, and mass storage devices, and to and from intermediate hubs, which multiply the number of a host's ports.
Introduced in 1996, USB was originally designed to standardize the connection of peripherals to computers, replacing various interfaces such as serial ports, parallel ports, game ports, and ADB ports. Early versions of USB became commonplace on a wide range of devices, such as keyboards, mice, cameras, printers, scanners, flash drives, smartphones, game consoles, and power banks. USB has since evolved into a standard to replace virtually all common ports on computers, mobile devices, peripherals, power supplies, and manifold other small electronics.
In the current standard, the USB-C connector replaces the many various connectors for power (up to 240 W), displays (e.g. DisplayPort, HDMI), and many other uses, as well as all previous USB connectors.
As of 2024, USB consists of four generations of specifications: USB 1.x, USB 2.0, USB 3.x, and USB4. USB4 enhances the data transfer and power delivery functionality with
... a connection-oriented, tunneling architecture designed to combine multiple protocols onto a single physical interface so that the total speed and performance of the USB4 Fabric can be dynamically shared.
USB4 particularly supports the tunneling of the Thunderbolt 3 protocols, namely PCI Express (PCIe, load/store interface) and DisplayPort (display interface). USB4 also adds host-to-host interfaces.
Each specification sub-version supports different signaling rates from 1.5 and 12 Mbit/s total in USB 1.0 to 80 Gbit/s (in each direction) in USB4. USB also provides power to peripheral devices; the latest versions of the standard extend the power delivery limits for battery charging and devices requiring up to 240 watts (USB Power Delivery (USB-PD)). Over the years, USB(-PD) has been adopted as the standard power supply and charging format for many mobile devices, such as mobile phones, reducing the need for proprietary chargers.
A vehicle (from Latin vehiculum) is a machine designed for self-propulsion, usually to transport people, cargo, or both. The term "vehicle" typically refers to land vehicles such as human-powered vehicles (e.g. bicycles, tricycles, velomobiles), animal-powered transports (e.g. horse-drawn carriages/wagons, ox carts, dog sleds), motor vehicles (e.g. motorcycles, cars, trucks, buses, mobility scooters) and railed vehicles (trains, trams and monorails), but more broadly also includes cable transport (cable cars and elevators), watercraft (ships, boats and underwater vehicles), amphibious vehicles (e.g. screw-propelled vehicles, hovercraft, seaplanes), aircraft (airplanes, helicopters, gliders and aerostats) and space vehicles (spacecraft, spaceplanes and launch vehicles).
This article primarily concerns the more ubiquitous land vehicles, which can be broadly classified by the type of contact interface with the ground: wheels, tracks, rails or skis, as well as the non-contact technologies such as maglev. ISO 3833-1977 is the international standard for road vehicle types, terms and definitions.
by Mike
It seems hard to get excited over something as simple as a car USB charger, especially when they’re so ubiquitous and relatively inexpensive. Adding premium functionality to any such device seems like a gimmick at best or pointless at worst, but Anker’s Roav line brings useful features at differing price points. At a low $19.99 MSRP, the Anker Roav SmartCharge 2-Port USB Vehicle Charger brings two unique features to its high-output USB ports that make it a worthy upgrade over competing offerings.
– Design & Setup
The narrow, long design of the Roav charger is such that it should fit any car’s 12-volt accessory port. Some vehicles, mostly Mazdas and some European models, have a 12-volt accessory port that is too deep for some small chargers to make a connection. The SmartCharge avoids this entirely, and I had no problems connecting it into my Mazda (which exhibited the incompatibility with other Anker chargers in the past). The charger is otherwise small and unobtrusive. The LED ring can be customized by color only, not brightness, but it can be toggled off.
All of the Roav’s instructions and documentation are in the Roav Charger smartphone app, available for both Android and iOS devices. The software is simple and intuitive, and once the charger was plugged into my car’s 12-volt accessory port, I was up and running within a minute. The bluetooth range of the charger is impressive, as I am able to connect to it several floors away in my building.
– Charging
As advertised, the charger’s IQ and QuickCharge ports both deliver astoundingly fast charges, bringing a phone that supports the latter from nearly dead to 80% within the span of a moderate commute. The IQ port also appears to output at least 2 amps, as my devices charged just as fast on the SmartCharge as they did on their AC power bricks at home. This indicates to me that clean power is being delivered, which is just as important for your devices as the maximum charging power.
I did have a brief issue where the charge appeared to be going very slowly, if at all, but the issue was a bad USB cable that had been apparently crushed under a seat rail at some point, no fault of the SmartCharge.
– Parking Location
This feature seems unnecessary when both iOS and Android will mark parking locations on their respective maps after detecting a drive, but the Roav Charger app conveniently detects when bluetooth connection to the device is weakened or lost and plots a parking spot on the map accordingly, and will show approximate distance to the spot where connection was last made. I did not have a suitable use case for this feature but I can picture it handy for trips to large shopping centers or amusement parks with parking lots bigger than the actual attraction. It worked fine in my tests, and does note when GPS accuracy is not strong.
– Voltage Monitoring
This is the most useful feature of all and absolutely justifies the increased cost over a cheap charger. Anker’s SmartCharge continually monitors the voltage being fed to the 12-volt port by the vehicle’s battery (when off/accessory) or full electrical system (when on) and will track it over time to determine overall battery health. The nominal voltage for a car battery is 11.8 to 12.8 volts when the car is off and 13.2 to 14.8 when on, and these numbers will fall over time as the battery wears out.
The screenshot shows my most recent track with voltage dipping below 12.8 with the car off yesterday, and displaying the check-battery notification accordingly. This was expected as the car is parked in cold winter conditions with mornings in the single digits, which reduces the battery’s voltage output. While no cause for immediate concern, it does suggest that I should budget for a new battery later this year, which was in itself the most useful thing this charger provided for the few dollars’ premium over other USB chargers. Much better than going to a questionable auto shop advertising a “free” battery check and being told you need a new one, even when your old one was in perfect condition.
– Bottom Line
There isn’t much more to say about the Anker Roav SmartCharge. Its retail price represents a good bargain for a device that supports the latest USB charging technologies alone, but the additional functionality provided via Bluetooth to the Roav Charge app makes this an easy recommendation. Even if your car has USB ports built-in, odds are they don’t charge your phone anywhere near as fast as this device does, and they certainly won’t let you know when your battery is starting to wear out. Highly recommended!
by Alib
Car chargers are one of those things that I’ve been happy with as long as they were decent quality and fulfilled their primary task to charge my phone. However, in this SmartCharge 2-port USB vehicle charger Anker has added some additional features that I’ve found to be useful and interesting.
One does need to download the Roav Charger app and plug the charger into your vehicle’s cigarette lighter socket to then follow the app instructions to connect the device via Bluetooth. Multiple functions are now available via the app; along with the ability to charge two devices simultaneously via the two USB charging ports.
The device supports advanced charging technology with Qualcomm 3.0 (Android) and PowerIQ 2.0 (Apple).
One fun feature in the app is the ability to customize the color LED ring that circles the face of the charger. One can choose from 16,000 colors to match your car’s interior.
For many of us that might live in climates that are tough on car batteries I find one of the most useful app features to be the in app battery health monitor. My car battery displays a good status with the last voltage reading being 14.3V. It also graphically displays the last 7 days, 30 days or 90 days of readings.
The most intriguing app feature for this charger is the ability to instantly locate and get directions back to your vehicle. It successfully located my vehicle parking spot on numerous occassions. However, I did have issues in some instances where the app stated it failed to locate parking spot due to a weak gps signal. It also seemed to have issues at times based on the timing of when my car was turned off and thus the cigarette lighter was no longer supplying power to the charger. For myself personally, I have some qualms about using this feature on a regular basis due to it recommending location tracking even when the app is not in use and due to privacy concerns on what data is being collected.
In summary, I’d recommend this car charger for quality, aesthetics and features. One can’t go wrong with the high-speed charging and auto battery monitoring features. Additional features such as the LED customization and car locator are the added bonuses that just may come in handy in the right circumstances.
by Jestro
First and foremost, if it is Anker, it has great customer support and a well supported warranty. I own within my household four Anker portable chargers (which I consider industry leading), two Anker wall charger/USB units, two Anker bluetooth keyboards for iPads, a pair of wireless earbuds that are great, and now this car charger. I love the name and I love what they make. While the price is a bit of a premium to comparable non-Anker models, it has a few features that make the extra spend worth it. The standard dual-port Anker Quick Charge 3.0 charging with IQ functionality is great for just that, getting your portable device up to speed in as short a period as possible. When driving while using GPS and music, or the phone, my phone drains like a vampire is tackling it, this makes the drain no match for the supply. Beyond that, two new features in GPS car location (if you forgot where you parked) and a built-in car battery monitor pay off the little extra you spent on this model. Using a downloadable app to link your phone to the charger, you can now find a lost car in short order, with pretty dependable accuracy. This is a nice feature, but it has a potential drawback that I don’t quite understand. It appears that Anker requires personal or identifiable data collection to use this feature, and I’m not entirely clear what personal data I am giving up (yes, I didn’t read the fine print before hitting the okay button). I see why the phone pairing is required to make this feature work, but I don’t see why Anker would need to collect data. If I am wrong on this feature, I would give it 6 stars, but if it is yet another company starting to track whatever data it wants when in use to sell for profit, I may rethink the viability of this feature. Went on the Anker website to see if there was any clarity on this, did not find.
by Santy
This smart charger besides charging two devices really fast, it also help you locate where your vehicle is parked and also monitor your vehicle battery life. Easy to set it up, download the Roav charger app ,plug the charger and start your engine. After opening the app and pair your charger it will automatically start monitoring your vehicle battery life , also you can customize the LED light color. On the app you can set up a reminder of a parking meters, also it will alert you when it get disconnected.
by Ivan
Not only it charges my phone faster than previous ones that I used ,it also has other useful features like alerting me about my car battery status .It also lets me know where my car is parked ,among other stuff.
by Rick
I bought this to be able to setup my GPS and cellphone charger simultaneously. This product fits the bill swimmingly. Soft lighting around the cap is unobtrusive. Also available in a three plug but the cap was a bit too large for my taste. Have not used the location software feature, as that info is on my phone.
by Gore
crazy fast charging. Obviously, easy to use. One port charges faster than the other but they are both very good. Don’t know why but it has the capability to customize the color of the light on the outer edge.
by Puna
Great product. Fast charging. This has to be in my car when I travel long distance. Roav app is really great. I had parked my car in big parking lot and forgot to mark my location. App helped find my car easily. Excellent so far.