Nimble SharePower Review: A Battery Pack That Snaps in Two
Engadget has published a hands-on review of the Nimble SharePower battery pack, scoring it 8.6 out of 10 and singling out a design idea that addresses a genuine frustration with portable charging. Engadget
The SharePower consists of two 5,000 mAh battery cells that magnetically click together into a single 10,000 mAh pack. You can also pull them apart into two standalone power banks. Nimble calls it the world's first sharable battery pack, and the magnetic connection is the central design concept: one person carries the full unit, then snaps it in half and hands one piece to someone else, no cable-swapping or hunting for a second charger required. Engadget
For context, mAh (milliampere-hours) measures how much charge a battery holds — a typical phone battery is around 3,000–4,000 mAh, so a 10,000 mAh pack can recharge most phones roughly two to three times. The pack charges up to three devices at once and delivers 35W of USB-C Power Delivery total output across both modules. Power Delivery, or PD, is a fast-charging standard that negotiates higher voltage and current to compatible devices for quicker top-ups. That 35W figure is shared across both halves when the pack is joined, so each module draws from the same total budget. Dual power-level readouts let you check the charge state of each cell independently. Engadget; Apple Store
Physically, the SharePower measures 3.1 x 2.8 x 1 inches and weighs 7.6 ounces. The shell is a rectangular plastic build made from 100 percent recycled materials, consistent with Nimble's broader emphasis on ethical production; Forbes reported in June that the company uses 90 percent recycled materials across the product line. A built-in cord doubles as a carrying strap — an integration that cuts down on loose-cable clutter but, as the review notes, introduces its own usability tradeoffs. Engadget; Forbes
Engadget's criticisms are specific and worth weighing against the convenience. The two halves come apart too easily in normal handling, the built-in cable isn't ideal, and the SharePower is pricier than a basic power bank. Engadget Nimble lists the SharePower at $79.95 on its official website. Nimble For comparison, a conventional 10,000 mAh power bank from a mainstream brand typically lands in the $25 to $40 range, so the SharePower carries a meaningful premium for its split-and-share design and recycled-material construction. The pack is available in white, blue, and pink. Forbes
The broader question the SharePower raises is whether modularity in a category as commoditized as portable batteries can sustain a price premium. Battery packs are, for most buyers, an accessory of necessity rather than desire: you buy one because your phone died at the wrong moment, not because you are excited about the industrial design. Nimble is betting that the social scenario — two people needing power at the same time, from a single object that cleanly divides — is common enough to justify nearly double the going rate.
The 8.6 score suggests Engadget found the execution largely convincing despite the cons. The magnetic join that comes apart too easily is the most consequential criticism, because it strikes at the core premise: if the two halves separate in a bag or a pocket during transit, the single-pack experience degrades into two smaller, lower-capacity banks you didn't intend to carry separately. A latching mechanism with a more deliberate release action would address this without changing the fundamental design. Whether Nimble iterates on that in a hardware revision is an open question.
The recycled-material angle is less of a differentiator than it was even two years ago. Several manufacturers have moved toward post-consumer plastics in their accessory lines, and Apple's retail channel already stocks the SharePower alongside its own accessories, which normalizes the environmental framing rather than making it a standalone selling point. Where it still matters is in the combination: a product that is both modular and made from recycled materials appeals to buyers who weigh both factors in a single purchasing decision.
For the target audience — households or frequent travel companions who regularly find two phones needing charge at once — the SharePower is a genuinely thoughtful answer to a real problem. The execution isn't flawless, and the price asks buyers to pay for ingenuity over raw capacity. But the 8.6 rating reflects a product that does something new and does it well enough to recommend, which is more than most battery packs can claim.
