If there’s a person who’s actually happy with the battery life of their mobile device, I haven’t met them. I’m always on my phone and I’ve been carting around a credit card sized battery pack in my bag for a while now; it’s tiny and it’ll only give me about a third to half a battery boost. So I was excited to try out a new device that will not only charge your devices, it will also BOOST YOUR CAR! It’s the Cobra JumPack.
The first thing that struck me about the Cobra JumPack is that it’s small; just 5”x3”x1”. It’ll easily fit in your palm, pocket or purse, not to mention the console of your car, where it will morph from handy gadget booster to ninja auto rescuer when it boosts your car’s dead battery.
You might have heard of Cobra Electronics. They make CB radios, radar detectors, dash cameras, and GPS systems. The company also makes larger portable power units, but the JumPack is the smallest one I’ve ever seen that can do so much. The company describes it this way; “the Cobra JumPack allows users to rapidly charge smartphones, tablets, cameras or other mobile devices and additionally has enough power to even jumpstart a car, motorcycle, boat or other vehicle.”
Cobra JumPack – The Specs
So how does it work and what will it charge? Cobra says it can reenergize devices multiple times on one charge, making it perfect for emergencies like a power outage, for travelling, or for whenever your slowly wasting cell phone battery decides to give out on you.
The Cobra JumPack has a powerful 200A starting current, 400A peak current (for non mechanics, that means it has enough juice to boost your car more than once on a single charge). The JumPack has a 2.1 Amp USB output and a powerful 7500 mAh Li-Cobalt Battery with a large and easy to read battery status indicator.
It also has an LED flashlight with a strobe and S.O.S function for emergencies, or so you can see your way under the hood when boosting that dead battery. The kit includes jumper cables and two different re-charging methods; a wall charger for home and a 12V car CLP charger (cigarette lighter charger) to charge your battery pack while you’re out.
The Tests: Using JumPack on Devices & Dead Cars
I took a very dead iPhone, and hooked it up to the Cobra Jumpack. It was fully ready to go in under an hour, and the JumPack was still full, according to the battery indicator. The next test was bringing the JumPack camping. I gave it a full charge before leaving home, and the JumPack recharged my cell phone twice and my husband’s phone, and was still ¾ full at the end of the weekend.
While the JumPack is bigger than the mini charger I currently carry around with me, it’s not so much bigger that you’d rather leave it at home. It only weighs 10.58 oz or 300 g, so it’s just over half a pound. In a backpack, it’s not the kind of weight you’d notice. In a small handbag, maybe.
The device works great for device charging small electronics and gadgets, in my opinion. But the big test for me will be to see if it’ll recharge a car; which is the main reason Cobra created it.
A Mechanic weighs in on the JumPack
I brought the JumPack to my mechanic Dean. In truth I needed an old car to boost, to really see if it works, and Dean has plenty of them. He took one look at the Cobra JumPack and said, “that’s it”? He seemed surprised by the small size. Large caddy-style battery boosters have been available for a while, but they’re big, heavy and clunky.
We hooked the JumPack up to the battery of a ‘92 VW Passat, turned it over and it fired up immediately. Dean seemed impressed, and I was too. There’s a lot of power in the JumPack, and after we started the Passat, the JumPack still showed a full battery; definitely enough to boost another vehicle, or charge up all my devices again. Dean immediately began listing off all the places and situations where the JumPack would come in handy. There are plenty I can think of and you could probably dream some up too, dear reader.
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Jump your car, motorcycle or even a boat!
The Cobra JumPack would be handy on any trip. On a road trip, you can easily tuck it into the glove box or console, and keep it fully charged with the included cigarette lighter charger. Flying somewhere? The JumPack will fit in your bag, and give you hours of power for just about any device. That would mean you can work, or use it to keep children’s entertainment fully juiced. 
This device would also be perfect to stash in a boat or RV, or even a motorcycle saddlebag for emergency power, or for use as a flashlight, or of course to boost any dead vehicle battery. While camping it was indispensable, and my friends were impressed at its small size, and big charging capabilities. Keeping a JumPack fully charged would also be super convenient in a power outage. You could use it at a cottage, cabin, or out on a boat… the possibilities are almost endless…..
The Verdict on Cobra JumPack
I need to get one of these. I try out a lot of gadgets and new tech, but this is one of the rare devices that is well proportioned, powerful, extraordinarily useful, and affordable. Never again will I be caught in a cold dark parking lot, begging jumper cables and a functioning battery from passing strangers. I also appreciate all the juice it holds for charging my iPhone, my camera, and iPad. As I said in the beginning, my teeny charger is fine in a pinch, but the JumPack is much more powerful and reliable. The Cobra JumPack does exactly what it says it does, it works very well, and it’s infinitely handy. It’s a must-have for anyone needing portable power on the go.
