Review: AYANEO Retro Power Bank - The Cutest Power Bank You'll Ever See 6
Image: Damien McFerran / Time Extension

AYANEO's Remake line of products boasts an array of gaming systems in various form factors, but it also includes a cute little power bank shaped like a Super NES / Super Famicom. The Chinese firm has even copied the console's iconic font, but it goes without saying that this isn't an official collaboration with Nintendo, but rather a cheeky tribute which uses nostalgia to encourage a purchase.

This 12000mAh bank measures 98 × 81 × 24.4 mm and weighs 238 grams. It showcases a function switch, action button and 32 × 128-pixel monochrome OLED display, as well as two USB-C ports, both of which are capable of outputting 45W of power (only the left-side one can be used to charge the bank itself, however).

It's also worth noting that when you charge two devices simultaneously, you don't get the full 45W – instead, each port is limited to 15W of output. Quick Charge 2.0 and 3.0 are supported, as are Power Delivery 3.0, Adaptive Fast Charging, FastCharge Protocol, and SuperCharge Protocol.

The toggle switch is used to navigate the AYANEO Retro Power Bank's simplistic menu system, which allows you to see the running temperature of the unit and its remaining power – you can also access a setup sub-menu from where you can toggle the language (the default is Chinese, so some trial and error is required to get it switched to English), temperature units (Celsius or Fahrenheit) and time it takes for the OLED display to go to sleep.

When it's pushing out the full 45W of power, the AYANEO Retro Power Bank can become quite toasty – but this isn't unusual for a product of this type. With a capacity of 12000mAh, there's enough juice here to charge your phone or tablet a few times over, and the high output means you can also use it to charge devices like laptops – although, as you'd imagine, you'll deplete the bank's power much faster.

This certainly isn't a unique product beyond how it looks, and at $59.99 (plus shipping), it's hardly the cheapest option in this sector of the market (an early price of $39.99 is currently available, though).

However, the AYANEO Retro Power Bank is clearly being sold on appearances, and we couldn't help but fall in love with its SNES-style design. If you think you might, too, then there are certainly worse ways to spend your money.