Anker used different batteries in the same power bank model, leading to explosions and fires

Engineers at Lumafield, a company specializing in industrial X-ray computed tomography, conducted an internal analysis of the recalled Anker PowerCore 10000 power banks, model A1263, and found significant differences in the design and components of the batteries.

In particular, in batteries with flat contacts, differences in the distance between the positive and negative tabs were observed, which creates a risk of short circuits. It was also found that batteries from at least two different suppliers were used in one power bank. One variant has cells with reinforced cores, while the others have no additional protection.

Another notable difference is the number of vents. Two batteries have four, while one has only three. These differences were not indicated on the product labeling, so consumers had no way of distinguishing between the potentially dangerous versions.

Lumafield notes that this practice is common in the consumer electronics market, where manufacturers often change components without changing the part number. The highly competitive lithium-ion battery market — where small suppliers and “repackers” selling substandard cells operate alongside large companies — makes quality control particularly difficult.

Anker purchases over 100 million lithium-ion cells each year and works with both large suppliers on long-term contracts and one-off purchases, making it even more difficult to control the quality of each batch.

Lumafield also published a full technical analysis and images of the internal components of the devices studied.