Belkin 68W GaN Dual USB-C wall charger WCH003

Belkin 68W GaN Dual USB-C wall charger

Belkin has jumped on the GaNWagon (Gallium Nitride) enabling it to put a 68W charger into a smaller case and at an even better price – $89.95.

The new Belkin Belkin 68W GaN Dual USB-C wall charger is the first of what I expect will be a GaNvalanche of such products. GaN is the most significant power delivery discovery in years.

According to Wikipedia, GaNs primary use is in LEDs, solar cells and satellites for its high heat stability. It is ideal as a power amplifier able to replace the traditional wire coil transformer. These have a 95% power efficiency rating – well above transformer types – hence the smaller enclosure.

Australian review: Belkin 68W GaN Dual USB-C wall charger WCH003

  • Website here
  • Price: $89.95
  • From: Almost every CE or IT retailer
  • Elevator pitch: 68W in your pocket
  • Warranty: 2-year ALC warranty
  • Country of manufacturer: China
  • Belkin (Est 1993) is now part of the Taiwanese company Foxconn Interconnect Technology. Its HQ is in Playa Vista, California and has three brands – Belkin, Linksys and WeMo.
  • Inbox: Charger only – no cables

First, I must clarify 68W – that is the total over two USB-C ports.

The first port is a maximum of 5V/3A and 9V/2A or 18W.

The second can be from 50-60W depending if you use the first USB-C port as well. Typically, when two ports are in use your get 5V/3A, 9V/3A, 15V/3A and 20V/2.5A or 50W.

By itself, 20V can go to 3A or 60W.

Note you need a USB-C  or Thunderbolt 3 Cable rated to at least 60W (see here) – not a typical USB-C cable.

TESTS – PASS

Using a Power-Z meter, we can confirm

  • Port 1 provides stable 5V/3A and 9V/2A 18W QC 2.0 power
  • Port 2 (single) provides PD 3.0 power to 20V/3A/60W – sufficient to charge and run a 65W HP x360 Spectre
  • Both – Port 2 drops to 20V/2.5A/50W PD 3.0
  • All ports delivered what the connected device needed up to the limits above
  • We tested with a variety of USB-C products, and it fully supports all USB-C PD 3.0 and Qualcomm 3.0 standards. It is not Apple MFi certified but works equally well if Belkin paid Apple to certify it!

Belkin passing all the tests reflects Belkin quality. You can trust Belkin for long, trouble-free life. It also has C-Tick for Australia. And a $2500 connected warranty that covers the connected device should the GaN charger damage it.

Note: Belkin also has a single 30W GaN USB-C charger at $64.95. Maximum output is 20V/1.5A.

Belkin 68W GaN Dual USB-C wall charger

GadgetGuy’s take – Belkin 68W GaN Dual USB-C wall charger is my new best friend

Until now the Moshi 65W USB-C charger has been my #1 charger – for anything. The Belkin is 150g plus cables, and the Moshi is 210g with a fixed cable.

Given the dual ports and smaller size, Belkin becomes #1 charger.

We have also reviewed the 100W OMEGA GaN that has four output ports – 2x100W and 2x18W – interesting if you have a MacBook Pro.

Features
Value for money
Performance
Ease of Use
Design
Small and light
Reasonable price
68W in your pocket
Really needs a USB-C 60W rated cable in the box
5