Fuel rods vs other portable charges

[ShannyMcB]

Hi all. I have a galaxy s8 and my husband has an iPhone 11 I think. Fairly new so wont be switching before next summer.
What have people used for portable chargers? Is fuel rod worth the upfront and then change out fees? Have you used a different charger that gets more bang for the buck? I've never needed portable charging but I feel like it will be neccessary next vaca...be that disney or somewhere else we may go briefly in the interim.
Want to do research now to take advantage of sales if any pop up.
Why is it the newer the phone the worse the battery? Seriously.

 

[msteddom]

I have a Fuel Rod, and I’ve been quite happy with it, but that was with unlimited free swaps. There is no way I would buy one now that swaps are going to have a fee.

I think any portable charger would be a better bet as long as you can remember to bring it with you and keep it charged.

 

[tnolan]

I have a Fuel Rod, and I’ve been quite happy with it, but that was with unlimited free swaps. There is no way I would buy one now that swaps are going to have a fee.

I think any portable charger would be a better bet as long as you can remember to bring it with you and keep it charged.

They changed their policy, users are no longer to be charged a fee. Swaps are free all over Disneyworld.

 

[MinnieMSue]

No I would only buy one now if I forgot a charger and needed my phone charged. You can buy much better ones and take with you and recharge them yourself. I do have some and was able to prove founder status so I can exchange them free still, but I wouldn’t buy a new one now.

 

[MinnieMSue]

They changed their policy, users are no longer to be charged a fee. Swaps are free all over Disneyworld.

they changed Policy again and you have to prove you purchased before they started charging in order to exchange free using an app now.

 

[tnolan]

Thank you for clearing that up. Found this story to explain fully. https://insidethemagic.net/2020/07/fuelrod-charger-founders-status-tm1/

 

[StageTek]

Too much confusion and policy changes from Fuel Rods for me.

I got 2 Anker chargers - the small ones that look just like the Fuel Rods. I've never used the second one. I charge it overnight - and that was when we would get back to the room at midnight and leave at 8AM - with no problems. It charges my iPhone fast - usually while I'm sitting down for a late-afternoon snack. Still not bad to have that second one all charged up just in case.

 

[Krandor]

They changed their policy, users are no longer to be charged a fee. Swaps are free all over Disneyworld.

They haven't yet activated a fee at WDW but I'm sure it is coming for non-founders. I still wouldn;t get one at this point .

 

[greg9x]

No, Fuel Rods aren't worth it with the coming swap fee's... that was really their only selling point, the free swaps. For the money you can get a much better, higher capacity charger if you don't mind hauling it around. Even the smaller size ones like Fuel Rods are better. Just have to remember to charge them up when back at your room.

 

[Tink9721]

I bought this one for my January trip and it worked great. I had an iPhone 6 with horrible battery life at the time, and spent a lot of time plugged in. I had an older charger with me as a backup in case the new one died during the day, but I think I only needed the backup once.

https://www.amazon.com/Anker-PowerC...f=sxts_sxwds-bia-wc-p13n1_0?crid=C3M0JXY0QLSA

 

[tnolan]

I joined the Founder's Club mentioned in the article I posted because my purchase was in 2017. But if I had to pay for a swap, I would instead invest in an Anker's bullet shape, as mentioned above. They are a very highly recommended brand of charger.

 

[Disneyfan754321]

I really like my fuel rod, I bought my first one off Ebay for $15 .. it's small and easy to carry around.
I then sold the fuel rod for $15 when I got home.
The next year we bought one at the airport for $25 so now I will get free swaps forever. I see a lot of people buy anker battery chargers and love them.
Because we are only using it at Disney I did not think it was worth the price for 4 days.
They are still free swaps, You can charge it in your room as well just bring a extra charging base from home.
When you download the app you get your first swap free.. if you are going somewhere besides Disney.
You dont have to buy the fuel rod at the park... check other places first.

 

[Best Aunt]

Even when they didn’t charge a swap fee, you could’t necessarily find a Fuel Rod machine at Disney when you wanted one. They are in some hotel lobbies but not all. Last summer Animal Kingdom theme park only had 1.

 

[samsteele]

Have used Anker and RavPower power banks and never had a problem with either brand. Much better quality and more juice IMO than fuel rod. Like the Anker Astro E1 6700 candy bar sized one. Older model now but fits the bill for me.

 

[SamFaniam]

I use a Jackery Bolt. I like it because you do not need cables, the connecters are built in. But, due to this, you need one for each type of phone. Jackery also makes a charger with multiple charging ports.

 

[NotUrsula]

I use a Jackery Bolt. I like it because you do not need cables, the connecters are built in. But, due to this, you need one for each type of phone. Jackery also makes a charger with multiple charging ports.

You can buy little dongles to change the type of connector if you switch phones; some brands have onboard storage for the dongle built-in. I bought a 4-pack of usb-c connectors off Amazon for $8. They have a thread loop on them, so I just hooked to the built-in cable so it does not get lost.

 

[maryj11]

They changed their policy, users are no longer to be charged a fee. Swaps are free all over Disneyworld.

We have fuel rods and love them! I was worried they would close the fuel rod stations at Disney because of COVID.

 

[chelleb1974]

I purchased a prior version of this one, six years ago. It can charge my phone (Galaxy S6)four times on a full charge and is still going strong. This is the same brand that I purchased, this one looks to be more powerful than mine.
https://www.amazon.com/EasyAcc-2000...596644575&sprefix=easyacc,fashion,163&sr=8-18

 

[koquinn]

I'm at HS today and when I try to locate a fuel rod swap it says the nearest one is sea world. Is that right? No more at wdw?

 

[Disneyfan754321]

I'm at HS today and when I try to locate a fuel rod swap it says the nearest one is sea world. Is that right? No more at wdw?

Something must be up with the app.. did you use your MDE app? According to the MDE there are 3@HS and 3 @ AK and 1 @ Epcot 5 @ MK 3 @ DS and most of the resorts