I use two types of battery power. I use Power Delivery (or PPS) from a PD charger or battery bank to deliver the voltage and current I need. I've been doing quite well with trigger cables configured for the needed volts and amps. Most of the ones I've been using?are 12V, but now 9V is starting to become popular. (Not unreasonable, it was only a choice because cars in the US are a 12V system. Wiring a mobile rig is easy if it is built to accept the available configuration.)
The other arrangement I use is a battery pack or power supply that supplies the needed voltage and current directly, not by configuring a PD port. I have two LiFePO4 battery boxes with PowerPole connectors for 12V. The only other option is STANDARD USB 5v from a standard USB port. NOT a PD port. I even believe the battery in one of them IS a Bioenno 12Ah battery. There's even enough room in the box for its charger. A fused PowerPole bank is on the outside. The other is a commercial product I picked up at HRO. I think it has a 7Ah LiFePO4 in it, and it has a light, two USB ports, two PowerPole connections, and a lighter socket. I don't have a name or model. They may recognize the description if you ask them.
I do have a high capacity power bank that does everything from USB 1.0 5v to DC 60v, to AC 115V from an inverter. I can use PD trigger cables, USB-C to the appropriate coaxial barrel connector with it, but if I really want to get specific about voltage and amperage, it has an XT30 connector on the side that can be configured for everything from 5v to 60v. I've used it for 9v, and it's accurate and stable. The power bank is the Omnicharge Ultimate, and I'm unsure if it's even in production now.
I picked up a couple of PD USB-C to 5.5 x 2.1 (2.5) trigger cables from Amazon, and they work just fine with the zBitX. The radio shows 8.8V on the touch screen. I also picked up some nicely priced 18650 cells and a good charger for them. A fresh pair of them in the zBitX gives 8.4V.
The 9v trigger cables I got are these:?
They appear to work just fine, so long as the PD device you're plugging into supports 9V. I have a number of PD power banks that supply 9V. It's finding one that gives 12V that got a bit iffy for a while, until they started putting out PPS-spec trigger cables.
I got an Anker camp power bank that has a substantial amount of available juice, but does NOT have an AC inverter in it. Too many of the big camp power banks, the Jackerys and other random strings of letters treated as brand names these days. These are horribly inefficient and I would not bother with one unless I absolutely HAD to have 115VAC for some compelling reason. But these big power systems frequently have SEVERAL AC sockets on them, so many that it's hard to find real estate on the thing to provide a USB-C socket.
Presenting the Anker Solix C300 DC power bank, claiming 90,000mAh available juice.?
I believe it. There's several USB-C PD sockets on it, a couple over 100W. This one is designed for those who DON'T use AC devices when a DC device will do. Between my 12v battery boxes, my various smaller PD power banks, the Omnicharge and the Anker, I'm well supplied with power for my radios, and even some lights. Charging my phone, watch, and headset are a bonus.
Gwen Patton
Glen Jenkins WB4KTF