This off-brand MacBook charger is a lot cheaper than Apple's and slightly more powerful

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AmazonI've written about USB-C before; it's the next standard cable type that every major tech company is beginning to adopt.

This new connector has many benefits: It's small, reversible, and has the same physical shape as the one found on Thunderbolt 3 cables.

Although having a single-cable future will eventually make life way more convenient, there are growing pains. Thankfully, Anker's new power charger can help ease some of them.

Unlike previous versions of USB, USB-C is capable of powering larger electronics, like laptops. It's the only way to charge Apple's latest MacBook and MacBook Pro; and through a special cable, it's the fastest way to charge the iPad Pro.

Apple sells official power chargers for the MacBook and MacBook Pro, but both of them are pretty expensive. I bought one to quickly charge my iPad Pro, and the difference is very noticeable. Anker's USB-C PD (Power Delivery) charger is actually a little faster than the one Apple ships with the MacBook, and the company sent one over for me to try.

I don't own a USB-C-equipped MacBook yet, but my teammate Rich does, and he used Anker's charger instead of the one that came with his 13" MacBook Pro. It charged the laptop without any problems, even when the computer was being used.

I tested it against Apple's official MacBook charger using my iPad Pro and the results were identical. Both chargers charged the device 46% in one hour. Apple's charger outputs at 29 watts and Anker's at 30 watts, so the results make sense, but it's good to see that both can charge consistently.

Where Anker's charger wins is in price. It's $18 cheaper than the one Apple sells with its MacBook, while being slightly more powerful. Apple's MacBook Pro charger is 87 Watts, but Anker's was still able to hold its own during regular use.

As more devices — be they computers, headphones, phones, or tablets — adopt USB-C, you're going to need a quick way to charge them. If you're running into this problem already, Anker's latest wall charger is a good solution.