The review

The Anker Zolo is the cable Anker now points you to for 240W charging, and with the older Anker 765 hard to find on Amazon UK, it is the one most British buyers can actually get. It charges at the full 240W but moves data at USB 2.0 speed, 480Mbps, which makes it a strong charging cable and a poor data cable. If you want a lead to fast-charge a laptop, phone or Steam Deck, and you like that it comes three to a box, read on.

How we test and choose

We choose what to recommend by cross-checking each cable’s claims against the manufacturer’s published figures, the USB-IF certification, and independent test data, and we draw on hands-on use of the gear we own. We have tested Anker’s 765 240W cable ourselves, but we have not separately long-term tested the Zolo, so this assessment leans on Anker’s published specs and the retail listing, and we say so rather than guess. You can read the full method on our how we test page.

Design and build

The Zolo’s headline trick is the connector: a slim 5.8mm low-profile plug with a dirt-resistant coating, which slides into recessed ports and tight cases that defeat the chunkier 240W cables. The jacket is braided, and Anker rates it to 10,000 bends. That is genuinely durable, but worth being clear about: it is well below the 765’s 35,000-bend rating and UGREEN’s 30,000. The Zolo trades some of that bag-proof toughness for a slimmer, neater cable.

From Darleene, what I look for

The thing that always catches me out is a fat connector that will not sit in the phone case, so a slim plug is the bit I actually notice.

The flip side is the bend rating. Mine live in a bag with keys, so I would want to know it is the slim one I am trading toughness for, and pick accordingly.

Charging performance

This is where the Zolo holds its own. It is rated for the full 240W under USB Power Delivery 3.1, with a built-in e-marker, so it delivers 48V at 5A, enough to fast-charge a 16-inch MacBook Pro at full speed rather than a throttled trickle. The catch, and the most important line here, is data: at USB 2.0 it is nowhere near fast enough for moving large files or running an external SSD. As a charging cable it is excellent. As a data cable it is not one.

How durable is it, really?

The 10,000-bend figure is Anker’s own rating for the braided jacket, and the dirt-resistant coating is aimed at the grime that builds up on a plug that lives in a pocket. It should last years of normal use. If your cables take real punishment in a bag, the 765’s 35,000-bend jacket is the tougher choice, but most people will never reach 10,000 bends.

Everyday use

The three-pack is the everyday win: one for the desk, one for the bag, one for the bedside, all at once. The slim connector makes it the easy fit on a phone in a thick case, and the braid resists tangling. For a single ultra-tough cable a 765 suits better, but for kitting out a household at a sensible outlay, the Zolo is hard to argue with.

Sources: Anker product documentation (240W, braided, dirt-resistant 5.8mm connector, 10,000-bend rating); USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) on certification and the e-marker requirement.