Innovation: Asus has introduced a portable uninterruptible power supply that it claims is equally suited for indoor gaming and outdoor activities. The Mjolnir portable gaming UPS is named after Thor's hammer, and is shaped like it too. Unveiled at Computex 2024, the UPS packs a 768Wh lithium-iron phosphate battery that can reportedly keep a GeForce RTX 4080-equipped gaming rig running for up to an hour during a power outage.

The unit boasts a 10ms switchover time, Qi 2.0 wireless charging support with MagSafe compatibility, and can be recharged using a solar panel when outdoors. The handle of the hammer doubles as a flashlight to help light up your room when the power goes out.

As for connectivity, the Asus UPS affords four three-prong outlets as well as two 10-watt USB Type-A ports and a pair of USB-C power delivery ports: one that can output at up to 100W and another that tops out at 65W. A digital display shows real-time stats including remaining juice and how much power connected devices are drawing.

Asus first teased the hammer-shaped UPS back in April but given the timing, many believed it was an April Fools' Day gag.

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Asus' website is light on details as of writing, meaning certain specifications aren't yet known. For example, how heavy is Mjolnir? Asus bills it as portable but that sounds more like a marketing gimmick than anything else. Who really wants to unhook a heavy UPS from their work or gaming station to haul it along on a weekend camping trip?

Another missing piece of the puzzle is availability as Asus' website simply says it's "coming soon."

Asus has managed to take a boring product category and make it interesting. Adding a handle that doubles as a flashlight is both clever and convenient, but ultimately it'll all come down to cost. If priced attractively, it is easy to see how Asus could sell lots of these. Price it beyond reason, however, and it's not likely to get much traction at all.