The iPad battery is fantastic because of its long lasting capabilities.  However, the downside is that it can also take a very long time to charge an iPad 2.  There are many iPad charger options including the USB iPad 2 charger, Griffin’s PowerBlock iPad charger, the iPhone power adapter, and the basic iPad 2 charger.  We did some research to find out which of these iPad chargers are the fastest at getting your battery up to 80% full.   The reason we chose 80% in the iPad charger review is because the last 20% of charging goes slower in order to protect the battery’s longevity.  

The fastest iPad charger was the Griffin PowerBlock at about 2.5 hours.  However, it was only mildly better than the standard iPad 2 charger which runs at 10W.  This iPad charger got the iPad battery up to 80% in 3 hours and 10 minutes.  Of course, if you are in a hurry, the savings of 40 minutes really does mean a lot.

When used on your iPad 2, the basic iPhone charger didn’t do such a good job in terms of speed.  It took about 5 ½ hours to get the iPad battery to 80%.  Lastly, the MacBook Pro USB iPad 2 charger took the longest at about 7 hours and 40 minutes.  

If you don’t feel like springing for an extra iPad accessory just for charging faster, then the standard iPad 2 charger should get the job done.  We definitely recommend avoiding the iPhone charger for your iPad and only use the USB port charger if you aren’t in a hurry!

Keep in mind that your iPad battery life is eventually going to fade as you use it.  To maintain your battery life, you should let it completely die and then completely recharge on a regular basis, at least once monthly.