EN
ES
A charging locker keeps the guest's phone in a locked compartment while it charges; a power bank rental station lends the guest a charged power bank, so the phone stays in their hand. Lockers suit guests who can stay in one place or leave their phone for a while, and rental stations suit guests who keep moving around the venue.
In short
- Both are self-service ways to offer phone charging. The difference is what the guest walks away with: a locker key or code, or a working phone.
- A locker compartment stays occupied until the guest comes back. A rental slot frees up as soon as the power bank is taken.
- Rental stations need a way to handle returns. Lockers need guests who are comfortable leaving their phone.
- The right choice depends on how long guests stay and how much they move around.
What is a charging locker?
A charging locker is a cabinet of small lockable compartments, each with charging cables inside. The guest plugs in the phone, closes the door and locks it, then comes back later to collect the phone. Lockers come in different sizes and with different ways of locking and paying, so it is worth asking any supplier exactly how the guest opens, pays for and collects a compartment.
What is a power bank rental station?
A power bank rental station holds charged power banks. At a MasBattery station the guest taps a contactless card, Apple Pay or Google Pay, takes a power bank with USB-C and iPhone cables built in, and keeps using the phone while it charges. They return the power bank at any station in the network and pay only for the time they used. There is no app and no registration.
What is the main difference for the guest?
With a locker, the guest charges the phone but is without it until they come back. With a power bank, the guest charges the phone while using it.
That changes behaviour. A guest waiting for a locker tends to stay near it. A guest with a power bank goes back to the lobby bar, the show, the dance floor or the gaming floor. For venues that earn from guests staying longer and spending on site, that difference matters more than the hardware.
Which one fits which venue?
A charging locker can make sense when:
- guests stay in one area for a long stretch, for example during a meeting, a class or a treatment;
- guests are happy, or expected, to put the phone away for a while;
- the venue wants charging next to a single point, such as a cloakroom or a staffed desk.
A power bank rental station tends to fit better when:
- guests stay for hours and move around, as in hotels and resorts, theme parks and water parks, festivals, bars and clubs, and casinos;
- guests need the phone while it charges, for tickets, maps, payments, photos or finding their group;
- the site is large enough that a single charging point would be a long walk away.
Some venues use both. There is no single right answer for every property.
How do capacity and turnover compare?
A locker compartment is occupied for as long as the phone charges and until the guest comes back, whichever is later. If guests leave their phone and forget about it, the compartment stays full.
A rental station slot is free again as soon as the power bank is taken, and power banks can be returned at any station. On a site with several stations, guests pick up near where they are and return near where they are going, which spreads the load across the venue.
What does each option ask of your staff?
Both can run as self-service. Ask how lost keys or forgotten codes are handled with a locker, and who opens a compartment when a guest cannot.
With MasBattery stations, staff do not handle guest phones, cards or payments: guests rent and return power banks themselves. If a power bank is not returned within the period shown on the station screen, the replacement cost shown there is charged and the power bank is the guest's to keep. Issues are handled with MasBattery support, not by your front desk.
Branding, payment and safety: what to ask
Whichever option you look at, ask:
- How does the guest pay? For MasBattery, a contactless card or phone wallet, with the price, the daily maximum and the hold shown on screen before the guest confirms.
- Can it carry our brand? MasBattery stations can carry the venue's branding.
- Which certifications does it hold? MasBattery stations and power banks are CE-certified, UN38.3-compliant for transport and registered with RII-AEE in Spain.
- Where can it be installed? MasBattery stations go indoors or under cover, with a permanent power connection, in visible spots your team chooses.
- How much charge does a guest get? A MasBattery power bank gives up to a full charge, and at least 80% for any phone, at up to 20 W through either cable.
- What does it cost the venue? For MasBattery, the commercial setup is defined in each proposal, and the venue shares in the rental revenue.
Does MasBattery supply charging lockers?
No. MasBattery runs power bank rental stations, not lockers. If you have been searching for a charging locker and the reason is "guests keep running out of battery while they are here", a rental station answers the same need while guests keep their phone. If the reason is that guests must put their phone away, a locker is the better fit, and we will tell you so.
Next step
Tell us about your venue: the type and size, your opening hours and where guests spend their time. We reply within one working day. See how it works in hotels and at festivals, or request a proposal.