Kensington Mini Battery Extender and Charger for iPod; iPhone 1G, 3G (Black)
by Kensington
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List Price: Our Price: $23.30 You Save: $26.69 (53%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $7.99 (click here) Category: Network Media Player See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Kensington Mini Battery Extender and Charger for iPod; iPhone 1G, 3G (Black)
Customer Review: Works great !
Summary: 4 Stars
I like others have found that the iPhone's battery doesn't last that long when you are on the 3G network. I looked at several battery extenders and decided on this one because of the size. It is much smaller than the Richard Solo and seemed like it would be a good deal for the money.
The pros: I have been very pleased with the results as I am able to go all day on the Kensington. By the time I get off of work, it is usually on the last battery indicator. That is with moderate use. With heavy use, it will fully deplete by that time. That is all I was wanting from the device. That way, by the afternoon, I still have a full charge on my iPhone's internal battery. In my typical day, I am able to set the iPhone down, near me, and not have to put it in my pocket all day.
Now the cons: If you are someone who is very mobile and has to put your iPhone in your pocket and is always taking it out, putting it back in........etc. it might not be a good battery extender for you because it is just hanging there off of the bottom of your iPhone. There have been times I have knocked it off while putting it in my pocket or taking it out. I have found also that if you use a case on your iPhone, there are times when certain cases will make it to where the Kensington can't plug in all the way. It will work, and will charge, but it is not engaged all the way to where the bumps are inserted, thus making it very easy for it to just fall off. If you are a mobile person, I would suggest something like the Mophie or other brands of battery extenders that are also "cases" at the same time. That way you don't have something hanging off the end of the iPhone.
Overall.......this is a great device for adding battery life, and also extending the life of your iPhone's internal battery. Since it uses the Kensington first, it lessens the amount of charge cycles your iPhone's internal has to do, thus prolonging it's life.
Customer Review: Good For One-Time Emergencies
Summary: 4 Stars
I tested this charger on my iPhone(first iphone version when they just came out.)
I drained my iphone down to 10% warning and plugged in a fully-charger Kensington Battery. It took about 70 minutes until the charger's juice was gone and it powered my iPhone to about 50%. Surely enough, 3 hours later of constant texting, my iphone gave me the 10% business.
The Good:
Truly Portable. Dimensions are 2.5 x 2 x 0.5 inches. (I'm not sure why at the time of this review, it shows dimensions as 5.2 x 6 x 1.5 units. I pondered why this was the case, and it turns out that these dimentions are in centimeters.) Dimensions blend in well with your iPhone: it doesn't stick out, but just extends the lenght of your iphone by 2 inches.
Charge and use your phone at same time: No need to wait til the power transfers.
Stylish: Yes, I said "stylish." Every time I plug this in, the other iPhone users turn their heads and wonder what my little attachment does. The brightly-lit blue energy bar really stands out and lets you charge in style.
Tiny charging retractible USB cable: While its 4 inches in closed position, its retractible up to 2 feet at full lenght. Its fully compatible with iphone's usb plug adapter, so you can charge your battery on the plug OR using computer's USB slot.
The Bad:
For emergencies only. It would be nice if this portable charger had more juice capacity than 50% of the iPhone's battery. Because of this, I don't carry it as much and only take it with me for emergency purposes. Its a good thing to keep in your car's glove compartment or at home for those blackouts.
Bottom Line: Perfect for emergencies, but will leave you wishing for more juice in the long run.
Customer Review: VERY helpful pocket sized battery
Summary: 4 Stars
This charger is exactly what I've been looking for. I'm a college student and I use my iPhone nonstop. I used to have trouble sometimes because i would have to ration my useage incase the batter would run out by the end of the day if say I listened to a few hours of music, browsed the net a little, and talked on the phone for an hour. Id have to find a plug point and always remember to bring my charger. Or go back home. But with this batter it's been very convenient. I just pop it in my pocket along with my wallet and i'm set for the day. The charger just about doubles the battery life of the phone, it gives slightly less than full charge.
There are a couple reasons I did not give this product 5 stars. One is the battery life of the battery itself. It does not stay charged for too long. If you charge it up completely and decide to use it next week, it wont be full. So you need to charge it pretty much every night. Also, i wouldnt recommend charging the ipod/iphone while using it because it seems to be less efficient and heats up. instead, leave it for a bit and it charges the phone pretty quick. Lastly, when you charge the battery through the usb cable while connected to your computer, you can plug your ipod/iphone to the battery and both will be charged. however, even though they're both connected, the computer does not recognize the device, since it's not directly connected. If it could, that would be great because it would eliminate the need for an ipod cable, everything could be done with usb. But i'm sure apple doesnt want that.
Overall, this battery is extremely useful and totally worth the money. don't go with the cheap batteries that run on AAA or something, those are a waste of money.
Hope that helps!
Customer Review: For emergencies
Summary: 4 Stars
I wanted a battery charger for emergencies that I could throw in my purse and forget about. This is good for that purpose except that it loses its charge fairly quickly. I have to charge it once in a while to get it to a full charge after it's just been sitting in my purse. When I've needed it, it has been very useful even without a full charge.
It sits on the phone awkwardly, but it stays in well and has never fallen out while in use.
Overall, it's pretty good. I wanted it instead of a case charger because they're all bulky and ugly. I will go ahead and get one now, as this little one is just too much of a hassle. I'd rather change cases when I need a charge.
Worth $30 for sure. I paid $50 and I think it's more fitting to be in the $30 range for the quality/speed of the charge and awkward fit. The usb cable retracts into a round center station (whatever that's called) - a feature I wish they all had. That is a nice touch.
Customer Review: A very handy accessory for the iPhone 3GS
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a very nice little accessory. I would go so far to say that is almost an essential for trips. Plug it into your iPhone 3GS and it will charge it all the way back to 100%. At least that is my experience. Sometimes it is just not possible to plug in a charger, and when that is the case this little accessory is the answer. It gives you an extra full charge for your iPhone.
A couple of nits deprive this excellent accessory of the fifth star. Firstly, it does not fit real snappily onto the iPhone. It fits OK, but you want to be careful not to bend it. Secondly, they should have designed it so that the plastic cap that protects the connector to the iPhone snaps onto the opposite end of the battery extender when in use. Not a big deal, but I am surprised that Kensington did not think of this. Kensington makes good products.
Overall a very good product.