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FastTech QI Charger Review for Nexus 4

I thought I would share with you my experience of the QI charger I recently purchased from FastTech.
After seeing some reviews of these wireless chargers I thought I would take the plunge & get one myself.
Website.
Firstly, the FastTech website is pretty well laid out, its fairy easy to navigate & find what you want. What I do like about the site is they tend to include lots of images of the item you are buying - many sites usually include a generic picture that's at a poor resolution, but FastTech really go all out to include as much information as possible. This includes data sheets, specifications, size, weight etc etc. The attention to detail is top notch & nothing of importance gets overlooked.
Choosing the charger.
FastTech list quite a few QI chargers. These range from big twin versions for dual charging, specific chargers for certain devices life the Nexus 4, Galaxy Note 2/S3 down to the cheaper generic ones.
I decided to choose this one:
http://www.fasttech.com/products/11...owered-qi-inductive-wireless-charger-for-car-
I would say that this is generic one but for $40/£30 (At time of writing) its not bad value compared to other QI Wireless chargers on the market.
One of the main reasons I chose this version is that it comes with a Micro USB connector rather than a small round power connector like most other versions do. This means I can use any Micro USB cable I own. It also states that charger works via a car charger or a USB port; most other QI chargers only work using a wall socket which provides enough voltage/amp for the device to operate. At the time of purchasing I was highly dubious that the charger would work correctly using an USB port on a PC but I crossed my fingers that it would.
Ordering & Delivery
Ordering is pretty much as expected & only take a few minutes to register. Entering in the details is easy & the website provided clear & easy to follow instructions, so if you are used to ordering online there's nothing to worry about. I paid via PayPal - quick & easy.
Delivery is free so that's a bonus & once your order is placed & sent, a tracking reference is included along with a nice photograph of your item with your address on to show you that its been posted - nice touch!
Now comes the 'negative' part..... delivery! Its takes a long time, approximately 21 days to be precise. That's from Hong Kong to the UK. I've ordered stuff from Hong Kong in the past & its usually taken less than 10 days, buts that's usually small stuff. What didn't help was the parcel tacking - it wasn't very informative. The only time I got an up date was when the parcel arrived in the UK & the tracking reported that it had arrived in the country. However, it still took 4 days from then to get to my house.
I'm not really saying this was an issue for me but I was getting a little nervous whether I would turn up!! So, If anyone orders anything from FastTech please be aware that you might have to wait over 3 weeks for your item.
Packaging & Contents:
The charger arrived in a standard jiffy bag & the box containing the charger was inside. The box was wrapped up with some additional bubble wrap to help prevent it from any bumps or knocks it may suffer from its 6000 mile (give or take!) journey from Hong Kong to the UK. Luckily it had seemed to have done its job as everything seemed ok & the box was fairly undamaged apart from a slight crease in one of the corners.
The QI charger comes in nice thick white card presentation box very similar to the boxes that mobiles are shipped in. Its design is simple & minimalistic with just a few logos & a photo on it to indicate what's inside.
Once in the box you are greeted with the QI Charger. Under the charger & its cardboard support sleeve is the Micro USB cable & tucked away in the corner is the mains wall charger in a box - this is the European version & doesn't fit a UK wall socket. I don't know why, but I convinced myself the a Euro 2 Pin to UK 3 Pin adapter was included but there isn't. The FastTechs website clearly states that the charger only ships with a EURO style plug, I have no idea why I thought that there was an adapter included.
QI Charger - A closer look.
The QI charger is made standard white plastic, nothing special. Its approximately the same size as a Galaxy Note 2, so if you have seen or held one of these then you will know how big it is. One thing that stands out about the charger is that its incredibly light, this along with the cheap looking white plastic, makes the device feel exceptionally cheap. Because it is so light it actually makes the unit feel hollow & its hard to be convinced that there is actually anything inside.
I also think the colour doesn't help. The white plastic picks up mucky marks quickly - in fact it was covered in dirty finger prints before I even touched it. In my opinion, I believe black plastic would have helped the overall look of the device.
The build quality is ok, again nothing special - screw-less design with two half's glued together. The underside has four small corner dimples moulded in the back plastic which the charger sits on when put on flat surface. Its a shame that these aren't little rubber feet to give the charger a more no slip effect when on a hard surface.
Usability.
As mentioned before, I could not check how the charger worked using the mains adapter because it only fitted a European wall socket. So, I tried it out on one of my PC USB ports. I used a USB2 socket because this is the common port that most PC/Laptops have. My PC has does have USB3 sockets but these can provide a different (better) current which may not represent everyone else's setup. Once plugged in the chargers green power light comes on. This light is constant & cannot be turned off unless you unplug the charger.
Unexpectedly, the charger worked really well using only a USB port. This was a real surprise as the wall charger has an output of 2A & a USB2 port only has an output of 500mA, I was expecting the phone not to charge properly because of the big difference in current. It also worked fine when plugged into my laptops USB port.
As you can see from the photos the phone charge 'zone' is quite forgiving & the phone can be placed on the charger without the need to position it accurately. I found that I could place my phone on the charger relatively care free. There was no need to readjust the position or find a millimeter perfect position for the charging that some other QI charges seem to have.
It has to be noted though that the QI charging coil in the Nexus 4 is offset towards the bottom of the phone - about 1/3 of the way up. The induction charging coil in the QI Charger is central, therefore the phones best position on the charger is so that the top of the phone is level with the edge of the charger where the USB cable is inserted. If I placed the phone centrally on the charger it would not charge.
I noticed that there is a very slight magnetic attraction between the phone & the charger when the induction coils are aligned. This is particularly usefully as it helps with the phone location to the charger (you can feel it 'grab') & also prevents the phone from moving/slipping if the charger is place on a slight slope.
When the phone is placed on the QI charger & connects, the charger emits a single beep & a blue light starts to flash in the corner of the device to indicate a successful pairing & charging has started. Also, the phone acknowledges that a connection to the charger has been made and produces a quiet tone to say its now charging.
Strangely, I found that the QI charger actually charged my phone more quickly that a standard USB cable that's connected to a PC/Laptop. It also charges the phone all the way up to 100% & keeps it there. Once the phone got to 100% I experienced no power loss over the space of about 45 minutes. However, this might be a concern as once at 100% the charger doesn't seem to switch off & the phone remained warm.
On the subject of heat, as with most QI chargers the phone got hot while being charged wirelessly. I monitored the temperature of the battery & it never got over 41C
My Nexus 4 has a DBrand skin on the back & it didn't seem to interfere with the charging process. I don't own a bumper or case so I couldn't test how well the charger would work if one of those were fitted to the phone.
For those of you who might want to use the charger at night, the green & blue lights are fairly bright & might be a tad annoying if you intend to use it in the bedroom.
Conclusion.
In a nut shell the QI Wireless Charger that I purchased from FastTech works really well & it actually exceeded my expectations when plugged in to a PC or Laptop.
The position of the phone on the charger is fairly forgiving & a full battery charge is accomplished even on USB. All in all I'm happy with how the charger works & has it has permanent place on my desk at work.
....... but........
However, taking a step back & looking at the whole QI Wireless charging method I feel like its all a bit redundant & not real necessary.
Currently, QI chargers are just too expensive in what they are. The Nexus 4 Orb sells for silly money & the cheap chargers still retailer for more than 10 wall chargers put together! At the end of the day it only charges the phone, and 'Only' is a word that needs emphasising; because if I use a USB cable to charge the phone I can still use the phone with the cable plugged in. Also if the cable is plugged into a PC/Laptop I can transfer files as well. The QI charger takes all these useful features away.
Also you are still tied to where the QI charger is plugged into so you don't gain any real world additional freedom from a charging cable. It kind of feels like a docking station without the bonus of being able to transfer files to the PC.
In a way I feel that QI chargers are sold like a cool iPhone feature - they look cool, people who see it go 'wow' & it makes your mates jealous. But at the end of the day its not really that different to the thing it replaces & may not even work any better!
OK, it looks like from the above statements that I actually hate QI wireless charging & that people shouldn't bother with them. That's not what I think at all & in fact believe that the charger is a cool gadget, I've been showing it off to nearly everyone that passes my desk at work. I've written this review to point out the Pros and Cons of buying & owning a QI Wireless charger & to show that it might not suit everybody's expectations. My only major criticism is the price. The charger I purchased does not look or feel like its worth £30 ($40). If the price drops below £10 ($15) then the price would genuinely reflect the product. I'm assuming that the price currently reflects the new QI charging technology, hopefully prices will start to drop in the upcoming months when (or if) QI charging becomes popular.
So to sum up, if you're in the market for a wireless charger for your Nexus 4 phone then I highly recommend this QI Charger from FastTech. However, consider it more of an cool impulse purchase rather than a must have, can't live without gadget.
Pros
Works as intended.
Fully supports PC USB charging
Charges to 100%
Positioning of phone on charger is quiet lenient
Free delivery & parcel tracking from FastTech
FastTech offer refunds if unhappy with item & replacements if device is faulty.
Show off to your mates
Cons
Feels cheap
Quite Expensive
Doesn't necessarily replace wired charging
Packaging only contains European wall charger
Delivery took longer than expected from FastTech
Get laughed at by mates for spending £30/$40
MARKS OUT OF 10
DESIGN: 7
FUNCTIONALITY: 9
FEATURES: 7
VALUE FOR MONEY: 4
OVERALL: 7
Hope you enjoyed the review. Please post comments below.
Review by Chris B

cmberry20 said:
However, taking a step back & looking at the whole QI Wireless charging method I feel like its all a bit redundant & not real necessary.
Currently, QI chargers are just too expensive in what they are. The Nexus 4 Orb sells for silly money & the cheap chargers still retailer for more than 10 wall chargers put together! At the end of the day it only charges the phone, and 'Only' is a word that needs emphasising; because if I use a USB cable to charge the phone I can still use the phone with the cable plugged in. Also if the cable is plugged into a PC/Laptop I can transfer files as well. The QI charger takes all these useful features away.
Also you are still tied to where the QI charger is plugged into so you don't gain any real world additional freedom from a charging cable. It kind of feels like a docking station without the bonus of being able to transfer files to the PC.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i have one of these with euro plug (not usb). the comment above is exactly how i feel after couple of usage. not only it doesn't do data transfer, but usage too is inconvenient, due to (a) you can't pick up your phone, (b) touchscreen is much less responsive during charge. with that $40, i might as well bought a real dock and other accessories.

Just a quick update.
I can confirm that the charger stops charging the phone once 100% is reached. I think there's '100% with still a little more left to charge' & '100% Full'! I noticed that the charger would still carrying on charging for 5 minutes or so once 100% was reached, I think that it must be because the battery isnt quite fully charged. After that, the blue light switches of the phone is allowed to discharge. But as soon as the phone looses less than 1% the charger recharges it.
It basically trickle charges the phone to keep it at 100%. I certainly don't get the issue where the phone has lost 5 to 10% of its charge once 100% had reached.

Thank you for the honest and detailed review. I was considering this charger and looking for qi wireless chargers for the past few months but was never fully convinced about buying one because its not really as useful as it is just "cool". I thought it might be convenient to make a car dock out of because I wouldn't have worry about plugging and unplugging it. But I think for now I will just use a usb cable and maybe look at wireless chargers again once they're cheaper.

Thanks for the review OP. Like the person above me said, I too have considered getting one of those. The price it's at now is pretty tempting, but I don't think the Misses would appreciate me buying a $30 charger. I do think it would be an interesting thing to have and to mess around with but ahhhh I don't know. And speaking of USB 2.0... When do we think that phones will have USB 3.0?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium

I bought one of these and it's great - except for the lights and beeping (I'd like to use it by my bed) - has anyone opened theirs up and successfully altered it?

thigger_tom said:
I bought one of these and it's great - except for the lights and beeping (I'd like to use it by my bed) - has anyone opened theirs up and successfully altered it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, I decided to have a go today. Opening it needed a sharp blade to help pry open the case (there are a /lot/ of plastic clips) but eventually ended up with everything accessible. Everything's soldered onto a single board with only the coil and USB connector separate. However, the buzzer can be opened up and the metal plate removed which silences it:
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There's a small flat hole in the side - put a small screwdriver in there, twist and the top will pop off. The round metal plate can then be picked out (I used blu-tack) before putting the top back on. I've kept the plate on the off-chance I ever want it to beep again.
A bit more blu-tack to cover each of the LEDs and I now have my ideal charger!

I'm pretty unhappy. I just unboxed mine, set my N4 on it and it's not working. I also bought a charging coil for my Note2. The N4 has the poetic Bumper on it and it seems that that small distance is too much for it to charge through. The Qi standard is 5mm to 40mm. This device doesn't seem to work at even 1 to 2 mm.
As a test I took a plastic SD card case I have that is 4mm thick and the charging coil from the note2 and with it, it won't work. but without it between it works fine.
Basically this thing is useless if you have a case.. I really thought the point of a wireless charger was that it would work through a case. LAME! I'll update if I learn anything more but as of this time, I'll probably be returning or selling mine...

joeavery2 said:
I'm pretty unhappy. I just unboxed mine, set my N4 on it and it's not working. I also bought a charging coil for my Note2. The N4 has the poetic Bumper on it and it seems that that small distance is too much for it to charge through. The Qi standard is 5mm to 40mm. This device doesn't seem to work at even 1 to 2 mm.
As a test I took a plastic SD card case I have that is 4mm thick and the charging coil from the note2 and with it, it won't work. but without it between it works fine.
Basically this thing is useless if you have a case.. I really thought the point of a wireless charger was that it would work through a case. LAME! I'll update if I learn anything more but as of this time, I'll probably be returning or selling mine...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Might be a defective unit, or the coil isn't fully connected, or not enough juice from your USB. Is yours the same brand as OP's?

hmm, not sure if you have a faulty charge or if you have been unlucky with the build quality of your QI Charger.
I packed my phone up with some business cards & a foldered sheet of paper & it still happily charges up. I would say the gap it about 5mm to 6mm. (1/4" if you live in 'merica)
This is still being charged via USB 2 on a desktop PC.

thigger_tom said:
Well, I decided to have a go today. Opening it needed a sharp blade to help pry open the case(...).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How did you manage to open it ? I tried to insert a very thin flat bladed screwdriver between the two parts of the device and slide it around it but nothing popped-up or anything, plus it slipped and I stabbed my thumb so I prefer not to use a knife...
I'm affraid I could break it by forcing the screwdriver inside.
I'd like to mute it because I work in an open space office. Also, this "beeep" is pretty annoying. The blue LED and the Nexus 4's LED are enough for me.
Thanks

Nekrozys said:
How did you manage to open it ? I tried to insert a very thin flat bladed screwdriver between the two parts of the device and slide it around it but nothing popped-up or anything, plus it slipped and I stabbed my thumb so I prefer not to use a knife...
I'm affraid I could break it by forcing the screwdriver inside.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I used a sharp blade from a pocket knife. Inserted the edge of the blade along its length into the groove and used it to pop open the clips (there are loads). I think you could probably do it using one of the plastic pryer devices they use to open iPhone cases. I wouldn't recommend a screwdriver as there isn't enough surface area and the plastic is quite soft so you'll probably just make a load of marks in the side of the case.
You don't need to use the pointy end so there shouldn't be a risk of stabbing yourself doing it like that!

My thumb and I thank you.

[Q] Car mount w/ mini USB charger or not?

After my disastrous experience with Seidio I'm thinking to order the Otterbox Defender and the ProClip car mount (designed specifically for the Defender case) I'm thinking about is available with or without a built in male mini USB for charging. I already have an Incipio Quick Charge 2.0 12v car charger the 12v accessory outlet USB plugin which I could use with the USB end of the ProClip cable.
Trying to think this through I'm wondering if anybody sees a distinct advantage or disadvantage to having the built in mini USB on the phone cradle.
For the way I normally use my phone in the car I don't usually run the battery down to the point charging is necessary although I do charge it. My vehicle's 12v accessory outlet is located on the passenger side of my console low to the floor (terrible location) so I can't unplug the charger while driving unless I was at a stoplight or pulled over. With the built in mini USB the only way to disconnect it is either take the phone out of the cradle which I wouldn't do while driving or disconnect the USB/12v accessory plug (or pull the USB cable out of the plug).
My inclination is to go with a cradle without a mini USB however if someone posts a benefit I haven't thought of to having the mini USB it also makes the aluminum CraigsDock carmount which is only available with a mini USB charging plug a possibility and I like that mount too.
Any thoughts on the subject greatly appreciated!!

mty msi said:
After my disastrous experience with Seidio I'm thinking to order the Otterbox Defender and the ProClip car mount (designed specifically for the Defender case) I'm thinking about is available with or without a built in male mini USB for charging. I already have an Incipio Quick Charge 2.0 12v car charger the 12v accessory outlet USB plugin which I could use with the USB end of the ProClip cable.
Trying to think this through I'm wondering if anybody sees a distinct advantage or disadvantage to having the built in mini USB on the phone cradle.
For the way I normally use my phone in the car I don't usually run the battery down to the point charging is necessary although I do charge it. My vehicle's 12v accessory outlet is located on the passenger side of my console low to the floor (terrible location) so I can't unplug the charger while driving unless I was at a stoplight or pulled over. With the built in mini USB the only way to disconnect it is either take the phone out of the cradle which I wouldn't do while driving or disconnect the USB/12v accessory plug (or pull the USB cable out of the plug).
My inclination is to go with a cradle without a mini USB however if someone posts a benefit I haven't thought of to having the mini USB it also makes the aluminum CraigsDock carmount which is only available with a mini USB charging plug a possibility and I like that mount too.
Any thoughts on the subject greatly appreciated!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It seems like you have it mostly covered. However, you stated that you don't really use your battery much while driving-- So i'm just wondering why you would go through all the hassle of trying to figure this out. for myself, personally, I plug in my car charger into the cigarette lighter, and just plug it into my phone before placing on my car mount. But that's just what I do, and is certainly not the only way it can be done. But from what it sounds like, you should be more than okay with your planned idea.

srltzz342 said:
It seems like you have it mostly covered. However, you stated that you don't really use your battery much while driving-- So i'm just wondering why you would go through all the hassle of trying to figure this out. for myself, personally, I plug in my car charger into the cigarette lighter, and just plug it into my phone before placing on my car mount. But that's just what I do, and is certainly not the only way it can be done. But from what it sounds like, you should be more than okay with your planned idea.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Reason I'm asking for pros/cons on the mini USD built into the phone cradle is I prefer the Craigsdock which only comes with the mini USB. The Craigsdock is milled aluminum vs. the ProClip's plastic, it's universal so I could use it on different vehicles & phones and because its adhesive mounting plate is tiny compared to the ProClip vehicle specific dash mount it would look a lot nicer in my vehicle. The Craigsdock is most likely the last car mount I'd ever have to buy.
What I wasn't sure about is if the phone is left plugged in continually when it's fully charged whether that could cause damage and according to Craig @ Craigsdock it will not.
Below are the links to the two mounts:
http://proclipusa.net/instruction.php?sku=854540
http://www.craigsdocks.com/samsung-galaxy-s3-s4-s5-note-3-4-car-dock/
I decided to go with the Craigsdock and will review it after I've had a chance to use it.

get a wireless charger and dont look back. its awesome. i use an iblason armorbox, an itian wireless charger fixed to the car with 3m scotch outdoor double sided weatherproof tape and the samsung oem qi back. works great.

zurkx said:
get a wireless charger and dont look back. its awesome. i use an iblason armorbox, an itian wireless charger fixed to the car with 3m scotch outdoor double sided weatherproof tape and the samsung oem qi back. works great.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Reason I'm getting the Craigsmount dock is it will place the phone exactly where I want in my vehicle. Screen will be about 3 inches away from my dash to the right of the steering wheel (not as far away from the dash as the steering wheel is but next to it). Also the Craigsmount will have a cable that keeps the native docking app continually activated. Now all I have to do is figure out how to make the phone's native docking app automatically trigger my Car Home Ultra app and I'm good to go.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KIOSTM4/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Absolutely recommend this car mount. And it goes perfect if you have the otterbox defender too!
Never take off my defender when I'm outside, and now when I mount it on my windshield, I never have too.

Air Dock 2.0 First Impression

So, I ordered the Air Dock 2.0 for my S6. I want to do a full review with pictures, which I will add when I get a few more minutes, but I wanted to give a quick first impression before that.
As a dock, the nano foam surface works as described. As long as you have a glossy finish on your phone (either the phone itself, a glossy, flat case, or the sticker that they provide) it has an amazingly strong grip. However, if you have a rubberized case like I do (I currently have the Incipio Dual Pro), it does not hold it at all. Which is as advertised, so while I was just a little bit disappointed, I wasn't heartbroken. So, I slapped the sticker on the back (which is actually just a little bit wider than the case so it overlaps on the sides of the case by a little less than an 1/8"), and it worked perfectly. You do have to apply just a little bit of pressure to get it to really grab hold of the phone, regardless of whether you are using a naked phone or the sticker. You can't be delicate with the phone when you are attaching it to the dock. The one thing I wasn't overly impressed with was the sturdiness of the actual mount/arm. I bought the textured surface mount because I was hoping I could use it on the lower part of my dash under the radio which has a textured surface (I have a 2012 GMC Sierra without the center console). It did hold fine when I finally found a flat enough spot to attach it to. However, regardless of whether I had it mounted to the dash or the window, there is a lot of shake in the arm (again i bought the standard textured surface variety, not the long flexible variety). I believe the ball is a standard ball like most mounts have, so I may test fit another mount that I have to see if that improves things.
As a charger, I feel it leaves a lot to be desired. I used the Ampere app to monitor the charging voltage. While sitting still, it charges at about 380mA. However, while driving down the road, I noticed that every time I hit a bump and the mount shook, the charging would sometimes drop down to as low as 80mA. It never chirped to say that it disconnected from wireless charging, but it got very low. I have to wonder if the constant shaking of the mount arm could cause the charging coils on the charger and the coils on the phone to go out of alignment and reduce teh amount of charge. I don't completely understand the technology but I'd imagine they have to line up pretty darn close to each other to get a good connection. On a 30 minute drive on back roads, with either the Ampere app or the Car Home Ultra app running (plus bluetooth and GPS), I only gained 1% on the battery. I fear that with Spotify and Navigation running, it may actually lose battery %. Also, in full disclosure, I did run that app with both the Incipio case on and the phone naked on the charger, with pretty much the same results. I am going on a work trip this next week and will be in driving for about 9 hours, so I will have a little better test case for how the charging portion works. I'll update this post either during or after that trip.
As for the NFC, I tried a couple of different apps (Trigger and NFC Tools/Tasks) to try to get it to start Car Home Ultra when I set the phone on the charger. I was never able to consistently get it to recognize the NFC. I will fully admit that this is the first time I've tried to use NFC for anything consistently (I use Wallet at McD's occasionally, but that's about it). So, I may not be hitting the NFC chip in the phone and the NFC chip in the dock just right. I tried "swiping" the phone in from all directions before attaching it and also tried attaching it at different points as opposed to centering the phone and charger on each other. Nothing seemed to help, sometimes the NFC picked up, most of the time it did not.
Overall, I am not sure this charger is worth $100 (I bought it direct from the AirDock site as opposed to Indiegogo because from Indiegogo you can't return the dock if you don't like it but you can if you buy direct). As a mount, it's very easy to slap the phone on the nano foam pad and it sticks, but as a charger I am not sure it performs up to par. I understand that there is a lot of discussion about wireless charging in general and whether it has enough output to charge when there is a consistent draw from navigation and music apps so it may not be the docks fault that the technology just isn't efficient enough. They could probably sell a lot more units by offering a version without NFC and Wireless charging and sell it as just a dock with BYOC (bring your own charger) for about half of what they are charging.
Let me know if there is anything specific you want me to focus on for when I do a full review with photos.
Thanks!

I have the first gen air dock. I've stopped using it because I experienced similar experiences as you. Wireless charging is pretty slow, especially if display brightness is up and navigation is running. What's worse is that it heats the phone up. In summer months, I'll actually see thermo warnings on my Note 3.
Just like you said about "offering a version without NFC and Wireless charging", I've done precisely just that. I bought an iMagnet Mount from amazon and replaced that with the airdock. I charge it with a wired charger. The magnet is super strong, and now I can really charge the phone without overheating it. Attaching/detaching the phone is still very easy, but I actually trust the iMagnet mount more.

ihuntinde said:
I am going on a work trip this next week and will be in driving for about 9 hours, so I will have a little better test case for how the charging portion works. I'll update this post either during or after that trip.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
Are you able to share the results of your 9 hour trip and the phone charging during that? I'm considering getting the AirDock myself.

More results?
Yes, I am also VERY interested in seeing the results from the 9-hour drive please!
I am currently using a magnet setup + wired fast charger for my Note 5. I do love the convenience of magnet mounts, and really hoping to come up with a good solution to add Qi charging now. I have only been able to find 4 alternatives to the AirDock ($20-$50) and all of them have very mixed reviews, so I have been hesitant to try any.
The other thing I don't like about any of these is that they are all windshield mounts, and none have a dash mount. I should clarify... I need a dash mount with a surface of about 1-inch diameter that uses 3M tape. While some of these suction cups may work on a dash, they are typically 2-3 inches in diameter, and that won't fit anywhere on my dash, and I refuse to use the windshield as it would ruin my visibility/safety.
Right now I am experimenting with a DIY solution that cost me about $20 total. I can share details after I am done, and I may even make a Youtube video. Will then do some performance runs to see charge rates. It might be that I am satisfied with no gain, but no loss either. The thing I like about the DIY solution I am building is that it's modularized so I can remove the Qi charger and revert back to my current setup of magnet + wired fast charge, if and when I need that...

Finally I bought the AirDock myself. I am using it with the CD mount.
I use it with GPS nav and spotify music streamed via bluetooth to car stereo. By using the wireless charging it usually keeps the battery stable, it might move by couple percent up or down, depends on the trip length.

Great review. I was considering Air Dock for a long time

USB C Magnetic Charger port adapter...

I am looking into purchasing a Magnetic USB C charger adapter like the ones in the links below.
has anyone had any exposure to using these on their honor 8 or other phones?
is it a waste of my money or a good investment to preserve the charger port?
Magnetic Charger

IMO, waste of money, especially since Type C appears to be a more robust port than it's micro predecessor was. Also the cable may not handle voltage regulation properly which would result in a fried device.

Telperion said:
IMO, waste of money, especially since Type C appears to be a more robust port than it's micro predecessor was. Also the cable may not handle voltage regulation properly which would result in a fried device.
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Good point there on the voltage issues. I'm also a little concerned on how it will function with a case on it as well.
This device seems to be built very tough​.
I've had several Samsung devices in the past few years and every one of them had charger port weakness.

There are a few cons with cable such as those
1-lower charging rate
2-might not fit case cutout
3-finicky connection-it breaks away easily which is good cuz it a safety feature but attaching it is not that easy.
My experience with wsken xmini. Currently using it for tablets only as its safer for my kids. Wsken have a new rounded design that supposedly easier to connect, but still waiting for discount b4 purchasing.

I'm using exactly the same one. I really like but it this cable isn't a data cable. But I'm satisfied with the product

How are these possibly being looked at as a waste of money? Neighbor's kid running through your house and tripping over your charging cable ripping it out of the bottom of your phone leaving your phone safely still remaining on top of the table rather than crashing to the hardwood floor sounds a lot better than your phone crashing to the floor/wall.

Our phone are light enough that they will drag before it disconnects. I use it cause my niece usually yanks the tablet while it is charging.

Magnetic Qi car mount?

I know there's about three threads on the general subject, but didn't want to resurrect something that's only similar from 3 months ago and thread jack.
Simply put, I am looking for a magnetic mount wireless charger for the car. I'm a delivery driver and need to be able to just grab my phone and jump out of the car and not asshole with waiting for it to automatically release my phone or pushing a button to release the phone, etc.

Волк said:
I know there's about three threads on the general subject, but didn't want to resurrect something that's only similar from 3 months ago and thread jack.
Simply put, I am looking for a magnetic mount wireless charger for the car. I'm a delivery driver and need to be able to just grab my phone and jump out of the car and not asshole with waiting for it to automatically release my phone or pushing a button to release the phone, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have been using a Scosche MagicMount Pro Charge for the last few months but it's been spotty at best. The magnets seemed like they were too close to the charging coil so the placement was very finicky for me. If it did charge, it would get too hot and would throttle down. This was with a dedicated AC vent blowing cool air on it. In the end, the heat didn't seem worth it for me. Not sure if their newer MagicMount3 is any better, but I don't really wanna throw down the money to try out something that might end up with the same results.

(TL;DR) In short, they exist, but as a concept, they really just don't work well. Here's a link to one anyway: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CXV4RXQ that I mention later on. It appears to be the same, or similar to the one tysj mentioned, so, it may or may not work, it really depends on the positioning of the magnets.
Thing is, like tysj found out the hard way, it's not really something that can be done (effectively, anyway), because as you probably know, Qi charging isn't magic. It's inductive charging. (Keep in mind this is a simplified explanation, it's actually a bit more complicated than this, it uses inductive resonance charging which has a bit more to it allowing it to be more efficient and have a longer range, but at the base it's still an inductive charger, just with a capacitor to set the resonant frequency and range with peak efficiency) Meaning, the charger is running electricity (AC) through its coil, which creates a changing magnetic field, which induces an electric current (AC) in the coil in the device you're charging (it's converted to DC before it charges your battery.)
Essentially, it goes (Wall AC) -> DC (wall-wart/car) -> AC -> coil -> changing magnetic field -> coil -> AC -> DC
So, placing a pair of permanent magnets in the middle of this, right where the changing magnetic field needs to be, only serves to block the ability for the charger to change the magnetic field, which it tries to compensate for by putting more power through its coil. Let's just say that in a fight between the coil and a permanent magnet strong enough to hold up your phone, the coil loses, as it is no where strong enough to change the magnetic field of the magnet. While the charging coil's magnetic field and that of the magnets may, in places, be shaped in such a way to allow some of the chargers coil's magnetic field to reach the device coil if precisely positioned, most wont, and the permanent magnets will just further resist any changing magnetic fields in the device coil.
It could possibly be done with very careful and precise positioning of magnets, like this one from Amazon.com, for instance, although based on reviews (and tysj's reply) I'm unsure of how well it will work, and it certainly depends a LOT on where you put the magnets on your phone/in the case. That's a link with no referral code, and no tracking info, I always strip them when sharing, as a courtesy just the link. Since the location of the coil in the phone isn't standardized, it's hard to say. I'm not an electrical engineer (so there are most likely errors in here), so I honestly couldn't tell you. But as someone who has a (very) basic understanding of electromagnetism, including induction, this is really not a good idea.
In the past, I had a magnet in my phone's case for just that reason, and trying to use the wireless charger just created heat, and didn't really charge the device. And that was without a magnet on the charger, too.
If you want to read up on how inductive charging (including Qi) works, the Wikipedia article is pretty good. Wikipedia: Inductive Charging
I know you said that you
need to be able to just grab my phone and jump out of the car and not asshole with waiting for it to automatically release my phone or pushing a button to release the phone, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
but, given the above, I strongly suggest a Qi mount with an automatic grip for essentially the same functionality, but in a way that actually works. Look around for something quick. I'm unsure if I would recommend the Scosche magnetic one above, just due to how you would need to get the magnet placement nearly perfect. It might be worth a try, if it doesn't work you can always return it.
Something like this one on Amazon.com (there are many different designs like it, this is just an example.) It uses an IR sensor to detect when your phone approaches, then opens, and closes once its on the stand, then it releases by touching a button. It's not quite as easy as a magnetic mount, but at least it'll wirelessly charge.
Either that, or use a magnetic mount and a charging cable.
If you do end up buying a Scosche one, do let us know how it works out.
There's also one that requires a certain case to use, so I imagine there might be more of those. IMHO those are more likely to consistently work, as the magnets are pre-placed in the exact position needed and in a way that wont get in the way of the coils.
Good luck!

Pitaka MagEZ case and their magnetic wireless charger for car, works nice for me

DeeZZ_NuuZZ said:
Pitaka MagEZ case and their magnetic wireless charger for car, works nice for me
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Glad that Pitaka is finally making a magnetic case for the Pixel 4. I got tired of waiting for them, so I just bought a generic carbon fiber case and used these metal tabs https://www.moshi.com/en/product/snapto-tabs/gray. You can line them up perfectly to work with the Pitaka wireless charger or probably any other charger. The company that makes the tabs also sell a wireless charger.
Does your Pitaka charger activate fast charging on the PIxel? I have the older version of the charger and it charges slowly.

slicck said:
Glad that Pitaka is finally making a magnetic case for the Pixel 4. I got tired of waiting for them, so I just bought a generic carbon fiber case and used these metal tabs https://www.moshi.com/en/product/snapto-tabs/gray. You can line them up perfectly to work with the Pitaka wireless charger or probably any other charger. The company that makes the tabs also sell a wireless charger.
Does your Pitaka charger activate fast charging on the PIxel? I have the older version of the charger and it charges slowly.
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It seems to charge slow, need to use ampere and see how much exactly.
Which case did you got and which charger to have fast charging?

Max I got with pitaka is 560ma or so, gonna send it back and get another charger which really gives 10w... Sadly, it is nice but slow charging

Волк said:
I know there's about three threads on the general subject, but didn't want to resurrect something that's only similar from 3 months ago and thread jack.
Simply put, I am looking for a magnetic mount wireless charger for the car. I'm a delivery driver and need to be able to just grab my phone and jump out of the car and not asshole with waiting for it to automatically release my phone or pushing a button to release the phone, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you looked at the gravity type of holder? They have bottom fingers that when pushed down close the sides of the holder. So you can put your phone in and out without waiting. I tried one once and it worked until the vehicle went over a big bump - the phone went up, the sides opened and then... well, you can imagine. Not fun while highway driving. I only tried one (I don't remember the model) so there may be others that would give better results, at least for your use case.

For some reason I haven't gotten notifications that people have been commenting, only just today that somebody quoted me.
After a couple of other tries and no success, I went with the scosche magic Mount 3. The maintenance are probably far enough out away from the coil that there's little interference to the actual induction. Seems to work well, I want to say 1300 or 1600 mAh. Obviously not as good as a word connection, but decent nonetheless. Keep having trouble with the cables connecting in the USBC port as well, so wireless charging is a must for the car.
As for heat, it's a tough call. I'm in SoCal, so I actually have to put a towel over the mount while at work so it isn't a fireball when I am done working.
I did notice on the lock screen that it will sometimes tell me to adjust the alignment for better charging.
Ironically I fell into a new job and now it's more because of cable or port dero rather than speed, lol.

Волк said:
For some reason I haven't gotten notifications that people have been commenting, only just today that somebody quoted me.
After a couple of other tries and no success, I went with the scosche magic Mount 3. The maintenance are probably far enough out away from the coil that there's little interference to the actual induction. Seems to work well, I want to say 1300 or 1600 mAh. Obviously not as good as a word connection, but decent nonetheless. Keep having trouble with the cables connecting in the USBC port as well, so wireless charging is a must for the car.
As for heat, it's a tough call. I'm in SoCal, so I actually have to put a towel over the mount while at work so it isn't a fireball when I am done working.
I did notice on the lock screen that it will sometimes tell me to adjust the alignment for better charging.
Ironically I fell into a new job and now it's more because of cable or port dero rather than speed, lol.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks.
Yea I ordered another one to test, also reached out to pitaka support. Gonna try few things and report back.
Another cable and another adaptor with qc3 charging

bdt1995 said:
(TL;DR) In short, they exist, but as a concept, they really just don't work well. Here's a link to one anyway: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CXV4RXQ that I mention later on. It appears to be the same, or similar to the one tysj mentioned, so, it may or may not work, it really depends on the positioning of the magnets.
Thing is, like tysj found out the hard way, it's not really something that can be done (effectively, anyway), because as you probably know, Qi charging isn't magic. It's inductive charging. (Keep in mind this is a simplified explanation, it's actually a bit more complicated than this, it uses inductive resonance charging which has a bit more to it allowing it to be more efficient and have a longer range, but at the base it's still an inductive charger, just with a capacitor to set the resonant frequency and range with peak efficiency) Meaning, the charger is running electricity (AC) through its coil, which creates a changing magnetic field, which induces an electric current (AC) in the coil in the device you're charging (it's converted to DC before it charges your battery.)
Essentially, it goes (Wall AC) -> DC (wall-wart/car) -> AC -> coil -> changing magnetic field -> coil -> AC -> DC
So, placing a pair of permanent magnets in the middle of this, right where the changing magnetic field needs to be, only serves to block the ability for the charger to change the magnetic field, which it tries to compensate for by putting more power through its coil. Let's just say that in a fight between the coil and a permanent magnet strong enough to hold up your phone, the coil loses, as it is no where strong enough to change the magnetic field of the magnet. While the charging coil's magnetic field and that of the magnets may, in places, be shaped in such a way to allow some of the chargers coil's magnetic field to reach the device coil if precisely positioned, most wont, and the permanent magnets will just further resist any changing magnetic fields in the device coil.
It could possibly be done with very careful and precise positioning of magnets, like this one from Amazon.com, for instance, although based on reviews (and tysj's reply) I'm unsure of how well it will work, and it certainly depends a LOT on where you put the magnets on your phone/in the case. That's a link with no referral code, and no tracking info, I always strip them when sharing, as a courtesy just the link. Since the location of the coil in the phone isn't standardized, it's hard to say. I'm not an electrical engineer (so there are most likely errors in here), so I honestly couldn't tell you. But as someone who has a (very) basic understanding of electromagnetism, including induction, this is really not a good idea.
In the past, I had a magnet in my phone's case for just that reason, and trying to use the wireless charger just created heat, and didn't really charge the device. And that was without a magnet on the charger, too.
If you want to read up on how inductive charging (including Qi) works, the Wikipedia article is pretty good. Wikipedia: Inductive Charging
I know you said that you but, given the above, I strongly suggest a Qi mount with an automatic grip for essentially the same functionality, but in a way that actually works. Look around for something quick. I'm unsure if I would recommend the Scosche magnetic one above, just due to how you would need to get the magnet placement nearly perfect. It might be worth a try, if it doesn't work you can always return it.
Something like this one on Amazon.com (there are many different designs like it, this is just an example.) It uses an IR sensor to detect when your phone approaches, then opens, and closes once its on the stand, then it releases by touching a button. It's not quite as easy as a magnetic mount, but at least it'll wirelessly charge.
Either that, or use a magnetic mount and a charging cable.
If you do end up buying a Scosche one, do let us know how it works out.
There's also one that requires a certain case to use, so I imagine there might be more of those. IMHO those are more likely to consistently work, as the magnets are pre-placed in the exact position needed and in a way that wont get in the way of the coils.
Good luck!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Very good explanation and as an electrical engineer you were right on the spot. Even if there are engineered magnets to have their magnetic field so that I would not interfere with the charging field(almost impossible for generic device since the filed is mostly unpredictable as it's based on quality of charging current, quality of the charging pad and a lot other things) I would not let magnets strong enough to hold the phone near it as it is not engineered to hold to a strong magnetic field near for a long periods of time. For instance it could (not saying that it would ) interfere with the lte signal causing the modem basically to boost the signal to the max - leading to more energy, more heat and more wear and tear. Honestly there so much things that could go wrong just because of that magnet that I would just not risk it. Usually the hardware is shielded enough but there's the not direct influence on the hardware through the signal interference (the same way with the charging coil and the massive heat). Actually that's a good way to burn your charging pad especially if it doesn't have any limiters build in.