• accessories,  iphone 14,  mophie

    iPhone 14 Pro Max and Mophie Wireless Charging Pad Problem

    Mophie’s 2017 Qi charger has a size problem with the iPhone 14 Pro Max camera array

    One of the marque features of this year’s iPhone 14 Pro Max is the new 48MP camera system. And with larger sensors, there must also come a larger camera plateau on the back of the iPhone.

    Here’s the rub: with the larger camera array, the iPhone can no longer just be placed on the 2017 Mophie Wireless Charging Base.

    I now have to perform a precision alignment procedure to make sure that the iPhone is perfectly aligned with the charging coils in the charger. As you might imagine, when you’re heading off to bed, the last thing you want to do is an intricate charging dance.

    In my experience, I technically still can use my iPhone X era Mophie inductive charging pad, but, day-to-day use, I’ve already miss aligned my iPhone 14 Pro Max twice now. The ridge that protected the cameras on my Apple leather case has to ride up slightly on the edge of the charge pad to start charging. And without magnets in the base, bumping the iPhone while haphazardly dropping my AirPods my nightstand cause disaster in the morning.

    What can be done to fix this? Well, I have a couple of options.

    1. The least expensive option is to take my iPhone out of its case. That should allow for enough clearance between the camera area and the charge pad. Life goes on just as it always has.
    2. Another no cost option is to just charge my iPhone at my desk with a MagSafe charger or in the kitchen with (Gasp!) a Lightning cable.
    3. I can get a new fancy 3-in-1 charging station, like the Belkin BoostCharge Pro 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Pad with MagSafe or the Mophie snap+ 3-in-1 wireless charging stand.

    I like option three because it cleans up the wires to charge my iPhone, Series 6 Watch, and my AirPods in a tidy appliance. Comparing the Mobile and the Belkin multi-device charging solutions, I think I prefer the Belkin solution more. With everything lying flat on the night table, there is less of a chance to knock my iPhone to the floor trying to grab my ringing work phone for the occasional overnight work emergency.

    For now, I plan to just charge my iPhone 14 Pro Max, Watch, and AirPods when I need to while sitting at my desk at home or work. While I can make do for now, I can see a Belkin charging accessory in my future.

  • apple,  iphone x,  mophie,  spigen

    Apple iPhone X Launch Day Pre-Party

    IMG_0741
    The toys and my Apple t-shirt are lined up and ready to go!

    In just a few hours, the all new Apple iPhone X will go on sale in the United States.  I’m super pumped.  My Dad is excited, too.  With pre-order reservations ready to go, there are just a few more things that I wanted to get ready for tonight.

    IMG_0740
    A last minute FOMO purchase on iPhone X eve.

    After originally telling myself that I was going to wait to buy the Apple AirPower Mat, I panicked at the last moment and purchased a Mophie Wireless Charging Base, the Spigen iPhone X Screen Protector GLAS.tR Slim HD (Amazon link), and the Apple iPhone X Leather Midnight Blue (aka Grassia Standard Blue) case.

    IMG_0735
    iPhone 7, iPhone X, and iPhone 7 Plus leather cases (left to right).

  • battery,  iphone 6,  iphone 6 plus,  mophie

    Mophie Announces Juice Pack Cases for Apple iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus

    Today, on the second day of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Mophie has announced the new Juice Pack Air and Juice Pack Plus.

    Orange County, Calif., (January 6, 2015) – mophie—the #1 selling mobile battery case in North America(1), and innovator of power and storage solutions for mobile devices—announced today its lineup of protective battery cases for iPhone® 6 and iPhone® 6 Plus. Introducing the juice pack air® for iPhone® 6 (more than 100% extra battery), juice pack plus® for iPhone® 6 (more than 120% extra battery), and juice pack® for iPhone® 6 Plus (more than 60% extra battery).

    Users get up to 17 more hours of talk time, up to 12 more hours of web browsing, up to 13 more hours of video playback, and up to 60 more hours of music playback.

    “Our journey to bring the juice pack to consumers for every generation of iPhone continues with our latest solutions for iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus,” said Daniel Huang, mophie CEO and Co-Founder. “Since release of the original juice pack for the first iPhone, mophie battery cases have become a necessity to legions of smartphone users. Because we understand how vital these solutions are, our team remains intensely focused on quality and the level of innovative design needed to drive the direction of this industry.”

    I’ve been a fan of the Mophie Juice Pack series of batteries since I picked up an iPhone 4S.  The Mophie cases add a lot of utility to your iPhone by adding a spare battery and doing double duty as a durable, handsome looking iPhone case that doesn’t add a lot of bulk.  I’ve been on many an overnight and long weekend trips with my kids and the Juice Pack has kept me charged up and connected to family back home and other team leaders on the trip.

    Any serious iPhone user really needs to have one of these cases.  If you have more than one iDevice that you need to keep charged – say an iPhone 6 and an iPad Air, then I would highly recommend one of Mophie’s PowerStation “universal” batteries.

    The new Juice Pack cases for the Apple iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are expected to begin shipping in about three to four weeks.  You can pre-order your Juice Pack now with prices starting at $99.95 for the iPhone 6 and for the iPhone 6 Plus.

    The full press release is available on the Mophie website.