Our watch store guide to the best chargers while Apple's MIA AirPower eventually, maybe (one day???) arrives. Photo: ZENS
With new Apple products released almost everyday last week, the anticipation for AirPower’s long-awaited launch has reached an all-time high. However, will Apple actually deliver this time around? Rumors a-plenty have teased us for long enough.
Save your heartache and pining and opt for tons of great chargers with our speedy Watch Store guide. Your perfect match is just a click away.
Make sure you stick around for the very end of our list. We saved the best of last.
We've rounded up three pocket-sized gadgets that won't empty your wallet. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
Some of the coolest tech gear is also the smallest, and the same goes for the price tag. So we’ve rounded up some of the biggest deals on the most compact gear and gadgets in the Cult of Mac Store. We’ve got a keychain-sized breathalyzer, a micro iPhone charger, and more. Read on for more details.
This iPhone wall charger folds up to fit in your pocket or on your keychain. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
Having an iPhone is convenient — until you need to charge it. The standard charging brick and Lightning cable combo means you’ve gotta make space in your bag to travel with the phone in your pocket.
Zens' Powerbank charges an iPhone and Apple Watch simultaneously. Photo: Zens
When traveling, if you forget your charger, you’re often hosed. Especially for the Apple Watch. That’s why I keep a Zens Powerbank battery pack in my bag. The Powerbank features a built-in charger for the Apple Watch, plus a USB port for plugging an iPhone or iPad.
It’s light and easy to carry around, yet has enough juice for recharging an Apple Watch almost 12 times. Best yet, the Zens Powerbank battery pack is available now in Cult of Mac’sWatch Store.
Recharge your iPad and iPhone simultaneously with the mophie Powerstation Plus XL. It even has a built-in Lightning connector and port. Photo: mophie
External batteries are widely available but surprisingly few of them are really designed with Apple users in mind. That’s because all too many require a microUSB cable to get power. The mophie Powerstation Plus XL is a rare exception.
It’s recharged through a built-in Lightning port. The new accessory has a Lighting connector on a built-in cable too. If that wasn’t enough, it can be wirelessly recharged.
Logitech's new wireless iPhone charger eliminates the heartbreaking overnight nudge. Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac
Having a wireless charging pad on my nightstand means never having to fish around in the dark for a Lightning cable plugged into the wall. However, there’s a tradeoff: Switching to wireless charging also means I’ve awakened to a nearly drained iPhone more often than ever before.
Well, help is on the way for this admittedly first-world problem. The new Logitech Powered Wireless Charger eliminates the main drawback I’ve found when it comes to charging my iPhone wirelessly.
The WiDuo is specifically designed to blend in with Apple's minimally-designed products. Photo: Wiplabs
For lovers of versatility, and Apple gear, I bring you a two-in-one charging solution for iPhone and Apple Watch. Who doesn’t enjoy a twofer?
The WiDuo by Wiplabs is a beautifully minimalist charging pad that provides up to 20 percent faster charging that many of its wireless competitors. And, it’s cute and sleek to boot. Pop it in a bag or briefcase for on-the-go charging.
The FuelBox PowerStation has built-in cables, a pair of AC outlets and a mobile battery pack. Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac
Best List: FuelBox, a home and mobile charging system
There’s a secret magician lurking in our household. We never see them, but they somehow manage to disappear all our charging cables. It drives me batty. The kids, of course, deny any knowledge of the situation. Yet somehow it’s impossible to keep cables around the house. They just keep disappearing.
That’s why I like the FuelBox PowerStation, a charging system that combines a docking station/charging brick with a mobile battery pack. Both the docking station and the battery pack have built-in charging cables — both Lightning and mini-USB. No matter what, the cables can’t disappear.
Make your phone and your home complimentary with this roundup of awesome accessories. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
Own an iPhone? Live in a house or apartment? Then you’ve got a match made in heaven. The two can work in harmony, if you have the right accessories. So we’ve rounded up some of the coolest peripherals for bringing your home and phone together, including a wireless charging kit, a robotic vacuum cleaner, a Bluetooth audio hub, and more. Some of these are discounted by more than half off, so read on for more details:
Ugreen's magnetic charging station for the Apple Watch. Photo: Lyle Kahney/Cult of Mac
Let’s get the obvious out of the way first: When it’s standing there all by itself, the Ugreen Apple Watch Charger Stand looks like a giant joystick. For me, it triggered an instant flashback to the ’80s and the golden years of gaming.
That nostalgic blast wasn’t necessarily a positive, though: I didn’t find the Ugreen Apple Watch charger’s design instantly appealing. In fact, it was almost game over before I even gave it a try. I’m glad I did, because it’s ultimately a handy little charging hub.
These three versatile, tough new charging options show that the Lightning cable has evolved. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
Considering how much we rely on and use various cables to connect and charge up our devices, it’s high time they learn to keep up. These three new, rugged and highly adaptable cables from Nomad represent a step in the right direction.
From a PVC-jacketed cable to a built-in battery and a universal interface for any connection type, these next-gen cables are well worth checking out.
3 outlets and 4 USB ports make this travel-friendly power strip a comprehensive charging solution. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
The more we rely on our digital devices, the more chances there are to run out of juice at just the wrong moment. But the essential charging gadgets in this roundup can meet anyone’s thirst for power.
They include a portable, surge-protected strip with USB and standard outlets, a five-port dock that organizes your gizmos while they charge, a trio of extra-long, MFi-certified Lightning cables, and a wireless charging hub for Apple Watch and three other devices. Read on to learn more:
The Valet Charger solves a first-world problem: Keeping your Apple Watch elegantly charged on the go. Photo: Belkin
If you’re traveling with your Apple Watch and desperately want to eliminate a cable from your bag, Belkin’s new Valet Charger power pack could do the trick.
With its built-in round magnetic charging module, this 6,700mAh battery pack lets you jettison the single-use cable that comes with every Apple Watch.
PowerHouse Charge Dock for Apple Watch and iPhone includes a built-in Magnetic Charging Module for Apple Watch.
Photo: Lyle Kahney/Cult of Mac
If you’re an Apple Watch and iPhone owner, there’s a good chance you suffer from cluttered-nightstand syndrome. There’s only so much surface space on your standard bedside table, and plugging in multiple devices for overnight charging can mean a tangle of wires and general disarray.
The Belkin PowerHouse charging dock, which juices up an iPhone and an Apple Watch at the same time, will cure you instantly of this 21st-century malady.
Udoq's docking station is compatible with just about any mobile device. Photo: Lyle Kahney
Best List: Udoq universal charging stand
There’s a constant war in our house for charging bricks and cables. I like to keep chargers in certain places so I know where they are — beside the bed for example. But they constantly disappear, thanks to my light-fingered kids.
It drives me bananas, which is why I like the Udoq, a universal charging stand that neatly organizes and charges between two and eight devices. It can’t be easily half-inched.
The ZENS Power Bank for the Apple Watch and iPhone. Photo: ZENS
Our Apple devices are designed, in part, to make our lives easier. But the chargers they come with add a burden. Tangled cords and bulk become nuisance cargo in our bags and that’s if you don’t lose track of one of your chargers.
The Dutch company ZENS has prided itself for the last five years on cutting our cords and its latest wireless power bank offers an Apple MFi certified one-stop charging solution for the Apple Watch and the iPhone or iPad.
When Iron Man charges his iPhone, he probably uses one of Armour’s Lightning cables. These sleek, steel-lined, MFi-certified, charging devices are built to last. In fact, they come with a limited lifetime warranty, making them the last Lightning chargers you’ll ever need to buy. Right now they’re going at a big discount, so take a look and upgrade your charging game.
Give your phone a jump-start with the JumPack. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
JumPack Power Pack CPP 8000 by Cobra
If you’re anything like me, you carry a ton of gadgets. Keeping them all charged is a juggling act and, inevitably, there’s always one device I’ve neglected to keep juiced.
Coming to my rescue though, Cobra sent over a JumPack Power Pack to charge up all my devices. Plus, it comes with an extra trick up its sleeve.
I'd rather pack one of these than three bricks, personally, but I'm crazy. Photo: Evan Killham/Cult of Mac
Best List: iClever BoostCube 3-port wall charger
I have a bit of an embarrassing problem: Part of my device-charging setup in my bedroom includes a power strip that sits on the floor next to my bed. It isn’t the worst thing ever, but it’s ugly, and sometimes I trip over it. But I may have found a solution in the 3-port iClever BoostCube. It will save my pride, and some space in my bag when I travel, and that’s just good news all around.
Plus, the ports glow an eerie blue when it’s plugged in, and that’s really cool-looking.
Wall charger, battery pack, iPhone case all stacked up and ready to go. Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac
Best List: Wireless iPhone Charging System by Stacked
If there’s one thing I can never have enough of, it’s power for my iPhone. Even on normal, about-town sort of days, I’m always looking for ways to keep the battery topped off, in case I need it for something power-intensive later on. I carry around external chargers like some people carry around ChapStick and tissue, and I’ve always got a spare cable to share. All of that stuff can add up to a ball of wires and plugs, making for a nasty mess in my backpack.
I’ve long wanted an easier, wire-free charging existence, and that’s where the Stacked iPhone charging case comes in. It’s a clever system that’s a truly wireless solution to keeping my iPhone at the top end of the charged-up spectrum.
The flush-mount reVOLT car charger tidies up any dashboard. Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac
My truck’s getting up in years and lacks many of the conveniences of a late-model vehicle. Forget about an in-dash touchscreen monitor — it doesn’t even have a USB port.
That means I’m stuck using a cigarette lighter adapter to charge my iPhone (which serves as my GPS on many trips). I’ve tried and enjoyed Gosin’s four-port charger, which is awesome for those rare times I’ve got a handful of devices to juice up, but that portly wonder juts out fairly far into the truck’s cabin. Like my truck itself, it is functional but slightly unsightly.
And then there’s the svelte Scosche reVolt dual car charger. Its disarming good looks have ruined me.
More of the things we can’t leave home without have batteries. That means a greater chance for frustration over forgotten chargers and occupied wall outlets, but it doesn’t have to be that way. We’ve found a charger for every situation, and almost any budget.
The STACK PACK takes the cord out of charging your iPhone. Photo: STACKED
We are wireless, but not quite wire-free. One company wants to help iPhone users cut a couple of cords with a magnetic charging solution called the STACK PACK.
It’s all capital letters for a product that sounds more like workout vitamins. The STACK PACK promises to pack just as much power as that soon-to-be obsolete charging cord — except with shorter charging times and a satisfying feeling as your iPhone magnetically clicks onto a battery or charger.