Road testing some MOPHIE products

Road testing some MOPHIE products

There’s nothing worse than running out of power when you’re a prolific mobile phone user. And living in New Zealand, it has to be said, there’s more chance of that happening as the summer months come up – you’re on the beach, you’re out tramping, you’re off out from the bach etc etc.

So, it’s almost as if Mophie have planned for that with a range of products aimed at ensuring you’re not without power while on the road. From a Powerbag backpack which covers all manner of charging options for your Apple devices to a simple power charging casing which fits around the phone, there’s certainly enough to keep you juiced up and on the go.

I had the chance to test drive some of the Mophie products – for the iPhone 4s – there was a camera around as well (the Olloclip) but as I don’t have an iPhone 5, I couldn’t road test that but I did see it in action.

The Mophie Juice Pack starts off at around $99.95 and takes the form of a case shell that splits and fits around your iPhone 4s. The top third sits around the top of your phone – and isn’t too deep to ensure that you’ve got access to the off button and headphones jack. The second larger third houses the power plug in for the base of the iPhone and feels a little weightier. Ergonomically designed, the pack fits snugly around the phone and finds the base really where the key action is for this. A switch on the left hand side operates the charge – and a micro hole on the right accommodates the USB charge for the battery pack. This can be charged on a computer or plugged into a wall; it took around 4 hours to fully charge the base pack so it’s ready to go. 

On the base, there are 4 LED lights and a button; pressing this button reveals how much charge currently sits in the pack – the higher the lights, the more juice in there to go. Mophie says the pack will give the phone an essential double battery life if you fire it up after the phone’s battery’s dropped to around 20% - and to be honest, it really does appear to be that way, with the options being to let your phone run down and then flick the charge on. 

Essentially, that way, you’re left with alternating charges – thanks to the ease of the slip on and slip off of the case, you can always have one charging ready to go. There’s no residual heat emanating from the pack as I could feel when it was in my pocket; perhaps the only issue is that it makes the phone slightly heavier to hold, but to be frank, if you’re able to avoid the frustration of switching and powering off when the phone’s low, that’s a small sacrifice to make.

The action camera case, aka The Outride is going to be a hit in the extreme sports sector that we live in, particularly with summer just around the corner.

With bars and attachments, it can be fitted to the top of anything and set going while you're out and about - so if you want to record an awesome trail ride or are heading off into the wilds unknown, it's a smart piece of little kit to use. The major thing about it though is that it severely limits the functionality of the phone - basically, it means the phone is just there as a recording device and can't really be used for calls, incoming or outgoing.

The case itself is extremely snug fitting and tight; it's actually quite difficult to get into - and after a bit of fumbling, you can get your phone strapped down and ready to go. That's a good thing though because it's likely to protect the phone as you negotiate all manner of terrain. The wide angle lens helps capture the world around you - certainly, I tried buffeting it around and found it quite good at dealing with the shocks , proving solid point-of-view recording, which was light in handling and gave me options to adjust if I needed to. Not once did I see any sign of slipping at all and I think given the passion for extreme sports here, this could be a boon to those who want to either capture a gnarly ride or are keen just to capture the moments when alfresco to enjoy again.

If you want to find out more about the MOPHIE products, head over to their website http://www.mophie.com/