Review: IOGear Mobile Power Station was ultimate CES life-saver

The short battery life that accompanies our Android smartphones can be one of the biggest everyday frustrations. Users have opted to use multiple and extended batteries or plug themselves to a power outlet as often as possible. Another great solution for this issue is to buy a handy portable battery charger. The IOGear GearPower High Capacity Mobile Power Station (Amazon link posted below) happens to be one of the best (and most affordable) options available.

We thought the best test for any portable charger would be CES, since attendees spend most of the time outdoors. Whether it be on the showfloor or at any of the other events, those 4G LTE smartphones are bound to die off in the middle of the day.

After carrying multiple portable charging devices, the IOGEAR Mobile Power Station was definitely the one that stood out from the crowd. Some of the other ones were a bit smaller, but were not even worth carrying around, as they barely tickled our devices’ batteries. Others were simply not as efficient, so I decided to carry this one as my sole alternative charging unit.

Everything went great throughout CES, and I managed to never run out of battery without using a single power outlet at the convention center. This bad boy holds a 6,600 mAh battery and has two ports, which allows you to charge a couple of devices simultaneously. The charging station is also not as large and heavy as some of the competing portable chargers.

It’s definitely not the smallest, but this device does have the advantage of featuring 2 USB charging ports. One of them is a 2.1 amp charging port while the other one charges at 1 amp. The 2.1 A USB port is meant for more power-hungry devices, but you can also use it for the little guys. It simply affects the speed at which the device is being charged.

While its 6,600 mAh battery can charge the average smartphone 3-4 times, it does not perform as well in the real world. This would be the case if the device were turned off while charging, but you usually use a device while plugged to the external battery. I am usually able to charge my HTC Thunderbolt about twice while using it (with 4G LTE).

It is important to note that this charger by no means charges your devices as fast as a power outlet would. It usually takes about 4 hours to fully charge the Thunderbolt when plugged in to the 2.1A port (while using it). I am able to completely charge an iPod Nano within half an hour, though (1A port). It all depends on your device and how much juice it eats up.

This IOGear charger is very straight-forward and simple to use, as are most portable chargers. It has one button, a light indicator, a micro USB port for charging the portable battery, and two USB ports for charging your devices. That’s it. And it’s just as simple to operate.

Simply press the button, and the light indicator will let you know how charged your IOGear power station’s battery is (4 blue lights for full battery and 0 for empty). To charge your devices, plug them in to either of the USB ports and press the button to begin juicing up your device(s). When the portable battery dies, plug your micro USB cable/power charger (two pieces) in to the power outlet, and the light indicator will let you know when the device is fully charged.

There is downside, though. The portable charger cannot charge your devices while it is being charged itself. Adding such a feature would have been great, but this is definitely not a deal breaker. If you’re charging the battery, you’re probably near a power outlet, anyway. But let’s take a look at the good and the bad:

Large battery – 6,600 mAh2 USB ports – 2.1A and 1AEasy to useVery portable, considering its functionality (3.5×4.4×0.6 inches ; 7.2 ounces)Can’t charge portable battery and devices simultaneouslyCharging speed is much slower than a power outlet (but not horrible, either)

The pros definitely overshadow the cons with this product. It’s definitely one of the best portable chargers we’ve seen. And for its price, it’s quite a no-brainer if you’re looking to extend your battery life. This device goes for a mere $42.24 at Amazon, and it ships for free with Super Saver Shipping.

It is small enough to carry around in your bag or in a larger pocket. I usually wear cargo pants/shorts, so I would just stick this charger on one of the lower pockets with a cable coming up to my regular side pocket (where my phone would be). You can easily stick both in a bag or back pack, though, if you’re not into wearing cables.

We would recommend the IOGear Mobile Power Station to anyone in the market for a portable charger. Be sure to take a look at it before making your decision. There are more images, as well as a video, posted below. Go ahead and take a look at it for more details, and long live our batteries!

Would you guys get one of these for a bit over $42? (Amazon link is right below if you are interested). If you currently use another of these devices, do you think it is better? Which one is it?

Amazon link: IOGear GearPower High Capacity Mobile Power Station

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T-Mobile Huawei Springboard Review

Huawei is one of the lesser known brands in the U.S., but things are starting to change. A few months ago they released the Springboard on T-Mobile which is essentially the MediaPad. I still don’t see a big market for tablets with 3G/4G connectivity, but if you’re looking for such a device and a T-Mobile customer, you have two choices – The Springboard or the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus. As of the time of this writing, The Springboard is priced at $249 on contract while the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus is $299. This is my full review, but you can also checkout my initial hands on video and Joe Sirianni’s review of the Galaxy Tab 7.0.

Design

The Springboard is a really nice compact tablet at only 7-inches, and I find the smaller tablets are nicer to hold. The front bezel is in black while the back side is silver and white. One white section holds the rear camera lens while the other section opens for the SIM card and microUSB card. When comparing it to the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus, the Springboard is a little thicker and heavier. The Springboard comes in at 10.41mm thick and weighs 399 grams while the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus comes in at 9.96mm and only weighs 345 grams. That’s an obvious win by Samsung. As to the build quality, the Springboard feels solid in the hand.

Hardware

The Springboard features a 7-inch (1280 x 800) TFT display with IPS, a 1.2GHz Qualcomm MSM8260 dual-core processor, 1GB RAM, 16GB internal storage, microSD slot for up to 32GB of extra storage, 5MP rear camera with 720p video recording, 1.3MP front camera, micro HDMI, WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1, and T-Mobile 4G at 14.4/Mbps.

Battery

The Springboard has a 4100mAh battery that’s rated to last 7 hours with continuous use. I was able to get all of that with continuous video and games. In normal use, you should get 2 to 3 days on one charge.

Performance

Performance is okay. The AnTuTu Benchmark came in at 5519 which puts it below both the Samsung Galaxy S II and the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus. For whatever reason the browser did seem slower than most devices, and I did experience a couple of random reboots as well. I would rate the overall performance as average.

Software

The Springboard comes with Android 3.2 Honeycomb and other than bloarware, it is pretty much stock. The good news is that Ice Cream Sandwich could land sometime soon. It comes with Swype as the default keyboard out of the box, but you can utilize the basic keyboard which was adequate. The Springboard does include some T-Mobile bloatware which includes the MobileLife Calendar, Shopping List, and To Do List. The other bloatware consists of Lookout Security, T-Mobile Get Web Now, Blio eReader, Blockbuster, Netflix, Slacker, Quickoffice, T-Mobile TV, Talk To Me Classic, and TeleNav GPS Navigator.

It also forced me to install Hi Suite in order to transfer files to and from my computer which was a little annoying. I was never able to get it to work right, but it does offer the option to connect via WiFi as well which is nice. I’m sure the software works, I just didn’t have the patience to mess with it.

The software, although clean of UI enhancements, seemed slow and buggy at times. For example, there were a few instances in which I hit the task manager button, but nothing came up. Also, as previous mentioned I had more than a few random reboots.

Camera

Rear camera’s on tablets seem to be a waste, but then again, if you’re in a pinch I guess it’s not bad that the manufacturer’s include them. The Springboard’s camera isn’t going to wow you so don’t leave your point and shoot or DSLR at home. However, if you do find that it’s the only camera you have in a particular situation, it will get the job done. One issue, other than picture quality, is the lens is right smack in the back middle top like most phones, but with a larger form factor, its natural to hold the Springboard in the middle left side when holding it in portrait mode. The problem is that your fingers might get in the way of the lens. Not a huge issue, because you shouldn’t be taking many photos with it anyway. Here’s some example photos:

Closing:

The Springboard isn’t cheap when you consider the price is based on a two year contract. If you really feel you need a tablet with 4G data, than you might be better off with the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus. It wins in most categories except two: The display resolution, which is 1024 x 600, and the rear camera, which is at 3MP. As to the resolution it’s a small drop when you consider that the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus is thinner, lighter, and made from a more proven manufacturer. As to the camera, I already mentioned what I feel about rear cameras in tablets. One could argue that the front camera is actually worthwhile and the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus wins with the 2MP shooter as opposed to 1.3MP for the Springboard. Last but not least, the Springboard seemed a little buggy with random reboots, certain functions not working or delayed responses. My opinion is to go with the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus.

» See more articles by Robert Nazarian

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