I love my 5G iPod, it’s a life savor on long subway rides. However, its 2 hour
battery life for video playback just doesn’t cut it when Iâm traveling from
Manhattan to Brooklyn and back. The battery never fails to run out on my way
home. There have been many days when I would have to monitor how much I used my
ipod during the course of the day, so that I could conserve battery
power for relaxing while watching videos on my way home.
Along came the Volta
which promised to give 5G ipods an extra three cycles of battery time.
Measuring 2" x 4.4" x 1", the Volta has a very slim profile about the same
thickness as the 30gb ipod but it is a bit taller and a little less wider then
the ipod. The volta is also pretty light and doesnât add too much weight to your
ipod.
Sonnet’s Volta comes with a belt clip so that you can charge your ipod
and wear it at the same time. The belt clip easily slips on and off of the
Volta, yet still holds your ipod securely. The belt clip is a nice bonus, but
personally I wouldn’t wear it and imagine that many ladies wouldn’t either. The
Volta also comes with a matching black USB 2.0 to dock connector cable. We like
that the included cable isn’t white like the standard version that comes with
the ipod which tends to get filthy very easily.
The Voltaâs power
button is on the back of its base, push it down and the Volta is turned on and
ready to charge up your ipod. The Volta has 4 helpful LEDs on the front of its
base which indicate its power status. The red light on the left lights up to
indicate that the Volta is in the midst of charging, while the three green
lights on the right light up to reflect how much power is currently left in the
Volta. Thus three lights indicate that 75-100% of charge remains; two lights
indicate that 40-74% of charge remains, and so on.
We tested the Volta
using a 10 month old 5G 30GB ipod. I charged the Volta through several cycles
and then used the Volta to charge the ipod. Volta claims to be able to charge
your iPod up to 3 times from just one single charge, and these claims deemed
true. We are impressed since many companies often fall short on their promises
whenever it has to do with battery life. If you have one of the newer iPods
which boast an even longer battery life, the Volta should add an additional 3x
to it as well. So if you have the latest 30GB version which has a 3.5 hour
battery life for video playback, that ipod fully charged, combined with the Volta fully charged
could have a total video playback battery life of about 14 hours. And keep in mind that the
Volta works with the 5G 60GB ipods as well. Of course, if you’re using the ipod
for just audio playback or both video and audio playback, the Volta should add 3x of battery life.
However, I tested the Volta primarily with its Video playback battery life since we think that
that is what people will find the Volta most useful for since the ipodâs
stand-alone battery life for audio is good enough for most.
The Volta
also functions as a charging dock on which your ipod sits upright. I’ve been
using it as a dock on my desk, this design is also convenient for watching
videos on the ipod without having to hold it in your hands the whole time. Our only gripe with the Volta is that it is somewhat pricey at
$69.95. However, to be fair most other rechargeable battery packs for the ipod
are comparatively priced. Overall, I am very satisfied with the Volta Rechargeable Battery Pack and I
don’t plan on traveling with out it. – Helena Stone
Conclusion
The Good:
Slim Profile,
Charges iPod up to 3 times
The Bad:
Somewhat pricey
