Chip Chick
Are you tired of untangling messy cables every time you need to charge your phone? Why not eliminate the wires altogether? The Mophie Charge Force case makes it possible to charge your phone simply by setting it down on a charging pad.
At first glance, the Mophie Charge Force case looks like an average phone case, but hidden inside is a very slim piece of tech that receives an electric charge simply by being in close proximity to a wireless charging base. The case works with Qi wireless charging as well as variety of other standards. If you already have a charging pad that uses a compatible standard, it’ll work with the Charge Force case — if not, Mophie has their own that they’d be happy to sell you.
Despite the inclusion of the charging hardware, the Mophie Charge Force case is still rather slim, and with the leather wrap on the back, it feels great to hold. It does add about 1/4″ of extra length at the base to accommodate the Lightning connector, but it’s not too noticeable. In fact, this extension channels the sound from the speakers forward, so you may even notice a slight increase in volume. The mute switch is easy to access and the camera opening is large enough to allow for use with an iPhone 6 or 6S. The volume and power buttons are responsive and easy to press.
The big drawback to the Mophie Charge Force case is that the Lightning connector is not easily accessible. If you are using Bluetooth headphones this won’t be an issue, but it IS an issue if you would like to use wired USB Type-C headphones (or regular ones with an adapter). Mophie claims that all you need to do is slide the small Lightning connector out and attach the headphone jack. However, this is far from easy. There were several times where we had to remove the phone entirely from the case just to disconnect the Lightning connector.
Besides the case, Mophie offers a range of charging surfaces. One of the two we used was the Desk Mount Charging Base. It was very easy to set up — just plug it in and plop it down on your desk. The magnets hold the phone in either a vertical or horizontal alignment, and the stand can be adjusted to a variety of angles for easy viewing.
The second option we tried is the Powerstation Mini Charging Base. This is a small backup battery (3,000 mAh) that you can carry with you. The advantage of this battery is that it magnetically attaches to the case, so you can continue to use your phone and go about your day. Sure it adds some bulk to the phone while charging, but as opposed to a dedicated battery case, you can simply remove it when it’s done charging.
Charging the phone with these surfaces was a breeze — all you need to do is set your phone on the Charging Base and charging begins! No need to worry about it being placed correctly, since the magnets in the case help you to orient the phone in the right position and make sure it stays securely in place.
