Customer Reviews
Convenient tool...with an ugly design
Let me begin by saying who I believe should buy a charging pad such as this one: if you have multiple cell phones that you would like to charge, or if you are very tired of having to go search for your ordinary plug-in charger and then fiddling to plug that into your phone. Also, this particular kit only works for owners of Motorola, Nokia and Blackberry phones. Users of any other brands can forget about this as chances are high that the right charging plug is not included. iPhone users, do know that according to Duracell's website an iPhone version of this pad is supposed to be out in Spring 2010.
So what is this product? The Duracell myGrid charging system basically allows you to place your cell phone on a mat to charge instantly, without having to fiddle around for a charging cord. Many similar charging systems that are now out use a physics concept called induction to charge the phone, where there are no exposed metal contacts on either the charging pad or the phone. The Duracell myGrid is NOT one of these chargers, however. Probably in the interest of cheaper costs, Duracell chose to use the older, very common concept of conduction where metal contacts on the phone and charger conduct charges.
So what does that mean? It means that the myGrid charging pad is actually one large pad with a large metal surface area. When turned on, this large metal area IS energized with electric charges. At first glance, you might think that you can shock yourself by touching the pad. Nothing to fear folks, as the electricity flowing through the pad is too weak to create any noticeable shocks. And to add peace of mind, if the pad detects your finger or anything else that conducts electricity (like keys, jewelry, etc.) to be touching the pad, then it shuts off the current.
How do you use it? To get the juices flowing into your phone, Duracell includes a special "clip" that has three tiny metal contacts on the bottom. You are supposed to stick on the "clip" with the included adhesive to your phone. The clip then connects to a charging plug which is inserted into your phone's charging port. That completes the setup. To actually charge, just place the phone on the pad with the clip in contact.
What are the flaws? Well, the charger still works if you don't 'stick' the clip to your phone. Instead, the catch is that you'll have to be careful when taking your phone off the pad. The clip is literally a magnet that sticks on to the pad, so you'll then have to exert careful pressure to remove the phone+clip from the pad. I think that's a bad design aspect in that if you were ever to switch phones, you would have to attempt to peel off the clip from your old phone and stick it on to your new one. Also, if you did stick on the clip, then you have an ugly and oddly-shaped piece of plastic stuck on to your phone for most of the day. It can get in the way of your hand gripping the phone, you can't exactly use many cases with the phone, and it just looks odd. Oh, and personally I think the pad just looks plain ugly. The whole metal pad with its black and chrome trim seems like something Doc Brown would've had in his DeLorean back in the 80s.
What could be improved? I think Duracell should do what other manufacturers of similar charging pads are doing and creating sleeves where the phone can be kept in a sleek-looking sleeve all-day that can do double-duty as a nice case. In fact, they seem to be doing this. The iPhone charging system that I mentioned earlier is on their website seems to have this very sleeve. Now if they were smart and brought it to the other brands as well.
Also, this product is being marketed and designed for cell phones only. If Duracell could find a way, I would like be able to charge my other devices on the pad, like my bluetooth headset, PS3 controller, iPod, etc. If a wide-variety of devices could be charged all using this one pad, then I would say the myGrid is guaranteed to be a hit! At the moment though, for just a few cell phone models I am not surprised to see the naysayers here on Amazon shooting down this gadget.
Overall, it's a gadget that is meant purely for convenience sake. If the clip design were improved (and maybe the overall pad design was more sleeker), then this pad can be a big seller.
A product that is just plain dumb
The Duracell myGrid charging device is a product you want to like. Imagine the possibilities, you come home and toss your phone, iPod or other device on the pad and walk away. No wires to plug and unplug, no more having several chargers plugged in the wall outlet. A wireless home power grid, truly the wave of the future.
In reality, though, this is truly a product that is far from being ready for prime time and is not the "wave of the future" powergrid you would think it is. More accurately it is an "extension cord" that transfers power via contacts in a totally traditional way.
It ships with 3 tips that fit an infinitesimally small number of phone models. Unfortunately, not MY Blackberry nor MY cell phone. The design of the power tips prevent them from being used on any other device than the exact model specified.
There are two glaring problems that Duracell should have considered and abandoned the whole concept of a power grid. One is that the location of the charging receptacle varies from phone to phone. On mine it was impossible to fit it in and have it connect to the included charging adapter.
The other problem is the charging adapter itself. It is a fairly large disc that you have to glue to the back of your phone with double-stick tape. Whaaat? Are you kidding me? So to make it line up with the little charging tip it is probably 90% likely to have to be glued over the phone's camera, flash or rear speaker. That's just plain dumb!
Not to mention, now you have a cell phone that you bought to be as small and convenient as possible, that you can slip into your pocket or purse or nice leather carrying case ... but no more! With a fragile adapter sticking out of the side or bottom of your phone, plus the clunky odd-shaped stick-on disc, your phone no longer fits easily into pocket, purse or case and has to be handled with extreme care so the extra pieces don't break off and get lost. Plus, with many phones that use a mini-USB connector, that same connector may be used for headphones, car speaker accessories or data access. So you have to remove the power tip each time. How is that more convenient than simply plugging the phone into a charging cord?
You can also get an optional overpriced "powersleeve" for a miniscule few devices which is a rubber boot that fits over the device with an awkward hump on the back and bottom of the device. Maybe a slightly better concept than the glue-on disc but so far I have seen them for only one model of iPod and one model of Blackberry.
Another major failing of this products is that if you travel a lot you probably have to take a charging adapter with you. You certainly won't take the power grid. That means removing the power tip each time and reassembling it to use with the grid at home. That would get very old after the first time.
I fail to see the slightest advantage to the entire product; it's like a bad April Fools joke. Someday someone will come up with a way to transfer electric power without wires; I understand that technology already exists. When Duracell or someone else comes out with a power grid that doesn't need ill-conceived adapters I'll be interested.
As far as the "instruction manual" goes, it is almost non-existent. For a product like this that most people have never used before, it is severely lacking.
Sorry Duracell, I can't give this more than one star for "interesting idea".
Easy To Use, But Likely Not Useful For Everyone
The Duracell myGrid Cell Phone Starter Kit is an interesting concept, but the execution leaves a little to be desired. It seems to be targeted at the household that has multiple cell phones (that are compatible with myGrid) to allow simultaneous charging while only using one outlet. The other place it could catch on is in an office setting where you have a number of people with supported phones. If you are not in these situations, you will probably not find this a cost effective solution for your charging needs. If you are still interested in the myGrid, read on for my experience using it.
The myGrid is easy to use overall, but you need to understand why this is a "starter kit". While it comes with three tips (one each for BlackBerry, Nokia, and Motorola), it only comes with one power clip that will allow a device to be charged. For each additional device you will need to purchase additional power clips separately. It seems that intent is to insert the tip into your devices charging port and then connect the power clip permanently to your device by peeling the cover off of an adhesive strip. I actually found the adhesive confusing as I could not imagine leaving the tip and power clip in permanently. So I left the cover on the adhesive on the power clip.
The mat itself and the ac power adapter are the only other pieces to the myGrid. I connected the adapter and plugged it in. The blue indicator light came on properly and went out as specified in the instructions. I with the tip and power clip installed on my BlackBerry Curve, I placed my phone on the myGrid. The magnetic connection formed very easily, and the blue indicator light lit on the mat to indicate that charging had begun. I checked the display on my Curve, and it also showed that the device was charging.
After getting a complete charge, I removed the tip and power clip and stored them near the mat for later use. Users have the choice between this mode of usage and the suggested leave in by using the adhesive. For BlackBerrys this is just not practical as the mini-USB port is also the mode of data exchange with your desktop.
A special not for iPhone/iPod users: this starter kit does not give you any support for your device. The mat itself will work, but you need to buy a separate charging sleeve. Duracell does make a starter kit for Apple devices, but this is not it.
Overall, the myGrid is an easy to use device, but it seems to have a very small population of users who will benefit from it. I hope that I have given you enough information to decide if it is for you.
