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[Fuse]Chicken goes natural with the LEDGE iPhone charging dock
You'd expect a company named [Fuse]Chicken to be different, and they certainly have come up with some different products over the years. They started with the Bobine, then moved on to the togoDock and PLUGdock with a successful Indiegogo campaign. Now the design house is going natural with the wood LEDGE, a Kickstarter campaign that is funded with a little over a week to go. The company sent a prototype LEDGE for us to test, and we'll be giving that away along with a production PLUGdock. Design The LEDGE is made of two pieces of hardwood; one is machined to hold an iPhone (5/5s, 6 or 6 Plus) with a small case comfortably, while the other is a prop to hold up the LEDGE at an angle. The main piece has a couple of channels machined into it as well - there's one for the charging cable (you need to supply your own Apple-approved Lightning to USB cable) that snakes out of the back of the LEDGE, while another provides an open area where a headphone cable can comfortably plug in. The bottom of that main piece has a piece of non-slip foam on it, while the prop has two foam bands wrapped around it to keep it from slipping on a desktop. The LEDGE is given a natural hand finish, with each one being produced from a piece of African Bubinga, African Padauk, or North American Cherry wood. If there's one thing about the LEDGE that I'd like to see is for the foam bands to be installed a bit more carefully. The band on the bottom of the pre-production LEDGE I have was installed a bit unevenly, and even though it can't be seen when the LEDGE Is in use, it made my OCD kick in. Functionality LEDGE is an amazingly simple design and provides a desk or table top home for your iPhone. I've already run into issues with some competing charging stands, as they don't work well with iPhones in cases. Not so with the LEDGE - I have a rather thin case on my iPhone 6 Plus, yet it fits comfortably in the phone pocket with a bit of space to spare on each side. [Fuse]Chicken made sure to take cases into account when designing the LEDGE, a feature I really appreciate. You can determine if your iPhone and case will fit in the LEDGE phone pocket quote easily: the standard LEDGE pocket (for iPhone 5/5s/6) is 3 inches (75mm) wide, while the large version is 3.5 inches (89mm) wide. Conclusion Pledge US$35 on the LEDGE Kickstarter page in the next week and you can get your own LEDGE shipped to you next month. Pledge $60 or more, and you'll get two! LEDGE is a nice, natural looking charging dock for your iPhone, case-friendly, and affordably priced. Note that we don't usually provide a TUAW "star rating" for items that are pre-production, crowdfunded projects. However, [Fuse]Chicken has a good track record of bringing projects to market and the LEDGE project has reached its funding goal, so the charging stand is getting a rating. Rating: 3-1/2 stars out of 4 stars possible Giveaway One lucky TUAW reader is going to win not only a large (iPhone 6 Plus) LEDGE, but also a [Fuse]Chicken PLUGdock. Here are the rules for the giveaway: Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older. To enter, fill out the form below completely and click or tap the Submit button. The entry must be made before November 29, 2014 11:59PM Eastern Standard Time. You may enter only once. One winner will be selected in a random drawing and will receive a FuseChicken LEDGE charging stand (large size for iPhone 6 Plus) valued at $30 and a FuseChicken PLUGdock wall-mounted dock valued at $10. Click Here for complete Official Rules. Loading...
Samsung patents perfume-packing cellphone... again
Seriously, Samsung, what the heck is with the scented cellphone patents? This isn't the first, or even the second time you've thought to put pockets of perfume in a handset. This latest patent is slightly different from earlier concepts, we suppose. We see this one has a scent refilling station built into the charging dock. So, when you set the phone down to charge the battery, it also "charges" the aromatic sponge in the body. It's also notable that this isn't a passive scented strip or a spraying mechanism. Instead the "absorbant material" is heated, either by the battery directly or by circuitry triggered as part of an alert. So, every time your hippy buddy calls, your phone could blast Phish and fill the air with the scent of patchouli (or, something else...).
Pikachu is really, really excited to charge your Nintendo DSi
The last time we plugged in our Nintendo DSi to recharge it all we got as thanks was a little light. It turned on, the electrons flowed, and we continued our humble existence. Just think how much more exciting that menial act could have been if only we had this sucker. Hori's Pikachu charger accepts a DSi or DSi XL into its faux-poké ball slot and, presumably, jumps up and down excitedly as lightning bolts dance from its maniacal little fingertips to juice up your dead cell. Or, maybe it just pulls power from an AC adapter and sends it through the connector. Either way, it's certainly more exciting than most other simple charging stands we've seen but, at 3,981 yen (just shy of $50), it's also rather more expensive. %Gallery-100562%
Kensington's iPhone / iPod charging dock throws a mini battery into the mix
At this point, you've probably assumed that there's simply no way any company can produce yet another iPhone or iPod dock that's significantly different from the legions of alternatives already out. And you're wrong. So wrong. In an effort to milk that Made for iPod / iPhone partnership for all it's worth, Kensington has just introduced its Charging Dock with Mini Battery Pack, which not only charges your dock connecting iPod or iPhone, but also energizes an external battery pack through the same USB cable. When you leave, you'll depart with a charged device as well as a charged battery pack in case you need to use 3G services for more than eight minutes. Brilliant, no? It's up for pre-order now for $69.99.[Via iPodNN]
Chargepod V2 consolidates your power cords and thins your wallet
callpod's adding a new version of their popular Chargepod that responds directly to some of the gripes we had with the V1 model. The Chargepod V2 has a three-sided design that charges a PC or Mac portable, three smaller devices like an iPod or camera, and a three port USB 2.0 hub for charging and syncing. Don't worry if you've already dropped mad coinage on those device-specific adapters for the V1 -- they're compatible with the V2. The device's specs make it look a bit hefty, but thankfully the design helps alleviate some of that. However, consolidation don't come cheap -- the Chargepod V2 will run you a steep $199.95. [Via acquire]
callpod's Chargepod juices up six of your handheld gizmos
While there's a plethora of atypical options out there for charging up your gadgetry, oftentimes the need to charge up a number of items simultaneously leaves one frustrated by a lack of AC outlets or the brutal realization that you're cellphone charger is a thousand miles away. callpod's Chargepod isn't reinventing the charging wheel or anything, but its portable nature lends itself to the gadget-strapped road warrior who can leave six charging dongles plugged into the device itself and juice up half a dozen peripherals (presumably via USB) with a single power outlet. Notably, this rendition isn't designed to charge up laptops or your electric car, but the company does state that a second version is in the works to handle more demanding applications. The Chargepod can be snapped up now sans adapters for $49.95, and while this should be self-explanatory, feel free to click through for a demonstration if you're somehow still miffed.
