It’s always good when you get an hardware accessory that combines a keen eye on price, with good functional design. Case in point: the ‘Apple iPhone 3GS / 3G USB Desktop Sync & Charge Cradle‘ from Mobilefun. Different than the Apple minimalist effort, this one includes a USB cable and plug in to the bargain also!
The design of the cradle is such that it comes in three pieces:
- UK Plug (with female USB connector in it)
- USB cable (Male USB to male mini-USB)
- Cradle (with mini-USB female connector)
It’s very simple to slot together, and everything comes well-packaged – which means less likelihood of there being something missing (even if there were, Mobilefun are pretty darn good on the customer service side!). Other than that, there’s no too much to say, other than perhaps the length of the USB cable could be a touch longer – but it certainly doesn’t limit usage in any way.
The dock itself is a beefy affair with a clear plastic guide panel that sits behind the device and props it up when it’s connected – this I think is a better design than the official Apple dock, which relies more on the connector, and a very minimal curved design to keep the iPhone in place. Connecting everything is very simple – as you might imagine – and from there it’s either charge or sync – depending on whether you connect the USB cable to the mains plug, or your PC.
That’s really all there is to say on this, other than the price – weighing in at £9.99, it comes in around half the price of the official dock – and obviously comes with a full USB/mains charging pack too – so in reality much cheaper, as you’d have to buy those separate as official accessories.
You can get the Mobilefun charge & sync cradle for iPhone 3G and 3GS from here.
[Note: Mobilefun are also claiming to have one of the largest (if not the largest) range of iPhone accessories in their store, which is worth a look – there really is quite a lot there indeed!]