Scosche has come a long way since I originally began reviewing its audio products nearly a dozen years ago. Since then, the company has branched out to a variety of mobile lifestyle accessories including a variety of chargers, fitness monitors, phone mounts and even dashcams. One of the company's more recent entries into its catalog is the MagicGrip Window/Dash Mount ($69.95) that can be affixed to a car dashboard or window. What makes it unique is not just that it can wirelessly charge your iPhone while seated in the mount, but it also has a neat almost sci-fi approach to gripping your iPhone in the process. Read on to find out if this standout feature is worth the mount's nearly seventy dollar price tag.
The MagicGrip package includes the wireless charging mount, a USB car adapter, a USB-A to USB-C cable, and two adhesive cable clips to help pin down the cable from the mount to the connected USB car adapter. The plastic base has a solid feel with two articulating arms connected via ball and socket joints. While the arms provide a good range of rotation, I did notice when attempting to flex the arms beyond their range that the arm's ball would pop out of the connecting arm and/or base joint, which could lead to a damaging fall if not careful. Fortunately I was holding the unit coupled with my iPhone at the time so there was little risk, but it should still be noted that users need to practice caution when repositioning the arm angles.
Installation was straightforward. After cleaning any dust and debris from the spot on the dash window where I wanted to affix the base of the MagicGrip, I removed the protective film exposing the rubber suction back of the base. Pressing it firmly in place on the window sealed a tight, stable connection making it very hard to remove the mount without the assistance of the release tab on the mount's base. Once satisfied with the mount's position and angle, connecting the USB-C power cable to the front grip and running it to the USB car adapter plugged in near my car's radio (and then securing the cable with the included adhesive clips) only took a few minutes. Once powered, the magic of the MagicGrip worked as expected. Touching my the back of my iPhone to the base of the MagicGrip activated the Qi wireless charger, and MagicGrip's sensing arms automatically closed onto the iPhone like a vice grip in a firm, not crushing, manner. Removing the iPhone from the grip with one hand was as simple as angling one side outward and sliding the iPhone out of the grip. Doing so also re-expanded the sensing arms, ready for another automatic grip. I played around with this grip several times as I was simply enthralled by the mount's auto-gripping action. Also built into the grip is a LED charging indicator that automatically adjusts its light intensity depending on dark and light surroundings (especially important while driving at night so as not to distract you with its glow).
Pros
- Built-in Qi wireless charger
- Cool auto-gripping sensing arms
- Good range of mounting angles
Cons
- Ball and socket joint disconnects with high torque
Final Verdict
Overall, the MagicGrip mount delivered everything it promised, and the auto-sensing gripping arms still give me satisfaction each time they engage around my iPhone. Yes, the MagicGrip is quite a bit more expensive than other mounts, but few can match its smart wireless charging design and killer sensing arm grip feature.
