Cradle review for HTC Sensation

Introduction

It is not the first year that I have been walking with a smartphone and have become accustomed to its functionality, far exceeding a regular mobile phone. This is almost a full-fledged computer, but it fits in your hand. But when you are at home or at work, the question arises: how to position the device so that it is always at hand, convenient to use, and still be able to charge it. You can put it flat on the table in the old manner, but then at least the screen will be at an angle, which often leads to a deterioration in its readability. To solve such problems, there is an inexpensive, but most useful thing - “cradle”, a stand for a smartphone. However, each cradle is developed for a specific model of the device, it is rarely possible to install a new smartphone in the old stand. First of all, this is due to the location of the contact pads.
For my current smartphone HTC Sensation, I chose a KIDIGI model that I liked by its appearance and price. I was surprised to find this product on the website of the company Mugen-Power, selling advanced self-produced batteries for popular smartphone models. The company is located in Hong Kong, the goods are sent from there. Order is carried out through the site, you can use Russian letters. Sending occurs almost immediately, as soon as the desired product appears in the warehouses of the company. Usually the most popular items are always available. The order goes on average 2-3 weeks, depends primarily on the promptness of the Russian Post.
Shop page address:
www.mugen-power-batteries.ru/htc/htc-sensation/htc-sensation-usb-desktop-cradle-with-2nd-battery-slot.html
The main reason to buy a “cradle” over the Internet is the price. In the store, the stand will cost about 660 rubles, including delivery to the nearest post office. In the official HTC store, located in my city (St. Petersburg), the “cradle” will cost 1,590 rubles (the price at the time of this writing). The extra two weeks of waiting are worth almost a thousand savings.

Packaging

"Cradle" came to me in a small rectangular cardboard box, crosswise tied with a rope. A bit unusual, although I liked it. In the box in separate bags placed the cradle itself, a USB cable. There are papers describing the device.

Sync cable

The microUSB cable from the device was surprisingly of high quality. I am not an expert on their production technologies, but the cord seems to be strong and reliable, the connectors are securely fastened. After a month of operation, nothing fell off, did not rub. “Stuffing” is decent - when the smartphone is connected to a computer or charger, a current is supplied through the cable that is comparable to the current through a HTC cable. The smartphone synchronizes seamlessly with the PC, keeps the connection stable. All this sounds trite, but I met cables with which it was almost impossible to get a stable connection between a smartphone and something.
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"Cradle"

"Cradle" and my previous "stand"

"Cradle" is entirely made of black plastic. The thickness of the hull is large enough to provide the necessary strength of the structure. Build on a high level: no squeaks, body parts fit tightly to each other.


Back view


Bottom surface with four rubber feet

The shape of the device is dictated by the smartphone. Unfortunately, HTC placed a microUSB port on a smartphone on the left side of the case, closer to the bottom. Because of this, the device can be placed on a stand only horizontally, laying on its left side. In the case of the “cradle” a corresponding “bed” is made, repeating the bends of the body of the smartphone. It highlights the connector connection. This element is firmly fixed in the stand, you can’t even feel a backlash even if you specially move it with your finger. Considering how it is subjected to loads, this is very good.


Sync connector

Note the notch in the "bed", designed for serving on the smartphone volume keys. This ensures that when you install the smartphone in the "cradle" or remove it from there, you will not press this button.
On the lower plane of the stand, there are four rubber “legs” that hold the surface of the table very tenaciously. Even without a smartphone stand does not hang on the table. And if there is additional weight from the smartphone tightly fixed. Just enough so that when you click on the screen does not go somewhere, but not "sticking" to the table tightly.
In the back of the stand there is a slot for installing the second battery. Thus, at the same time you can charge both a smartphone and an additional battery. But only the regular 1520 mAh battery fits into this connector. Extended 1950 mAh battery is already too thick. About the monster at 3600 mAh did not even remember. It is still sad. I think it was possible to develop such a construction of the groove so that batteries with a capacity of up to 2000 mAh were housed in it with sufficient rigidity, because they fit perfectly into the body of a smartphone. It should be noted that when charging two batteries at once, it is highly recommended to connect the entire assembly to a full-fledged high-quality charger - USB power may simply not be enough.

Operation of the smartphone in the "cradle"

Smartphone in the "cradle"

The smartphone is placed in the stand at an acute angle to the surface of the table.
Install the device in the stand is not so easy. It is necessary to accurately observe the angle of inclination and horizontal bottom edge of the smartphone. Otherwise, the protruding socket of the stand will rest against the body of the smartphone without hitting the microUSB hole. After proper positioning, the smartphone enters the stand. The device is placed very tightly, forming almost a single unit with the stand. This is facilitated by the combination of the gloss of the stand and the shiny surface of the screen of the device itself. There are practically no gaps between them. It looks beautiful, but I'm not sure that such beauty will be for the "Sensation" with a white body.


Side view

When connecting the cable to the computer, the influence of the stand is imperceptible. The smartphone with the same success synchronizes with the PC and charges. The speed of the charge from the PC is the same as directly, within the margin of error.
It should be noted the chosen slope of the smartphone placed in the "cradle". This is exactly the angle at which the screen is located almost perpendicular to the view, and the fingers comfortably touch its surface. I appreciated this using my smartphone for application development, when the device should always be turned on next to the PC keyboard, and not hang around the table.


Front view

If you lift the entire assembly, holding only the body of the smartphone, the stand will remain with the device. Attempts to shake the design behind the body of the smartphone back and forth do not separate it from the “cradle”. As it becomes clear, the “Sensation” is kept in the “cradle” very reliably.
And it becomes a problem when you need to extract a smartphone from it. As mentioned, the device sits very tight. To get a device in your hands, you need to hold the stand with one hand (best of all holding it in the palm of your hand), and somehow grab the smartphone with the other. It’s easier to do this by holding the smartphone behind the screen and the back, but when the screen is on, you don’t want to wish for it. And if you have the idea to take the edges of the case, you have to stretch the palm to the full height of the smartphone. In general, all this causes certain difficulties. But the fault is not the designers of the "cradle", but HTC, who placed the sync connector on the side of the device. Not in vain in some of the new devices on the case they make special contact pads, which the docking station just touches, without inserting their parts into the smartphone. As a result, for me, sometimes with an incoming call, it is easier to bring the entire assembly to your ear than picking out a smartphone from its stand. But there is already a problem because of the length of the cable. I delivered a lot of "fun" minutes of my family when they found me talking on the phone, while putting my right cheek on the table.

Conclusion

"Cradle" in the interior

“Cradle” is definitely not a necessity for the owner of a smartphone, but if the device has to be on the table for a long time, and in a convenient position for use, such a stand can be very useful. An even greater benefit from it when you need to quickly charge two batteries, having only one charger.
And, in my opinion, the smartphone in this “cradle” just looks beautiful on any table.