DecisionalReview.info

Overall Rating

Simple but effective
I bought this unit on a recommendation from Terry White, who has a technology blog relating to iPhones, etc. The unit is in two pieces. One piece hooks on to the louvers of the air conditioning vent while the second piece is the cradle for the iPhone. The challenge for buyers (which is difficult to know in advance) is whether the design is a great match for your particular vehicle.

My expectation is that it is probably at least adequate for all vehicles and probably outstanding for many. My particular vehicle, a Lexus 330, is somewhere in between. The piece that attaches to the louvers is two side by side prongs with an adjustable “leg” opposite that helps stabilize the unit on the vent. Where it may get tricky for some is that, depending on the distance between the louvers, the prongs will either line up optimally or you may have to adjust the spacing between the prongs. The unit permits adjustment of the spacing but it doesn’t appear to be a strong design feature. For vents with two layers of louvers set at a 90 degree angle (the case in the Lexus 330) you need to place the prongs in such a way as to clip on one set of louvers without running into the other set.

The ball joint adjustment on the connection between the the prong piece and the cradle permits you to swivel the cradle in whatever direction you want once the prongs are seated on the vent. That is what makes it possible to be used with a wide variety of air vents. But there is no doubt that it’s optimal use is with vents that have a single set of louvers.