IDAPT I3 review

Configure your own charging station for your gadgets

IDAPT I3
The genius of the system is that it will adapt to your particular mix of gadgets

TechRadar Verdict

Good value system that should adapt to your needs for years

Pros

  • +

    Convenient

  • +

    Flexible

  • +

    Cheap to expand

Cons

  • -

    Won't suit all combinations

  • -

    Feels/looks a little cheap

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Rather than wrestling with a spaghetti of cables, trying to find a spare plug socket, and plain losing chargers, buy the IDAPT I3.

The idea is simple: plug it into one power socket, and click your gadgets on top to charge them. There's space for three, and the genius of the system is that each charging socket can be pulled out and replaced with a different 'tip' for a given gadget.

You get six in the box – iPhone/iPod (works fine with the 3GS), Micro-USB and Mini-USB, and tips for the latest types of Sony Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung mobile phones. And there's more to buy online.

Each costs around £6, with options for rechargable AA/AAA batteries and iPod shuffle, and there's more to come. Plus it works.

However, some gadgets might sit at an odd angle – our Kindle felt precarious wobbling on its Micro-USB connection – and you might have to shuffle the tips around to get everything to fit. But it's still a great, convenient system, with all gadgets charging simultaneously. There's a power switch on the back too.

It might not suit all combinations. There's no straight USB-A socket for charging gadgets such as Jawbone's series of Bluetooth headsets, and some things, thanks to bulk or where their charging points are, just won't fit.

It's supplied only with a British power plug, but since it's a standard C8 (figure-eight) connector on the back of the I3, there's nothing to stop you plugging in a different power cable when abroad; it supports 85-240V.

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