Review: Mophie Juice Pack

The Mophie JP is an external pack that the iPhone fits into at the bottom to power the phone. The advertising claims to double your power supply and I found with a few weeks usage that this is in fact correct.Here in NZ it costs $195.99 from Magnum Mac and I’m not sure if they are going to continue to stock this item.

What actually is the JP?? The juice pack 3G™ is a rechargeable lithium polymer battery in the form of a non-slip, soft grip case. which extends the time that you can use your iPhone 3GS or 3G.
Specs

iPhone 3GS:
• Standby Time: Up to 350 hours
• Talk Time: Up to 6 hours on 3G | Up to 12 hours on 2G
• Internet Use: Up to 6 hours on 3G | Up to 7 hours on Wi-Fi
• Audio Playback: Up to 28 hours
• Video Playback: Up to 8 hours

Other product specifications are as follows:

• Product Dimensions: 6.35 cm x 12.065 x 2.159cm; 85mg
• Battery Capacity: 1800 mAh
• Estimated Shipping Weight: 1 lbs
• Item model number: JP-IP3G-BLK
• Shipping: This product ships world wide
• Product Category: Cell Phone External Battery
• Product Compatibility: Apple iPhone 3G and Apple iPhone 3GS
• Package Content Included: juice pack 3G™, USB-mini cable, User’s Manual

The model I got was a black one and it had a rubberised smooth back on it which gives it a good grip and feel.  The instructions say to power it up for the 1st time for 8 hrs. Comes with a Mini USB cable which either fits into a Computer USB port or the iPhone power plug that is inserted into the power socket. It has 4 blue lights on the rear of the pack which tells you when you are fully charged and gives you a good indication of the remaining supply.

Light LED Battery Status Indicator
The integrated LED status indicator tells you exactly how much juice is left in your
juice pack air™. Simply press the test button and it will tell you how much power is left.
The LED lights also indicate the charging status and charging progress.

Upon powering up I attached the iPhone into it. You then hear the sound it makes when you attach a power supply to the iPhone and the battery indicates it’s plugged into a power supply.  The first use of the pack actually lasted 29 hrs of average use before I saw that I was using the iPhone battery. Every subsequent power up takes 3-4 hours. Charging can be done either with the iPhone attached or not. It has smart technology that allows it to charge the JP and/or the iPhone when attached. Power supply first then the iPhone it appears. The claimed life of the Juice pack is 500 cycles.

Intelligent Power Distribution
Smart Battery Technology instructs the iPhone to always drain out the juice pack™
first. When the juice pack™ has been full drained, you still have a fully charged iPhone.

The Juice Pack certainly works as advertised. When attached to the iPhone it does however create extra bulk which may put some users off. There is an “Air” variety which is thinner and lighter but I have heard reports that this model affects the iPhone’s ability to get cell phone reception as it covers the back of the iPhone more. The Pack enhances the grip and provides some protection. I have been using my iPhone without front protection since I’ve had it and so far I’ve had no scratches appear. There would be no reason why you couldn’t have a screen protector on as well. The rear of the top of the iPhone is not protected, however, as you will note in the picture gallery below.

If you are a power user then an external battery supply is essential. There are others on the market but the Mophie JP is apple certified to work with the iPhone. I did notice that when down to 2 LED lights that it appeared to quickly drop to zero. I also discovered that if you turn the iPhone off say overnight and left it attached that it seemed to drain the JP.

You can either use it attached to your iPhone all the time or just use it as a back up power supply as needed. This may be the best option if you are concerned about the bulk of it. The other problem is that if you want to use it in the car for navigation-you would need to remove the JP. Then you would most likely be using a Cable from the Cig lighter.

I have heard via a Yahoo iPhone Group which I subscribe to that the Mophie support is excellent, of course here in NZ this may prove expensive. The user manual supplied was not very helpful but I downloaded a PDF version from their web site which was much better.

All in all I am a happy customer and would recommend this product.

Let us know what you think in the comments below.

– Mophie Products