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This Seidio Charging Vault has seen some action in Las Vegas
Leaked: OS 7.1.0.205 for BlackBerry Torch 9860 Previous
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16 Comments

Seidio Charging Vault Review - a backup battery pack for your BlackBerry Smartphone

By Joseph Holder on 18 Jan 2012 05:03 pm
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"The Seidio Charging Vault has proved to me its worth as an external battery. Without this backup power supply, I'd probably still be wandering the Las Vegas strip, looking for a familiar face."

In Short:
"On-the-go USB power supply."
Should I Buy?
"Best mobile charger I've seen." 		BUY NOW

At CES2012, we saw a good deal of mobile charging solutions; quite a few companies had portable power packs on display. From among this diverse crowd of options - and believe me, I've tried a number of these charging solutions - the Seidio Charging Vault stands out from the rest. The battery pack features not one but two UBS charging ports. In the Charging Vault Kit, Seidio has kindly included a retractable USB cable with multiple tips: microUSB and a 30-pin connector for iOS devices. Most importantly, the Charging Vault proved its importance by saving my BlackBerry Torch 9860 on day one of my trip to Las Vegas. Without this backup power supply, I'd probably still be wandering the strip, looking for a familiar face.

The Review

The Seidio Charging Vault has proved to me its worth as an external battery. Flying out to Las Vegas, I seriously abused my BlackBerry. Browsing the internet, listening to music, and messaging back and forth all while using my carrier's mobile network has a way of quickly draining the battery on any Smartphone. By the time I reached the Vegas strip, my BlackBerry was nearly drained of all its power. Thankfully, I had packed the Seidio Charging Vault in my carry-on baggage. Connecting the provided USB cable between my phone and the Charging Vault, my BlackBerry quickly had enough juice to keep in contact with the rest of the Mobile Nations team covering CES. Without the Seidio Charging Vault, I'd still be wondering the streets of Las Vegas, searching in vain for people I knew.

Seidio Charging Vault - retractable USB cable. The included retractable charging cable is a nice feature.

The Seidio Charging Vault holds a 2200 mAh battery in a small convenient package about the size of half a deck of cards, though a bit thicker. The battery pack features two standard USB ports, so you're not limited to the retractable cable included in the packaging. Any charging cable that uses a standard USB port can be used; the Charging Vault can even charge my Aftershokz bone conducting headphones. In fact, two devices can charge simultaneously, making this an invaluable on-the-road device.

Seidio Charging Vault - folding prongs Folding prongs make for a much more comfortable ride in a pocket or purse.

When recharging its own battery, the Seidio Charging Vault plugs into any standard US power outlet using a pair of flip-down prongs. The prongs fold neatly back into the device when not in use, making the Charging Vault fit comfortably in a pants pocket (I suppose a purse as well). When you're charging your Smartphone, you're probably going to put it in your pocket while it does so. The smooth, rounded edges of the Charging Vault ensure that no sharp or pointy bits are jabbing you in the leg as you walk.

30 pin connector for iDevices, microUSB for just about everything elseFeatures a microUSB tip for most BlackBerry Smartphones and a 30-pin connection for iOS

Seidio Charging Vault Kit
The Good

Two USB ports and simultaneous charging on both allow a wide range of products to recharge on the go. The included retractable charging cable comes in handy - sometimes you need a short cable, sometimes the longer one. The USB cable included with the Charging Vault does both. 2200 mAh of battery power.

The Bad

Not designed for recharging a BlackBerry PlayBook. The Charging Vault does heat up when charging a device, but that seems to be just a fact of the technology.

 

 

Conclusion

In all the mobile charging solutions I saw at CES, I couldn’t find one that had so much battery power in such a small package with so many supported devices as the Seidio Charging Vault. It is a highly versatile device that will have no problems recharging the vast majority of mobile devices and Smartphones.


Three More Great Charging Options

SPARE BATTERY BUNDLE JUST THE BASICS
 WIRELESS
J-Series Extra Battery Charger JM1 Replacement Battery PowerMat Wireless Charging "Looking for a better way to charge your BlackBerry?"
J-Series Extra Battery Charger
"Sometimes just getting an extra battery isn't enough."
 JM1 Replacement Battery
"Necessary if you're an always on the go type person" 		PowerMat Wireless Charging
"Looking for a better way to charge your BlackBerry?"

Topics: External Battery Charger Seidio Charging General Accessories BlackBerry Accessories

Leaked: OS 7.1.0.205 for BlackBerry Torch 9860 Previous
Rooting your BlackBerry PlayBook is easier than ever with DingleBerry 3.xNext
Joseph Holder Joseph Holder 179 (articles) 23 (forum posts)
16 comments

Deathcommand

Hey everyone, Buy it. I highly Recommend Seidio Products. They have some great customer service as well. They sent one over to me and I seriously have to say that they know how to get things done. Of course it isn't the highest capacity, but it does have a built in charger. Go get em.

flash24

I think I'd rather carry around an additional battery than this. Thank you though.

OniPod

I have an Otter Defender, and taking it off to replace a battery daily or whenever I needed to is not the best practice for someone like myself. I can appreciate this for what it is.

Michelle Haag

It's nice to have if you carry more than one device... especially if one of those doesn't have a removable battery. ;)

HookerOne

Power Monkey explorer or extreme are the way ahead

calicocat2010

Now we know why Seido wasn't going to make an Extended Battery...they came up with something Greater! Good Job.

bldshd

I really don't understand & probably never will truly understand why people waste their time to write negative comments. Its like they feel insulted from the review. I also have an extra battery & battery charger as one of the people 'hating' on this review were saying, but I can also think of numerous senerios where this would come in very handy, especially if you don't have a spare battery & battery charger or you have a Otterbox case. I normally wouldn't waste my time writting something like this, for the main reason it usually starts a back & fourth nit-picking battle(learn how to spell, etc) so haters save your time. I will not be joining in on the bs. Its just mind boggling to me. Either way looks like a great product and would really be good to have on those heavy usage days when my second battery is running low and I'm far from a charger. Loyal BlackBerry User & Abuser
-spread love not war/ BeBold

bldshd

Android does have a phone without a removable battery, not sure but I believe the razor. Secondly I guess I'm not in the position to be saying this since I'm wasting my time writting this to Mr.Hater, but talk about get a life? Look at you wasting your life hating on a product that obviously a lot of people will use. Its not the first of its kind & isure it won't be the last. Obviously some people like having a spare battery & some rather use a product like this.end bs rant. Have a great night CrackBerry FaMiLiA

buckwylder

the only portable power solutions that matter, are solar powered

otherwise you are still limited to having to plug stuff into something of a "grid" at some point

solar powered battery backpacks are the best and as solar power harvesting technology becomes more and more advanced, all of our clothes will be charging off the sun, environment and used to power everything

solar backpack solutions are already pretty decent

eventually we will not even think of "recharging" anything because we will be harvesting sunlight and many other sources of free energy used to power our connected lives, right from our environment

there are also tesla technology patents that can be used for "wireless charging" from the environment or the cell networks themselves, etc...

until then, we 're bound by a corrupt monetary system that is supportive of cyclical consumption and planned obsolesence in order to maximize short term profits over unnecessarily long periods of time while life enhancing technologies sit on the back burner for years

just sayin'

peace

____________________________________________________________

in the time of your life, live so that in that good time, there should be no ugliness or death for yourself or for any life that your life touches, seek goodness everywhere

brodcaster

Have one

Excellently useful.

Seidio never disappoints.

Have it in my backpack everywhere I go. When battery is low, just plug the USB and let it work its charm.

Simply Good.

Pearl 8100 > 8800 > Storm > Storm 2 -- Call me Oldie :)

trevlan006

My Issue,,, when you do a post like this about a product and provide links to order it, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE make sure the links go right to the product and not just crackberry main order page, i then need to search for the product.
have the link go directly to the product on crackberry and then all i need todo is place in cart.

Even the ADD TO CART button on this page doesn't go directly to it.....lol

just saying is all, make it a little easier for me/us to buy :)

p00njabi

I agree.

I can't even find it on the crackberry store. very frustrating.

edthebudman

I was wondering can you charge the vault with USB or a car charger?

takeo

I would recommend the Sanyo portable charger.

I own it, it's based on their "never looses power if not used"-concept of the Sanyo eneloop brand.

And it packs 5000 mAh *!!!!!!* into a tiny little portable something.

Google KBC-L2

http://us.sanyo.com/eneloop-mobile-booster/eneloop-Mobile-Booster-KBC-L2