[Two-months-later review update also posted here]
It’s probably clear by this point how much I like cases, but the Dexim P-Flip is an accessory that’s so ridiculously cool that I’ve been keeping my iPhone naked just to use it. The P-Flip is a 2-in-1 mobile charger that also functions as a fully functional dock, and it features a cool little portable design that makes it easily pocketable to boot.
Quality
First of all, considering that the P-Flip only costs $55 (pretty cheap for a 2000mAh battery), I’m quite surprised by the build quality. The device I received is made of black plastic which doesn’t creak at all. The rotating dock, the portion I’d most likely expect to break, feels quite secure. It ratchets very assuredly into place and is held in place by two thick plastic joints — no flimsy stuff here.
Folding Design
One of the main reasons I was interested in this accessory was because of its fold-up design. While folded, the dock rails rest right up against the main portion of the battery. You can then rotate the rail frame to a 180-degree or ~80-degree position when you want to actually use the device, and the clicking of a ratchet will tell you when the frame is locked into place.
The 180-degree position offers the functionality of most bottom-loading iPhone chargers (like the Richard|Solo 1800 or the iPWR), but with a much more secure fit because of the rails. You can still use the iPhone in portrait mode and lie it down on the table, and it’ll be charging the whole time.
If you rotate the rail frame to around 80 degrees you can use the P-Flip as a dock. You can theoretically lie the P-Flip sideways and use it was a landscape dock as well, but portrait is much more convenient.
Great Fit
Besides being a portable dock (which is already a pretty novel feature, as far as I’m concerned), the P-Flip features a great railed design. I’m calling them rails, but it’s actually an entire curved frame that holds a quarter of the iPhone in place. What this means is that it’s impossible to place the iPhone into the P-Flip at an angle and either scratch the phone or damage the 32-pin connector. It also means that the fit is very, very secure. Unlike many other portable battery solutions and docks, you don’t have to worry about accidentally damaging the phone or charger by putting too much pressure on the connection point.
Syncing
The P-Flip charges through a min-USB port, so you can use the cable you’ve been using for your portable speakers, HTC smartphones, digital camera, or whatever other portable devices you might be using. In other words, it’s a lot more convenient to charge and sync your iPhone since you no longer have to carry the white iPhone cables around. I love this.
Battery Life
For such a small package, it’s surprising how much juice they’ve fit into this battery. The 2000mAh battery has more than enough juice to fully recharge an iPhone, but — as with all other portable chargers I’ve used — the actual recharge capabilities fall a little shorter. In my non-scientific tests, I found the P-Flip’s battery life enough to charge my iPhone fully and have enough for a 10% juice-up after that. This is more than good enough for me, considering all the other roles that the P-Flip already fulfills. You can check the P-Flip’s battery life at any time by pressing a small button to light the 3 LED’s, each of which represents 33% worth of charge.
The only extra item you’ll need is an AC charger with USB output, since the P-Flip only comes with a mini-USB cable for charging with a computer. I used my iPhone’s AC charger and plugged the cable into that and it worked well enough for me.
Conclusion
I’m ridiculously happy with the Dexim P-Flip and I think it’s one of the best iPhone accessories I’ve had the pleasure of using so far. It has definitely displaced my previous favourite, the iPWR, because the fit on the P-Flip is just so much more secure. I think it also scores some points over the Mophie ($100) and Richard|Solo 1800 ($70) solutions because of its lower price ($55 before shipping). I’ve also stopped using my Xtand and white iPhone cable in favour of the simplicity of a retractable mini-USB and P-Flip charging/syncing solution.
Whenever I’m heading out I just unplug the mini-USB cable and take the iPhone and P-Flip with me. In the same way that my iPhone eliminated the need to carry a separate music player when I’m out and about, the P-Flip has become the convergence accessory for most all of my iPhone needs.
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You can pick up your own P-Flip for $55 at Dexim.net, but their site also states they’ll be available in AT&T stores by Nov. 22.
The Dexim P-Flip was provided by Dexim for review on Just Another iPhone Blog. For further information regarding our site’s review policies, please see the “About” page.
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TAGS: dock, iphone charger, syncing
