Review: iBattz Mojo Battstation Tough Dual Pro USB Battery

by Bill Palmer

Battery cases which form-fit your mobile device are all the rage, but sometimes more power is needed than can be crammed into a case, or more than one device needs power, and so external battery bricks come in handy. iBattz offers the Mojo Battstation Tough Dual Pro, whose pair of USB ports allow you to charge any two USB devices at a time, from iPhones and iPads to Brand-B tablets and so on.

The Battstation offers several appealing characteristics. Unlike most of its competitors it’s encased in ruggedized rubber, in a nod to the fact that external batteries are more likely to get used on the go and therefore get banged around. It has a built in small flashlight, again in recognition of the decent chance that this product will be used either outdoors or during a power outage. And while it comes with a generic micro-USB cable, it also includes a pair of 30-pin adapter heads for use with devices like the iPhone 4S and iPad 3 (those with a new Lightning-based device like the iPhone 5 or iPad mini can use the Lightning cable which came with their device).

But perhaps the most important thing to like about this product is that while it offers 7200 mAh of power, enough to charge multiple devices multiple times, it costs a mere $29. For reference, similar competing products offer 4400 mAh for $49, 10000 mAh for $99, and so on. That makes the Battstation an absolute steal.

There are two points of caution here. The minor one is that because this is intended as a rugged product, the ports are covered by rubber flaps. It’ll take you a few seconds to get your fingernail in there to pull them back, as there are no pull-tabs. However, the entire rubber layer can be removed, leaving you with just the plastic battery module which makes the whole thing smaller and the ports more accessible. The major caveat, for some users at least, is that this is a 1.0 amp product, not a 2.1 amp product. That means that while iPhone and iPod users may notice much of a difference, power hungry devices like the iPad will take a long, long time to charge. That makes the product more geared toward those who are mostly charging smaller devices, or who are charging tablets overnight and don’t care how long it takes. Still, this product from iBattz is a huge bargain and it makes all other external USB battery bricks suddenly look overpriced.

The Battstation unit I tested is 7200 mAh for $29, an absolute steal. Also offered is an 8400 mAh for $39, which offers fractionally more juice but isn’t quite such a bargain.

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5 • Price: $29 • ibattz.com

About Bill Palmer

Bill Palmer is Editor in Chief of Beatweek Magazine. His editorial contributions include interviews with musicians and iPhone industry coverage.