Macally PowerLink Emergency Battery Pack with 2 GB Pen Drive for iPod and iPhone (Black)
by Macally
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Macally PowerLink Emergency Battery Pack with 2 GB Pen Drive for iPod and iPhone (Black)
Customer Review: So for what its worth...
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
I like to tell myself that I am not a gadget person. Clearly this is not the case, because my electronics drawer is filled to the top with all sorts of cameras, flash drives and even a little bitty computer ( eee pc) among other things.
When I saw Macally PowerLink Emergency BatteryPack with 2 GB Pen Drive for iPod I just had to have it. I have no idea why. You see.. although I love my cell phone, ipod and tv remote, they sometimes baffle me. Sadly I have been known to call Comcast and ask why my tv won't go on. Maybe its my age. These things are just not intuitive to me. I love having them, and sometimes can and do figure out how to use them effectively, I never really have enough interest to make full use of all of their options. My phones, I eventually figure out. My laptop..now a macbook.. draws a lot of my attention and thus I have learned to use it and all of my computers.
I do not use the ipod very often as I am a huge fan of quiet. This gadget caught my eye and I felt that I just had to have it. It took me a while to even open the package, because I just didn't feel like listening to music. Clearly you are getting the idea. I am probably the wrong person to review this item. But I will give it a try.
I sat down determined to try this gadget. I put my laptop and current read in a different room to try to keep them from calling out to me. I then sat down to work this out. So here is what I think.
It does what it says it will do. I do not have an iPhone, so I am not able to form an opinion on that. It is a little clunky and large, but as a Pen drive for iPod, and battery back up.. it does the job. I had no problem figuring out how to use it. Gadget lovers will not be disappointed, in my opinion.
Customer Review: Interesting Gadget
Summary: 3 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Last night I left my iPod nano on all night so that it's battery would be nice and depleted in order for me to test out this powerlink emergency battery pack. I don't yet have and iTouch, but I'm hoping Santa will bring me one this Christmas. I had previously connected the powerlink to a USB port on my computer and it seemed to be fully charged in about an hour. It was only half depleted when I took it out of the package.
After attaching it to my dead iPod, it was still playing music several hours later. Granted, my iPod probably doesn't use nearly the amount of electricity that an iPhone uses, but I was impressed it was still going and indicating it still had about one battery light left to go before it was spent. But now I'm recharging the both of them via the cable that came with it. Though the cable is short (about 18" long,) both the iPod and powerlink battery can rest on top of my CPU (sits on the floor under my desk) while charging through the cable.
I rarely forget to charge my iPod, and if I do forget then I just do without it until it's charged. The black powerlink and my nano are the exact same color so they do look visually appealing when connected together, but since I use my iPod mainly when I'm jogging, I don't think I want to jog with the powerlink attached to it while it's strapped to my upper arm. And though it holds 2G of data, I have several empty data sticks that I got for free just for walking into the brick and mortar electronics store.
I suppose it would come in handy with an iPhone, but I'm just not convinced that an extra 15 minutes of yak time is worth $40.00. Maybe if I was in a car I accidentally drove into a river......maybe then I'd be glad I spent the money.....maybe not.
Customer Review: A nice 2GB flash drive with 15 minutes of iPod/iPhone power
Summary: 3 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
The Macally PowerLink Emergency BatteryPack is a unique product that is essentially a cool 2GB USB flash drive with an emergency battery for use with your iPhone or iPod.
The key word there is "emergency." The tiny rechargeable battery pack inside the PowerLink doesn't have the capacity needed to supply tons of power to your iPod/iPhone. Macally calls it an "Emergency BatterPack" for a reason ... you'll only be able to get 15 minutes of extra power from this battery connected to your iPod/iPhone.
First, the 2GB flash drive is a great feature that allows you to plug the device into any USB port and store up to 2GB worth of files (music, video, Word docs, etc.) on the PowerLink. When you plug the USB flash drive into your computer it also starts charging the battery pack. It takes 2.5-3 hours to give the PowerLink a full charge ... but the PowerLink doesn't supply anywhere near 2.5 hours of battery power to your iPhone or iPod.
I tested this device with my 30GB iPod Video (which had a completely discharged battery) and the PowerLink lasted long enough to turn the iPod on and watch 15 minutes and 12 seconds of an episode of "Chuck."
Bottom line, the PowerLink really is just an "emergency" battery. I'm sure iPhone users will get more use out of this device because 15 minutes of power is enough to make several emergency phone calls. I doubt iPod users will get much out of this device since 15 minutes isn't much time for listening to music or watching videos.
If you need a 2GB USB flash drive and an emergency battery for your iPhone then this is a great product. If you're an iPod user who wants more playtime for listening to music and watching movies then look elsewhere.
Customer Review: Good idea, would like more versatility
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
This unit is simple enought to use. Plug one end into a computer's usb port to charge it up or transfer files into it's memory and plug the 30 pin port into your ipod or iphone. It is around the size of an ordinary thumb drive, only a little thicker. There are four small lights on it, one is for data transfers and the other three show the state of charge of the internal battery. There is a small, sliding switch on the device to turn the LEDs off and save energy.
You should have one of the ipods that have the 30 pin port if you want to take full advantage of this device. (I believe that means 3rd generation or newer-- ipod experts?) I would prefer a little more output versatility even at the expense of some more size.
The amount of time the device can deliver power, of course, varys greatly with the load you put on it. Iphone full talk mode, wifi on, full brightness, etc., sucks juice quicker than just listening to a few songs with earbuds on an ipod. You are talking about a pretty large range of possibilities. The stated rating is 250 mAh, but the capacity of any battery decreases when the load increases.
"Emergency use" should be the frame of reference for expectations. It is adequate for emergency use, something to plug in for a little extra time, not for recharging or extended use.
I would also like to know a little more about the expected duty life of the internal battery and what options you have after it is expended.
As a USB memory storage device, it has a respectable 2 gb, about half of a single layer DVD. No one is ever satisfied with the amount of storage, but this is a handy amount for right now. I was not impressed with the transfer rate.
Customer Review: A compact and powerful 3-in-one device
Summary: 5 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Macally PowerLink Emergency BatteryPack with 2 GB Pen Drive for iPod and iPhone (Black)
The Macally Powerlink Battery Pack for Iphone and Ipod is a compact device measuring 3/4 inch by 2 ½ inches and having a 30 pin connector on one end and a USB connector on the other. Caps keep connector ends protected for transport. A User's Guide and a female USB extension cable comes in the box with the Powerlink. A three-in-one device, the Powerlink combines a battery pack and a flash disk with a 30-pin Ipod data sync connector.
The unit has a data activity LED to show power status, a battery level indicator, on/off swithc and a 2GB Flash drive. The USB connector connects to computer for data sync and recharge. Charging can be accomplished from any computer with a USB port of through a USB power adapter. (Charging is quick and easy; installation no problem as the Powerlink is automatically detected.) Emergency charging of Iphone and Ipod is quick and easy with the Macally Powerlink Battery Pack.
Note: the Powerlink is for use with genuine Ipod/Iphones and will not adapt to knock-off models.
Specifications:
USB 2.0 Hi-Speed, fully compatible with USB 1.1
Input: USB powered by 5V; Output 5V/500mA
Built-in 270m Ah Lithium Polymer battery extends talk time up to one hour
Flash memory drive size: 512MB to 8GB
Operating System: Windows Vista/XP/2000; Mac OS 9.2 or later
The Powerlink is easy to use, super simple to set up. A cost effective way to enhance data storage and extend operation time. Recommended.