Bluelounge Kii - Lightning in your pocket
Unless you're in dire need of power, it's easy to forget
something like a charging/data-transfer cable when you leave the house.
Fortunately, Bluelounge's Kii makes it even easier to always be prepared -
assuming you have access to the appropriate USB ports, that is.
About the size and shape of a car key, the Kii is a
Lightning-to-USB device that has the Lightning connector locked into a metal
fob. (A 30-pin-to-USB version - which is half the price of its sibling - also
exists, but we didn't receive one for review.) Sliding a switch on the fob
unlocks the actual Lightning-to-USB portion, which, at approximately 2 inches
long, is smaller than most USB flash drives.
Bluelounge Kii
In the press materials, Bluelounge says the Kii was designed
for laptops. Laptops have horizontal USB ports that are just above the flat
surfaces the computers are resting on, which are ideal since the Kii cannot
support the weight of Lightning-enabled devices on its own. However, the Kii
also works with keyboards such as the Apple keyboard with numeric keypad thanks
to its USB ports being close to the desk. Those ports are at a slight angle, of
course, but the Kii is partially composed of a hard yet flexible rubber, so it
has some give.
It's hard to
forget your charging cable when it's attached to your key chain
The bottom line
Bluelounge's Kii is a convenient way of toting a
Lightning-to-USB cable, but its usability is limited.
Specification
·
Price: $39.95
·
Requirements: USB port, Lightning-enabled device
·
Pros: About the size of a car key. Sturdy construction. Rubber
body gives it some flexibility.
·
Cons Twice the price of Apple's Lightning-to-USB cable. Only
feasibly works with horizontal USB ports that are parallel to flat surfaces.
·
Overall: 3/5
