Batteries are rather expensive, I’m sure we all know that and constantly buying them is not only a waste but costs money obviously. One solution to buying batteries is to get rechargeable ones, but I’ve found that not all are created equal.

Today for review I’ve got a brand new product from Konnet that uses Induction technology to charge your Wii remotes. Induction technology in short is no cables involved, it essentially charges wirelessly and that’s something I think anyone can appreciate. The product is called the PowerV Duo, but besides the fact that it uses induction charging it also included two extra USB ports to charge your Nintendo DS or any other gadget with a USB cable. I’ll be honest I like this product a lot, so read on to learn more about what I think is one of the best accessories for your Wii..

Specifications:

PowerV DUO

Advanced Wireless Charging Dock for Wii Remote Controllers & Nintendo DS

Features :
-Advanced Wireless Induction, Connection-Free, Charging Technology
-Charge and Store up to 2 Wii Remote Controllers at one time
-Charges Wii Remotes without taking off Motion Plus and silicone jackets
-Bundled with 2 x Rechargeable Battery Pack
-LED Indication in red/blue colors for Charging Status
-Intelligent charging technology to avoid overcharged
-2 Extra USB charging Port for charging DS console

Specifications :
Wireless Charging Ports : 2
USB Charging Ports : 2
Rechargeable Battery : Ni-MH 800mAh x 2
Input Power : 5V 2000mA
Wireless Charging Power : 200mAh x 2
Wireless Charging Time: 3-5 hours
USB Charging Power : 500mAh x 2

Included Inside :
PowerV Duo Charging Dock x 1
Rechargeable Battery Pack x 2
USB charging cable for DS Lite/DSi/DSi LL
AC/DC Adaptor x 1
Manual x 1

Compatibility:
Nintendo Wii Remote
Nintendo DS Lite
Nintendo Dsi
Nintendo DSi LL

Dimensions : 173 mm x 150mm x 78mm
Net Weight : 0.4kg

Model No.: KN-9809
Price: $34.99

Unboxing:
We’ll start off with an unboxing video for you:

The box is basically one sided, the other side is the same except in a different language.

Inside you’ll find the unit itself in two part, a base and a ‘head’ part, you’ll also find an AC adapter, ‘Y’ style USB cable and two batteries for your Wii remotes.

The head piece has a single LED on on the top and two USB ports, one on each side. The bottom of the unit is keyed to fit and lock into the base unit. The bottom has metal contacts inside that match those on the base unit.

The base has two large Wii Remote shaped spot on either side, along with LEDs on each side and a power button on the front. On the bottom you’ll find ventilation and rubber feet.

On the back of the base you’ll find the power connection:

Installation, Performance, Comparison
To install the head piece you just fit into in place and turn it to lock it in and make the power connection. Here’s a few different views:

battery installation is easy, they just clip in place like the covers of the battery compartments do. Here’s both of my Wii Remotes with battery installed and not:

The batteries add no bulk to the remotes, they fit in the space where regular batteries would fit.

Once you have the batteries in, just plug the PowerV Dou in via the AC Adapter and hit the power button, the button itself lights up as does the LED in the head section.

Charging couldn’t be simpler you just set the remotes in place and it starts. I like it, no messing around with cables or changing batteries. The remotes are charged independently and they each have their own LEDs on the sides of them that turn red when charging and then blue when fully charged.

As claimed it works perfectly find right through the silicone covers, and you can charge with the MotionPlus attached.

Charging takes about four hours to complete from a totally dead battery. Today is Wednesday and I received the PowerV Duo on Friday of last week, I did my unboxing etc and then let them charge, then I played the Wii for the next few days for a few hours per day. I Got Super Mario Galaxy 2 of course and spent some quality time with it and a few other games that involved the MotionPlus and those that didn’t. In total I think I’ve spent about 10 hours playing and the batteries still don’t need recharging just yet, but as expected the controller with the MotionPlus attached does have a lower battery level.

I have another charging base unit with rechargeable batteries, and it’s one that involves actually hooking it up to the Wii and the USB port on it, that’s where it gets it’s power to charge the remotes from and it takes a long time to charge this way. I also found that the batteries with that setup don’t seems to last when you’re not charging them, but those with the PowerV Dou seem to retain their charge very well when not on the charger.

Normally for my gadgets that require batteries I use Radio Shack brand Enercell Alkaline, I swear by them actually, they do seems to last the longest out of any other batteries except for the Energizer Lithium, but they’re rather expensive and I can get a 40 pack of Enercell batteries for $20, whereas a four pack of Energizer cost about $10. I’ve found the Enercell batteries really last almost as long as the Energizers do. Anyway, the point here is that the rechargeable batteries that come with the PowerV Duo seem to be as good as regular alkaline are. The issue with rechargeable batteries though is that after a time they lose their power, I can’t comment on that part of it since I’ve only had it for less than a week, but I’m hoping they’ll last as I really like the PowerV Dou.

I also own the Konnet Xbox360 Controller Charger as well, it’s called the Power Pyramid, and the one thing that I really like about it is that’s it’s independent of the Xbox360 and that’s a feature that I really like. I don’t have to turn on the Xbox to charge my remotes, and the PowerV Duo is the same in that respect, it works independently of the Wii. To use the PowerV Duo you just push the power button and you’re ready to go.

The PowerV Duo though isn’t just for charging your Wii remotes, those two USB ports on the top piece can be used to charge anything that can be charged via USB. I don’t own a Nintendo DS, but the included cord is for that basically, I did however charge my Zune and one of my Phones with no issues are all.

It is a USB port so you can expect the same type of charging as if you hooked it up to your computer, slow but it works fine.

So the PowerV Duo is much more than just an induction charger for you Wii Remotes, you can charge most any other mobile device as long as you’re got a USB cable for it.

Conclusion:
The PowerV Duo in my opinion is one of the best accessories for the Wii you can get, it’s simple to use and it works well. Induction charging works well, and you have to love the fact that there’s no wires involved here.

The batteries included seem to be powerful enough to last several hours of gaming, and will not lost their charge if left off the charger like other batteries do.

The PowerV Dou gets bonus points though because it’s much more than a charger for your Wii remotes, it has two USB ports that will allow you to charge other gadgets like the Nintendo DS, your MP3 player or cell phone.

This product is one that I can easily recommended to Wii owners out there, it truly is a great little product.

Pros:
+Simple to use
+Well made
+Batteries last long and hold their charge
+You can charge other gadgets via the USB ports
+Induction charging!

Cons:
-None that I could find

Ratings
Overall: 5 out of 5
Performance: 5 out of 5
Aesthetic: 5 out of 5
Build Quality:5  out of 5

Disclosure: http://www.bonafidereviews.com/disclosure-policy/

Wireless charging for your Wii remotes, this is cool!

The PowerV Quad features advanced wireless induction, which allows for a hassle-free charging process.  Simply rest the Wiimote on the PowerV (with or without removing Motion Plus and silicone casing) and it will charge instantly via the supplied Konnet rechargeable battery packs.  Once the remote is placed, the Quad will recognize its battery strength and reflect charging status through a red or blue LED light: red LED means the controllers are charging, blue LED means the controllers are fully charged.

If that’s not intelligent enough, the PowerV Quad will stop charging once the Wiimote is fully juiced or will recognize if an alkaline battery is being used, making it impossible to waste excess power on overcharging.  Along the same lines, its “Off/On” button enables it to be more energy efficient.

Priced affordably at $49.99 ($54.99 CAN), the PowerV Quad includes an AC/DC Adaptor cord and 4 rechargeable Ni-MH 800mAh battery packs.  Additional battery packs are available on Amazon.com for $19.99 ($24.99 CAN).

website, www.konnetonline.com.

We’re a mobile society and keeping power to our devices can get expensive. Pretty much all products come with a regular charger, but if you want mobile power you’ll need to buy another charger for your car, and maybe even one for your office as well. All of these chargers for our different devices can get expensive, so why not get one that is portable and can charge most all of your devices?

Our friends at MobileFun have sent me over the PowerMobile Advanced Emergency Charger for review. I like this unit for a number of reasons, it can use regular or rechargeable batteries and you can charge the batteries in the unit via USB. The product comes with several charging tips for many devices but it has a stand USB port, so you can charge most any device without the use of the included tips. It truly is a universal charger fro your portable devices..

Specifications/Features:

PowerMobile Advanced Emergency Charger

The ultimate in emergency power!

Why Buy:
* Comes with 7 tips to charge almost every phone on the market
* A USB port so you can charge any portable device.
* Intelligent circuitry which automatically stops charging when batteries are fully-charged.
* Small, light and a very stylish design
* Can be also used as a battery re-charger

Powered by two high-capacity rechargeable AA batteries, the PowerMobile Advanced has enough power to fully charge mobile phones, digital devices, iPods and even the iPhones. The PowerMobile Advanced also features a charging-level indicator and intelligent circuitry which automatically cuts out charging when batteries are fully-charged.

Also included in the pack are 7 different mobile tips – including Nokia, BlackBerry, HTC, Sony Ericsson, Samsung and LG. The tips have such a wide range of compatibility that they will work with certain digital cameras and sat nav units.

It also includes a separate USB port so you can charge literally any device that you have a USB cable for, making the PowerMobile Advanced probably the most versatile charger on the market. The USB port is even designed to charge the iPhones!

Not simply an emergency charger, the device can also be used to recharge any rechargeable AA batteries. Simply put the batteries into the device and plug the device into any USB port and the batteries will begin to charge up.
Features:
* Portable, compact and stylish design
* Built-in USB port for charging mobile devices between 4.5-5.5V input
* Foldable USB key for recharging AA batteries via any USB port
* Universal – features 7 connectors for popular mobile phones
* Ready-to-use low self-discharge rechargeable batteries (can also be used with non rechargeable batteries)
* LED battery level indicator

Specification:
* Output: 4.8Wh (max)
* USB input: 5V/350 mA
* USB output: 5V/500 mA
* Rechargeable Batteries: 2 x AA Ni-mh, 2000 mAh
* Dimensions:H 105mm x W 45mm x D 20mm

Connector Tips:
* Nokia 2mm Connector
* Samsung D800/D900 Series
* Samsung G600/U900 Series
* Micro USB (Nokia/Motorola)
* Mini USB (Blackberry/HTC/Motorola etc)
* LG Series
* Sony-Ericsson Fast Port Series

Unboxing:

This product doesn’t come with any special packaging, just a bubble wrap bag. There’s no instructions either, not sure if this was a mistake or not, but it’s easy to use so no instructions are required really. In the bag is the charger itself along with several tips and a special USB cable for the tips.

The charger itself is small and portable, fit right in your hand really, it’s about 4 inches long and not even 2 inches wide. On the top is a button that allows you to check the charge status of the batteries along with LED indicators.

One end of the unit has a standard female USB connection, while the other side has a flip up male connection to be used for charging the device.

On the bottom is where the battery compartment is, inside you’ll find two rechargeable batteries already installed. They’re 2000Mah batteries.

The included tips I received are for Nokia, Samsung, LG, DSI, Sony, and MicroUSB.

The included USB cable is the retractable style, one end has a USB connection while the other fits the tips only.

Installation, Performance, Comparison:

To use the charger you’ll need to charge it first, and that’s done just by plugging it into a standard USB port. The LED indicators will show you the charge status when plugged in.

To use the charger just attach a tip to the cable, plug that into the charger and then just plug it into your device.

One nice thing about this product is that it has a standard USB port on it so you can charge any device with it that has a USB cable.

To test it I charged several things with the tips and without. I charged my AT&T Tilt Cell phone, Zune, iPod nano and my Jabra BT530 Bluetooth headset.

It works well overall, but the battery life seems a bit low. I would have to guess because the unit uses no-name brand rechargeable batteries. I did get to charge two devices before the batteries died fully though. Personally I would go and grab some good quality batteries to use with it, it seems like it’s well worth the investment to me.

Recharging the unit doesn’t take that long, I didn’t time it, I just plugged it in and went about my business like anyone else would. That’s kind of the whole point with this product, it’s USB and you can charge it basically anywhere you’ve got a USB port. Take it with you to work and charge it while you’re there and it’s ready for you if need be.

The unit itself seems well made and it couldn’t be any easier to use really.

Conclusion:
I’ve had the chance to review several different portable charges in my time as a reviewer and I think I like this on the best of all because it truly is the most universal charger I’ve seen to date. Many chargers require special tips at an additional cost, which can get very expensive depending on how many devices you’ve got. With the PowerMobile Advanced Emergency Charger you won’t need any special tips as long as you’ve got a USB cable for the product.

It’s a good product really, if you’re looking for something to charge most all of your mobile devices then I’d check this one out…

Pros:
+Portable
+Easy to use
+Comes with lots of tips
+Can use regular batteries
+No special rechargeable batteries required
+Works exactly as advertised
+Can use the tips and USB cable with regular USB port for charging

Cons:
-Included batteries don’t seem to last very long

Overall: 4 out of 5
Performance: 4
Aesthetic: 5
Build Quality: 4

I would like to thank MobileFun for the opportunity to review the PowerMobile Advanced Emergency Charger and for their support of Bona Fide Reviews.