Patriot FUEL iON Magnetic Charging Cable Review

1. Introduction, Specifications, Pricing & Availability
2. What's Hot, What's Not & Final Thoughts

TweakTown's Rating: 90%

The Bottom Line

Patriot's FUEL iON magnetic charging cable offers amazing performance and compatibility, which is only let slightly down by the price. Once you get one of these, you won't go back.

Introduction, Specifications, Pricing & Availability

We've previously reviewed the starter package of the Patriot FUEL iON Galaxy S4 case and magnetic charging stand, now we're going to show you the first accessory we've been provided with. This USB-to-magnetic charger is compatible with any Patriot magnetic charging case and is not limited to the S4 case only.

The main question we have to answer here is - is the magnetic cable worth the extra investment? The FUEL iON series cases still allow you to charge your phone through a normal cable means, so why get this magnetic implement? Read on to find out my thoughts.

Specifications

Compatible with any of Patriot's FUEL iON series charging cases, this charging cable will see your phone charge 99.5% as fast as a when plugged through a normal USB cable.

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Thanks to the magnetic connection, this cable will be able to charge your phone at any angle within a 360 degree spectrum, as long as a connection is continued. This means that you'll remove any niggling issues of a micro-USB cable hanging out the bottom of your phone.

The cable will handle any charging speeds that your regular micro-USB or Apple equivalent cable will, meaning wall socket chargers that pump up to 3A outputs will function as per normal.

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Complete with a two-year warranty, this cable measures in at 3.3ft and comes only in a white color scheme.

Pricing & Availability

With plenty of cables being made available online, the biggest issue for this cable to overcome is the price versus performance model. Setting you back $26.06 with free shipping from Amazon, this product is undeniably useful, but a little pricey.

What's in the box?

There's honestly not much to say. The cable is presented well and comes with only the cable itself.

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There's a short 'manual' on the rear of the box and that's about it.

Touch and feel

The cable feels well constructed and the connectors feel like they're going to last for years to come without breaking or fraying.

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The main issue you'll find with micro-USB cables is the fact that they always break around the phone connection (micro-USB) end (see image below). This is due to them bending and molding constantly when you're using the phone whilst charging and also they will take the brunt of the force if your phone is accidentally dropped. To make things worse, they're stressed every single time you plug in and unplug the cable itself. I've even broken a brand new cable by my phone falling off the desk whilst charging and landing awkwardly on the cable connection.

The other advantage of this is magnetic option is that your phone stays safe - if you mess up the one and only micro-USB input you're provided with on the device, you've got nothing left to do but to repair it or buy a new phone. Magnetic charging removes every single one of these issues and therefore I think it's worth the $26 investment to save yourself a possibly broken phone and quite a few broken cables.

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The magnet has a solid connection on the device and can be used at any 360-degree angle as the website states.

Further analysis

It seems that the benefits are almost unlimited between this style of cable and your general micro-USB option. As mentioned previously, your cable is less likely to break or fray, the micro-USB input port on your phone stays safe, the charging speed is comparable, and you're likely to make back the cable price in a matter of one to two years as you're unlikely to have to replace it due to breakage.

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We've been provided with some other accessories by Patriot in the FUEL iON series and this cable was the one I was the most unsure about. Sure, it's going to be quite expensive if you're wanting a couple of these to spread around your home, car and work when compared to $2 Deal Extreme cables, but it's guaranteed to work with a warranty and will be able to outlast your phone if treated properly.

If Patriot could only lower the price by $5-$10, I think we'd have a real winner here. Because no matter how useful, over $25 for a cable is always hard to justify in the end.

PRICING: You can find the Patriot PCGPCB3FTW Fuel Ion Wireless Charging Cable for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.

United States: The Patriot PCGPCB3FTW Fuel Ion Wireless Charging Cable retails for $26.06 at Amazon.

Australia: Find other tech and computer products like this over at PLE Computer's website.

Canada: The Patriot PCGPCB3FTW Fuel Ion Wireless Charging Cable retails for CDN$51.41 at Amazon Canada.

What's Hot, What's Not & Final Thoughts

What's Hot

Sturdy: The cable will most likely outlast your phone.

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Easy to use: It can charge your phone at any angle as long as the connection is kept, no more annoying USB cable sticking out of the bottom of your phone.

Strong connection: The magnet has a very solid connection to the case - or any other metal object you wish.

Helps prolong phone life: Thanks to your no longer having to plug and unplug a small cable into the flimsy micro-USB socket three times a day, your phone will thank you dearly by lasting longer.

What's Not

Only one color: It's a small issue sure, but it would be great to see a navy blue or black cable to suit the case color.

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The cost: If $5-$10 could be taken off the retail price we would be looking at a real winner here, it's hard to justify a $25+ cable no matter how cool it is.

Final Thoughts

If you've made the plunge and gotten the magnetic charging case, the benefits for this charging cable are just too high. The cable will last longer and help prolong your phone life - it's most likely that you'll hold onto this cable for a longer period than you'll hold onto your current phone model. Simple, just buy the next magnetic charging case for your next device and continue enjoying this easy charging method.

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The Patriot Fuel iON magnetic cable makes for easy charging and removes the possibility of breaking your extremely small and flimsy micro-USB phone port which (from personal experience) can be bent, become dirty, and break in other ways to disrupt your charging experience.

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PRICING: You can find the Patriot PCGPCB3FTW Fuel Ion Wireless Charging Cable for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.

United States: The Patriot PCGPCB3FTW Fuel Ion Wireless Charging Cable retails for $26.06 at Amazon.

Australia: Find other tech and computer products like this over at PLE Computer's website.

Canada: The Patriot PCGPCB3FTW Fuel Ion Wireless Charging Cable retails for CDN$51.41 at Amazon Canada.