**REVIEW** Qi Receiver and Wireless Charger

Okay, today's post is a dual-product review. I wanted to try a wireless charger but because my phone (a  Samsung Galaxy Note 4) doesn't have built-in capabilities for wireless charging, I had to handle that. So...

This is the Note 4 Qi Receiver Built-in Qi Wireless Charging Receiver by LANIAKEA

That's what it looks like on the product page at Amazon. Here is what it looks like 'in person':

Such a tiny thing to do something that's kind of amazing.

What the receiver does is allow me to charge my phone wirelessly - no plugging anything into the phone itself. 

When I want to charge my phone (which is pretty much all the freaking time), I just sit it down on this RAVPower Qi Wireless Charger Charging Pad. Like so:

That is, theoretically. I will get to that in a moment. In the meantime, this is what the charging pad looks like and comes with as you can see from my actual received product:

Understand the idea is wireless charging - not cordless. There is, of course, a cord to plug the charging pad into. But before I could even deal with the charging pad, I had to prep my phone.

I do love my Note 4 and I really don't ever want another phone. I think of the Note series as a phone for writers. Literally. The stylus with its note-taking, handwriting capabilities is so perfect for someone who hates typing on a tiny keyboard. The downside is, it's one of the few (if not the only) recently produced phones without Qi abilities pre-installed. Which is why I was so glad to find the receiver for not more than a tenner. The price is actually $11.86.

Installing the item is easy. Good thing because the included instructions were printed so small I joked that I'd need Superman vision to read them. I found a YouTube video instead and all is right with the world. This is basically what the deal is: you place the receiver onto your battery, fitting the metal doo-dads of the receiver over the metal doo-dads inside your phone. Like how technical I got there?

Trust me, it was easy. Don't even strain the soul of your eyes trying to read the enclosed instructions...

and that's with the camera magnifying the page 😏

Before I move on, let me point out a couple of positives about the receiver:

1. The price is very reasonable.
2. Never bought from the Seller before, but Laniakea was quick with the delivery and the product lives up to the hype so far.
3. The receiver even worked when I had my mirror back case attached.

There's really not much more the say about the receiver. Once it's inserted, I don't even think about it. 

Once I got the receiver inserted, it was time to try out the charging pad. I was so excited. Just to imagine not having to unplug my phone every time I left my desk to take a break. Oh, the joy. The happiness, The- What the heck? 😨

(BTW, Blogger should never have added symbols. I will be so much more annoying now!😁)

On to the charging pad then.🠊 (See. Annoying.) Anyway...

Remember, how easy this photo made things look? 

Now, remember what I said about theory and all?

I was looking at the picture all wrong. I saw "easy". In practice, well... It's more like this:

                                                

👎Boo. Hiss.

No kidding. If you don't get the phone placed onto the charging pad just so,good luck. 

The good thing is, once I get some practice, it should be easier to just plop the phone onto the charging pad in the correct position. I hope. For now, I can tell when I've got it correctly placed because the pad's indicator light will flash green and red as long as the phone is charging. Also, the phone does make that annoying connection sound that it does just like when plugging into a wired charger.

The rest of the Pros and Con's about the charger? I will start, of course with the negatives:

• Charging is not as speedy as with an OEM* cable charger.
• This is not cordless, so... There will be the cord from the pad to the wall to avoid tripping over. (I already tripped over it, yes, I did.)
• The pad takes up desk space. Not a lot, but enough if your desk is small. It's about the size of a flattened 100's cigarette pack. 

On the Plus side:

• My phone doesn't get as warm as it can with a cable charger. 
• Though it charges slower, it will be great for overnight charging.
• Wireless is great for people like me who always forget and just about yank their whole desk over when trying to walk away with a plugged in phone. True story. At least twice a day. One time I tipped over my whole portable desk.
• I paid $10 for this one last week. I see the price is up to $15.99 today. Just wait for a sale or check out other sellers. I'd say that, at most, this is worth about $20, but I'd still look for a bargain price.
• If your household has users of different types of phones, it would be nice to have a couple of these pads around. No more worrying with cable fits which phone.

Bottom Line:

If you catch this at the right price (and I waited a few months to do just that), then this would make a great gift for a gadget lover. While not essential, it is a cool idea and it does have benefits.

Personally, I would not have gotten this if I'd had to pay even 5 bucks more. It's nice but it's a must-have item - especially if you have to get the receiver separately. 

There are some people for whom a wireless charger is more useful. I think that people with multiple phones (maybe like my nephew who has a work phone and his personal phone) or a busy house might find it useful. Again, not having to worry about finding/sharing cables with everyone is a big benefit.

There you have it. Hope this review was helpful to some of you.

Peace

--Free

*OEM = Original Equipement Manufacturer