LocknCharge iQ 10 Charging Station REVIEW

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For several years, I’ve tried to find decent charging solutions for my many USB-driven devices. I have explored options that include charging hubs that allow you hook up multiple devices but I’ve not liked many of them because of how many cables end up being exposed. I have many charging stations but they all have this same problem and I hate cable clutter. The iQ 10 Charging Station from LocknCharge provides a secure charging station with only one cable that is visible. I’ve had the opportunity to work with this product for a couple of weeks and am excited about the possibilities it provides.

The iQ 10 Charging Station is made by LocknCharge, a company with the mission of making life easier for schools and organizations implementing mobile device technology by providing secure solutions for charging the devices being used. This particular charging station does what its name suggests — it provides a way for you to charge 10 devices simultaneously. While that’s not unusual, the fact that you can lock the cabinet up while the devices are connected is.

The iQ 10 Charging Station has a lot of notable features including:

• Mounting Options: While the charging station is quite large, you do have the ability to mount it to the wall or the desk. The cabinet ships with supplies for mounting it in either way.
• Universal Compatibility: The charging station is compatible with all iPad models, tablets, and phones. The unit ships with two 10-port USB charging hubs that are stored inside the cabinet. These hubs provide up to 2.4 amps of power at each port, which is enough to power smartphones and most tablets. The cabinet is large enough to accommodate even the largest tablets like the iPad Pro 12-inch and the Microsoft Surface Pro.
• Efficient Charging: The unit charges up to 10 devices in approximately the same amount of time as charging just one with an MFi lightning cable.
• Baskets by LocknCharge: The iQ10 Charging Station comes with two portable baskets that allow you to share and distribute devices that are charged in the unit. This is a great benefit because it allows you to organize the devices that are going to different areas with very little trouble. These are the same baskets that are used with the LocknCharge carts that use the same Basket ecosystem. I like this feature for small businesses, schools, and doctor’ offices because it shows you exactly what devices are going where. The baskets are designed to accommodate devices with or without cases. The charging station also comes with internal brackets that allow you to store devices vertically without the aid of a basket. Please note that you can’t use both at the same time.
• Security: The devices is made out of welded steel construction. That combined with the mounting kit and the padlock, your devices will be secure while they’re safely locked away.
• LED Status Indicators: The charging station is equipped with LED Status Indicators on the USB hubs, but unless you dismantle the unit, you can’t see them easily.

The iQ 10 Charging Station really does a lot for organizing and storing important, expensive devices. It is a large cabinet. It’s about the size of a full-size microwave so you need to plan for that accordingly. I have mine set up on the top of a storage cabinet that is 36 inches wide. It’s not lightweight either so you need to make sure that whatever you have it set on (or mounted to) can handle the weight. A standard printer stand would probably work just fine.

While I don’t always have a reason to lock my devices up, I love that this case gives you the opportunity to hide all your cables and still have your devices get charged. While this device gave me the option to charge many devices at once, it did have a couple of flaws. First, the charging station comes with some additional trays for device security, but there are no instructions included about how best to use them. Second, the unit was shipped to us with a large dent in one of the doors. This dent carried through to the main body of the unit. While it doesn’t quite affect the operation of the charging station, it does make it easier for someone to break it open if they tried. Overall this is a really nice option for charging multiple devices even if you don’t need to lock up the case. You even have the option of using your own padlock if you want.
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For more information, visit lockncharge.com/iq-10-sync-charge-station
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Originally published at macsources.com on May 22, 2017.