[Macworld]

Post your comments for Review: Mophie's Juice Pack Helium is a solid battery case for iPhone 5 here

[TheBum]

The Juice Pack Air model sold exclusively in the Apple Store for the iPhone 4 and 4S had a bottom cap instead of a top cap, giving quick access to the dock connector. I have no idea why Mophie didn't roll out that design to their other retailers.

[ZekeB]

I pre-ordered a case for my wife and me. With the iPhone 5's amazingly short battery life, we were constantly running out of power after seemingly even short usage. Anyway, the cases arrived last week and we immediately started using them. We do not get a full 100% charge, as was stated in the literature, but even the 80% is a vast improvement. The case does get warm after switching over to the case, but not overly so. Probably the ONLY criticism we have is the smoothness of the case. We both had PhoneSuit battery cases for our iPhone4's. Their black cases had a silicon back which allowed a slip free grip.

[marvin24]

I had a Mophie Juice Pack for my 4 and 4S, it failed and had to be replaced, my wife has a Mophie Juice Pack for her 4 and it failed and had to be replace. I upgraded to the Iphone 5 so I was waiting for the Mophie case to come out, I came across another battery case for the Iphone 5 a couple of months ago called “iPhone 5 Slim Rechargeable Extended Battery Case it sold for $30.00. Has a 2000mAh battery. Also comes with a kickstand. It is a much better value than the Mophie that goes for $90.00. I ordered it from tanga. Macworld should get one and do a review.

[johngettler]

For those already heavily invested in Lighting cables, a company called i-Blason makes a similar case in black or white, for $68, that charges via a female Lightning connector on the bottom of the case.

http://amzn.com/B00A6YEUXI

[ansonboutte]

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For those already heavily invested in Lighting cables, a company called i-Blason makes a similar case in black or white, for $68, that charges via a female Lightning connector on the bottom of the case. http://amzn.com/B00A6YEUXI

I have been using the i-Blason for about 2 weeks now & it is awesome. My wife & I both have one for our iPhone 5's. It will charge from 0 - 100% & still have battery power left over to bring it back to 30% when it goes to 0 again. Mophie can't come close to that. I highly recommend i-blazon. It is also lighter than the Mophie. Only way to go in my eyes.

[tfigs121]

I too am a fan of the cases that do not have cut outs for the volume and sleep buttons. Surprisingly, Mophie handles it really well. The cut out for the volume and vibrate button is recessed in the back of the case and sits flush, unlike the Mophie Air case. The buttons have easy access and the case does not get in the way. It is a much slimmer design than the Juice Pack Plus and feels good in your hands. Overall, I am very satisfied with this case.

[dennymat]

I pretty much agree with Lex's review of the Mophie Helium. I've now owned one for about a week and, although I like its sveltness, I'm disappointed with the battery life, the deep cutouts and their continued use of the micro-USB.


I've tried to recharge my phone a couple of time from 1 to 10 % remaining, but it never got it back to more than 60 - 70 %. My mophie juice pack plus that I owned previously for my iphone 4s, could recharge all the way, so I echo Lex's request for Mophie Pb or something that has more battery capacity.

The deep cutouts are an issue when using the camera (flash reflects off the recessed inset to cause bad exposure and the phone's top and side buttons are a little bit hard to press.

Finally, I'm especially disappointed about the micro-USB. I was hoping to be able to recharge the Mophie with the same Lightning connector I use for the phone. Now, I'll have to carry around yet another connector, which is annoying and likely to cause me to eventually get stranded without the right one with me.

One of the other commentors here mentioned the i-Blazon, so I'll probably have a look at this case mainly because it gives more power and uses the Lightning connector.

I do like the look and feel of the Helium, but would not rate it more than 2.5/5 stars because of the above-mentioned shortcomings.

[KMB2]

Is ANYONE making a battery case with a Lightning connector pass-through, instead of a damn micro-USB replacement port? I don't need yet another adapter for the interfaces in my cars. If there's any option out there with a Lightning pass-through, or even a 30-pin Dock connector, I'd consider it.

[esorun]

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Is ANYONE making a battery case with a Lightning connector pass-through, instead of a damn micro-USB replacement port? I don't need yet another adapter for the interfaces in my cars. If there's any option out there with a Lightning pass-through, or even a 30-pin Dock connector, I'd consider it.

Hi, friend. 1 or 2 months later you will find FA80 can meet your basic request and much more.