Review: Seidio Desktop Charging Cradle for 8900/8350i

Seidio Desktop Charging Cradle for 8900/8350I

List Price: US$34.95 Get it now for US $24.95

@ http://www.seidioonline.com

[Rating: 9.5]

Thanks to the guys over at http://www.seidioonline.com this week, I got a chance to test out their new desktop charging Cradle for both the 8900 Curve and the 8350i. Yes, this stylish and smooth looking cradle is designed for both the 8900 and the 8350i.

I have to say that from the description of the item, I was expecting a good size cradle like some of those other third-party cradles available out there, but to my surprise it was just a little bit wider and taller than the original RIM cradle. With that said, let’s take a look at some of the cool features of this cradle.

The color is a solid black with a smooth feel too it. It has a green light at the front, bright enough for you to see it in the dark so it does not bother you if you keep it on the nightstand like I do.  The cradle has a black smart phone attachment piece that comes off for better fit, but if you are using an Innocase from Seidio, you can take the piece off and charge your BlackBerry without having to take it off.

Seidio does state that this charger is not compatible with the 8350i Innocell 2600 extended battery.

On the back of the cradle, you will find two ports to connect your OEM travel chargers. One is a MiniUSB charging port and the second one is a MicroUSB port. I was curious to see if my 8900 would charge using the miniUSB and it did work.

Compared to the OEM cradle from RIM, I like this one better for the fact that the Seidio cradle for the 8900 is tilted backwards a little bit while the OEM cradle sits at an almost vertical angle. The 8900 fits perfectly on the cradle and ensures that the 8900 gets charged, whereas you are never too sure with the OEM charger because sometimes it does not sit correctly and the phone doesn’t get charged.

PROS:

• two USB ports;
• stylish;
• the 8900 fits perfectly – I didn’t test an 8350i, but my 8310 fits just fine even though it doesn’t charge;
• can be used with Seidio cases.

CONS:

• none.

There is nothing I don’t like about it. It is useful and well designed. I only have to recomend you make sure the phone is charging. The 8900 clock always turns on when it is charging, that is the best way to tell whether you BlackBerry is in fact charging.