Review: Smart Charging Dock

Smart Charging Dock
Manufacturer : Unknown
Site : Buy from Brando
Price : $15.00

Overview : This is a dock that lets you watch movies on your PSP without holding it. The dock also charges the PSP at the same time. The dock has LED indicators to let you know when its charging and when its not. You can also use either your PSP power supply or the supplied USB cable to charge the PSP/dock.

Quality/Usability : This is pretty much a dock with charging capabilities. Nothing special. It charges the PSP and is used to hold the PSP in a upright position to watch movies. You can use the power supply that came with the PSP or you can use the USB cable that came with the dock. This will send power to the dock to charge the PSP. Whats also great is that if you're near a computer, you can use the cable without the dock to charge the PSP.

There are Flashing LED indicators on the dock. On the side which looks like the shoulder buttons of the PSP, house two LEDs, blue and green. The blue LED stands for the PSP is charging, while the green LED stands for the PSP is in standby mode (Off). If there is no light when the PSP is turned on, that means the PSP is fully charged.

Charging :

• Green Light - Standby Mode
• Blue Light - Charging Mode
• Auto stop when fully charged

On the front, you'll notice PSP icons such as MUSIC, MOVIE, GAME, UMD, SETTINGS, PHOTOS. And next to each one, there is a red LED that flashes. Unfortunately, it really doesnt do anything. All it does is flash a red LED back and forth, left to right. At first, I thought this was an indicator to show you where you were on the PSP but if you look closely, there is six (6) icons, but only five (5) LEDs. So this is pretty much just for looks. Dont worry, if it annoys you with the flashing of the red LEDs, there is a button on the back that says 'LED SW'. This will turn On/Off the flashing red LED.

On the bottom of the dock, there are two (2) little 'kick stands' that come down to tilt the PSP back a little for better viewing.

Unfortunately, when the PSP is placed in the dock, you can not access any of the buttons at the bottom of the PSP such as volume, HOME button, etc. If you have a strap on the PSP also, it may need to be taken off before you can place the PSP into the dock, if not, the PSP will be tilted and might not charge. I dont use the strap so I wouldnt really know. Also, the dock prevents the UMD from opening completely because the back of the dock blocks the bottom of the UMD door hinge area.

Conclusion : This is probably the sweetest looking dock compared to the other docks in the market. Too bad there are some flaws to it such as unable to access the buttons at the bottom of the PSP and the blocking of the UMD door. None-the-less, this is a great item for those who wants style/look. The cable alone is great cuz it can charge the PSP, so as long you're near a computer.

If it wasnt for the blocking of the buttons and the UMD, this would have gotten a higher score.

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