Charge your iPod or iPhone with a couple of AA’s

If you’re an iPhone user you can probably always use some more juice. Especially if you’re a traveler. Although I have a fantastic iPhone backup battery, the one I have requires charging. If I forget to charge it or if it runs out of power then I have to find a plug to plug it in and wait a couple of hours for it charge up.

You can find AA batteries just about anywhere

That brings me to the Energizer Energi To Go portable power for iPod. This was the Woot special of the day a couple weeks back and I ordered a few of them to try and give out to friends and family. Of course since it doesn’t say that it works with the iPhone or the iPhone 3G, I really wanted to give it a try and see how it would work. The iPhone 3G and all current model dockable iPods get their power over the USB pins. So only the most recent chargers tend to work with them.

The Energi To Go is a simple device that you pop 2 AA batteries (included) into it and flip out the 30 pin dock connector and sit your iPod or iPhone on it to begin charging. You should be able to get at least 1-2 full charges from an almost dead iPhone battery out of AA’s.

The Bottom Line

My FastMac charger is definitely more feature rich and is designed specifically for the iPhone. However, it’s also 3 times the price of the Energi To Go. The Energi To Go has a cheap feel to it. It feels as if it would break easily. However, as long as you don’t abuse it, it should last. Although I have not had any problems with it on my iPhone 3G, it does NOT specifically state that it is iPhone compatible. I also like the way it docks behind the iPod/iPhone instead of on the bottom like some other batteries. The 30 pin dock connector is also adjustable for the thickness of your iPod or iPhone for a good fit. The Energi To Go is $29.99 at Amazon.com.