Whenever a company touts a product as having “all-day battery life,” it’s really not all that helpful. All-day battery life means something different to everyone. I think we can all agree that smartphone batteries and power efficiency are two areas where technology feels to have stalled over the last few years. As such, the need to charge while on the go remains. It’s why portable chargers or devices like Apple’s MagSafe Battery Pack exist.
It’s annoying, though, to carry around huge wall adapters with long cables. Even more, it’s super annoying when you forget to pack your cable.
That’s where Nomad’s latest product comes in. The ChargeKey attaches to your key ring and has all the necessary bits and pieces to connect your phone to a power source. And because you can’t go anywhere without your keys, you don’t have to worry about leaving it behind.
The Nomad ChargeKey is small enough to fit on your key ring, ensuring you always have a charging cable on you for those times when your phone is running low on power.
How I found the new Nomad Goods ChargeKey
What feels like many years ago, Nomad made a name for itself with a Kickstarter campaign for a product called ChargeCard. The small, credit card-like gadget was a portable charger for your phone. When you took it out of your wallet, you would fold out a connector for a standard USB plug and a second connector for the iPhone. It was a hit.
Nomad followed up the ChargeCard with the ChargeKey, a very small and portable charging cable that fits on your key ring. It, too, was a hit.
Since then, I’ve followed Nomad’s product launches, which happen often. But one thing I’ve longed for is a modernized ChargeKey. One that supports a USB-C to USB-C connection for charging basically every device I own and another that goes from USB-C to Lightning for my iPhone.
A few weeks ago, my wish came true: I received a press release via email announcing that Nomad was ready to relaunch the ChargeKey. Both versions would offer a USB-C connection on one end, and then there’d be a dedicated model for USB-C devices and a second that boasts Apple’s Lightning connector.
The USB-C to USB-C cable is $25, while the Lightning version is $35. Even though the iPhone- and iPad-compatible version is a bit more money, it’s worth the extra cash if you’re an Apple user and frequently find yourself in need of a quick charge.
To say I was excited is an understatement.
Why it’s a score
Fast-forward to today. I’ve been using the new ChargeKeys for a couple of weeks, and they’re better than I expected. The metal housing where you attach the ChargeKey to your key ring and the metal housing near the connectors both feel sturdy and like they’ll survive the abuse I typically associate with being on a key ring. That is, metal constantly banging against it, and the occasional drop or toss across the house.
The cables are made of braided nylon cable, so they’ll be able to withstand some abuse as well.
Inside the housing at the end of the cable are magnets that keep both ends from flapping around and getting intertwined with other items. It also gives the ChargeKey a tidy appearance.
The USB-C to USB-C version of the ChargeKey supports charging speeds of up to 60W, which is more than fast enough to fast charge most Android phones, a MacBook, an iPad or a Samsung Galaxy Tab.
The USB-C to Lightning ChargeKey will charge at speeds of up to 20W, which falls short of the iPhone’s 30W top charging speed. That said, it’s more than enough power to charge your iPhone from completely dead to roughly 50% in about 30 minutes.
Both cables are limited to transferring data at USB 2.0 speeds, which isn’t very fast. These truly are designed for charging your devices, not to be used for transferring pictures or large files while on the go.
Of course, a cable is only half of the hardware you’d need to charge a device. The other half is a wall adapter or power source. To me, ChargeKeys are something you always have nearby, ready to be used to quickly charge your phone using an open port on your laptop or in tandem with a small USB-C charger plug like Anker’s 30W 511 or even Nomad’s 30W power adapter.
With rumors and expectations of Apple switching the iPhone 15 to USB-C from Lightning, I have a feeling Nomad is going to sell a lot of the $25 ChargeKey.
