Lightning Cable for your everyday needs.
As a father of four (two and six-year-old daughters and nine and twelve-year-old sons) and a Cub Scout Cubmaster of approximately forty kids, I wish I could say that I packed light. Unfortunately, like a recent meme, I laughed much too hard at “ME AT HOME: using the same few things daily… ME PACKING FOR VACATION: I wonder if I’ll need 4 French Horns or 5,” I am guilty of overpacking. This past week, I volunteered for our local Scout Reservation Scout Camp and realized I wanted to do better. Thanks to Kick Power, I did not have to work too hard at ensuring a succinct portable power kit.
The Kick Power Apple Certified USB cable arrived in a visually appealing 4 inches tall by 2 3/4 inches wide by 7/8 inches thick retail hanging package. The vibrant main panel provided a lime green/black “KICK POWER” title along the top right of the panel and a slightly raised, glossy image of the USB-A to Lightning cable. I was pleased to find that the company displayed its Apple Certified status just beneath the title and with the MFI (Made for iPhone, iPad, iPod) along the bottom of the panel. Beyond the MFI status, the cover demonstrated both ends of the USB cable and provided an icon that detailed the 3ft cable length. I loved the geometric black-on-white color scheme and the lime-green accents that wrapped around the sides, top, and bottom panels. Like the title panel, the right-side panel detailed the 3ft length, while the bottom panel listed the Kick Power title. The rear panel of the packaging proved to be the most useful, displaying the product title at the top, a clear window of the product, a quaint paragraph about the MFI status, provided contact information (www.kickpower.com) and an SKU barcode.
I lifted the top lid, slid the clear plastic tray out from within the outer packaging, and then removed the 26gram, 39 1/2-inches long USB-A to Lightning cable. Both the USB-A and Lightning prongs were securely embedded within the rubberized cable material and had a 1-inch long neck section. I loved that they chose to provide the longer neck sections, instead of opting for a shorter section because most cables break at the neck connection point. To test the strength, I gripped the Lighting end and bent it forward and backward 50 times and then side to side 50 times. I repeated this process with the USB-A end and found the cable design allowed for a healthy degree of flexion. Lastly, the company included a convenient 5/16 inches thick Velcro cable retention strap to adjust the cable to your desired length. Simply coil the cable, tighten the Velcro strap and enjoy a managed cable system. If I had one critique for the Kick Power Lightning Cable Pro (2.0), I would taper the rubberized end just a bit to accommodate some phone cases. When the end is too boxy, some may find that the cable will not fit into rounded lightning port cutouts. For example, the cable did not work with Catalyst Total Impact Waterproof cases, which has become my everyday-carry, go-to phone case.
I tried the cable with a variety of cases and found that the Catalyst Case was the only one that would not accommodate the Kick Power Lighting to USB-A cable. I used a DROK USB-A multimeter and found that the cable was able to output at 5V/2A and showed data transfer speeds limited to the USB 2.0 technology. Until the iPhone and AirPods upgrade to USB-C, we will likely need to keep a USB-A to Lightning cable around to charge our devices and to connect to many computers. The MFI certification was likely a costly addition for KickPower, but a reassuring one in my eyes. In fact, after testing numerous cables, I try to only purchase cables that have MFI certification. Knowing that they passed the rigorous Apple certification process means that the cables will stand up to routine use and have less chance of complications. Consider KickPower if you need a replacement cable or simply desire a backup.
Learn more about the KickPower 3Ft Lightning Cable.
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