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Nomad Introduces Revamped 'ChargeKey' With Lightning and USB-C Options

Blusterman said:
Even when called out, by at least a dozen people, for reporting blatantly false (not misleading) info on this product, the article still hasn't been corrected.

Confirming, once again, that MacRumors staff enjoys looking stupid.

Maybe I could sell them an over priced auto battery charger that is really just a pair of two foot long jumper cables.
Click to expand...
Nothing about this article is false? It's about the cable that folds in half and lives on your keyring. It's an updated version of an older product that now has USB-C. Where in the article is that false? Take a deep breath bud! We're talking about phone chargers here!
The ChargeKey is a pocketable charger that attaches to a keychain. It features magnetic tips that connect to one another when the ChargeKey is not in use, and then when needed, the two halves fold out into a small charging cable with a durable, braided design. When folded, the ChargeKey is 7.6cm long, and when unfolded, it is 12cm.
Click to expand...
 
CC77 said:
Nothing about this article is false? It's about the cable that folds in half and lives on your keyring. It's an updated version of an older product that now has USB-C. Where in the article is that false? Take a deep breath bud! We're talking about phone chargers here!
Click to expand...
Article says "charger". It is anything but. It's a cable used to charge something but it's not a "charger".

charg·er1

https://www.google.com/search?clien...2ahUKEwj5grjO-Z2AAxWdFFkFHU8fCXkQ3eEDegQIIhAI
noun
noun: charger; plural noun: chargers
  1. 1.
    a horse trained for battle; a cavalry horse.

  2. 2.
    a device for charging a battery or battery-powered equipment.

Also just in case you need to know:

charging;

store electrical energy in (a battery or battery-operated device).
"the shaver can be charged up and used while traveling"
  • (of a battery or battery-operated device) receive and store electrical energy.

 
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THIS SOUNDS GREAT!!!! Sounds easy to use LOL😂!

NOMAD.jpg
 
Eric_WVGG said:
kind of surprising to see some much confusion regarding this product… This is an updated version of Nomad's very first product, a Kickstarter project IIRC. (nope, I'm wrong, second project)

The Nomadic | NOMAD®

Shop iPhone cases & accessories made from the finest materials. Browse our specialized selection of Apple Watch Straps, suite of durable cables, ...
nomadgoods.com nomadgoods.com

… anyway, it's a glorious device to have, dunno why it took seven years to replace USB-A with USB-C but whatever.
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I liked mine too. The build quality was good, and it was nice that it secured itself in half with the magnet. Nifty little gadget. I'm not understanding all the anger about a mini charging cable, but peace be with you all.
 
lol, I think this paid ad went sideways. It has caused nothing but confusion, chaos and disdain for the product/mfg
 
AbSoluTc said:
Article says "charger". It is anything but. It's a cable used to charge something but it's not a "charger".

charg·er1

https://www.google.com/search?clien...2ahUKEwj5grjO-Z2AAxWdFFkFHU8fCXkQ3eEDegQIIhAI
noun
noun: charger; plural noun: chargers
  1. 1.
    a horse trained for battle; a cavalry horse.

  2. 2.
    a device for charging a battery or battery-powered equipment.
Also just in case you need to know:

charging;

store electrical energy in (a battery or battery-operated device).
"the shaver can be charged up and used while traveling"
  • (of a battery or battery-operated device) receive and store electrical energy.
Click to expand...
I have provided mine to people in many meetings that pointed to this thing and asked to borrow "my phone charger." They plugged it into their laptops to charge their phones. I'll go tell them they were wrong, and that you were right, and that they weren't actually charging their phones at all. Please know this is my utmost priority for the day.
 
When I first read this and originally thought it was a portable charger, I had to double take at the image when I saw "Mac" listed as something you could charge. A battery that small would get me maybe a 5% charge on my MacBook Pro before I had to recharge the ChargeKey.

Thanks to the comments it all makes much more sense.
 
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CC77 said:
The fob is a separate Nomad product, an Airtag holder. This is just about the cable. Not clear what all the commotion in forums is about. I had one of the USB-A to Lightning versions of these for a while, it was great in a pinch. Happy it was updated to USB-C as that had less utility for me after USB-A left the Macbook.
Click to expand...


I think the confusion is because the product is called a ChargeKey, implying that it is a charger, but it is not a charger.
 
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The original Chragekey was marketed as being tough and ruggedised. They fell apart or failed remarkably quickly. They replaced the one I bought, the replacement failed out of the pack.

Nomad never got any of my cash again.
 
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I was really confused by this picture because I didn't realize that the charge thing was actually one on top of another. Maybe my eyes are starting to go.
 
CC77 said:
I have provided mine to people in many meetings that pointed to this thing and asked to borrow "my phone charger." They plugged it into their laptops to charge their phones. I'll go tell them they were wrong, and that you were right, and that they weren't actually charging their phones at all. Please know this is my utmost priority for the day.
Click to expand...
People misusing or making up words because they’re lazy — yes, I know language is essentially made up — does not create a proper exception. For example, I hate “texting“ and “texted." Is it so difficult to say “I sent a (text) message”?

www.merriam-webster.com

Definition of TEXT

the original words and form of a written or printed work; an edited or emended copy of an original work; a work containing such text… See the full definition
www.merriam-webster.com www.merriam-webster.com

/RANT
 
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MacCheetah3 said:
People misusing or making up words because they’re lazy — yes, I know language is essentially made up — does not create a proper exception. For example, I hate “texting“ and “texted." Is it so difficult to say “I sent a (text) message”?

www.merriam-webster.com

Definition of TEXT

the original words and form of a written or printed work; an edited or emended copy of an original work; a work containing such text… See the full definition
www.merriam-webster.com www.merriam-webster.com

/RANT
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I'm with you but we both know it's a losing battle. The conversion of a noun (Google) to a verb (to Google something) usually comes about when the subject is not understood by the user. People know how to Google (well, usually on a really basic level) but they don't know how Google works.
 
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I have several short cables and don't see a need to spend the money to have something with magnets. However, I was intrigued by this and have a few questions / comments.

Eric_WVGG said:
kind of surprising to see some much confusion regarding this product… This is an updated version of Nomad's very first product, a Kickstarter project IIRC. (nope, I'm wrong, second project)

The Nomadic | NOMAD®

Shop iPhone cases & accessories made from the finest materials. Browse our specialized selection of Apple Watch Straps, suite of durable cables, ...
nomadgoods.com nomadgoods.com

… anyway, it's a glorious device to have, dunno why it took seven years to replace USB-A with USB-C but whatever.
Click to expand...

CC77 said:
The fob is a separate Nomad product, an Airtag holder. This is just about the cable. Not clear what all the commotion in forums is about. I had one of the USB-A to Lightning versions of these for a while, it was great in a pinch. Happy it was updated to USB-C as that had less utility for me after USB-A left the Macbook.
Click to expand...

REAL QUESTION! 🙂 Maybe I don't understand how this would work, but since it is attached to your keys, wouldn't using it be cumbersome since your keys are also still attached when using it? Or is the expectation that you unthread it each time you want to use it? How are you guys using it without your keys sitting as a pile between the two devices or do you just live with that?

MrRom92 said:
Back when I used a battery pack that was wired, I had a short rubberized lightning cable that was only about an inch or two long, pretty much like this. I liked it, as it meant I could put the battery and iPhone together in my pocket, or just hold them together, and I wouldn’t have to deal with a typical cable which would be unnecessarily long for the task.


Nowadays modern portable battery packs have MagSafe and don’t even use a cable at all, unless you really wanted to for some reason. But why would you? What other use case is there for a cable THIS short in this day and age?
Click to expand...

MafSafe is certainly convenient, but it is also not efficient. If you often have access to power and you only need something like this in emergencies, then the loss of efficiency might work. However, for people who might need to go longer periods of time without power, wasting energy on wireless charging only shortens the time that someone can be mobile without power. Short cables for these things still have a wonderful place for powerless remote computing.
 
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I really want to emphasize how un-amazing this device is. Could you keep the two halves together without a magnet? Sure, they could snap together. Could they have adapters to support USB, USB-C & Lightning all in one product? Sure, this is just a dongle without additional dongles included. Would this be 100% better if it were twice as long? No, that is what is so un-amazing.

Would this be more valuable on a 50% off sale? No, not even twice as valuable; but mark my words: it'll be half off someday. (Probably when we start switching all our dongles to USB-D.)

Move along.
 
Arsenikdote said:
I have several short cables and don't see a need to spend the money to have something with magnets. However, I was intrigued by this and have a few questions / comments.





REAL QUESTION! 🙂 Maybe I don't understand how this would work, but since it is attached to your keys, wouldn't using it be cumbersome since your keys are also still attached when using it? Or is the expectation that you unthread it each time you want to use it? How are you guys using it without your keys sitting as a pile between the two devices or do you just live with that?



MafSafe is certainly convenient, but it is also not efficient. If you often have access to power and you only need something like this in emergencies, then the loss of efficiency might work. However, for people who might need to go longer periods of time without power, wasting energy on wireless charging only shortens the time that someone can be mobile without power. Short cables for these things still have a wonderful place for powerless remote computing.
Click to expand...
It's a gimmick. It works but isn't really practical.
 
At first glance I thought this was some sort of mini key ring power bank thing… which makes no sense anyways. But it’s just a short cable.
 
Is there a legal requirement now to disclose paid advertising or is that an EU thing?

I feel like I see an endless barrage of nomad infomercials on this site. Just me?

I’m not hugely concerned, just curious if it would be legal to position an ad as an “article”
 
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Arsenikdote said:
REAL QUESTION! 🙂 Maybe I don't understand how this would work, but since it is attached to your keys, wouldn't using it be cumbersome since your keys are also still attached when using it? Or is the expectation that you unthread it each time you want to use it? How are you guys using it without your keys sitting as a pile between the two devices or do you just live with that?
Click to expand...
Happy to answer a real question! 🙂 When I carried it, I had it on the other side of my Orbitkey fob so I just left my keys on. It was usually to top off my phone (geez, that must‘ve been iPhone 6?) in long meetings, or when travelling, plugged in to my laptop. I also would occasionally use it in a pinch in a rental car situation but I’d unthread it from the fob then. Not terribly difficult, but yeah kind of a pain. The value of it for me was just the piece of mind that I always had a cable on me, and USB-A ports were getting pretty ubiquitous, so I usually had a way to charge in a pinch.

I haven’t carried it in a while for a few reasons: laptop doesn’t have usb-a; magsafe battery pack lives in backpack for peace of mind/backup charges; I don’t work in the office full time anymore. I would consider throwing a USB-C/USB-C one of these on my keys though, assuming the rumors about a USB coming to iPhone pan out.
 
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