RND Dock for Galaxy S5 and Note 3 with USB 3.0 and 2.1A Charger (compatible without or with most cases including OtterBoxes)(black)

The GOOD & BAD of this charging dock. It holds my Galaxy S5 with its Otterbox. Its nice to not have to remove the Otter! Also, there is a lot of open area space under the charger for the flap to hang around. The only troublesome issue i've encountered with each use is how difficult it is to actually connect the phone to the charger. I've had to fiddle, adjust, push and wiggle to marry the connectors each and every time I've used it. I'm fearful of eventually damaging the charger over time. Its fast, looks great on the desk and makes the phone useful while charging. If you can get past the fiddle faddle of connecting and the 30 seconds of life you'll never get back each time, its a nice product. I'd feel better about three stars if it was priced below $20. Good luck!

This is a good dock/stand/charging base if you want to use your phone easily while it's charging. The base holds the phone at a good angle, and offers full USB 3.0 functionality, for transferring files. It includes a 2A charger, which is handy, although I have my dock connected to my computer instead of the charger.I am using the dock with a Galaxy S5 (no case), and it fits just fine. The protective dust flap over the charging port fits into a hole in the bottom of the stand (not easily visible in the pictures). It forces it a little bit towards the back of the phone, but not enough to cause any damage, as long as you're careful. That was one of my main concerns with getting any charging stand, and I'm happy to report that using an S5 with this dock is not a problem.

Extended battery users -From back of rest to center of plug is 5/8" at it's most usable extreme, the plug in the base is kinda hinged where that 5/8" can be less for folks with regular cases, so if you put your phone on it's back on a table and measure from the table to center of charger plug it can't be more than 5/8" max. I used a dime as a reference (see pics) and a dime is 11/16 and i can force it to 11/16 but not usable like that.I have a Note 3 -My extended battery case is -Seidio DILEX Extended Case with Metal Kickstand for Samsung Galaxy Note 3https://amzn.com/B00HYM030EASIN: B00HYM030E Item model number: CSK3SSGT3KX-BKmy extended battery is-Anker 6400mAh Extended Battery with Black Cover for Samsung Galaxy NOTE 3https://amzn.com/B00FFQLW1UASIN: B00FFQLW1U Item model number: AK-70SMNOTE3-E1B64NAI wasn't able to just put it right on the plug which may be my bad aim or having this big case in the way. I have the rubber band on it in my pics so i don't have to finger it into place, i'm hoping it will eventually stay. The plug is on a hinge type of thing that slowly moves back in when i take the phone off but i am using it in the most extended position. I'm sure i'll do something better than the rubber band.It works.It comes with an AC plug and also a solid USB 3.0 plug with the blue plug end, so you can plug into the wall with the AC or you can use the USB plug connected to your computer fir charging and syncing. Both charge equally well. I use the free android app "Galaxy Charging Current" to measure the charge and both show 1200mA and if the battery is very low it fast charges at 1800mA. With my big extended battery case it's almost vertical when in place but is still tilted slightly back. On my case Seidio should either redesign the kickstand or have an option without it because it adds an 1/8" of thickness to this already fat case, it would fit better with that extra 1/8".It's good, it's working and i'm happy.Worth mentioning -I'm also waiting on an 6500mAh extended battery Wireless Charger case by Mugen, do a web search on "Mugen Power Replacement Door Cover for Samsung Galaxy Note 3" and you'll see they sell just the case for about 20 that'll fit over your 6500mAh battery. If you want both the 6500mA battery and a wireless charging case to fit it Mugen sells the combo here on Amazon at http://amzn.com/B00H2FC7RU

Charges well and holds the phone, Note3, at a good viewing angle. Placing the phone in the dock? Now that's a two handed pain in the ass that I suspect will eventually ruin the port on my phone. Connector on the dock pivots and fits snugly into phone. This means you have to hold the dock with one hand while you try to line your phone up with the connector in the dock that is moving and doesn't want to engage the phone because it's such a tight fit. Would help if the pivot was much stiffer. Also a good idea to hold the base of the dock when removing your phone. The solder connections for the usb port on most phones aren't that great.

I've only had it one day and the first thing that happen was the protective cover for the charging port broke off when I took the phone off on the morning. I guess the stress from the charger forcing it off to the side was too much. A simple cutout on the right side would have allowed the cover to hang down and wouldn't have cause the problem. I'm not sure I'm going to return it, it will depend if T-Mobile will fix the phone or not. If they won't (or the cast is too high) then I might as well keep the charger now that the cover is no longer "in the way".

Considering how few stands like this allow you to keep on the Otterbox case, I suppose I should be very pleased. And, I generally am ... once I can get the phone properly seated, which can be a task that takes from a couple seconds to half a minute. I just can't seem to consistently get the USB 3 connection on the phone and stand to want to merge properly. I've used it for a few weeks and am not getting any more adept at putting it on the stand without a struggle. Maybe it is just me. Maybe it is a design issue. I really don't know but I suspect the latter.

Good docking station though it takes getting use to connecting the plug on the station to the phone charging port. A bit awkward because of the angle. Sometimes had to pick up the port holding the plug with one of my fingers to keep it in place (it can move a little) while trying to fit the phone port in. .. sometimes frustrating. .. but after a while I got the hang of it