The Sanctuary Charging Station and Desk Valet
Filed under: Gadgets, Power and Data Distribution
Cell phones, PDAs, digital cameras, MP3 players, handheld video games…. if you’ve had it with juggling separate chargers all of your small electronics, I’ve got a charging station that you’ll definitely be interested in: the Sanctuary. Right off the bat, I have to share my assumption that this device charger was named the Sanctuary because of the feelings of order and serenity it can bring to those who use it. Untangling multiple charger cords can be a stressful experience, but it’s one that you’ll never have to deal with again…. once the Sanctuary comes on the scene, that is.
The reason for the Sanctuary’s calming effect is twofold. The first (and most obvious) reason can be chalked up to its aesthetic properties. Design-wise, it’s no-frills: clean lines, smooth contours, and a pleasingly stark white exterior. The second (and, I should add, concealed) soothing element is that the Sanctuary contains 12 built-in connectors that are compatible with up to 1,500 different devices. You realize what that means, don’t you? You can finally toss all of those cluttering chargers… or at least stash them away for travel. The Sanctuary plugs into a power outlet with just a single cord, and the built-in connectors do the rest of the work.
Have I mentioned how delightfully compact the Sanctuary charging station is? Only 9″ x 9″! I don’t know about you, but I’ve lost a chunk of countertop far more expansive than that by charging just 2 cell phones and a digital camera — it’s amazing how much space a few measly charger cords can take over. And while we’re talking about charging multiple devices, I should let you know that despite its diminutive size, the Sanctuary can accommodate 4 or 5 well-placed devices, with room left over for your keys.
Faux-Leather Charging Station
While I was scrubbing house this weekend, inspiration for which product I would highlight in today’s blog came to me out of the blue, when I came face to face with my faux-leather charging station. There was a time when the two-and-a-half-foot section of counter between the kitchen sink and wall was largely eaten up by our two tangled cell phone charger cords. Not only did it look like a mess, but I’d also have to constantly mop up water that would somehow find it’s way out of the sink and threaten to soak both the cords and phones. As you can probably imagine, that situation got old fast, and it didn’t take long for me to bring home a charging station.
The charging station has 3 pods that can accommodate 3 or 4 devices (depending on their sizes), as well as a hidden back compartment that holds a mini power strip (to plug chargers into) and stashes charger cords out of sight. Once you have it set up, the only visible cord is the power strip’s — but if you keep the charging station nice and close to an outlet, even that one isn’t too noticeable.
Since I was the one insisting that we get a charging station, I thought the decent thing to do would be to at least let my husband pick the color, since he was going to be using it too. What can I say, the man has an eye — he chose black, which looks pretty darn sleek on the countertop. It’s been about a month now, and we both love the station — it makes us look and feel deceptively organized, and has returned a chunk of premium counter space to our small kitchen. Oh, and before I forget: the fact that charging station is faux leather has actually been a bonus — I’ve wiped it down with a damp cloth, with no harm done.