Cell phones have become standard mounted equipment for many long distance riders these days, providing functionality as GPS, music player, weather reports and even talking on the phone (!) via Bluetooth communicators. Over the past year or so, I had been using a RAM universal X-mount on my bike for my cell phone, with a retractable USB cable running into my right glovebox to the 12V charger there. Dealing with the USB connection proved a frustrating and challenging setup over the several longer rides I completed in 2016.

The common micro-B USB connection that my phone has is not really designed for the jarring and rough outdoor environment of motorcycling. After a while, the pressure tabs on these connectors straighten out and the connection becomes looser, making it all too common for the cable to fall out of the phone mid-ride. This often results in gymnastic antics reaching forward to grab the cable and plug it back in while riding (with gloves on), or else waiting for the next stop. If you don’t notice, you end up with a dead cell battery right when you need it.

While searching for unrelated parts on the RAM website, I came across this new nifty-looking Intelliskin universal cradle solution for mobile devices. Apparently, it is based on some technology also used in police cruisers. The basic idea is your phone (or other device) has a custom-fitting “skin” that not only offers some edge protection but plugs into the USB jack and converts the connector to a larger multi-pin style that should prove more durable and less prone to disconnects.

USB connector built-in to skin…

…converted to sturdy-looking pin connectors.

There are various docking solutions for your phone once in the skin, including a mountable vehicle dock. All you need to do is drop your skinned phone into a compatible dock to make the charging connection rather than fiddle with USB cords. The vehicle dock includes a spring-loaded bar at the top that holds the phone securely in the dock once the bottom connection is made, offering much more reassurance than the x-mount that your phone wouldn’t bail out going over potholes or going over hard seams doing 70 on the freeway.

After reviewing the specs, I decided to give it a go. I ordered a skin for my Samsung S7 phone, one of the vehicle docks, and a standard RAM ball mount for the back of the dock.

Although the skin is pretty slim and form-fitting (no bigger than other protective skins I’ve seen folks use), I dislike bulky phones and the S7 is big enough without a covering, so I only plan to use the skin while riding.

The dock has a short pigtail USB cable that I connected to a longer cable after applying a dab of dielectric grease on the metal connectors, then applied electrical tape to hold everything together. I routed the cable into the glovebox to my Anker 12V USB quick-charger. I also applied some of the grease to the pins in the bottom of the dock, since they will be exposed to the elements when the phone is not mounted.


RESULTS:
On recent fair weather rides, I have absolutely loved the convenience of the new docking system. No more messing with the unreliable little USB connection and fishing for the cable that popped out of the phone during a ride, etc. One-handed docking/undocking is easy, even while riding. I can easily tap the side buttons on the phone and I have no worries of the phone coming out of the spring-loaded mount.

The primary negative – this is NOT an all-weather solution. While my phone is purported to be waterproof (or at least heavily water resistant) and that seems to be the case so far, in any type of steady rain, the water is running down the phone face and pools under the Intelliskin at the USB connector within the skin where it joins the phone. This causes the phone to detect moisture and disable charging. And it takes a LOT of drying out to get the phone able to take a charge again. When you are using your phone for Waze and/or music, the juice goes quickly and constant charging is a necessity.

I got around this on a recent wet journey by simply moving the phone into my waterproof jacket pocket during the rain. The cradle pins area is easy enough to dry out with a microfiber cloth when the drops stop falling and the phone can go back onto the mount (it seems to be only the actual USB connection to the phone that must be protected.. For longer periods, the phone would need to charge in the glove box, requiring removal of the skin to use a regular USB cable. RAM now has a small connector dongle to allow you to charge the phone while still in the skin but without a dock and I have one of those on back-order.

Another rider recently recommended trying the wireless charging feature of Samsung phones by mounting a charging puck onto a standard mount, and this may be something to explore for a more all purpose solution.