Today we have the Scosche reviveLITE on the bench for review. This thing is a iPhone dock and night light in one package and has quite a few things going for it. But with a few kinks and a rather high price, is it worth it? Let’s see.
In the Box: In the plastic blister pack you get the dock itself, a set of instructions in English, French and Spanish and 4 foam inserts. I’ll say more on the inserts later.
The Good: The reviveLITE is pretty compact, about the size of a MacBook power brick. It features a foldable dock on the side and foldable power plug in the back. They’re selling it in white and black. So it should match your iPhone quite well.
The build quality is pretty nice. The plastics used in the unit don’t flex or bend in any way and look like they’ll survive quite a beating. The hinges have a nice mechanical click when they lock into position and don’t seem like the will wear down anytime soon.
The key feature that sets this dock apart from other travel docks is the night light. The small LED light turns on when ambient light is low. There is also a switch at front for manually turning off the light when not needed.
A hidden bonus: this unit works in a 100-240 volt range. So, if you do have an international adapter, it will work in other countries.
The Bad: My biggest gripe about this is the method they use to ensure compatibility with different iPhone and iPod models. Normally, manufacturers give little plastic inserts that fit into the dock. Scosche included foam inserts that come out from the side of the dock and hold the iPhone or iPod on one side. What I don’t like about this is that takes away the usual elegance of iPhone docks and even covers part of the screen. It is pretty stable though.
The price is another big minus. The MSRP is listed as $39.99. I don’t know if I’d be able to shell out 40 bucks for that thing. I’d rather just go buy myself a dock and nightlight from the dollar store and duct tape them together. It is in no way as elegant, but still is a lot cheaper.
The Verdict: They call it a “home charger,” but I see this as a perfect hotel accessory for folks who travel. So if you are a traveling businessman and don’t mind the expense, it is perfect for you. If you are looking for a clever gift for a friend and don’t mind burning a 40 dollar hole in your pocket it still isn’t that bad of a deal. If you aren’t too concerned about the number of outlets taken up in your house and would rather save the money, just get a nightlight and iPhone dock separately. It’ll be a lot cheaper.
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