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I’m addicted to my phone and I use it for almost everything. When I’m driving its no different. Its always running Spotify or an Audio book and most of the time I have Waze or Google Maps running. For me, having my phone mounted in a cell phone mount is the best way to keep an eye on the maps and keep it just out of the way that I can’t be tempted to use it while driving. Instead of the standard windshield mounts I decided to try out the Anker CD Slot Cell Phone Mount.
Anker CD Slot Cell Phone Mount – Features
The Anker CD Slot Cell Phone Mount is a universal fit for most modern cell phones. It fits iPhone, iPod, Samsung, LG, Nexus, HTC, Motorola, Sony and Other Smartphones. It will fit around many of the OtterBox Defender Cases and other large cases. The cell phone mount securely hold your cell phone in place using tight gripping rubber that is adjustable to four inches. The mount will swivel to almost any view you want by using a 360 degree rotation via a ball-in-cup socket that gives you the perfect view.
To install the mount, just slide it into the CD slot as you would put in a CD. The mount only goes in a few inches and is covered in soft rubber that won’t damage the internals of your CD player.
As with all of their products, its comes with an 18-month warranty and a friendly support staff.
Anker CD Slot Cell Phone Mount – The Review
The cell phone mount came in a nice cardboard box with a minimal design with the picture of the product on the front and details on the back of the box. The item was nicely packed and easy to access everything in the box.
Inside, the cell phone mount came in two pieces and an information card. All you have to do is put the two pieces together and tighten the nut down. Once in place you can use it.
To attach your phone to the mount, press the button on the back the cell phone mount base. That will extend the grips. Once the grips are fully extended, you can install your phone. Put the base of the phone centered between the feet. Once in place, press the grips together. They should tighten around your phone sides.
Once your phone is in the mount you can install the phone into the CD mount. Once in place, you can adjust the phone for the best view.
Overall the cell phone mount is made well and should hold almost any phone. For me I found that my LG G4 with an Otterbox Defender case is a bit large for it and because of the case the grooves that help old the phone in place do not fit right. Because of this the phone sometimes pops out of place and falls out on bumpy roads (only did it twice.)
I also do not like how the feet are are not adjustable. Being fixed as they are, its hard to use the charging cable and the audio cable at the same time. If your audio jack is on top this shouldn’t be an issue. If not, then this may not work for your phone. Hopefully in the future Anker takes this in account. Many of the brands out there have adjustable feet and they work well.
When the charger is mounted in the CD slot it holds just fine. Only once it fell out and that was when I was on a rough country road full bumps and holes. One good pot hole and it fell out of the slot.
I usually prefer to use my cell phones mounted in horizontal view but with the design of this mount you can’t if you have a large phone. More than half of my phone hangs over the mount base. Because of this, the mount isn’t balanced and the mount shakes so bad while driving that it falls out of the mount.
But vertically mounted it works great and I even think with the size of my phone that I like the vertical view better.
The above picture shows three devices plugged in and charging the devices and in horizontal mode. Currently this is my road trip setup and as you can see from the floor pans that I tracked a lot of grass in from one of the hikes. I do a lot traveling and exploring. So this setup will come in handy on those long road trips. Eventually I will have a tablet or laptop mounted in here to so I can run my business while on the road.
Final Thoughts
This is a great device and I use it daily. With it mounted at the CD slot, it much easier to access the phone while mounted. Normally when pulled over I will use the phone mounted to the slot to make changes to the directions or respond to texts and emails. If it was mounted to the windshield I really couldn’t reach the phone.
Also keep in mind, that when mounted you can not use the CD player and the buttons are almost impossible to use. If you need constant access to the radio controls, then flip mount over so it raises the mount above your controls.
As the instructions on the Amazon Sales page suggest, don’t leave your CD mount installed in the slot. Leaving the mount installed in extreme heat for long periods of time will damage the CD Player. I don’t know how it will hurt it but, why leave it installed when you aren’t using it? I normally take it out of the slot when at home or at work.
Even with the above issues mentioned, I still like it. I recommend this mount if you are looking for a way to mount your cell phone without mounting it to the dash our windshield. For more information or to purchase the Anker CD Slot Cell Phone Mount, check out the Anker’s Amazon sales page. Also check out the images below to see the Anker CD Slot Cell Phone Mount in action. Plus there is a small write about each image that shows some of the issues I pointed in the article.
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