Tag Archives: charging station

The 7-in-1 Charging Station That Actually Belongs on Your Desk

Posted on by

At some point, most of us made peace with the idea that the charging situation on our desks would always be a little ugly. A tangle of cables running to a flat power strip wedged behind the monitor, a USB hub perpetually on the verge of toppling, a wall wart blocking every outlet beside it. We accepted the chaos because the alternative was supposedly to sacrifice power for aesthetics, or aesthetics for power. The MFish E-Tank 7-in-1 Desktop Charging Station argues that’s a false choice. After looking closely at what this thing actually delivers, I think it has a strong point.

The E-Tank brings four USB-C ports and three AC outlets into a single compact station, pushing up to 240 watts of total shared output and up to 140 watts through a dedicated USB-C port via PD 3.1 fast charging. That single-port output alone can charge a MacBook Pro 16″ to 50% in roughly 30 minutes, which is the kind of performance that used to require a dedicated wall brick eating up half a power strip on its own. The three AC sockets are generously spaced, too, so chunky adapters actually fit side by side without blocking each other. That detail alone signals that the designers thought practically first and aesthetically second, which is the right order for hardware that has to work every day.

Designer: MFish

What powers all of this under the hood is GaN 6.0, the latest iteration of gallium nitride technology that has been quietly rewriting the rules of compact charging hardware for a few years now. Compared to traditional silicon-based designs, GaN runs cooler, delivers more power in a smaller form factor, and tends to be more energy-efficient overall. MFish pairs it with smart load-balancing zones that automatically adjust output based on what’s connected, so a power-hungry laptop and a low-demand pair of earbuds aren’t competing for the same allocation. It’s the kind of intelligent background function that doesn’t announce itself loudly, but you feel its absence when it’s not there.

The design is where things get genuinely interesting. The E-Tank doesn’t look like a power station. It has a clean, upright form, an anti-slip suction cup base that keeps it anchored to your desk, and a touch-controlled RGB ambient light ring that can cycle through colors and modes or switch off entirely for a more understated look. The fact that it also comes in a soft pink colorway alongside the standard version is a deliberate design choice I appreciate. It signals that MFish isn’t building exclusively for the gaming setup crowd, and that charging hardware doesn’t have to default to aggressive all-black aesthetics to be taken seriously as a product.

The RGB feature will split people, and that’s fair. If your workspace leans professional or minimal, even a soft ambient glow can feel like noise. But the touch control makes switching it off immediate and simple, so it reads as a bonus layer rather than a core identity. I’d call it an optional mood element rather than a defining one, which is exactly how these things should work.

At $129.99, the E-Tank isn’t budget-range, but it’s reasonably priced given what it covers. Seven ports across two format types, GaN 6.0 internals, dual-zone protection running continuously, and a form compact enough to sit on your desk without dominating it. Compare that to piecing together a separate USB-C hub, a power strip, and a standalone fast charger, and the cost starts to feel more proportional fairly quickly.

The larger statement the E-Tank makes is one the tech industry has been slow to fully absorb: the tools and accessories that live on your desk every single day deserve the same level of design intention as the devices they support. A charging station isn’t just utility infrastructure. For most people, it’s one of the most-used objects in their entire workspace. A product that handles serious power while still looking considered and intentional is a genuinely different thing to own, and MFish is making a real case for that with this one.

The post The 7-in-1 Charging Station That Actually Belongs on Your Desk first appeared on Yanko Design.

This 7-Device Charging Station Glows Like a Lamp and Replaces One

Posted on by

If your bedside table looks anything like most people’s, it’s basically a charging graveyard. There’s a phone, a smartwatch, a pair of earbuds, maybe a tablet, and enough cables to qualify as a fire hazard. The whole setup is functional, sure, but it’s also the kind of thing you instinctively hide behind a lamp so guests don’t judge you. Nova, a concept by designer Parth Amlani, thinks there’s a much better way to handle all of this.

The idea behind Nova is simple but surprisingly rare: instead of designing yet another flat, forgettable charging puck, Amlani went for something you’d actually want to display. The result is a wide, trapezoidal charging station with a sculptural, almost pyramidal silhouette, two open horizontal bays running through its body, and a warm copper accent strip along one side. Put it on a nightstand, and it looks more like a decorative object than a piece of tech hardware.

Designer: Parth Amlani

What makes Nova genuinely clever, though, is that its translucent body doubles as a soft ambient light source, glowing warmly from within when the room goes dark. That means it can replace your bedside lamp entirely, or at the very least make a strong case for doing so. It stops being something you plug in and forget about, and starts being something that actually contributes to how a room feels at night.

The charging hardware underneath all that thoughtful design is no slouch, either. Nova can power up to seven devices at once, with four 15W wireless pads for phones, a 5W pad for earbuds, a 3W watch puck, and two retractable USB-C cables rated at 15W each for anything else that needs a wire. Those retractable outputs are a genuinely useful touch, handling the odd peripheral without leaving a permanent cable draped across your table.

It’s also worth noting that Nova is much further along than the average design concept that looks great in renderings and never gets built. Amlani took it through full manufacturing refinement, including injection-moulding-ready geometry, a snap-fit structure, and a removable back panel for servicing.

The biggest open question is whether its ambient glow is bright enough to stand in for an actual bedside lamp or whether it just adds a nice atmospheric accent. That distinction will matter a lot to anyone hoping to clear some clutter from their nightstand. For now, though, it’s one of the more original answers to a problem that most charging products are content to completely ignore.

The post This 7-Device Charging Station Glows Like a Lamp and Replaces One first appeared on Yanko Design.

Cyberpunk device is actually a functional 4-in-1 charger for Apple devices

Posted on by

There are plenty of wireless chargers now in the market, many of which are designed for iPhones, Apple Watches, and AirPods. And just like the Apple devices they support, the majority of these have designs that try to match the minimalist aesthetics of Apple’s products. There’s no argument that they’re appealing and even beautiful, but sometimes the uniformity of design can be a bit boring and unsatisfying. There’s always room for variety, and thankfully, some accessory makers are indeed taking up the challenge without going overboard. This design, for example, still manages to adopt a clean look even while adopting a more cyberpunk or sci-fi style that puts a new flavor to the typical charging pad.

Designer: Aulumu

It’s common for Apple-compatible wireless chargers these days to support all three devices. After all, it’s highly likely that an iPhone owner would have the other two accessories and would want to charge all three at the same time. The conventional design is to either have a flat surface for these devices or to have one raised and angled platform to have the iPhone charge at a more usable angle. The Aulumu M01 4-in-1 Wireless Charging Station’s foldable design supports both modes, but that’s not exactly the most interesting thing about it.

What makes it special is its style, particularly the cyberpunk-like aesthetic it adopts. Rather than a straightforward row of circles for the wireless charging contacts, it alternates their arrangement to have a more visually interesting composition. The colors also alternate, with the white Apple Watch pad flanked by the black circles for the iPhone and AirPods case. It has the typical lines, text, and visible screws you’d find in this technology-centric design language, clearly separating it from the crop of wireless chargers.

Another interesting and uncommon detail is an LED light encased in what looks like a miniature vacuum tube bulb. It functions as a desk night light with three different levels of brightness, though not bright enough to be your only source of light. It gives the charging station a retro-futuristic image that you’d often find in cyberpunk designs.

In terms of functionality, Aulumu M01 even goes beyond your typical 3-in-1 charger by supporting the iPad as well, though you’ll have to connect that using a USB-C cable. The cyberpunk design definitely won’t sit well with everyone, but it offers a breath of fresh air for those who’re already tired of looking at minimalist designs everywhere they turn.

The post Cyberpunk device is actually a functional 4-in-1 charger for Apple devices first appeared on Yanko Design.

Lamp posts become EV charging stations in innovative startup concept

Posted on by

Having an electronic vehicle is becoming a bit more common, although still not as prevalent as we would like it to be. There are a lot of reasons why some are still hesitant about adapting to this more eco-friendly kind of cars. Aside from the price tag, charging your vehicle overnight is still not as easy especially if you don’t have a garage or driveway. You have to look for charging stations near your place but you probably won’t be able to do your charging overnight. A startup aims to solve that problem by utilizing trusty old lamposts.

Designer: Voltpost

Since street lamposts are pretty common, this New York City startup is proposing to retrofit these existing lamposts and use them to charge electric vehicles. They designed a shroud that will cover the lower part of the lamposts and inside you have various cables and electronic devices to juice up the cars that need them. You have retractable cables that can anchor up to eight feet off the ground and a hand level charger dock. It is also modular and can be installed in an hour and can be repaired easily.

For newbies to the EV game, charging your car here is as easy as plug and play. There’s an app where you can oversee the charging of your vehicle and it is also where you will pay for the service. You can also use it to reserve your spot in case you know the schedule when you need to recharge your vehicle and you don’t want to compete with other EV owners. Even the installation of these chargers on the lamposts is pretty easy and takes just an hour based on their initial tests.

Voltpost has finished a test with the New York City Department of Transportation and they are currently in different stages of development with other cities specifically Chicago, Detroit, and New York. This is something that will be pretty useful to encourage more people to switch to EVs, especially if they don’t have space in their houses to do their own charging. We look forward to the day when EVs are as common as hybrid or regular cars and having a more convenient way to power up is a step towards that.

The post Lamp posts become EV charging stations in innovative startup concept first appeared on Yanko Design.