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KIWI design Quest 2 Charging Dock Review

A neat charging solution for the Quest 2 though limiting for advanced users.

While the Meta Quest 2 is top notch, the same can’t really be said for its battery. If you’re playing a lot of VR then there’s a lot of charging to be done too and the official solution is pretty basic it has to be said.

KIWI design think they have a better way to charge. Their Quest 2 Charging Dock promises faster, more convenient charging for not only the VR headset itself but your controllers too. It’s an extra £99 investment on top of an already pricey headset, so is a Quest 2 charging dock really worth it?

simply put

If you’re looking for a way to tidy up your TV cabinet, the KIWI design Charging Dock is a good choice. With a sleek design and snappy charging performance it’s a good option for the standard headset.

the good bits

Official look and feel
Faster charging than the original
Magnetic attachments are simple and effective
Punchy RGB lighting

the not so good bits

Not compatible with advanced headstraps
RGB lighting is either constantly on or off

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KIWI design Charging Dock for Quest 2

design

If you hadn’t seen the logo on the box, you’d be forgiven for thinking the KIWI design Charging Dock is an official Meta accessory. The third-party brand has done a great job of mimicking the overall Meta experience from packaging to product design.

Packaging is often the area these kind of aftermarket accessories let themselves down, that first impression giving up the ghost that you’ve shied away from the higher priced official gear. That’s not the case here though, KIWI design’s packaging felt impressively premium and filled me with confidence from the get go. 

Once you’ve laid hands on the Charging Dock that strong first impression continues. The colours and finish of the plastic shell match the Quest 2 headset perfectly with the smooth lines and rounded corners. It’s surprisingly heavy too, reassuringly so, and coupled with non-slip rubber feet I found it never budged when putting the headset or controllers in place. Even deliberately pushing the KIWI design Charging Dock it barely moved along the smooth shiny top of my TV stand.

The headset and each controller have their own defined area of the KIWI design Charging Dock and the result is a really tidy, organised setup. It’s as much presentation stand as charging dock and meant I was happier keeping them on show when not in use. Rather than looking chucked to the side they felt like they had a home and didn’t look scruffy on the top of a cabinet.

The included battery covers for each controller have built-in magnets that help the controller pop into place in the charging stand. It’s helpful and I’m thankful for no extra cables but I’d like these magnets to be a little stronger. The effect is particularly gentle and I found it too easy to knock them out of place when putting the headset on. The idea is spot on, the execution is literally just too weak.

Along the front edge is a remarkably punchy RGB LED strip with a few different effect and colour options. It’s purely decorative however and it’s a shame there’s no tie in with current charge level. It’d be great to glance at the KIWI design Charging Dock and know if I’m juiced up or not. Overall the lighting is bright and saturated, though because it draws from the same power supply as the charging it’ll have to stay on permanently which feels a bit much. Thankfully you’ve also got the option to turn it off all together, which I did.

performance

The headset charging solution is genius, hats off KIWI design. A little L shaped magnet USB-C adapter plugs into the Quest 2’s charging point and stays there. Pop the VR headset down in the it’s spot and that adapter latches on to the base and you’re charging. It’s straight out of the NASA playbook really, a support strut delivering power to the rocket. The magnetic pull here is considerably stronger too, if it was strength for the controllers we’d be more in business. 

While it’s a great solution, it’s also unfortunately one that isn’t compatible with KIWI design’s own Battery Headset. This feels like a bit of an oversight unfortunately because having switched to a pro headset I won’t be switching back which rules out charging the headset through the dock. An alternative adapter to use alongside their own Battery Headset would be an easy win.

The USB charger included with the KIWI design Charging Dock can pull up to 18W so you’ll see a nice bump in charging time compared to the original adapter. This is nice of course, though charging to full will still take more than two hours so if quick access to power is your main focus you’ll be better off with a battery headset, both Meta’s official Elite Strap and KIWI design’s own Battery Headstrap are good options.

KIWI design don’t specify the capacity of the included rechargeable AA batteries for the controllers, though I found they drained considerably quicker than I’d seen with standard AAs. It’s far from a concern, there’s still a lot of life in them and I could use them for a number of days without them dropping below halfway, just don’t expect weeks or months out of them like you might with standard batteries. It’s also worth noting it’s a proprietary solution so you can’t bring your own batteries to the party.

summed up

There’s a lot to like about the KIWI design Charging Dock, in fact it does very little wrong for most users. Ironically the people who’ll be left out are those who have supported KIWI design in the past. 

For the standard headset it’s a clever, tidy charging dock with a few nifty extra touches. Though if you’re using an Elite strap or KIWI design’s own Battery Strap the Charging Dock becomes more of a presentation stand.