Ugreen MagSafe Car Mount Review

The Ugreen MagSafe Car Mount looks promising on paper: compact, highly adjustable, MagSafe compatible and able to attach to a dashboard, windshield or even surfaces outside the car. Over two weeks of use, though, one flaw dominated: the suction base does not stay stuck reliably.

How it mounts

The base is a twist-to-lock suction cup for flat surfaces; you set it down unlocked and rotate the mechanism to secure it.

The base is a twist-to-lock suction cup for flat surfaces; you set it down unlocked and rotate the mechanism to secure it. That should produce a firm hold, but the seal repeatedly failed on both dashboard and windshield, more so after the mount had baked in a hot car. For a device meant to hold a phone while driving, that is a serious shortcoming. An adhesive plate is included for rougher surfaces where suction cannot seal, and it is more secure, but only one comes in the box and once stuck in place it cannot easily be moved, cancelling much of the mount's portability.

Holding the phone

The phone side works well. MagSafe phones snap firmly onto the round magnetic head, and two adhesive metal rings let non-MagSafe phones or cases attach. There is no wireless or pass-through charging, so a separate cable is still needed. Adjustability is excellent: the phone rotates through 360 degrees and the arm angle changes, making it simple to switch between portrait and landscape and place the screen exactly where wanted.

In the car

Finding the best position takes some trial and error, but the wide adjustment range lets the phone sit higher, lower, nearer or farther depending on the mounting spot, and the resulting viewing angle is excellent. Trust is the problem. After falls from both the dashboard and windshield, the suction lock ended up being checked and re-tightened after every adjustment, a nuisance when setting up before a drive, and the heat made leaving it unattended feel risky.

Size and durability

The mount weighs 5.6 oz (158.8 g), measures 1.5 x 2.25 inches (3.8 x 5.7 cm) when collapsed and stands 5 inches tall at full extension. Its plastic build is fairly large for a dashboard mount yet packs surprisingly flat. Despite many falls from the windshield it remains in good condition. It is too bulky to serve as a pocketable phone stand, and ironically it proves most useful on flat surfaces outside the car, such as a desk.

Compared with the Ohsnap Car Mount

Next to an Ohsnap Car Mount in use for almost two years, the Ugreen is far more flexible; in a car with plenty of flat, suction-friendly surfaces it opens up creative placements for good viewing angles or vlog camera shots. The Ohsnap stays fixed wherever its adhesive base goes, but it wins on what matters most in a car mount: it has never come loose. The Ugreen's versatility counts for little when there is constant doubt about whether it will stay attached.

Verdict

Strong magnetic grip, 360-degree adjustment and multi-surface flexibility are real advantages, but an unreliable suction cup makes the Ugreen MagSafe Car Mount hard to depend on behind the wheel.