Ever since the Apple Watch launched in 2015, we`ve seen countless products that save up some counter or desktop space by letting you charge your Apple Watch and iPhone in one spot. There are numerous versions of this type of accessory, and now AT&T has released its own with the Power Drum.
The Power Drum is a cylindrical charger with a small 3-inch footprint that houses a built-in Apple Watch charger and is topped with a Qi-compatible wireless charging surface (subtly designed with the AT&T logo). The Power Drum can be used as a desktop charger through the included micro-USB charging cable, or on-the-go thanks to a 3,000 mAh internal battery.
There are a few things that work for the Power Drum, but to start with its most glaring issue, the accessory is just too small to reliably use as a wireless charger for the iPhone. With just a 2-inch base to place your iPhone on (the top portion is smaller than the foot of the Power Drum), placing my iPhone 11 Pro Max on the Power Drum every night for the past week or so always felt like a risk.
Going about this process is frustrating because I had to not only aim for the Qi hotspot on my iPhone, but also ensure that the iPhone was properly balanced on the Power Drum at the same time. The right wireless charging position typically never aligned with the perfect balancing position, and it always left me uncertain about leaving my brand-new iPhone 11 Pro Max dangling above the stand for any length of time.
In terms of iPhone charging, I found the Power Drum to offer the typical wireless charging performance. It trickle charged my iPhone 11 Pro Max at a solid rate overnight, but on a few occassions I did notice charging stopped before my iPhone was topped off. As a mobile battery, the Power Drum just isn`t sensible for the Pro Max. Its 3,000 mAh battery can offer a bit of c ...
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