In-car phone holder

reheat

I'm a bit of a dinosaur with some things, and satnav is one. But I recently discovered that my iPhone SE provides me with rudimentary but adequate satnav capabilities, combined with the fact that I will be doing a journey soon that I could really benefit from having it.

My car is a 2010 Ford Focus hatchback, so no built in satnav. I did try out the phone for a short journey with the phone on the passenger seat, just listening to the voice commands, and was surprised at how good it is. But I realise that to be legal it needs to be in a phone holder, else I could get into trouble if stopped, no matter if I tried to argue I was only listening to the satnav, not looking at it.

I see there are holders which attach to an air vent, but it looks like the air vents in my car are unsuitable. As well as the horizontal louvres, they also have vertical ones behind, and are the ones that those sort of attachments would not work with. And the louvres are pretty flimsy anyway.

So I'm thinking about the sort where you glue a magnetic pad onto the dashboard fascia, and then the phone mount attaches onto that as needed. It would inevitably partly obscure the radio I think, but I would have to live with that.

My phone is a iPhone SE (2020) with an Otterbox Symmetry case.

Any thoughts or recommendations on this please. Any advice on what devices people have had good experiences with, and any to steer well clear of.

Many thanks.

DB1904

Have a look at ones that fit in the cd slot of the radio. 

reheat

DB1904 said:

Have a look at ones that fit in the cd slot of the radio. 

Oh, that's a new one on me. Will give it a look. Thanks.

400ixl

Avoid the CD ones as they can cause issues with the lasers in the CD player. Just not worth the risk.

You can get ones which suction to the screen or that suction to the dash.

reheat

400ixl said:

Avoid the CD ones as they can cause issues with the lasers in the CD player. Just not worth the risk.

You can get ones which suction to the screen or that suction to the dash.

I don't want one that obscures any of the screen, so would go for a dash mounting one, with a drooping arm that locates the phone below windscreen level.

How do the dash suction ones work, given that most dash surfaces, mine included, are textured or dimpled in some way?

TadleyBaggie

I always buy Brodit mounts and holders. The holders aren't cheap but they are designed for each particular car, are well built and can be installed/deinstalled without damage.

400ixl

reheat said:

How do the dash suction ones work, given that most dash surfaces, mine included, are textured or dimpled in some way?

The rubber suction cup is supple enough to deal with the textured effect. Some of them have a disc that uses a sticky pad on the dash and then the suction cup goes onto the disc.

Another option is the rubber dash pads which are self sticky you place on the dash and then the phone sticks to the other side. They don't leave any residue.

EssexExile

TadleyBaggie said:

I always buy Brodit mounts and holders. The holders aren't cheap but they are designed for each particular car, are well built and can be installed/deinstalled without damage.

Brodit are great.

Bigphil1474

OP, I bought one of these cheap things to see if I liked having my phone mounted. It's OK. I have it mounted on my dash. There is a sticky pad, then a suction bit that you push down. I haven't tried it on the windscreen, and the vent mounts are crap anyway. For the price, I thought it was worth a try and have had it 6 months and no issues. My phone is a Samsung A32 which is quite big. Make sure you mount it no more than 3cm inside the drivers wiper sweep. I use it mainly a a dash cam, and satnav on long journeys. I have no vested interest in the product.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B094FBSSNJ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Grey_Critic

Thing to consider when mounting via window sucker are the heter vents. Avoid having hot air blowing onto the phone/sat-nav.

reheat

Bigphil1474 said:

OP, I bought one of these cheap things to see if I liked having my phone mounted. It's OK. I have it mounted on my dash. There is a sticky pad, then a suction bit that you push down. I haven't tried it on the windscreen, and the vent mounts are crap anyway. For the price, I thought it was worth a try and have had it 6 months and no issues. My phone is a Samsung A32 which is quite big. Make sure you mount it no more than 3cm inside the drivers wiper sweep. I use it mainly a a dash cam, and satnav on long journeys. I have no vested interest in the product.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B094FBSSNJ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Yes, I've now gone for something similar, though will likely mount on the dash.