NexiGo Upgraded Charging Dock for Oculus Quest 2 evaluate: Amount and superficial high quality
Source: Charlie Wacholz / Android Central
The Oculus Quest 2 is an almost perfect VR headset. In fact, its biggest flaw is its short battery life. Ask a Quest 2 owner how much time their headset spends charging, and you’re sure to get a slap in the face. Of course, some accessory manufacturers like NexiGo have started making products that will help alleviate the problem. Unfortunately, the supposedly elegant solution hardly goes beyond simply connecting the headset to the wall.
NexiGo’s updated charging dock checks some of the boxes it promised, but stumbles on itself in the process. As a relatively new Quest 2 owner with only the bare essentials, I hoped the dock would go well with my Oculus Quest 2 accessories and mine Headset is charging. Unfortunately, not only did it not deliver what it promised, but it has also actively worked against some of the simpler first-party accessories.
Checking the NexiGo upgrade charging station:
NexiGo upgrade charging station
Bottom line: NexiGo’s newest VR charging station may look nice, but it actively works against aspects of the Quest 2 and is frankly more trouble than it’s worth.
The good
- Comes with USB Type-C cables
- The rechargeable controller covers are flat
- Stylish way to display your headset
The bad
- The controller charge lights do not work
- The magnetic USB-C connector does not come out of the Quest 2 easily
- Does not work with the headband that has a battery
- Expensive
NexiGo Upgraded Charging Dock: Price and Availability
NexiGo’s newest Quest 2 charging station was released back in September at an MSRP of $ 80. You can find it on both Amazon and the NexiGo website, only in the white color variant. Since the charging station is fairly new, it will likely stay at that $ 80 price point for a while unless it goes down for Black Friday.
NexiGo Upgraded Charging Dock: What You Like
Source: Charlie Wacholz / Android Central
The updated charging dock comes with almost all of the accessories you would need to charge your Quest 2 and controllers, making it a great one-size-fits-all solution. The complete package comes with two rechargeable AA batteries, a battery cover for each controller, the charging station, an AC to USB Type-C cable and a USB to USB Type-C cable. It is noteworthy that the USB Type-C adapter is attached magnetically to the end of the cable.
The catch, however, is that they’re only rechargeable via the stand’s controller chargers to the left and right of the headset dock. If the chargers are working, they will take between 2-4 hours to fully charge the batteries. You will find that charging with the docking station takes about an hour longer than simply plugging your Quest 2 into the wall with the included power adapter. However, it also comes with a long USB Type-C to power adapter. Even if you don’t want to plug in the stand, you can at least use it to display your Quest 2 and charge the old-fashioned way.
The docking station’s charging cable comes with a small magnetic pin that stays attached to the end and stays plugged into your headset, so you don’t actually have to plug the headset in to charge it. Instead, simply align the magnetic portion of the cable with the stud in the Quest 2’s charging port and let it rest.
The best thing about the Upgraded Charging Dock, however, is its form factor. It’s just over a foot long and only about two inches wide, so it fits on your desk, coffee table, or TV console without taking up a lot of space. At less than a foot high with the headset on top, it might be too tall to fit on some smaller shelves, but it clearly displays the headset.
Not only does it match the Quest 2’s minimalist design, but its loading lights and raised platform show off the headset really well. In fact, it’s the best looking charging station on the market thanks to its bright charge status indicator and otherwise tame design. It’s not too big either, which makes it a great choice for anyone with an ever-growing library of gaming hardware but limited space.
NexiGo Upgraded Charging Dock: What You Won’t Like
Source: Charlie Wacholz / Android Central
If the best I can say about the NexiGo charger is that it does the bare bones then there might be a problem – certainly not for the $ 80 price tag, and not when there are half a dozen other chargers for which gives the same price (or less!) that eats his lunch. Not only are some of its components not working, but the parts that do are not worth the cost or effort.
NexiGo is promoting the charging station as an alternative to wall-mounting your Quest 2, which only takes an hour longer to charge. It also has those rechargeable batteries that take around 2.5 hours to charge and charge lights that let you know when your devices are charged. Only some of its charging functions are working properly and the charging indicator lights for the controllers did not work at all or flickered regularly.
The dock comes with two cables: one to connect to the wall and one to connect the dock to the headset. The plug that plugs into the wall is a standard AC to USB Type-C adapter, but the USB to USB Type-C cable is unnecessarily complicated. We mentioned earlier that the part that plugs into the headset is a small stud. You can easily pull the headset off, but the bolt stays in. As hard as I tried, I couldn’t get the bolt out with my bare hands. I was afraid to take a knife with me to my Quest 2, but if I ever wanted to play Star Wars Squadrons in VR or Half-Life Alyx on Steam VR again, I had no choice. I’ve tried it, but can’t imagine doing this again every time I wanted to play Steam VR or just wanted to go out of my house with my Quest 2.
That moment was emblematic of my experience with the accessory as a whole. Every component does its job like an uncomfortable office chair or a blunt kitchen knife. The lights that are supposed to indicate that a controller is not charging, the batteries in each controller charge at a different rate (one at the promised 2.5 hours and the other at around four hours) that you don’t charge it with can use the headband with a battery because it doesn’t fit, and of course the magnetic bolt alone made this device unnecessarily complicated for anyone who wants to play Steam VR.
NexiGo upgrade charging station: competition
Source: Nick Sutrich / Android Central
A quick search on Amazon leads to a number of alternatives to what NexiGo offers, many at a fraction of the cost. But when you’re ready to spend the $ 80 to get the charging station, rechargeable batteries, cables, and a stylish form factor, Anker can’t be beat. It is our charging station for Android Central.
Anker’s Docking Station for Quest 2 is the better version of NexiGo in many ways. It has a lower profile, almost the same bells and whistles, and a lot fewer problems. Although the Quest 2 doesn’t quite present it that way, it offers a solid alternative to the NexiGo charging station. If you’re looking for something cheaper, there are a number of options available, including the same dock but with fewer extras.
NexiGo Upgraded Charging Dock: Should You Buy It?
Source: Charlie Wacholz / Android Central
You should buy this if …
- You’re ready to spend $ 80 on a charging station
- You are fed up with replacing and throwing away batteries
- You want a stylish way to store, charge, and display your Quest 2
You shouldn’t buy this if …
- You are looking for something cheaper
- You’re happy with sticking your headset into the wall
- You want a clearer indication of the charge on your Quest 2
The NexiGo charging station provides the essentials. If you’re looking for a charging station or charging station for your Quest 2, there are a number of better, cheaper options, or some for the same price, that work completely. It’s a bad sign when something that was built for convenience and ease of use becomes a chore.
I’m not exactly sure what improves the updated NexiGo charging dock, but I would recommend waiting for this one for now and waiting for an updated updated charging dock. However, if you are in the market for a charging station now, or if you are looking for the Quest 2, we recommend Anker’s offer. It’s not that NexiGo’s dock isn’t working, but some of the extra bells and whistles that are supposed to make it stand out don’t all work, which makes the $ 80 price tag seem like excessive.
NexiGo upgrade charging station
Bottom line: NexiGo’s improved loading dock didn’t improve my experience as a Quest 2 owner. When my battery slowly ran out after a few hours of Resident Evil 4 VR, I was happy to put it on the charging station. Picking up was the problem.
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