Features & Specifications
The Mophie Juice Pack Air promises to increase standby time on the iPhone 3GS up to 270 hours. Using the device talk time is claimed to be up to 4.5 hours on a 3G network and up to 10 hours on a 2G network. Internet use is improved to 4.5 hours on 3G and up to 8 hours when using Wi-Fi connectivity. The Mophie Juice Pack Air allows for up to 27 hours of music playback and up to 9 hours of video. The internal battery of the device is a 1200mAh unit and the Air measures 4.9" x 2.59" x 0.75" and weighs 2.66 ounces.

In Use
One of the first things that I noticed with the Mophie Juice Pack Air compared to the Juice Pack for my original iPhone was that the Air is a completely enclosed case style device rather than a sleeve like the Juice Pack. The iPhone 3GS (the Air is also compatible with the iPhone 3G) slips into the Air and a cap snaps onto the top of the case to lock the phone inside.

While the phone is locked away inside the case, all ports are accessible except the sync and charge port. You can still sync and charge the Air, but you have to use a special USB cable that ships with the Mophie Juice Pack Air. This is the single biggest issue I have with the Mophie Juice Pack Air. The cable was too short making it hard to reach from the PC case beside my desk to my desktop and if you want to dock the iPod in a speaker dock, you have to remove it from the case.

With my original iPhone, I could dock and charge the iPhone and the Juice Pack form my Logitech iPod alarm clock. With the Air, I have to charge from my PC or remove the phone from the Air altogether. Other than the charging issue, the Mophie Juice Pack Air is a great device. The Air adds little bulk over what you would get with a normal case added to the iPhone and has the added benefit of more run time.

One nice improvement with the Air is the battery pack has a switch on the bottom to prevent the battery from being drained when the iPhone is charged. The case should also protect the iPhone from scratches and the inevitable drops that come with mobile phone use. There is no provision with the Mophie Juice Pack Air to protect the screen from scratches, so you will still want to add some sort of screen protection.

I was unable to talk for a full 4.5 hours to verify the claims of battery life Mophie makes. However, I was able to take my iPhone with about half a charge, turn on the juice pack and use the phone for surfing the net, calls, and playing games for a full day. Without the Juice Pack, I would have run out of power.