CARD Storage & Generator

So the folks at Mogics either have a sub-brand or a sister company called Card. I’m not exactly sure how they are related (or if they’re the same company) but whatever the case may be, the offerings they put in Kickstarter have been very interesting.

Their KS campaign called them “Murphy’s Law Breaker” – and for lack of a better term I’m going to call them “modern emergency tools.” Because they have something to do with USB gadgets and cellular devices in general.

Card Storage

The CS1-Pro is basically a USB/cellular essentials kit – which aims to put all the tools/accessories into a single card-sized package.

SIM Accessories

It’s got a SIM eject tool, and couple of adaptors for converting SIM cards to and from sizes 1 As long as the conversion is going one size larger – so we’ve got a nano to micro, micro to [regular] SIM, nano to SIM.

These can be particularly useful when you need to switch cellular devices. A real world scenario would be if your phone failed and for some reason, you needed to use your SIM on a borrowed phone 2 I don’t know, because you’ve got your emergency contacts stored in the SIM? – these adaptors have got you covered.

And they’re not like the regular SIM adaptors you can find anywhere too; these have some sort of locking design that can hold your SIM securely – unlike others I’ve experienced where the SIM can just slide/pop out unless you’re careful.

USB Accessories

It’s actually just one accessory: a USB cable that, with the flick of a switch, turns into a Micro SD/HC/XC memory card reader as well – essentially doubling as an extra USB thumb drive if you leave an SD card in there. Also the reversible Type-A connection is a nice touch.

The other end is a standard Micro USB, and the card case has a slot for either their USB-C or Lightning adapter. Ironically, it doesn’t ship with either. Those come with the CG1 which is up next.

Card Generator

For all intents and purposes, the CG1 is an emergency power-bank. But you may find that a bit of an oxymoron as power-banks in and of themselves are technically for emergencies – either you have a power-bank or not during that “emergency” – and by “emergency” I mean your phone ran out of juice so you couldn’t take a IG selfie – and just have to like, start interacting with the real world like a goddamned animal.

Kidding aside, what you don’t realize is that is a 400mAh powerbank 3 Which by todays standards is laughably low that’s physically charged.

Now you understand the type of emergency this was built for – its for those times when you find yourself away in the wilderness and get into some sort of accident, and your phones all died 4 Because you were too busy taking those IG photos… shame on you!. Not really something you imagine happening often, but it can and does happen.

The machine, for it’s limited use, is actually well thought (just like Mogics’ other products are). There’s an LED indicator behind that shows how much of that whopping 400mAh it’s still got and also indicates when it’s powering a device.. Since it’s not registering on the QualMeter it’s obvious that it’s outputting less than 1A of current. Which means it should be safe to use with any device – the question is if it can charge it faster than the device drains on idle – so best shut your device down to make sure you get a decent charge on it.

The case, on the other hand, is a bit of a hit and miss. I’m assuming the hole on it was so you could charge it while packed up which definitely works – as long as you’re fine with the crank being exposed all the time – you cannot tuck it back in without removing the unit from he case. On the other hand, the zipper pull doubles as a lever extender for the crank giving you more leverage (pun intended)

As I mentioned earlier, it comes with a USB-C and lightning adapter – and a compartment to store one of them in. Right now I just put the USB-C in there since I don’t think I’ll be using it anytime soon. The lightning goes on the CS1-Pro slot, which is part of my EDC bag.

Size & Portability

Both products live up to their brand’s name (Card-sized solutions) The CS1-Pro, based on my 8-card DM1, it’s about 6 cards thick. Whereas the CG1, while it would be too thick to fit any wallet – it will fit your pocket like a wallet. 😛

Final Thoughts

The two are solid products, albeit a tad specialized. They’re the sort of stuff that one wouldn’t normally need – until they did. It’s up to the user to decide whether or not they would like to have one or the other (or both) handy as they go about their day.

Like I mentioned, I lug the CS1-Pro around but only as part of my EDC bag. The CG1 on the other hand, I would only bust out possibly when on an hike or mountain/camping trip that lasts for days, because my powerbanks are rated 13,000mAh at least – that normally means you got enough juice to last an entire day even with heavy usage.

The CS1-Pro and CG1 cannot be purchased as of this posting. But you can learn more about them through the Card website

Notes

Notes
1 As long as the conversion is going one size larger
2 I don’t know, because you’ve got your emergency contacts stored in the SIM?
3 Which by todays standards is laughably low
4 Because you were too busy taking those IG photos… shame on you!

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