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I've never owned a wireless charger before, so I was excited to try out Satechi's 2-in-1 headphone stand with wireless charging. After all, wireless charging has a sort of charming pull to it. No cables, you say? Count me in.

Satechi's charging stand is quite pricey, at $79.95 for just the stand and a USB-C to USB-C cable. If you don't have an extra charging brick laying around, it'll cost you an extra $17.99 for Satechi's 20W USB-C wall charger. It's a bit annoying that a power brick isn't included with your $80 purchase, but a lot of big names in electronics (Apple, Google) are starting to not include wall chargers.

Other than that, this bad boy was gorgeous right out of the box. I loved how sleek the stainless steel and all-black base look, and these materials are easy to keep clean over time. But, of course, looks aren't everything. With any wireless charger, how easy it is to use and how well it actually works are much more important.

It's Ease of Use: Pretty Simple

close up of the all black wireless charging part of satechi's two in one wireless charging stand
Sarah Chaney / Review Geek

Setting up the stand was incredibly easy. There are only two pieces you need to connect with a single bolt, and you can do so with the included hex key. I'd say it took me less than two minutes to get everything out and put together.

Related: The Fastest Wireless Chargers for Every Device Imaginable

Also, as I mentioned before, it looks fantastic. I love the stainless steel elements throughout and the sleek black bottom. There's also a padded grip at the top of the stand to keep your headphones in place. The same padded material is on top of the wireless charging circle on the bottom, to keep your smartphone in place while charging.

close up of the stainless steel headphone stand part of satechi's two in one wireless charging stand
Sarah Chaney / Review Geek

In its product description, this charging stand claims that it's only compatible with Apple products, including AirPods Pro / Max, the iPhone 13 series, and the iPhone 12 series. However, if you have a device that is Qi-enabled and has wireless charging capability (like my Samsung S21 Ultra), you can use Satechi's 2-in-1 stand.

The response time was great. As soon as I placed my smartphone on the charging pad, it took about a second or two for my phone to detect the charging pad and start charging.

Related: The Best Chargers for Your iPhone, iPad, or Android Devices

And again, you will need to supply your own wall charger that can support at least 20W. Most people probably already have one at home that'll work; if you don't, though, you'll need to buy one separately.

Performance: How Fast Does It Charge My Samsung S21 Ultra?

Wireless chargers aren't known for charging devices quickly, and Satechi's 2-in-1 stand boasts a max 7.5W output. For reference, I had all of my fast charging settings turned on---fast charging, super-fast charging, and fast wireless charging---and still, it was charging slowly.

My smartphone was at 23% battery, and when I placed it on top of Satechi's wireless charging pad, it said it was going to take three hours and 31 minutes until fully charged. When I plugged it into the USB-C charging port on the stand base, that estimated wait time jumped up to six hours and seven minutes.

satechi's two in one wireless charging stand without any devices on it.
Sarah Chaney / Review Geek

So I pulled out the wall charger I typically use, which uses a USB-C to USB-C cable. With this setup, it was going to take a mere 57 minutes to fully charge my smartphone. If you're after a fast charge, you'll favor a wall charger over a wireless charging stand.

Related: Why Are Wireless Chargers So Slow?

Because of the technology used, wireless chargers just can't compete with a standard cable charge. But if you want a sleek wireless charger for your desk in your home office, this is a great option. You can easily trickle charge your smartphone and headphones all day and not have to worry about annoying cables getting in your way.

With Satechi's stand, I have a dedicated home for my headphones and once I put them there, they don't move. Well, until I move them, obviously. The padded grip does a great job of keeping them in place and the stainless steel stand feels incredibly sturdy. It was awesome to have somewhere to finally store my headphones at my desk---I'm used to haphazardly throwing them on a corner of one of my monitors and leaving them there until I need them again.

So other than delivering a slow charge, which is not uncommon for wireless chargers, I didn't run into any unfavorable issues here. The charger didn't get too hot, it responded almost immediately to my phone being set down, and didn't cause my phone to have any weird issues.

Conclusion: An Expensive Trickle Charger

Satechi's 2-in-1 charging stand is gorgeous on my desk and certainly makes headphone storage easier. If you're after a sleek wireless charger for your desk at home or work that can slowly charge your smartphone all day long, look no further than this beautiful option.

Personally, with such a massive difference in charging speed, I would prefer to grab a charging cable and brick than use the stand's wireless charger. That said, if I can't be bothered to grab my charging cord from another room and I plan to be sitting at my desk for hours, it's handy to be able to just plop my phone down on the wireless charger.

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Satechi 2-in-1 Headphone Stand with Wireless Charger

Pros
  • Gorgeous design
  • Works with any Qi-enabled device
  • Handy for headphone storage
Cons
  • Expensive
  • Slow charging
  • No wall adapter included