5 back-to-school gadgets for improving your smartphone

Smartphones are the center of most people’s lives in ways both good and bad. With the school season practically here and back-to-school sales already running, it’s worth it to consider how you want to use your smartphone. And luckily, there are quite a few phone gadgets you can purchase that can help you use it in a new way.

The gadgets and accessories pulled together for this list can help you extend the battery life of your phone, prop it up, and use it in ways that go beyond scrolling and sending messages. Better yet, everything on this list is under $100 and can work with iPhones or Android phones if you’re willing to do a little work. Here are five great phone gadgets for back to school that you should buy.

1

Moft Snap Flow Phone Notepad

A magnetic wallet, stand, and notepad, all in one

Recharge Hours

N/A

Size

3.78 x 2.68 x 0.3 inches

Brand

Moft

Capacity

N/a

Moft’s Snap Flow MagSafe-enabled phone notepad and kickstand gives you a way to prop up your phone and take notes whenever you need.

Moft specializes in a unique brand of folding smartphone, tablet, and laptop accessories. They serve the basic functions of protecting your device or providing extra storage, but they can usually be unfolded in one way or another to unlock extra features. In the case of the Moft Snap Flow, that’s a kickstand for propping up your phone, a wallet, and a notepad complete with a foldable pen.

The Moft Snap Flow is able to fit all of that in a relatively flat package that isn’t all that bigger than the official MagSafe wallet Apple used to sell. It’s a great fit if you’re looking for a quick way to jot down notes if you don’t have your laptop out or if you need a way to prop up your smartphone while watching videos. Better yet, it works with MagSafe-enabled iPhones and most Android phones with a magnetic adapter.

2

Apple AirTag

A Bluetooth tracker with deep integration with Apple’s ecosystem

Brand

Apple

Battery

1 year

Water Resistance

Yes

Speaker

Yes

Apple’s AirTag is a Bluetooth tracker that you can precisely track using your iPhone, with the ability to connect with a network of Apple devices around the world.

If you’re living on your own for the first time, balancing a busy schedule, or doing both, it can be incredibly easy to lose things. Luckily, there’s a great cheap way to keep track of the location of your most valuable belongings, and ideally get them back when they’re lost. They’re Bluetooth trackers, and you should attach them to everything you care about.

Apple’s AirTag offers a lot of bang for your buck as a student. They connect to your iPhone over Bluetooth and can be tracked with the Find My app, but it can also connect to a larger network of all Apple devices, so you could theoretically find them anywhere in the world. Lost AirTags can also be found using Android phones thanks to a joint software development from Apple and Google.

3

Nothing Ear (a)

Unique wireless earbuds with active noise cancellation

Battery Life

Buds: 5.5 hrs (9.5 hours without ANC) Total with case: 24.5 hrs (42.5 hrs without ANC)

Charging Case Included?

Yes

Microphones

3 in each bud

Brand

Nothing

Nothing’s Ear (a) are sleekly designed wireless earbuds with support for active noise cancellation and up to 42 hours of battery life.

Listening to music can make time spent studying for a test or working on a project fly by, and one of the most convenient ways to listen to music on your smartphone is with a pair of wireless earbuds. You can pay an arm and a leg for AirPods, Pixel Buds, or Galaxy Buds, or you could pay slightly less and get nearly the same experience with the Nothing Ear (a).

Nothing’s $99 wireless earbuds offer active noise cancellation for blocking out the world around you, a playful, partially translucent design, and battery life that can last over 42 hours with ANC off. They work best with Android phones, but you’ll still get a great audio experience if you connect them to your iPhone or laptop.

4

Anker MagGo Wireless Charger 2-in-1 Dock Stand

A minimalist wireless charger that doubles as a stand

Brand

Anker

Qi-Certified

Yes, Qi2

Color

White, Black

Input Voltage

9V⎓3A / 12V⎓2.5A / 15V⎓2A

Anker”s MagGo Wireless Charger is a 2-in-1 dock stand that can charge an iPhone and a pair of wireless earbuds at the same time.

Anker’s MagGo Wireless Charger offers a simple, but elegant way to prop up your smartphone and charge your wireless earbuds at the same time. It’s great if you want a classier way to use your phone as your alarm clock — ideal if you use the iPhone’s Standby Mode — or just want a way to make your phone easier to look at while referring to a recipe.

The charging stand supports 15W Qi2 charging, which gets you fast-enough charging speeds and a wide range of compatibility whether you use an iPhone or an Android phone. Qi2 is an open standard, so it’s technically available for any phone maker to use. The stand’s magnet is also designed so that you can rotate your phone between portrait and landscape orientations.

5

Belkin iPhone Mount with MagSafe for Mac Desktops and Displays

A simple way to prop up your phone and get more use of it

Dimensions

0.87in/22.1mm x 2.81in/71.37mm x 2.3in

Material

Aluminum and rubber

Ports

N/A

Manufacturer

Belkin

Belkin’s iPhone Mount with MagSafe is designed to mount your iPhone on desktop computers and displays, or stand on its own for FaceTime calls and Continuity Camera.

Whether you’re checking in with family or attending class remotely, you’re going to be spending time on video calls. You can use the built-in webcam on your laptop or desktop, but your smartphone can make an even better camera if you have a way to prop it up. The Belkin iPhone Mount with MagSafe, specifically the version for desktops and displays, makes for a great way to do that.

The stand works on its own if you want to prop your phone up on a desk or table. If you unfold its base, though, you can easily use it to mount your phone on a monitor too, without the need for an extra adhesive. It’ll work with an iPhone with MagSafe out of the box, and it’s not too hard to find a magnetic adapter so that you can attach an Android phone to it. Both Android and iOS let you connect your smartphone to your computer to use as a high-quality webcam, too, so it’s really a matter of finding the right stand.