I have been a fan of magnetic mounts for a long time. It’s so much easier to install and remove the mount. No worries about expanding a cradle or snapping your device into a holster. The key to a good magnetic mount is the strength of the magnet and the size and attachment mechanism for the metal plate that’s needed to adhere to the magnet.
For those that worry about the magnet interfering with the functionality of the phone or GPS, I never had an issue. The magnetic pull is directed towards the metal plate that is attached to your phone or GPS therefore I never experienced any damage or malfunction of my phone or GPS.
The Spigen magnetic mount has three components in the box. The mount and two metal components which are used to attach to the mount.
The mount itself has a magnetic surface about the size of a US half-dollar. The back has four prongs that are used to attach to a car vent. This design allows attachment to either a horizontal or vertical vent. The attachment to the vent is accomplished by aligning a vent slat between the prongs on the back of the mount and pushing forward. The attachment seemed relatively secure but not quite as tight as other vent mounts that use clips to attach to the back of the vent slat. I’m not too worried about it falling off, and with a day of use under my belt, it hasn’t budged. There isn’t a pivot available, so the angle of the device will be horizontal to the contour of the vent.
Two metal attachments are provided with this mount. Your typical round metal plate about the size of the magnetic surface of the mount with an adhesive backing can be stuck to the back of your device. As long as you don’t mind sticking something to the back of your device, this should work well and if you are not using a case or skin, this is the only option available.
A rectangular metal plate a little larger than the round disk is also included. This rectangular plate does not have adhesive and is intended to be used by those that have a case or skin. The instructions indicate this should be used with cases. Simply place this plate between your case and the phone and close it back up. The magnet is strong enough to hold your device through the case. I tried this method and it worked real well.
Take some time to figure out where to place the metal plate as you want to get the best balance. I mistakenly placed it too low on my big giant Apple iPhone 6s Plus and had to attach it more towards the bottom in portrait mode to get the most secure grip. That’s more of a reflection on my carelessness versus the fault of the mount. For larger phones, be sure to place that metal plate on the back of your case but a little above the middle.
The primary buyer of this product will be a smartphone user although I would think the magnet is strong enough to be used with a GPS as well. According to Spigen, this mount should work with most phones, although they do state that the metal plate/sticker may affect wireless charging for some devices.
The Spigen Magnetic Car Air Vent Mount for SmartPhones is certainly worthy of consideration