Adapting the ShiftCam SnapGrip to an Android phone - successfully!

A week ago I delivered a largely positive review of the SnapGrip, as used with a modern iPhone (do please go and read it!) And I teased using the SnapGrip with an Android phone, thanks to the inclusion by ShiftCam in the box of a circular 'sticker' of MagSafe magnets. It turns out that this sticker is very substantial and beautifully made - and with one obvious and potentially large caveat, means that SnapGrip is very much 'go' on Android too. Snapping and charging.

The idea is that you find the right spot on your Android phone, the centre of its Qi wireless charging coils, in my case by trial and error and using a ruler(!) And you then carefully press on the sticker, which has very strong adhesive. Now, not wanting to devalue my Android test phone, a Samsung Galaxy S20 FE, and also mindful of the fact that when out and about I always keep my phones in TPU cases anyway, I obviously stuck the errr... 'sticker' to the case, not the naked phone. But it all turned out well and the extra millimetre or so of TPU case in the way didn't harm the Qi wireless charging functionality.

The sticker itself is about a millimetre too, so when the SnapGrip isn't snapped on then it's a fairly innocuous bump to live with. See the photos here.

You'll remember that the SnapGrip maps via Bluetooth to a phone's Volume Up button, which is the default hardware shortcut in Camera on an iPhone and - it seems - also on a Samsung Android device. So, once paired, pressing the SnapGrip's large shutter button works just as well as on the iPhone to take a photo.

The smaller button, again as with iPhones, works to activate the Qi wireless power bank and again this works just fine on the Samsung, thanks in part to me taking care to put the sticker in the right place! 

Obviously, if your Android phone doesn't have Qi wireless charging then this function won't work but the shutter button and DSLR-like form factor will still apply. In fact, because you don't have to line up Qi coils, you might be able to position the sticker for a more 'snug' fit on your device, length-wise.

At the end of the day, is it all worth it? There's the cost, the bulk of the accessory in your pocket (for when needed), there's the slightly alien feel in the hand (for a non-camera user, anyway). For an iPhone user the answer is a resounding Yes, because MagSafe is native and all so easy. 

For an Android phone user, using the sticker to 'upgrade' your device to MagSafe compatibility just to be able to use the SnapGrip is a little over the top. However, and it's a big however, this upgrade also allows your Android device to charge on Apple's range of MagSafe Qi chargers, i.e. the device then centres itself every time for optimum charging. Which is most excellent. 

The caveat, again obviously, is that the sticker is welded to this phone's TPU case (or to the device itself if you're really brave!), so when you upgrade to a different phone then you're stuck having to beg ShiftCam for a new MagSafe sticker or buy a third party equivalent on Amazon (e.g this one from Ringke), which will work just fine but which won't look quite as seamless with your SnapGrip.

Still, this is a gadget. A gadget that makes a lot of sense and which is fun to use. If you're a geek like me and have any imaging pretensions from the days of DSLRs, then this is well worth investigating - whether you use iPhone or Android!

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PPS. The ShiftCam SnapGrip is currently £70 on Amazon UK