The iPhone 5 Mophie Helium Juice Pack

The basics

Sure as the sun rises in the east, Apple will release an amazing new smartphone, and you won't be able to get at the battery. It's all locked away inside that slim unibody chassis, and if you run out of gas when you're out and about, there's nothing you can do about. Nothing, that is, except strap on an external battery pack, and the Mophie Helium Juice Pack is one of the first of a new bunch designed specifically for the new-look iPhone 5 and its smaller Lightning port. Is its extra stamina away from the mains worth the £59.95 price tag - and the extra bulk? Let's find out.

The good

Mophie's been doing this longer than most, so it's no surprise that we found the Mophie Juice Pack Helium got the job done. Its 1,500mAh cell technically has a higher capacity battery than the iPhone 5 itself (1,440mAh), but in practice, it adds more like three quarters of a charge on top again: just hit the switch when you're running low, and presto, your iPhone has instant life support.

Now it does add girth, but it doesn't feel like much. That's in part because the iPhone 5 itself is so stunningly thin and light, but it's still impressive that Mophie's pack on top still feels so manageable when it's plugged in- and the soft inner lining means you won't scuff Apples' elegantly carved smartphone popping it in and out.

The bad

The Mophie Helium Juice Pack presents an annoying issue for audiophiles: the headphone jack is thin and recessed, and won't work with all headphones without an adapter (supplied, but a bit fiddly to have to remember to carry around at all times).

You can probably thank Apple for its decision to put the headphone jack on the bottom of the iPhone 5 for that, but the upshot is that it's not ideal for jacks which are wider at the top than the stem. Apple's own headphones aren't, so if you use them you'll be fine, but if you use them, you may also be aware that they sound a bit bobbins.

The bottom line

Not every iPhone owner needs an extra battery pack, especially one that's 15mm deep. If you're only a sporadic email user who makes it from sunrise to bedtime most days of the week, a sixty quid accessory might be overkill.

But if you're an iPhone 5 owner who finds the tank running low soon after lunch every day, the Mophie Helium Juice Pack is for you. Sure, we'd love a super thin iOS blower which lasted as long as the enduro Samsung Galaxy Note 2 - but in the meantime, this is the next best thing. [GadgetShow]

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