I think these units are pretty fancy, however, I did question their practicality given that this particular unit had no normal power outlets to go with the USB outlets. I decided to have this unit installed within my home, what better way to ascertain exactly how functional they really can be?

When my husband first noticed, as I strategically decided not to share this new addition with him, he was intrigued. The first thing we did was plug the charger cord for our sons Samsung tablet straight into the outlet and place the tablet onto the shelf above to charge. I can, hand on heart, tell you that it has not moved since. The fact that we can charge this device, and have it elevated above the working zone means that it’s not getting keys, recycling and other items thrown onto it daily. Excellent, a great first impression.

Now I’m not sure about you, but the evenings in my house are pandemonium. Walk in the door from work, straight into the night routine while crossing every single available body part that THIS will be the night that I make it to the kids’ bedtime – with my sanity still partially intact. We’ve found our new Bluetooth speaker to be invaluable and a complete saviour at this time of day, so that was the next item to become permanently attached to the USB outlet. Now clearly, you need a mobile device to connect to the speaker to get the music going. After a long day at work, both of our mobiles are realistically on the brink of flatlining. That’s how the charger cord came to be the third item permanently plugged into the USB outlet.

So now, we’re charging our sons tablet, listening to some soul saving beats through the charging Bluetooth speaker while our phones are charging up, getting ready to be used during the 46,000 times our 8-month-old will wake during the night. I’m surprised, it took me roughly half an hour from to go from “We probably don’t even have anything to plug in here” to “Maybe we need to get another installed in the bedroom”. Impressive!

We’ve since decided to permanently adopt this little addition to our kitchen. Our kitchen is the hub of our home, especially in the evenings. To be able to have all our essential devices charging and operational without having to chop and change between outlets is invaluable. It also leaves our other power outlet free for whichever appliances we may need for the dinner rush that evening (eg – a blender for that pre-dinner green smoothie, or being more realistic, much-needed cocktail).

So, there you have it! That’s my experience as an electrical novice. I’m a convert! This outlet has a permanent place in our lives now. Perhaps it could benefit your home too?

– Ainsley (receptionist extraordinaire)