As I slid the phone into the slot on top of the box, I heard a mechanical whirring sound coming from inside, almost like a printer. Instead of producing paper, this tabletop device equipped my phone case with a freshly charged battery, all in seconds.
The Swippitt, which debuted at CES 2025 and shipped in June, is perhaps the most unconventional (and expensive) approach to extending your phone’s battery life that I’ve ever view. Phone makers and accessory sellers tend to focus on making phones more energy efficient, by providing them with larger batteries, improving charging speeds, or selling cases with a built-in battery , but Swippitt does this by keeping the batteries charged constantly and allowing you to quickly swap them out as needed. . It will work with iPhone 14, 15, and 16 models at launch, with Android support coming later.
There are some major caveats. On the one hand, you have to be prepared to use a relatively large case regularly. More importantly, at $450 for the hub and $120 for the Link box, the Swippitt is far from cheap. That’s more expensive than a PlayStation 5 and almost as expensive as an iPhone 16.
Learn more: Your phone’s camera paves the way for the virtual assistants of the future
The Swippitt hub contains five batteries that are charged and maintained so they don’t overheat. When you insert a phone equipped with a case into the slot, the machine removes the battery from the case and inserts another one. Battery cases have been around for a long time, but the great thing about Swippitt is that you instantly have access to more battery life after inserting the phone into the hub for 2 seconds. You don’t need to wait for a battery case to charge your phone or charge the case manually because the hub does it for you.
Padraic Connolly, founder and CEO of Swippitt, and Nancy Smith, the company’s chief marketing officer, said they see this as a home device that family members can share, which could help justify that high price. . Ultimately, they consider the Swippitt ideal for common and public spaces where people need to frequently charge their phones, such as airports and college dorms.
Connolly says a lot happens inside that nondescript box in the few seconds it takes to replace the battery. Not only does it insert the battery into the case, but it also moves the depleted battery to the correct location so it can be replenished while putting the next charged battery in place for the next person who arrives.
The app also allows you to reserve a specific battery within the hub. So if you see a fully charged battery in the app and want to be sure to pick it up before someone else in the house does, you can reserve it for your individual case. The hub uses RFID, or radio frequency identification, to read the device when it is inserted so it can recognize that it is one of Swippitt’s Link boxes.
The case itself feels as bulky and heavy as a typical battery case. It certainly adds extra weight to your phone, which may not appeal to minimalists or those who keep their phones in tight pockets or small purses, but it doesn’t feel unreasonably heavy.
It’s the price that will likely be a bigger barrier. A hub with two boxes costs almost $700, which is an exorbitant price to solve what some may consider a minor convenience.
It’s a new approach to a common problem. Until it becomes more affordable, I think most of us will continue to survive between charges.
