The Bottom Line: Deal or Dud? Charge Card proves to be the latter

Digipower Charge Card for Smartphone.

So you’ve got your eye on a new cleaning product that promises to rid your home of all things gross or a new nail polish that pledges to make your fingernails as tough as, well, nails. The pitch is perfect. The price is in your budget. But does it work? Consumers always want to know, so let us tell you: We’ll try it before you buy it. The Bottom Line will highlight some of the newest and trendiest items and tell you whether it’s a deal or dud. Got a product in mind? Contact Blade reporter RoNeisha Mullen at rmullen@theblade.com or 419-724-6133.

The Product: Digipower Charge Card for Smartphone

The Pitch: Also known as a mini power pack, the credit card-sized gadget promises to give your dead smart phone a quick bolt of energy, without the hassle of plugging in. Charge the card, then use it when you’re on the go for a quick charge and an extra two hours of talk time.

The Price: $29.99 at OfficeMax. This charger also can be found at a number of other stores and online retailers, including the Sharper Image and walmart.com. Prices vary by retailer.

The Bottom Line: Dud. We used the mobile charger for two weeks on a Samsung Galaxy SIII and each time, only gained between eight and 15 percent battery life, which doesn’t equate to two hours of talk time. In fact, it’s not even enough to move from the low battery zone.

We tried different scenarios to see if that would make a difference. We used the fully charged power pack on a phone that had 60 percent battery life remaining and got an 8 percent boost before the charger went dead. Another time, we plugged in a phone with 7 percent battery life. It had charged to 24 percent when the charger shut off.

This charger just didn’t deliver, and that’s unfortunate, because its compact size and ease of use makes it very appealing. We got better results from the Dynex External Battery, sold at Best Buy for $14.99.