Spigen KUEL [TS35] (Transformer), Windscreen Dashboard Car Phone Holder, Extendable Carbon Pattern One Tap 360 Degree Rotatable Black

This is great. I love the one handed release and grab feature - very handy and it works brilliantly 95% of the time. Every now and then, one side doesn't ping out properly and the phone doesn't go back in first time without releasing the arm but that's my only gripe really. The sucky cup is augmented by a sticky gel which means it stays where you put it and doesn't fall off. I moved to gel products several years ago and haven't looked back the ones which rely on air suction alone always fall off after a few weeks/months and constantly need resticking. Gel holds the holder firmly in place. The long arm is also novel. It brings the device that bit nearer to the user which is helpful because you can attach it a bit lower down the screen and still reach the device easily, while covering up less of your windscreen view. I imagine it's also really helpful if you have short arms!!!

I was put off by the 'sticky-out' levers that you use to release the clamps. But having decided to give it a go, I'm so glad I did as they don't obtrude anywhere near as much in real life as it looks in the listing and, more pertinently, they actually work very well indeed. The phone is held securely, it's easy to insert and easier still to remove. And no annoying rattles from cheap spring mechanisms. I have it installed on my windscreen and it has gripped securely since day one (about 2 weeks ago) and hardly wobbles around at all when driving - nice and solid. Well worth the extra money and I'm so glad I chose this premium product. The listing shows it closed without a phone inserted, it doesn't look as horrible when it's actually not in use and waiting for a phone as the 'sticky-out' levers are pushed in and closed up - see my first picture, why they didn't put one like that in their listing is anyone's guess. Second picture shows it at a nice length and easy to get to phone screen with an outstretched finger from the steering wheel (when I'm stationary only, of course).

Used it but for a good few months and no issues at all. Holds my phone securely. I’ve banged it a few times when clearing my window and it hasn’t fallen off once. If left in the hot sun the suction cup does fail on you. However if you take it off and leave it an hour it goes back on like new again. Can be used single handed so handy when you have your hands full or in a rush. Leave plenty room to access buttons the side of my IPhone 6 and can be charged at the same time also. Great tilt and height adjustments for the perfect viewing. Helped me when using maps on the phone.

Having trusted and used Spigen for their phone cases before, I was confident their car mount would be of good quality too. Also coming highly recommended in both professional and public reviews helped me to make my choice.I have the Galaxy S8 and bought this mount in order to use it as a dashcam + navigation. The Kuel performs well; holding the phone securely, doesn't obstruct the camera lens and is easy to lock and unlock the phone holding mechanism. The adhesive gel pad coupled with the lever arm seems to be holding well so far on my dashboard. I plan to permanently leave it in place so only time will tell if UV changes it's properties or the stickiness naturally wears off under road conditions.Whilst driving, potholes and uneven roads do tend to cause small vibrations and wobble through the mount - i.e there is no stabilisation built in but that is to be expected with it's impressively low cost for the quality. The resultant footage is still smooth with no noticeably annoying jitter... this could be in part due to some image stabilisation on the S8 so your mileage with other phones may vary.The part that holds the phone is padded enough with a soft material so as to not mark or damage.This mount is not perfect though - it suits my needs as a dashcam perfectly fine (that I rarely move), however If using as a simple sat nav and/or entertainment, you may want to be able to quickly and easily move the 'head' freely. With the current design, the plastic nut needs to be unscrewed, the head adjusted, then the nut done back up tight again.. all effectively blind and in reverse when the mount is stuck to the dash and facing you! My Garmin sat nav mount, as an representative example, has a metal reinforment in the ball joint, so you can freely move the unit around whilst in use and angle any way you like. The Garmin probably weighs more than my S8 so this cannot be the reasoning for not reinforcing the joint. The Garmin mount is quite simple and similar and has lasted effectively like this for me for years.Overall I am happy with the Kuel and it does it's job... just could be a tiny bit better to make it perfectly easy to use.

Finally a long term review. I've had this mount since 2017 and used it quite a lot for the first year and a half. It's incredibly sturdy and always remained attached to the windscreen. Vibration through the mount was also very minimal as long as you've tightened all the knobs. The main issue I had with it is that pressing my phone against the back doesn't always trigger both arms, and sometimes requires a few goes. The knob on the rear of the mount can also be quite tricky to undo because there's not much to hold onto.I decided to write this review because after a year of not using the mount the sticky surface became covered in dust. This was my mistake. And while it probably would still work okay it's obviously diminished from the original surface. However I managed to fix this by pouring a layer of PVA glue onto the upright pad and letting it set. Miraculously after peeling the glue back the next day it removed all the dust and the surface is very sticky once more.