Topeak PDA Phone Pack

After Electra came up with the coffee cup holder for your bike could the cell phone holder have been far away? Obviously not. But it makes more sense that you might think .

Having a cell phone while your biking is a tremendous safety asset. Getting lost, flats, bad weather etc being able to call for help (or get calls from help). Where to keep the phone when doing serious biking was always a bit of a question. If you have bike shirt you can always use the back pockets but it's sometimes hard to access if you have a bunch of stuff back there. Plus in warmer climates it gets drenched with sweat. So mounting it to the bike is a pretty good idea.

The Topeak holder is basically a heavy duty nylon/neoprene cell phone case. The biggest difference in design is that there is an extra bracket on the back clip that lets it slide onto and off of the mounting stud you place on your bike. You can also use it as a belt clip. On one side there are some elastic loops that let you store a stylus and thin pen. This particular unit is large enough to hold a full size blackberry with no problem and an I-phone if you stuff it.

The other part of it is a mounting bracket that goes on bike. The fastening mechanism is similar to a pipe clamp but it's all plastic. I wasn't thrilled with the plastic construction but at least it won't scratch your bike. You thread the strap around bike tube and into the fastener, then screw on the fastener and it takes up the slack until you've got the right fit.

Mounting options depend on your bike. Optimally it might go on the handlebars but that place can get busy with other accessories and the PDA holder is a bit large. I chose to mount it on the top frame tube. I was worried if it was going to fit since tube is oversized but it fit with no problem.

Once you've got the mount on you slide the clip over the square mounting stud till it clips. The stud is omni -directional so you can slide the holder in from any direction on the stud, not just up/down. It clips and it does not come off. Your phone is at the ready whenever you need it. When your done with the ride take it out or use it as your holder.

So in Summary

Pros-

Multi Functional, works on both bike and belt.

Convenient, lets you take your phone comfortably when you might leave it behind

Well built, would probably protect your phone in a crash.

Cons

A bit bulkier than other regular PDA carriers.

Conclusion

If your looking for a way to carry your phone with you while biking give this a serious look. It works well.

As long as you have no dimension issues fitting your device into case...and I don't...it works great.

One hint I'd suggest a quick wrap of handlebar cloth tape (or similar) to keep it from sliding since attachment band is plastic and can slip on metal bar.

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the phone pack is perfect. I use a Palm Pixi (for size comparison), and it fits easily. This size would be a tight fit for an iPhone. the issue is with the fixer. Get it where you want it, and don't move it around. Tightening a plastic hex bolt with a metal hex key is always a bad idea. also, the tip of the fixer strap has cracked. I'm not moving it again, so this won't be an issue. If I had known to be more careful, I wouldn't have had any issues...that being said, its a great way to have your phone handy, and I'd buy another one if this one went missing.

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