If you’re someone looking to join the world of TikTok, Instagram, and social sharing, there seems to always be time to hold your phone out in front of you and get content creating.
Any time is a moment, and thoughts and events can seemingly be shared, but your arm is only so long and outstretched, and it can even be a little unsteady, so you might want a bit of help.
Belkin might have the answer with a recent release offering a couple of accessories provided you have a compatible phone, thanks to magnets built into the back of mobiles, which in the past year has found its way to more devices.
If you have any current iPhone from the iPhone 12 onwards that isn’t an iPhone 16e, you have MagSafe’s charging rings in the back. And if you have a Google Pixel 10 model from last year such as the Pixel 10 or Pixel 10 Pro Fold, you have Qi2, too. Each of these have magnets, and each of these can be mounted to one of the magnetic accessories made for MagSafe and Qi2.
Belkin’s additions to that this year come in the form of a clever power bank shaped like a camera grip that uses the circular magnets to hold to the back of the phone, charge it, and even use a button on the camera grip as a Bluetooth trigger for the phone.
Called the Belkin Stage Power Grip, it’s essentially a camera conversion for your phone camera, and adds a camera grip to the mix that works on your mobile. You have to pair it first, holding down the Bluetooth shutter and pairing it with the Bluetooth on your phone, but once paired, it can trigger your phone’s camera while you hold the camera, handy in either selfie or rear camera mode.
The Power Grip also has a retractable USB-C cable at the bottom for charging other devices, and there’s a USB-C port up top, so you could easily recharge three devices including the iPhone, and stand it up doing so.
There’s even a tripod thread at the bottom and a screen to let you know how much battery life is left.
The tripod thread is notable, because Belkin has released a tripod in another pack, the Stage Creator Kit.
While they’re not quite on the same playing field as Manfrotto or Benro legs, the Belkin equivalent is an aluminium tripod in white that comes with a magnetic phone mount on an arm able to hold a phone up from the tripod itself. The tripod folds up, comes in a small bag, and aims to be easy for people to carry, while Belkin is also including its own wireless microphone kit in the box, as well.
This addition is a bit of a surprise, offering two wireless mics (24-bit/48kHz) you can wear with support for a USB-C transmitter from the phone, and up to 36 hours of use with a battery recharge in the case.
In short, the Belkin wireless microphones are a bit of a flex for what Rode and DJI normally make in their wireless microphone options, but arriving in a pack for content creators keen on saving.
You won’t find an app or a lot of control for Belkin’s Stage Creator microphones, and the mics appear to be very much set as is, but given the tripod and mics cost $199.95 in Australia, the point here appears to be value more than anything else.
Meanwhile, the Belkin Stage Power Grip may well be an early favourite of this reviewer, and priced fairly well, too, launching locally for a hair under $100 and available now.
