For years, the accessory maker Twelve South has sold clever accessories for charging gadgets. Its new device, the Valet, is maybe its simplest idea ever: it’s a nice-looking tray designed to be the place you drop your keys, sunglasses, and other pocket detritus, and offers a couple of ways to charge whatever needs to be charged. It costs $179.99, and ships in the next couple of weeks.
Most of the Valet tray is just… tray. It’s covered in a soft leather, which comes in several different colors. (You can also customize the outer metal frame to match.) On one side, a raised square acts like a podium for wireless charging up to 15 watts. You can plug in another USB cable to a port on the side, and charge a second device that way — again at 15 watts. The Valet itself plugs in via a 36-watt power supply, and comes with a 1.5-meter cable to do so.
The charging specs make the Valet’s purpose pretty clear: This is not meant to be your laptop charger, or a charging hub of really any kind. It’s not even as straightforwardly functional as Twelve South’s own HiRise, which can charge three devices at a time. What it is, instead, is an attempt to make charging your most important devices — especially your phone — feel a bit more seamless.
It’s the everlasting dream of wireless charging, really, to just put your device down wherever and have it full when you pick it up. Aligned on a podium isn’t exactly wherever, but I’ve been using a Valet and I have in fact enjoyed not hunting for cables so much. Mine’s sitting on my desk, but most Valets will likely end up on nightstands and in entryways.
Twelve South is one of a lot of companies, including big names like Ikea, exploring gadgets that look more like home decor than high tech. This year’s CES is filled with gadgets trying to hide their essential gadget-ness, and while the Valet may not be the most earth-shattering example of the idea, it’s a pretty useful one.