Whether you use it to stream music, get directions, or find the nearest restaurant, the phone has managed to become an integral part of the vehicle. For an overlander, the most common use for portable electronic devices is GPS and topographical maps. Normally, for an application such as this, the words "suction cup" and "off road" would not go together.
The iOttie One Touch was originally reviewed on Kinja in early August as "the best smartphone car mount" on the market.
When choosing a mount, flexibility is a key point to consider. It is important that the mount can be located in an area that will not obstruct the drivers view or operation of the vehicle, yet still allow the device to be placed in an easily viewable location.
After browsing multiple mounts and contemplating possible mount locations, I decided on the iOttie One Touch 2, which had just been released. The One Touch 2 had an improved telescoping, nearly 230 degree latitudinal rotation with a twist-lock ball mount, allowing for this mount to be positioned at virtually any angle.
With the promise of a "super sticky" suction cup mount that would not come loose in the most rugged of conditions I decided to give the One Touch 2 its shot.
Placing the phone in the cradle, you can immediately feel high holding capacity of the spring loaded arms, as they pinch your fingers against your phone if you're not careful to avoid the arms. The insides of the arms are lined with rubber padding for additional gripping power. On the bottom, a sliding tab keeps the phone level and prevents it from slipping downward while allowing all types of chargers access to the bottom of the device.
So far, so good, but again, the real test would be the quality of the suction cup.
Test one was the heat test. As various materials heat and cool they tend to expand and contract. This could, theoretically cause either the sticky pad or the suction cup to loose grip and come loose. Picking one of the hottest days of August with an expected high of 112 degrees (F), I placed an old, non-functioning iPod in the cradle, parked the Jeep in the sunniest place I could find, and rolled the windows up while I sat inside an air cooled office for 9 hours.
By the time came to leave, the inside of the Jeep was approaching 140 degrees. Halfway expecting to find my dilapidated iPod and cradle on the passenger floor, I opened the door, and to my surprise, everything was right where I left it.
Being me, it's in my nature to try and break things, so for good measure, I slapped the mount around a bit, trying to get the mount to fall of. It didn't
The next test would come a few weeks later when I took to the spring mountain range and some rather rocky trails. Having the arm fully extended to its furthest point with my phone attached to the end would provide the most force against the mounting point. If this mount was going to fall off, this is when it was going to happen.
A full 43 miles of off road trails later, the mount was still holding and the suction cup was strong as ever. At the end of the trip I checked everything over and the only issue was that the lock screw on the telescoping arm had vibrated loose.
The versatility and strength of this of this mount has far surpassed my expectations, and for this, I give this mount a 9 out of 10. My only complaint is the size of the suction cup. While it serves it purpose and I am sure the size attributed to its holding strength, it has a fairly large footprint at nearly 3.5 inches in diameter, making it somewhat difficult to place.
All in all, if you are in need of a phone mount for your rig, I highly recommend this mount.