Finding that perfect gift can be really hard — and this year the Accessorize Mobile team is here to help you with some quick suggestions to get the job done. This Holiday Gift Guide will be broken down into four categories (Cases, Chargers and Batteries, Bluetooth, and Odds and Ends) and showcase some of our favorite products for the latest smartphones. Let’s get started…

Holiday Gift Guide: Cases

Cases are an essential part of smartphone care. While not everyone likes a case to protect their smartphone, we are going to show you a variety of styles to protect your device. Here is a selection of some of our favorite cases.

Case-Mate Barely There – This is the perfect case for those who don’t like cases. It’s protective, thin, and compact. The Barely There cases are form-fitted for each device and available for pretty much all popular smartphones on the market, including the iPhone 4/4S, Bold 9900/9930, HTC EVO, Galaxy S II, and others. Best of all the Barely There cases are available in a wide variety of colors and prices start around $25 and up (model depending). [Case-Mate]

Case-Mate Barely There Brushed Aluminum – If you like the Barely There (as seen above) then the Brush Aluminum is a must see. It keeps the thin protective profile for your smartphone, but adds a layer of real brushed aluminium on the back. It looks and feels great. These cases are available for a selection of smartphones, including the iPhone 4, Bold 9900/9930, and Galaxy S II. These cases will you a little more than the Barely There series, coming in at $40. [Case-Mate]

OtterBox Impact Series – You know those cheap skins you find for smartphones? This isn’t one. The OtterBox Impact Series provides a thick layer of custom-fitted rubber around your smartphone to protect it from bumps and drops. The OtterBox Impact Series have an awesome price tag of $19.95 and are available for most of the latest smartphones, including the iPhone 4/4S, Bold 9900/9930, Galaxy S II Skyrocket, HTC Vivid, Motorola ATRIX, and others. [OtterBox]

OtterBox Defender Series – If you’ve ever own an iPhone or BlackBerry and are rough on your device, then you might have heard of the Defender Series from OtterBox. These cases offer three solid layers of protection for bumps and drops, and a plastic holster to secure it on your belt. The Defender Series cases are available for all iPhone models, most BlackBerry models, Motorola DROID RAZR, and most HTC models. The Defender Series will run about $49.95 — But it’s worth it. [OtterBox]

Ballistic Shell Gel (SG) Case – The Shell Gel case is a blend of hard plastic and rubber with shock-resistant corners called Ballistic Corners. The Shell Gel cases are available for a selection of smartphones from Apple, BlackBerry, Samsung, and others. The Shell Gel cases are available in several colors for each model, and will run about $34.95. [Link]

Holiday Gift Guide: Chargers and Batteries

Mophie Juicepack for iPhone 4/4S -

Mophie Juicepack Powerstation – Take a powerful 4000 mAh battery pack that allows you charge your smartphone or tablet pretty much anywhere, anytime. The Mophie Powerstation offers a High-density, high-output battery and can charge your device via USB faster than other battery packs. It’s a great idea for those who travel often. The Powerstation will run about $79.95. [Link]

Powermat Wireless Charging Mats – The Powermat Wireless Charging mats have always been a popular gift during the Holiday season. Powermat has designed the Wireless Charging Receivers for a wide variety of smartphones, including the iPhone and Galaxy S smartphones. They also offer the universal Powercube which allows you to charge any USB or MicroUSB smartphone. Powermat’s can start at $29.99 and go upwards of $129.99 depending on model. [Link]

Mophie Juicepack Boost for iPhone – This small and compact rechargeable 2000 mAh battery will charge your iPhone to 100% on the go. It’s a great idea for those who don’t have a lot of room when traveling and need their iPhone charged all the time. The Juicepack Boost costs $49.95. [Link]

Holiday Gift Guide: Bluetooth

Jawbone ERA Bluetooth Headset – Hands down this is one of my favorite Bluetooth headsets. After using previous Jawbone headsets, I can say the ERA offers some of the best noise cancellation on the market. Add in ERA’s motion controls and internal processor with myTALK platform, you get it all. The ERA comes in four colors and costs $129. [Link]

Jabra Freeway Bluetooth Speaker – Don’t want to wear an earpiece? The Jabra Freeway would be one of our favorite in car Bluetooth experiences to date. The Jabra Freeway features 3 speakers and Virtual Surround sound, caller ID announcements, and stereo Bluetooth support. The Jarba Freeway retails for $129. [Link]

Jawbone JAMBOX – Know a music lover? The Jawbone JAMBOX is an awesome gift. I think Jawbone explains it best ” The JAMBOX delivers stunning hi-fi audio in a portable wireless speaker so compact you won’t believe it when you hear it. It’s loud. With an output capacity of 85 decibels, JAMBOX fills even the largest rooms.”. The JAMBOX has a price tag of $199 which may seem like a lot, but if you truly love music, it’s worth every penny. [Our Review] [Link]

Holiday Gift Guide: Odds and Ends

Incipio Inscribe Stylus -  Some people just miss the good old fashion stylius, and Incipio has a couple pretty nice solutions for it. This is the Incipio Inscribe PRO features a high-quality ball point pen and a stylus all-in-one. Best of all its available in three colors and will run about $20 each. [Link]

Opena Bottle Opener Case for iPhone 4 – We didn’t include this in the cases section, because its definitely unique and we aren’t sure how much protection it really offers. This case designed for the iPhone 4 offers a slide-out bottle opener, so you can open a cold one anytime. These cases will run you about $39.95 and are available in black or white. [Related Post] [Link]

Jawbone UP – This could be one of the most interesting gifts for the health guru in your family. The Jawbone UP works hand-in-hand with your iPhone and monitors your daily activity, sleep patterns, and eating habits to help you live a healthier life. It comes in various colors and costs about $99. [Related Post] [Link]

Related posts:

1. First Look: OEM BlackBerry Bold Touch 9900/9930 Accessories
2. Waterproof Headphones For Your Smartphone, Introducing the ZAGGauqabuds
3. Powermat unveils 2011 Roadmap… New Powermats, Receivers for BlackBerry Torch, iPhone 4, and more!

Since the BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 smartphones were announced a couple months ago, we didn’t really get to see much in terms of official accessories. The official BlackBerry Accessory Store has just posted the first OEM cases and charging solutions for the new Bold Touch. RIM has changed their OEM line of accessories to feature more fitted solutions, like the new soft shell case seen above. Gone is the loose silicon skins, and in is the form-fitted gel skins in various colors. The colored gel skins are set to retail for approximately $21, the OEM charging dock is $55, and the new hard shell fitted cases (see below) are $31. For those who like holstering their BlackBerry on their belt we have the OEM leather holster, which will retail for $41. Finally the last accessory shown in the BlackBerry store is the OEM leather pocket, which is great for well… Putting it in your pocket. These cases retail for $36.

OEM Charging Dock for BlackBerry Bold Touch

OEM Hard Shell Case with BlackBerry Accent for Bold Touch

OEM Leather Holster for BlackBerry Bold Touch 9900/9930 with swivel clip and magnetic flip

OEM Leather Pocket with no clip for the BlackBerry Bold Touch

You can find all the new official BlackBerry accessories for the Bold Touch 9900/9930 smartphones at ShopBlackBerry.com.

Related posts:

1. Go Ballistic with the SG Case for the BlackBerry Bold Touch 9900/9930
2. OtterBox Unveils BlackBerry Bold Touch 9900/9930 Cases
3. Incipio SILICRYLIC Hard Shell Case for BlackBerry Bold 9900/9930

I’m never one to complain about accessories here on the Accessorize Mobile, but this one just doesn’t make sense to me. Energizer has just announced a new inductive charging mat for BlackBerry and iPhone users. It’s very similar to the Powermat charging mat, except brings Qi standards into play. Qi basically is a standard that electronic manufactures have developed to bring universal compatiability for wireless charging. This means if phone manufactures like Motorola, Nokia, Apple, BlackBerry, etc. were to integrate Qi into their devices, you could simply just set it on the Energizer charging mat to charge it. Problem is, no manifacutres have done so yet. Therefore Energizer has released their wireless charging mat with removable battery doors (like Powermat) for the iPhone 3G/3GS and the BlackBerry Curve 8900.

The Energizer Inductive Charger goes on sale in November for $89.99, then $34.99 for each removable battery door. Sadly it doesn’t look like Energizer has released a universal charging block (like Powermat’s Powercube) for their product. So it’s pretty much useless for newer devices like the Bold 9700, iPhone 4, anything Android, etc. If you want more details visit Energizer’s website here.

Press Release:

ENERGIZER_® Introduces New Inductive Charger to Meet Consumer Demand for Wireless Power

Leads the Way with One of the First Universal Qi Technology Products to Market

ST. LOUIS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–As consumers rely more heavily than ever on devices such as smartphones and cell phones for everything from texting and talking, to working and shopping, their demand for more power and more convenient charging options has skyrocketed. Energizer, a leader in innovative power solutions that make consumers’ lives easier, recognized this growing need and responded with the introduction of their first inductive charger built with Qi technology, the new universal charging standard developed by the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC).

“This next generation charger is a natural extension of an innovative product portfolio that brings more freedom for people to live and to work using power that’s reliable and convenient.”

Widely anticipated and considered to be one of the most compelling new developments in charging technology, Qi (pronounced chee) will bring consumers the freedom to charge their smartphones, MP3 players, cameras – any device 5 Watts or less – on a single charging station, regardless of manufacturer.

“We believe that a universal standard is the future of charging, and by leading the way with one of the first Qi products – the Energizer_® Inductive Charger – we are meeting a clear need for a product that makes charging devices easier by eliminating cords and clutter,” said Jim Olsen, Vice President of Marketing for Energizer North America. “This next generation charger is a natural extension of an innovative product portfolio that brings more freedom for people to live and to work using power that’s reliable and convenient.”

According to market research firm iSuppli, Corp., shipments of electronic products with wireless charging capability are anticipated to increase from 3.6 million units in 2010, to 234.9 million units in 2014. An open, standardized system will create a healthier competitive environment and prompt manufacturers to join forces.* The WPC had this very goal of global compatibility in mind when they formed an international group of more than 55 companies to develop this universal standard.

“The WPC and dedicated members like Energizer have been hard at work developing and testing this universal standard, and we are honored to have a brand with the global reach of Energizer as one of the first to market with a Qi inductive charger,” said Menno Treffers, Chairman of the Wireless Power Consortium. “They are helping to establish and educate about Qi and drive adoption, benefiting consumers and the industry as a whole.”

Designed in cooperation with WPC co-founder ConvenientPower, the first generation of the Energizer_® Inductive Charger is designed to conveniently charge up to three devices at one time. It features two large inductive charging zones that don’t require locking the device into a precise position, so consumers can simply set down their phone and be sure that it will be charged and ready to go. It also has a USB port so it’s easy to charge an additional device such as a phone, headset, mp3 player, camera or GPS. Two LED charge lights indicate that the device is charging.

The Energizer_® Inductive Charger will be introduced with a Qi Sleeve for the iPhone® 3GS/3G and a one-time replacement Qi Door for the BlackBerry_® Curve™ 8900, so consumers can enjoy the convenience of Qi right away. Soon, consumers can expect to have Qi built right into many of their devices.

“As one of the first to market with a Qi device, we want to make it easy for consumers to experience how easy and convenient it is to charge their devices using this new universal standard,” added Olsen. “We focused on accessories for popular smartphones, but anticipate that it will not be long before manufacturers roll-out devices with Qi built right in.”

The Energizer_® Inductive Charger will be available at retail this October. Suggested retail price is $89. The removable Qi sleeve for the iPhone® 3GS/3G and the Qi door for the BlackBerry_® Curve™ 8900 will be sold separately for $34.99 each.

For more information, visit www.energizer.com/inductive.

About Inductive Charging and Qi

Inductive charging is what happens when two devices—one designed to send power and the other designed to receive it—touch one another and energy is transferred between them. By using an electromagnetic field to transfer energy, charging pads are able to intelligently communicate back and forth with the devices they’re charging.

Before Qi, transmitters and receivers had to be designed to work together, or speak the same “language.” Now, Qi is the common language for inductive chargers and devices to talk to one another, so any device with a Qi-enabled accessory or with Qi built directly into it can charge on any Qi inductive charging pad.

Related posts:

1. CES 2010: Energizer Shows New Charging Solutions
2. New Powermat Wireless Charging Mat for iPhone Has Arrived!
3. Case-Mate Introduces Hug Charging Mat for iPhone (Coming Soon for Others)

Here’s a neat accessory concept called iPetals. It’s a solar powered charger for Apple’s iPhone. It’s not guaranteed to hit the market anytime soon, if at all. But it’s a very neat idea. Check out another picture after the break…

[via IntoMobile/Petitinvention]

Related posts:

1. Get Extra Power with mophie juice pack for iPhone 3G/3GS
2. Hand-Carved iPhone Cases Designed From Wood…
3. InnoPocket brings REAL Carbon Fiber Cases to iPhone!

When the Palm Pre first launched, one of the coolest features was the ability to wirelessly charge the device by setting it on the TouchStone dock. Well a new product called Powermat is here to do the same thing for nearly all mobile devices. The Powermat is a wireless charging solution designed for a range of devices, including BlackBerry, iPhone, iPod, Nintendo, etc. So the first question you’re probably wondering is how does this thing wirelessly charge my device? Basically Powermat provides a variety of battery doors with magnetic spots on them that transfer the charge right to the built in battery. For devices that battery doors aren’t compatible with such as the BlackBerry Tour, they offer a Universal Receiver that includes a variety of charging tips and a magnetic dock. Curious to know more about the Powermat? Continue reading this review…

Design:

The Powermat

The design of the Powermat looks great. It features a large black surface with three spots to charge different devices at the same time. Powermat has been stylishly designed to look great no matter where you place it… Your office, desk, bed side table, nearly anywhere. The charging battery doors for iPhone, iPod, and BlackBerry are interesting. The battery door for the iPhone and iPod fit similar to a hard protective case. It wraps around the entire body to give protection, as well the charging contact on the back. The battery doors for BlackBerry are similar to the ones that come with the phone, but just thicker for the magentic contact on the battery door. Unfortuantly the battery door for the Bold 9000 does not sport the leather back like the OEM one. See the pictures at the end of this review to get a feel for it.

Compatibility:

PowerCube Universal Adapters

Powermat currently offers battery door receivers for Apple iPhone 3G/3GS, iPod touch, BlackBerry Bold 9000, Curve 8300 series, Curve 8900, and Pearl 8100 series. If your device isn’t listed? Well that’s OK, because Powermat has designed this neat thing called Powercube which includes tips for 8 different charging tips to plug in, and wirelssly charge your device. The Powercube exactly what it sounds like a magentic cube with a USB adapater that the tips connect on to. This means anyone with an Apple, LG, Samsung, Sony, Nintendo DSI, DS Lite, MicroUSB, or MiniUSB charger can take advantage of the Powermat. At the time this review was written Powermat does not have battery doors for some of the newer BlackBerry models such as Storm, Storm2, Bold 9700 or Tour 9630, they’re excepted soon.

Pricing:

The Powermat home/office mat (seen in this review) will cost you about $100 USD, plus the cost of a receiver. BlackBerry receivers (battery and battery door) run you about $30, iPhone or iPod receivers are $40, Nintendo receivers are $30. The Powercube with multiple universal adapters is included in the package. Our next review will be covering the Portable mat, which features the same three charging spots, in a more compact design for traveling. Stay tuned for that.

Overall Thoughts:

Powermat on BlackBerry Bold 9000

I love the idea of the Powermat. I no longer have wires for all my iPod, BlackBerry, and other gadgets. It looks great, and stays on my desk at all times. The only thing that I wish is they had support for some of the newer BlackBerry devices out of box. The Powercube is a great idea for those who switch devices often, such as myself. The eight different tips allow compatibility with a wide variety of devices, including portable gaming systems like PSP and Nintendo DS. The one question everyone wants to know… Is it worth the cost? $100 does seem a little high for some, but for those who are sick of wires and love gizmos – this is a must have. The Powermat will make a great present this Holiday season for friends . I might also suggest watching for our Powermat Portable review which will be coming in the next few weeks!

Where to Buy:

You can pick up the Powermat directly from their website (www.Powermat.com) for $99.99 USD for either the Home/Office or Portable Mat.

Accessorize Mobile’s Rating:

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Pros:

• Charging Pad is Stylish and Looks great on desk
• Battery Doors are Available for Wide Variety of Models
• Large range of Universal adapters included in box (called PowerCube)
• Sweet connection noise (can be muted)

Cons:

• Slight humming noise comes from Powermat during charging
• Currently no battery doors available for BlackBerry Tour, Storm, Storm2, or Curve 8520/8530
• Pricing is a little high, considering receiver cost
• Can’t use battery door with any other cases

Promo Video:

Gallery:

Related posts:

1. Introducing Powermat, Wireless Charging Solution for Mobile Devices
2. New Powermat Wireless Charging Mat for iPhone Has Arrived!
3. Powermat adds Motorola Droid X/X2 Receiver for Wireless Charging