It’s not normally my style to post something to this blog that’s super negative about a product, service, place, etc. Normally, I’d just not spend my money there anymore and be done with it. However, I wanted to do this as a public service, to make sure you’re aware of what you’re getting before you plunk down $100 on anything from a company called OhSnap or ohsnap!
To be fair: There are plenty of people who think these products are godsends. This is my experience.
OhSnap is a company that makes mobile phone products, most notably the ohsnap grip. And it was their grip that caught my attention when I bought my iPhone 12. I was hoping to get a grip that was both more usuable than the typical Pop Socket but also magnetic. It was also intriguing to me that OhSnap products were crowdfunded, and I like to support entrepreneurs where I can.
Here’s how OhSnap described its grip product:
Ohsnap is the ultra-thin phone grip & stand. It’s magnetic, works with all phones, and is compatible with wireless charging. Now backed by a lifetime warranty. We recommend using a thin case with these glass phones.
I probably should have read this part, to be perfectly honest, as I was buying an iPhone 12:
These Apple phones have a special Oleophobic coating that make it incredibly hard for Ohsnap to adhere to. A thin case or skin will solve this problem.
– iPhone X
– iPhone XS & XS Max
– iPhone XR
– iPhone 11
– iPhone 11 Pro & Pro Max
– iPhone 12 Pro & Pro Max
While I was on their site, I picked up a Snapcharge and a Snapstand. The former is a magnetic wireless charger, and the latter is a magnetic stand to hold your phone upright. It’s $39.99, and the Snapcharge is also $39.99. The grip is $19.99.
In all, I spent $100.
The first bad sign was that after OhSnap said it would take them a couple days to ship what I had purchased, it took two weeks. Truth be told, I would have had no issue waiting two weeks, but this was the email I received from them:
Thank you for your order! We want to be up front and clear that this order will be fulfilled in late October.
I messaged their support email to get an updated delivery time. But I got no response, and then several non-responses — the first saying it would take them 2-3 business days to respond and then later 4-7 business days.
I ordered on Oct. 26 and received the product on Nov. 13.
For all the messages I’ve sent them, I’ve never received an actual reply, from a human. It’s easily the most non-existent customer service I’ve ever received. I wouldn’t even say frustrating. It’s non-existent.
And that’s not even my biggest beef.
My biggest beef is that the grip didn’t work. At all. Oh, it stuck for about 5 minutes, and then it came right off. Yes, in fine print on the site, OhSnap disclosed that the grip might not work with the iPhone X, 11 or 12, better known as the phones most people have in 2020. As for my case, I have a thin MagSafe case from Apple.
I tried to restick the grip, and then I messaged support to hear back that it would take 4-7 days for them to respond.
Hi!
Thank you for contacting ohsnap support. Due to the recent delivery of our products from Kickstarter, we are currently experiencing a very high volume of requests and it may take up to 4-7 business days for us to get back to you.
We appreciate your patience as we work to provide a great support experience.
Sincerely,
Ohsnap support
To be fair, they have a “get a replacement” form on their website. However, I’m not going to bother because there’s nothing about what they sent me that gives me any thought that the Pop Socket isn’t a million times superior. So, I ate my loss and bought a Pop Socket.
As for the Snapstand, it works, but not because the magnetization is so awesome. It’s not. It’s because my new Pop Socket helps keep it upright. Definitely, definitely not worth $40.
The Snapcharge for QI wireless charging is fine, and it works.
One out of three ain’t bad.
Next time, opt for the known entity. Lesson learned.
If only their customer service had been even remotely decent. Fwiw, here’s the final support email I received from OhSnap on Friday, Nov. 13:
Thank you for contacting ohsnap support. Due to the recent delivery of our products from Kickstarter, we are currently experiencing a very high volume of requests and it may take up to 5-8 business days for us to get back to you. We completely understand that this is a longer wait period than our normal 24hr response rate, but we will do our very best to get back to you as soon as possible.
Even the most inefficient of bureaucracies could get back to a customer within 5 to 8 business days.
Wow.
Hey Ryan, If you still have your iPhone 12 and OhSanp 1.0 products, I actually found a solution that works – OhSnap’s MagSafe iPhone cases. I know you don’t want to spend another dollar on OhSnap products, but I recently bought an iPhone 12 which led me to buying the OhSnap case ($29.99 for real carbon fiber case). And surprise, surprise – I can use my 1.0 grip with this case (more on that at the bottom).
FYI, I contributed to their original Kickstarter campaign – that involved Buddah like patience – and all I had ordered were two grips. No Snapcharge was ordered as I didn’t have a phone with wireless charging. Since my Moto phone didn’t have a glass back (and I was using a case), grip worked well enough for me. I actually liked the functionality of the magnetic grip and stand so much that I made 3 stands myself using pipe fittings from a hardware store plus Snapmounts.
BTW, OhSnap 2.0 is worse than 1.0 in my opinion. I think one of the main driver to produce 2.0 was to reduce cost, besides fine tuning it for MagSafe. 1.0 products were made from mostly ferromagnetic metal – which meant making your own accessories were limited only by your imagination and creativity. 2.0 uses aluminum and composites which limits customization – bad news for someone like me. In fact, OhSnap was already going down the cost savings route with 1.0 Snapcharge as seen by changing the USB cable (magnetic swivel type to fixed USB-C cable) and removing the magnet from the bottom og the Snapstand – I can verify this as my last Mercari purchase of OG Snapcharge package had the magnetic base stand).
As far as using 1.0 grip on 2.0 Ohsnap iPhone case, it is easier to remove the grip as the magnets do not align 100% between 1.0 and 2.0 (2.0 has smaller diameter). And the case uses aluminum shell (probably anodized), so I’m worried about dropping the case. We’ll see how carefully I sue this combo.
Thank you for your review – sorry the 1.0 products didn’t work in your case.