ZAGG’s new felt Desk Mat adorns your work surface with built-in magnetic charging at $50

We featured a few wireless charging-equipped desk mats around here, the most notable of which is probably the Journey ALTI model that comes in various sizes and a couple colors, but ZAGG has a new option on the market that sells for even less. The new ZAGG Desk Mat with wireless charging is very much what it sounds like, pulling from some of the design sensibilities of its 4-in-1 charging mat (currently on sale at $60 off), and expanding it out into a full-size desk mat for your work surface with a built-in wireless charging pad. Now available for purchase at Amazon for $49.99, you can get a complete breakdown of what it can bring to the table down below. 

ZAGG’s new Desk Mat with wireless charging now available for purchase

While many folks likely already have some sort of wireless charger as part of their at-home desk setup, myself included, I have found the built-in wireless charging pad can be a sort of elegant way to add an additional charging pad that, if you’re going to use a desk mat anyway, doesn’t take up any additional desk space. I have come to love the high-end, no-tech, and completely gorgeous full-grain leather model I reviewed from Harber London recently for its classy aesthetic, but I do miss having that extra charging pad resting flush with my work surface. And that’s where the new ZAGG Desk Mat comes in. 

First thing’s first, you’re looking at pressed felt desk mat that’s designed especially to provide a slightly cushy work surface for your keyboard that doubles as a mouse pad as well. Rounded corners offer a smooth look and a subtle brown ZAGG logo tab in the bottom left corner adds a touch of design interest here for me. 

Along the top you’ll find a pair of divots to neatly house writing utensils flanking either side of the main 10W Qi wireless charger for iPhone, Samsung devices, Google handsets, AirPods, other earbuds cases, wireless charging-enabled styluses, and just about anything else that supports Qi charging. The official documentation does also mention it is specifically for magnetic Qi-enabled devices and MagSafe-compatible gear, so this also likely hides some magnetic action as well. 

Features at a glance:

• Up to 10W Wireless Charging: Charge your keyboard, mouse, phone, and more on the top, center charging spot.
• Integrated USB-C Cable: No need for extra cables. The integrated USB-C cable plugs into your power source so you can use the mat to wirelessly charge your devices.
• Premium Materials: The mat has a soft, durable fabric top and a non-slip bottom
• Grooves for Pen and Stylus: Grooves in the mat keep your stylus or other writing tools from rolling around and getting lost.
• Lies Flat: The high-quality mat lies flat and in place on your work surface.
• For all wireless charging devices: The Desk Mat with Wireless Charging is compatible with most wireless charging devices.

One thing also worth pointing out is that this charging section in the top middle, at first, seemed like weird placement to me. I mean, why not have it off to one side where most folks might naturally rest a handset? However, the brand clearly had its latest Pro keyboards with Qi wireless charging in mind here (we went hands-on with them last summer) – these keyboards feature bottom-mounted wireless charging pads so you can just slide them up to begin charging either in between uses or even while you’re typing if needs be. While I am a die-hard Apple keyboard user, for better or worse, I can’t help but like the idea of this charging setup.

I can appreciate the price here too. The $50 MSRP ( 6-foot USB-C charging cable included) isn’t cheap per se, as you can just as easily scoop up a no-name desk mat on Amazon for a fraction of the price. But ZAGG is a tech accessory brand that generally knows what it’s doing, one we have featured around here for years, and is adding in some tech to the basic format. It also comes in at $80 under the price of the Journey model’s MSRP (full hands-on review of that one right here) and one that appears to be providing a compelling solution for folks interested in the charging-equipped desk mat-meets-mouse pad action for their desktop. 

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