More retractable cables, please

The switch to USB-C has vastly simplified my life, and I am very grateful for it, but I still struggle with cable clutter. Dealing with gadgets and gizmos for a family of four means the outlets on my kitchen counter resemble an unappealing bowl of silicon spaghetti, which is why this new $44 Counterpart Charger caught my eye.

This compact charger includes a built-in 4-foot USB-C cable that — here’s the handy part — retracts with the press of a button, leaving you cable-free. It delivers 35 Watts of GaN charging, which is enough for most phones, tablets, Switches, and the occasional pair of headphones that invariably collect on my counter in search of power. It would even do for my MacBook Air in a pinch.

I’ve been using retractable cables, like this one from Baseus, in my car for a while now and love the idea of bringing that neat and tidy concept into the house. And while MagSafe is my preferred method for charging my iPhone, there are plenty of times when you need to use your phone while it’s charging; for that, it’s cables all the way.

Counterparts’ other selling point is that it doesn’t look like a charger. Instead of another white or black box sticking out of my kitchen wall, its soft silicon design and the option of five colors are closer to wall art than wall wart. Counterpart is the brainchild of Portland-based artist and designer Chloe Fields, and it shows.

I’ve been testing gadgets in my home for over a decade, and there are just too many black boxes and white cables out there. Most gadgets still look like they’ve been designed in a Best Buy; I want to see more that, at a minimum, look like they belong in a West Elm.

I do have some concerns about the non-removable cable here; I don’t like the idea that if the cable wears out, I’ll have to throw away the charger, too. However, Counterpart offers a two year warranty, and as a bonus, it’s constructed from recycled plastic.

It would also be nice if there were two cables — outlets are at a premium in my house, and it is hard to choose form here over the function, say, of this Anker wall charger that charges three devices at once — albeit with a lot more cable clutter.

My other concern is that the product pictures make it look like it will be hard to fit a second plug in the other outlet, but Counterpart spokesperson Leonie Duarte assures me you can still access the other outlet. I plan to test it and see how practical it is, but it certainly has more style than any other wall charger I’ve seen.

The Counterpart Charger is currently available for pre-order, with shipping scheduled for December 9th.