iPad Accessory Review: Belkin Chef Stand and Wand

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It comes as no surprise to anyone who lives on this planet that the iPad is finding its way into pretty much every aspect of our lives and certainly into pretty much every room of the house. Among the places where it can come in particularly handy is the kitchen. Thanks to the iPad, the days of needing a special under-cabinet television if you want to watch a show while cooking are gone. Similarly, the days of needing a separate music player/boombox are over. In fact, unless you are my purest, like my wife Elana, you don’t even need  paper cookbooks and longer. Yes, the iPad can fulfill all of these functions and many more. All you need is an iPad and the right accessory, and you are good to go. Belkin has a number of the “right accessories” that will make using the iPad in the kitchen not only simple but effective, safe and easy.

Over the next week we will look at a few of them. For starters let us present the Belkin Chef Stand + Stylus.

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This is what the company has to say about it:

Use Your Tablet While You Cook: Designed with Home Chefs in Mind: Made especially for use in the kitchen, the Chef Stand + Stylus gives you the freedom to interact with your tablet while you cook—without worrying about touching your device with messy hands. The case-compatible stand has a non-slip rubber base and two different angles that are ideal for countertop use.

Like Magic: The wand allows you to follow recipes and browse the Internet without ever laying a finger on your screen. It comes with its own storage stand and is easy to grab while you’re busy handling food and other kitchen equipment. The magnetic tip works with any touchscreen, and can be used to wake up an iPad 2.

Features:

All components can be washed by hand using warm, soapy water.

Kitchen-safe and made for use with messy hands

Stand has a non-slip rubber base and dual angles for easy viewing on a kitchen countertop

Stylus is easy to grip and has a magnetic tip that can wake up an iPad 2

Includes stand, stylus, stylus holder

Case-compatible

1-Year Limited Warranty

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There are three parts to this iPad accessory: The stand itself, the humongous stylus (they call it a wand for good reason), and the is the stylus wand stand. The three of them work in tandem to create a rather effective kitchen appliance.

The Stand: The iPad stand is heavily weighted which means there is no chance the iPad will tumble over once placed in it. It looks nice and has a fairly low profile. It holds the iPad in either landscape or in portrait and it worked fine with my cases. Unfortunately the stand only offers one viewing angle when the iPad is inside. On the positive side, this set viewing angle is an effective one if you are viewing an iPad that is sitting on a standard-height countertop.  Still, I would have preferred more options.

The Wand: The stylus is huge. That’s why they call it a Wand. It really looks a lot like those OXO kitchen accessories that are designed for the elderly. That’s a good thing, since it means the wand is easy to grab quickly and keep hold of even if your hands are a bit slippery. The large rubber tip means that you don’t have to be as precise when tapping the iPad and the presence of a magnet in the tip means the Wand works similarly to the Apple Smart Covers when it comes to “waking up” the iPad. With the Wand you can quickly move from one page of a cookbook to another even with dirty, greasy hands.

The Wand Stand: Like the tablet stand, the stand for the stylus is simple but effective. It too is well weighted and, while it isn’t large, it is quite stable and is not easily not over. That means the Wand sits in a vertical position waiting for you to grab it when needed.

In all, the three parts work in tandem and make it easy to protect and manipulate your iPad while using it in the kitchen while you cook. The Belkin Chef Stand and Stylus has an MSRP of $39.99 and is available directly from the Belkin website.

MSRP: $39.99

What I Like: Holds the iPad securely in landscape or portrait; Works with most cases; Wand is easy to hold and automatically wakes the iPad from sleep; Well made and effective for use in the kitchen

What Needs Improvement: Stand only offers one fixed viewing angle

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About the Author

Dan Cohen
Having a father who was heavily involved in early laser and fiber-optical research, Dan grew up surrounded by technology and gadgets. Dan’s father brought home one of the very first video games when he was young and Dan remembers seeing a “pre-release” touchtone phone. (When he asked his father what the “#” and “*” buttons were his dad said, “Some day, far in the future, we’ll have some use for them.”) Technology seemed to be in Dan’s blood but at some point he took a different path and ended up in the clergy. His passion for technology and gadgets never left him. Dan is married to Raina Goldberg who is also an avid user of Apple products. They live in New Jersey with their golden doodle Nava.