Best Car Mounts for Your Smartphone

When the first portable telephones came out a few decades ago, they were so large they practically took up a car seat themselves. Now portable phones are so small you can put them in your purse or pocket. But when you’re on the road, you’ll want to have a dedicated place in the car to mount it while you’re driving.

Make sure to double check that the phone car mount you choose fits your current or future cell phone. We’ve dialed in some of our favorite car mounts for phones right here.

Skip the scratches

Designed to fit all phones between four- and seven-inches wide, even with thick cases, this universal car phone mount attaches to various places in your car. Attach it to the windshield, dashboard, or to your vent, and always have your maps and apps ready. Waze, which has crowd-sourced information, GoogleMaps, MapQuest, Maps.Me, Scout GPS, and AppleMaps are the most popular map programs. The strong suction cup also has a sticky pad for secure attachment. We love how you can rotate the screen all the way around and adjust the telescoping arm to keep the screen easy to read and easy to reach.

Hot and cold

Your phone is valuable. Did you know that back in 1983, the first “portable” phone cost about $4,000? That’s why you need a high-quality mounted phone holder. This car mount has three layers of gel so the suction is extra strong. Always have a clear view of your screen while driving by pivoting the phone from the ball joint or with the fully adjustable arm. This universal smartphone mount holds most all phones from 4-7 inches. Silicon coats all phone contact surfaces to keep them smooth, and even the vent clip has silicon pads.

Vent clip design

So easy. Just clip this model to the vent, then attach a square or round metal pad to your phone to mount it to the base. There, strong magnets in the base firmly hold your phone in place while you drive. Fitting most phones and small tablets, it makes a thoughtful gift. Rather than charging your phone in the car, have you thought about other ways to power your phone? Innovative ways to charge your cell phone include using a manual crank, a small wind generator, or you could even hook up 800 apples or potatoes to make a circuit powerful enough to charge your cell phone. Do you get nervous or anxious when you think about losing your phone or running out of juice? That’s a real modern day phenomenon called nomophobia.

One-hand mounting

Just press the button, slide your phone in and clamp it in place. Mounted on the dashboard or on the windshield, the strong suction holding a long gooseneck makes setting and adjusting your phone so straightforward. Just attach the sticky suction cup, lock it into place and you’re ready to drive. It’s great how it moves simply to all directions and angles so you can drive without obstructing your view. Unless maybe you have a Vertu Signature Cobra phone, with a retail price of over $300,000. Each of these eight phones are gold plated and bejeweled with diamonds, rubies, and emeralds. Now there’s a cell phone you wouldn’t want to drop or lose.

A snap to hook up

Handy for use in the car or even at home, this mount holds any phone or device that is between 6- and 12–mm thick. The high-tech pad is reusable; just rinse and reattach. When you’re tired of your phone, consider taking it to Finland and participating in the Mobile Phone Throwing World Championships. The current record holder tossed his phone over 360 feet. In the meantime, this car mount will keep your phone in place, and even provide you with a little place to hold spare change.

Cyndi Mathews is a contributing writer to Florida Travel & Life, an online brand that inspires active, affluent travelers, providing them with insider information on discovering the best of Florida. Informative and engaging, the website showcases travel destinations, arts and cultural venues, vibrant dining scenes, recreational activities, the great outdoors and the revitalized real-estate market. Cyndi recently published her first book and enjoys traveling to Florida in her sailboat.