Where Is the Best Place to Mount Your Phone in a Car?
In an increasing number of U.S. states and cities, it’s illegal to use a handheld mobile device while you’re driving. However, lots of drivers still need to use their devices on the road, whether that’s for communication, GPS, rideshare apps or playing music to keep you alert on a long drive. For drivers who want to be safe and stay on the right side of the law, that makes safely and securely mounting your phone in your car extremely important.
What’s the best place to mount your phone in your car? There’s no one best location for everyone — instead, there’s a lot of different options that all have pros and cons depending on your vehicle, your preference and even on the laws in your state. Below, we’ll look at several popular places to mount your phone in your car, plus a wide selection of universal phone holders and mounts to get the job done.
1. Vent
A vent phone mount attaches, via a clip, to the HVAC vents in your vehicle. It’s a cost-effective, fast and convenient way to mount your phone in your vehicle.They are also extremely easy to move from car to car and perfect if you use rental cars. Some, like the MagicMount Fresche®, even include a built-in air freshener!
If you decide a vent mount is right for you, make sure to choose a model that’s compatible with your vehicle’s style of air vents. Scosche offers great vent mounts specifically designed for popular vehicles. But we also offer other models, like the MagicMount™ Charge3 Vent, with adjustable clips for almost any vent configuration.
2. Cup-Holder
Did you know that Toyota’s Sienna minivans have 18 cup-holders? Obviously not every cup-holder is destined to be just a place for your drink. Depending on how your vehicle’s interior is set up, a cup-holder could be an easy and convenient place to mount your phone. Cup-holder mounts, like the Scosche MagicMount™ Magnetic Cup Holder Mount, pop easily into an empty cup-holder to give you easy access to your phone when you need it. Scosche has telescoping and adjustable cup-holder phone mounts that allow you to move your phone to your best viewing position. There is no installation required with a cup-holder mount and they can be easily moved to another part of the vehicle when needed - say for back seat passengers.
3. Dashboard
Your dashboard offers plenty of space that can be perfect for mounting your phone. Scosche’s dashboard mounts are easy to position wherever you want, although the most popular location is usually in the center of the dashboard, directly over the console. Dash mounts are typically available in either adhesive or suction-cup mounting options. With automotive grade adhesive mounts, you simply peel off the strip covering the adhesive and attach the mount to a (clean) flat surface. With a suction-cup mount you attach the mount either directly to the dash surface or via a sticky pad.
The biggest caution about a dashboard mount is that it exposes your phone to the most direct sunlight. That can be a problem if your phone is prone to overheating or you live in a very hot climate. Monitor your phone’s heat when it’s in direct sunlight. Most phones will give you a warning notification if they’re starting to get too hot.
4. Window
Windshields are an extremely popular place to mount your phone, and with good reason. Your windshield is big and offers lots of different places to mount your phone and you can mount your phone close to your line of sight. Some people prefer the center, while others like the driver’s side more. Scosche’s windshield mounts, like the MagicMount™ Window, are some of our most popular phone mounts.
Window mounts come with one big caveat: It’s not legal everywhere. Some states consider anything mounted on the windshield to be a visual obstruction for drivers, and consequently you can be pulled over and ticketed for a windshield mount (or a dash cam) in these states. Other states allow mounts only in certain parts of the windshield, so make sure to read your state laws thoroughly first. And if you’re planning to take a road trip across state lines, be prepared by checking laws in the states that you’ll be driving through.
5. CD Player Mount
Has that CD player in your car been looking lonely since you switched to streaming music? Time to put it to work again with a CD player phone mount. These mounts slide easily into your CD player slot and use it as an anchor point to hold your phone without blocking other areas of the console that you probably use more.
One obvious disadvantage of this is that many newer car models don’t have CD players. But if you’re one of the lucky ones who still has one, the Scosche MagicMount™ CD is for you. It’s got the ultra-strong magnetic phone mount tech that powers our whole MagicMount™ line in a convenient package that you can pop right back out if you get the craving to listen to that one mix CD you made in high school.