Twelve South HiRise Deluxe elevates iPhone and iPad

December 14, 2014

If you're in the market for a great-looking dock for your iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, or iPad (or iPod touch) that elevates and provides almost infinite levels of flexibility, look no further than Twelve South's HiRise Deluxe. The HiRise Deluxe is designed to work with most iPhone cases, so you don't need to unprotect your iPhone to elevate and charge it.

The HiRise Deluxe is made of metal and comes in silver, black and gold finishes to match your device. It tilts the iOS device at an upward angle, to help project sound off the desktop, to give you a better view of the screen, and to offer up a slightly better camera angle for FaceTime and other video calls.

Twelve South redesigned the original HiRise stand and came out with the HiRise Deluxe. It incorporates a better looking, chamfered base and also adds color-coordinated Lightning and Micro USB cables (the original came with a Lightning cable only).

Twelve South's thoughtful design principles permeate the HiRise Deluxe. In the box are three cable clips, each enabling the cable to sit at different heights in the stand, as well as a moveable rear support that slides back and forth to accommodate cases of different depths. The combination of cable clips and moveable rear support makes it possible for you to recharge your phone even if you're using a third-party battery pack case like Mophie's, without having to remove the case first.

Of course, you might want to hang on to the other cable guides and put them in a safe place, since they'll come in handy if you switch cases (or remove them all together). The base is channeled with a cable guide so you can route the cable out an opening in the back neatly and cleanly.

This isn't necessarily optimal if you swap cases on a periodic basis. I fully realize that's not a big problem for most of us — once we find a case we like, we stick with it. But if you're like me and frequently swap out cases for your devices, or plan to use this stand with more than one device in a different case, you may find the cable clips and base assembly to be a bit awkward to manage. The solution, of course, is to simply buy another HiRise Deluxe, which I'm sure Twelve South wouldn't mind.

The same dock works just fine for the iPad mini and the iPad Air (all models), making the HiRise Deluxe as versatile as it is beautiful.

The good

Works with both iPhone and (newer) iPads
Lets you keep your iPhone in a case
Color coordinated for different iPhone or iPad models

The bad

Extra parts can get lost easily
Adjusting cable clip height requires a bit of messing around.

The bottom line

The HiRise Deluxe is elegant, sophisticated-looking and well-engineered: All the hallmarks I've come to expect from Twelve South. It fits beautifully even when the iPhone is in a case, which makes it versatile too. If you want a stand that will work with your gear and look great doing it, check it out.