Bend me, shape me: Une Bobine review and giveaway

Back in May, I wrote about the remarkable story of an iPhone accessory that went from zero to 1000 percent funded on Kickstarter in just 19 days. Well, that accessory -- Une Bobine (US$30) -- is in full production now, and you have a chance to win one for either your iPhone or Android phone.

If you didn't read the original post, Une Bobine (Italian French for "a coil") is the brainchild of Jon Fawcett and the other designers at (Fuse)Chicken. After my original post was written, the Kickstarter went even crazier -- the team originally asked for $9,800 and received a total of over $212,000 in funding. So what were people excited about?

Une Bobine is a flexible stand for your iPhone, iPod touch or (with the micro-USB model) Android phone. On one end is a USB plug, while the other has a 30-pin Dock Connector or micro-USB connector. Don't worry, iPhone 5 owners -- Fawcett notes that they've created a Lightning adapter that will be available in about a month.

So how does it work? Simple. Pop the USB plug into the corresponding port on your computer or hub, plug the other end into your device, and then bend the 24-inch metal-covered connector into any shape you want. By the way, there's a shorter 12-inch version called the Petite Bobine ($28) if you don't need all that extra flexibility in your life.

What you end up with is a very sleek-looking iPhone charging/syncing stand that can be flexed into whatever shape you desire. That can be very handy if you want to hold your iPhone up for a FaceTime session or keep the device in one place while filming video. I'm also willing to bet that the metal-shielded cable and robust connectors will last a lot longer than just a stock USB to Dock Connector cable.

Any negatives? Just one -- in order to use Une Bobine to hold up my iPhone 4S, I had to remove it from the standard Apple iPhone bumper I've been using. Your mileage may vary depending on the case that you use to protect your device.

And now it's time to give away a big pile of these lovely things! (Fuse)Chicken provided three of each model -- Petite Bobine, Une Bobine, iPhone/iPod touch, and Android/micro-USB -- so that a dozen TUAW readers can enjoy this unique charging stand. Here are the rules for the giveaway:

• Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older.
• To enter, fill out the form below completely and click or tap the Submit button.
• The entry must be made before October 9, 2012 11:59PM Eastern Daylight Time.
• You may enter only once.
• Twelve winners will be selected. Three will receive a Une Bobine for iPhone/iPod touch valued at $30, three will receive a Une Bobine for Android/micro-USB valued at $30, three will receive a Petite Bobine for iPhone/iPod touch valued at $28, and three will receive a Petite Bobine for Android/micro-USB valued at $28.
• Click Here for complete Official Rules.