Ember came with a proprietary charging base that only worked with her mug, while Ohm has a wireless charging pad. The Ui3 mug has a metal base that is heated by Ohm's dual wireless charger. it works like a induction hob To heat mugs at 22 watts, but it can also charge phones, AirPods, and other small gadgets that support Qi wireless charging at up to 15 watts. This dual use helps reduce clutter on my desk, and I often use the pad to charge something else after I've finished my drink.
As the temperatures outside begin to drop, it feels great to constantly have a mug of hot coffee on hand. Crucially, unlike Ember, the Ohm UI3 is virtually indistinguishable from a normal mug. This is the kind of Goldilocks mug I'd pull out of the cupboard because it looks nice and sturdy, holds the right amount, and is pleasant to drink from.
Ohm Ui3 comes with a usb-c cable It's just 5 feet long and a power adapter. The front LED turns purple while heating your drink and blue while charging the gadget. Although the charging base can function as a regular Qi wireless charging pad, you can't use other Qi pads with the mug. The pad gets a little warm to the touch during use but not dangerously so, and it cools down quickly.
off the boil
As much as I like Ohm UI3, there is room for improvement. The charging pad is ugly, has a safety warning on the top telling you not to place any other metal objects on it and, strangely enough, not to attempt to charge your phone wirelessly. While the first is an understandable security concern, I can't help but wonder who needs the second warning. It's a shame, with such cute and unobtrusive mugs, the pad couldn't emulate a regular coaster (many) wireless charging pad to do).
Photograph: Simon Hill