Review: SchuttenWorks’ Wave uses magnets and wood in a beautiful Apple Watch charging stand

Wood has historically been a tricky material for Apple accessories: it can be challenging to precision-fit to Apple devices, and isn’t always a good visual match for metal and glass. But wood accessories are beginning to enjoy a renaissance thanks to the Apple Watch. Since nightstands are almost invariably made from wood, and Apple Watches need to be left on nightstands for overnight charging, matching wooden Apple Watch stands can blend in to an extent that plastic or metal stands cannot.

Oregon-based SchuttenWorks’ new Wave Apple Watch Charging Stand ($75) arrives on the heels of well-regarded wood stands from Pad & Quill and DodoCase, and is actually a little less expensive — there are cheaper wood options, but they don’t look great and are getting bad reviews. Thankfully, SchuttenWorks hasn’t skimped on Wave’s design. Available in your choice of seven different woods, the C-shaped holder can hold open- or closed-band Apple Watches, and uses internally hidden magnets to make assembly a snap. Is there one that’s right for your nightstand?…

Wave arrives in a small, nicely padded cardboard box with a one-page instruction sheet. Thanks to embedded magnets that hold the two halves together, there are only four official steps in assembly: pull the halves apart, place an Apple Watch Magnetic Charging Cable into the obvious grooves, realign the halves, and make sure there are no gaps between them. It took me less than two minutes to go from disassembled to properly routed cabling and reassembly, with elegant cable management for the finished product. Apple’s all-plastic and metal/plastic cables both work properly with the design.

Since Apple Watch bands vary between opened and closed loops — a difference that has created compatibility issues with some stand designs — it’s a good thing that Wave has no problem supporting both types of bands; you can turn an open-banded watch in multiple orientations. Additionally, though Wave is light in weight, two microsuction pads on its bottom do a surprisingly nice job of gripping whatever surface you put it on. Wave’s only arguable functional issue is the straight-up angle of the Apple Watch’s screen, which currently prevents watchOS 2’s upcoming Nightstand Mode feature from activating. If support for that feature is important to you, you may want to look at the Pad & Quill or DodoCase options, instead.

Overall, Wave is a really nice Apple Watch stand, and the wide array of wood options — mahogany, curly maple, monkey wood, cherry, pitch black-stained maple, walnut, and Oregon walnut — means that you have an atypically good chance of finding something that matches your nightstand. Though there are certainly less expensive options in our guide to the best Apple Watch stands and docks if you consider plastic or metal acceptable alternatives, ShuttenWorks’ price is reasonable by the standards of quality wood stands. If the look and materials appeal to you, you’ll be more than satisfied with your purchase.