New Bosch SmartphoneGrip Vertical: Finally, You Can Use Your Phone in Portrait Mode

The Bosch SmartphoneGrip has gained quite a following among ebike riders whose bikes are powered by the Bosch Smart System. One example of this is the Elektrofahrrad24 shop, which regularly receives orders for this phone mount. The fan base would probably be even larger if this accessory allowed the smartphone to be used in portrait mode rather than exclusively in landscape mode. Bosch has obviously recognised this too. That is why the manufacturer is now launching the vertical SmartphoneGrip.

1. Previous solution not ideal for navigation
2. New Bosch SmartphoneGrip Vertical provides the answer to adapters
3. Mount supplies power to mobile phone
4. Theft protection thanks to an extra screw

1. Previous solution not ideal for navigation

Almost exactly four years ago to the day, Bosch unveiled the first SmartphoneGrip. The mobile phone mount was intended as an alternative for anyone who preferred to use their own smartphone as a display whilst riding an ebike. It’s obvious, really. Most of us carry our mobiles with us all the time anyway. The Bosch eBike Flow app allows you to connect quickly to your ebike, and the screen is much larger.

However, it is precisely this last point that has been the crux of the matter until now. The larger screen would be a huge benefit, particularly when displaying maps during navigation. That is, if the smartphone could be rotated into the more advantageous portrait orientation. Until now, this required an adapter such as the eBike24 Vertical Adapter or the rotatable 90° Adapter.

2. New Bosch SmartphoneGrip Vertical provides the answer to adapters

With the new SmartphoneGrip Vertical, such adapters are essentially redundant. You can easily insert a smartphone into it in portrait orientation. The tried-and-tested clamping mechanism, in which only one side of the clamp moves, holds it in the desired position. As long as you avoid jumps on your ebike rides, this should work reliably.

As the clamps now attach to the short sides at the top and bottom, another weakness of the horizontal SmartphoneGrip has been eliminated. With the vertical version, the control buttons on the left and right of the smartphone are now accessible, so you can reach them easily.

3. Mount supplies power to mobile phone

And Bosch has improved one more detail. Thanks to the USB-C socket positioned on the side, the smartphone can be charged at any time whilst riding via the ebike battery. Given the port’s location, we recommend using a charging cable with a 90-degree angled plug. This way, the cable runs close to the SmartphoneGrip Vertical and doesn’t stick out unnecessarily.

Alternatively, the option of inductive charging remains available. Due to the lower charging current – 1.5 amps via the USB-C port and 1 amp via inductive charging – this method is slightly slower. The same was already true for the horizontal mobile phone mount.

Even though the new Bosch SmartphoneGrip Vertical is significantly larger, the same specifications apply to the dimensions of the mobile phones that fit into the mount:

• Height: 123 mm – 175 mm
• Width: 67 mm – 88 mm
• Depth: 6.8 mm – 13 mm

4. Theft protection thanks to an extra screw

The vertical mount is attached to Bosch’s familiar display mount. So if you already have a Bosch Kiox 300, Bosch Kiox 500 or the horizontal Bosch SmartphoneGrip installed on your ebike, you can remove the relevant device and click the Bosch SmartphoneGrip Vertical into place instead. If you want to prevent it from being easily removed from the mount, use a thin, elongated locking screw. You’re probably familiar with something similar from the separate display lock on the horizontal version. Here, the screw is inserted into the right side like a long locking pin and tightened. It then blocks the release mechanism used to detach the unit consisting of the display mount and vertical SmartphoneGrip.

If you don’t yet use any of the Bosch displays mentioned or the horizontal SmartphoneGrip, you’ll find a suitable retrofit kit in the Ebike24 shop. In addition to the mount itself, this includes the single-arm handlebar mount with a rubber spacer, the display mount, a display cable for the Smart System, and the locking screw.

Important: If you ride an speed pedelec, you unfortunately won’t be able to use the SmartphoneGrip—whether in horizontal or vertical orientation. According to Bosch, the only speed display permitted in Germany is one that remains within the rider’s immediate field of vision at all times. Presumably, local regulations do not recognize a smartphone as a fully-fledged ebike display and therefore do not classify it as such. Or perhaps the issue is that the SmartphoneGrip is designed to allow the smartphone to be used flexibly from time to time, and sometimes not. We cannot clarify this exactly. In any case, however, Bosch does not approve this accessory for speed pedelecs.

Pictures: Bosch eBike Systems; Elektrofahrrad24 GmbH