The simplest products can be the most effective. The Apple MagSafe Battery Pack is just that: a simple and effective way to recharge your iPhone 12 hands-free and with no wires necessary. For $99, the battery pack sticks on to the back of all iPhone models, thanks to the help of magnets, and will power up your phone at 5 watts. At home, if the battery pack is plugged into a 20-watt wall outlet, it can act as a 15-watt MagSafe charger.
While this gadget may be a perfect travel companion, there are still some considerations to keep in mind. I’ll try to answer all those questions you may have about this new, first-party MagSafe accessory from Apple.
What colors does it come in?
The MagSafe Battery Pack comes in white—and only white at launch.
If you really want a different look, Nomad has announced black and brown leather covers.
How much battery life does the battery pack have?
The Apple MagSafe Battery pack itself has a battery capacity of 1,460 mAh. The smallest iPhone 12 mini has a battery size of 2,227 mAh, so it won’t completely recharge any of the iPhone 12 models.
To compare, the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro both have a capacity of 2,815 mAh. The biggest iPhone 12 Pro Max has a huge battery capacity of 3,687 mAh, so popping this battery pack on the back will likely provide less than 50 percent.
How fast does it charge iPhones? (And how do you charge it?)
The MagSafe Battery Pack charges at 5 watts while on the go. This is the slowest speed for wired or wireless charging. When the MagSafe Battery Pack is connected (with a lightning cable) to a 20-watt wall charger it can charge an iPhone 12 at 15 watts—the fastest wireless speed for Apple devices.
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There are two ways to recharge the battery pack. You can either plug it into a lightning charging cable or attach it to the back of an iPhone 12 and plug the phone into a lighting charging cable. The phone will reverse-charge the battery pack.
Does the battery pack stay secure?
In my hands-on time with the battery pack, it was extremely secure and didn’t come loose. It features the same two magnets as other MagSafe accessories—a circle and line. The circle magnet does the heavy lifting of keeping it in place, while the line is supposed to keep it from shifting left or right.
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In practice, once the pack is secure and aligned, it doesn’t move. Even while handling the phone.
Does it come off while putting it in a pocket? It didn’t for me. Both with jeans and shorts, it stayed on well. It has a more secure hold than the MagSafe Wallet that Apple sells.
How does it feel? The exterior is smooth, hard plastic. It looks like a rubbery silicone-type material in pictures, but it isn’t. It feels really nice to hold. It’s hard to tell how the material will hold up and look over time, but after a few days, it still looks nice.
How does the Apple MagSafe Battery Pack compare to Anker’s, Mophie’s and others’?
I’ve tested the HyperJuice magnetic battery pack from Hyper, and it’s similar in a lot of ways, including its speed and size. It also charges at 5 watts when on the go. It’s about the same length and width as Apple’s.
TYLER HAYES
TYLER HAYES
In terms of advantages, the HyperJuice has four lights to indicate its remaining battery charge. It uses USB-C to recharge and can do pass-through charging, enabling a USB-C cable to recharge your iPhone. It also has more listed battery capacity to charge an iPhone 12 nearly one full time.
The Anker PowerCore Magnetic 5K and Mophie Snap Plus Juice Pack Mini are also very similar and offer the speed, capacity and relative size to Hyper’s and third-party packs.
The biggest difference may be the price. Each of the third-party options mentioned retail at less than half of Apple’s $99 price.
Should you buy the Apple MagSafe Battery Pack?
There are two main reasons to buy the Apple MagSafe Battery Pack: its smaller physical size and its doubling as a MagSafe charger. It’s easier to justify the price if you’re going to use this as a MagSafe charger on your desk at home and a battery pack while you’re out. Plus, it’s the thinnest one available, if that’s a concern.
There are plenty of reasons not to get it, too. The biggest consideration (aside from price) is its capacity. If having your phone be able to last just a little bit longer will keep you from needing to bring along a charger and cord and to look for outlets throughout your day, then the Apple MagSafe Battery Pack could be great. If anything less than at least one full recharge added to your phone won’t solve your power problems, this Apple battery pack probably isn’t a solution for you.
Buy at Amazon.
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