Why You Shouldn’t Buy the Apple MagSafe Battery for IPhone 12
There are times when Apple knocks it out of the park with its accessories. For example, AirPods are better than other Bluetooth headphones. But there are times when Apple’s own third-party accessories don’t match what is available from third-party manufacturers, such as Apple’s $ 99 MagSafe Battery Pack for the iPhone 12.
How the MagSafe iPhone 12 Battery Works
A MagSafe battery is a rectangular battery (or power supply) that magnetically attaches to the back of your iPhone 12, 12 mini, 12 Pro, and 12 Pro Max. Costs $ 99. It works like any other MagSafe accessory, and like a rechargeable battery from the first manufacturer, it has integrated capabilities not found in any other product. This is the only battery or accessory that supports reverse wireless charging, which means you can charge the battery while your iPhone is charging (the battery will only start charging after your iPhone is 80% charged). The battery itself is charged using a Lightning cable.
Why MagSafe Battery Is So Frustrating
If you only look at MagSafe, it sounds good, but the devil is in the details that Apple doesn’t always provide on the product page. It all starts with capacity: The MagSafe battery packs a tiny 1460mAh, 11.13Wh battery inside. For comparison, the iPhone 12 itself has a 10.78 Wh battery. Also, keep in mind that Qi wireless charging is ineffective , with quite a lot of capacity being wasted only during the charging process. Not to mention, the battery only charges the iPhone 5W, which is pretty slow.
All of this causes the MagSafe battery to struggle to fully charge your iPhone, and even when it charges up to 90% it will take a heck of a long time.
What Apple really wants is that they use an 11 Wh battery (which is double the capacity of third-party battery packs). So the actual capacity is 2,920mAh, but that’s still not enough to fully charge the iPhone 12, given the loss of power during wireless charging.
Sure, there is a way to quickly charge your iPhone using a MagSafe battery, but that is using a 20W adapter via the Lightning port (mostly using the battery pack as a wireless charger). Yes, and it does not come with an adapter or cable.
The MagSafe battery has the same usability issues as the MagSafe wallet. While the magnets are sturdy when attached (you can’t just shake them off), a simple thumb push is enough to dislodge the magnets , which is not good news for an accessory that will go in and out of your pockets. all day. Ultimately, while the marketing images for the MagSafe Battery Pack showcase a pretty sleek product, the reality is different .
Cheaper Alternatives to MagSafe Battery Pack
In fact, a MagSafe battery can only charge your iPhone up to 70-90%, depending on your model, not fast charging. If you don’t mind using third-party alternatives, you can get better performance (like a full charge) for a lower price (sometimes less than half the price).
These battery packs are only MagSafe compatible (essentially just Qi wireless chargers with magnets), so they won’t get extra features like MagSafe energy efficiency charging, but since the MagSafe battery itself is limited to 5W charging, you can’t lose much …
Here are some alternatives to consider:
- HyperJuice ($ 39.99): This is one of the most popular and reliable magnetic rechargeable batteries around. It has a 5000mAh battery and supports 7.5W wireless charging (12W wired charging using a USB-C port).
- Mophie Snap + Juice Pack mini ($ 49.99). A similar story, it is also rated at 5000mAh and can fully charge an iPhone 12. There is a USB-C port for charging the battery.
- Anker PowerCore Magnetic 5K ($ 45.99): Anker’s PowerCore Magnetic 5K is another battery from a well-known brand. It is similar to the Mophie body, but it houses a 5000mAh battery. It is rated to fully charge iPhone 12 mini and nearly fully charges iPhone 12 and 12 Pro (95% to 97%). It only charges the iPhone 12 Pro Max up to 75%.
Why You May Still Need a MagSafe Battery
With all of the above, you might still want to get it. After all, this is the only true MagSafe battery on the market. It has tight integration with iOS, has battery health management features, and is easy to use. All you have to do is click it on your iPhone and you can forget about it. If it’s worth the $ 99 asking price, the rest of the fiendish details shouldn’t stop you.