Apple has had some unfortunate mistakes on the iPhone over the years –3D Touch and the Disaster U2 are just a few that come to mind, but MagSafe is preparing to be one of most useful updates the smartphone saw some time ago. Apple’s new charging technology has made some great third accessories, As New portable magnetic charger from Anker, which is so simple and convenient that it really should be included on every iPhone.
MagSafe may have been launched as a way of improve wireless charging, ensuring that an iPhone and a charging cradle are always perfectly aligned for optimal energy transfer, but even Apple saw its potential as the best way to attach accessories to your smartphone, including wallets and magnetic cases.
Bloomberg further reported that anonymous sources claimed that Apple was working on a magnetic update for your smart battery case, but not yetwhere to be seen. Now Anker outperformed Apple with its new PowerCore Magnetic 5K wireless charger, and as long as you don’t mind sacrificing your pocketcapacity of your iPhone 12, is the perfect solution for battery anxiety.
G / O Media can receive a commission
Anker’s PowerCore Magnetic 5K is not the first portable wireless charger to hit the market. I reviewed several already, including a from Satechi that can wirelessly charge an iPhone and an Apple Watch at the same time. No wires are convenient, but portable wireless chargers are difficult to use in transit, given the precision with which the charging coils need to be aligned in order for charging to actually take place. They are also all kind of fleshy, wheresince Anker’s new solution is much smaller.
However, just because Anker’s PowerCore Magnetic 5K is the smallest portable wireless charger we’ve tested to date, it doesn’t mean it’s small. In fact, it adds a little rubbish to the trunk of the iPhone 12 while it’s connected, so don’t expect to effortlessly put both in your pocket while they’re magnetically hugged.
At one end of the PowerCore Magnetic 5K you’ll find an on / off button –the charger will not start transferring power automatically when connected to an iPhone. You’ll also see a flashing blue LED indicating when a device is charging and a series of white LEDs indicating the remaining battery level. There is also a USB-C port that is used to charge the PowerCore Magnetic 5K itself (cannot be charged wirelessly) and used to charge other devices over a cable connection.
You can also charge iPhones and non-MagSafe wireless devices using the PowerCore Magnetic 5K, so Anker has included an illustration at the bottom showing exactly where his induction coil is located for proper alignment.
That said, during the test, they found that officially certified MagSafe charging accessories amount to about 15Wireless power transfer W, anker’s unofficial accessory (you won’t find the term MagSafe mentioned anywhere on the Anker website) delivers only 5W of power, which means it is much slower. So, if you are not placing it on the back of an iPhone 12 model, it’s best to charge other devices with a USB-C cable.
Another thing I discovered when testing MagSafe accessories is that the magnetic connection on the back of iPhones 12 (I am using an iPhone 12 Pro) is not that strong. It is strong enough to line up with a charging cradle, but I am less confident about being strong enough to prevent heavier accessories from falling off when both are being loaded. For a stronger connection, I recommend pairing Anker’s PowerCore Magnetic 5K with a MagSafe-compatible case like Moment’s thin case for iPhone 12 or Nomad’s Rugged MagSafe Folio Case, for greater peace of mind.
If you are not an iPhone 12 user, you can probably skip the PowerCore Magnetic 5K. Anker has cheapest compact portable chargers that have much more capacity. If you’re using one of Apple’s latest and greatest iPhones, for $ 40 the PowerCore Magnetic 5K is a basic accessory. Even if Apple launches a thinner MagSafe charging solution that offers faster loading times and a slimmer design will undoubtedly be considerably more expensive than Anker already has it available.