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Apple MagSafe Battery Pack: Micro-review

Posted by Matt Birchler
— 2 min read
Apple MagSafe Battery Pack: Micro-review

I recently went on vacation and I bought the legendary MagSafe battery pack. I looked at other options, and while I could get more capacity with other options, I really dug the tiny size and system integration of Apple's option.

In short, I'm super happy I had it because the battery life on my iPhone 14 Pro Max is pretty rough compared to what I got used to with the 13 Pro Max. I was able to get through all my days with this additional juice, and I would not have done so without it. Apple suggests it provides an additional 40% to my overall battery life, which is hard to measure, but feels generally correct. I used my phone constantly those days, including the last day which involved some flight delays and 6 hours in the airport with only my phone to entertain me. I would not have made it without the pack.

The Unfair System Integration Rocks

Say what you will about Apple having unfair advantages here, but the system integration is really what sold me on this pack. Here's what I noticed during my trip:

  1. It only charges to 90% most of the time
  2. When out of cell phone range, it charged to 100% (smart tweak, as I may be in more danger and need as much battery in the phone itself as possible)
  3. If the phone overheats, charging will automatically pause until temps come down
  4. The battery status shows in the battery widget so I always know how it's doing
  5. I can attach it when charging the phone over a Lightning cable. The phone will fill up first, and then the pack will charge up as well

Third parties can't do any of this, which is unfair, but 'tis the advantage of owning the platform, I suppose.

General Thoughts

This may or may not be the best option for you. If you want a deep system integration and a very small form factor that makes it easy to use your phone with it on, including sticking it into a pocket, then this solid. If you are more interested in getting the most additional power possible, Amazon has some other options with bigger packs. I haven't tried any of them, so I can't speak to their quality, but I'm sure you can find something solid pretty quickly.