Anker Launches MagSafe-Compatible 'MagGo' Lineup of Charging Accessories

[Scotticus]

Really liking that spherical one - if I didn't already have passthrough on my monitor, I think I'd be getting it.

 

[Reason077]

I get what you're saying, but the fact that the new Mac Magsafe 3 cable

1) connects to a standard USB-C brick, and
2) can be replaced without throwing out the whole charger like you used to...

...make it a massive massive improvement over Magsafe 1 and 2.

I agree. But it's still a £49 (!!) cable. If 3rd-parties were allowed to make compatible ones, then they would be a lot cheaper and easier to find. Something that's quite useful if you travel a lot and are prone to occasionally losing/forgetting cables!

Also, Lightning cables are licensed by Apple and manufactured by third parties, as I'm sure you know. Not sure how that's a problem. They're widely and cheaply available in tons of different configurations. Isn't that what you're asking for with Magsafe 3?

Exactly. But it's not clear that this will be the case for MagSafe. With the old MagSafe, Apple did not license 3rd party manufacturers and kept a monopoly over charging.

And lastly you don't even have to use Magsafe at all if it bothers you -- just charge via USB-C like you are right now.

True. But it's still taking up valuable port space on the side of my MacBook Pro. I'd rather have the 4th USB-C port back, with all it's versatility, than the pointless, limited, and proprietary MagSafe.

 

[Reason077]

Accessories like what?

Like MagSafe cables.

 

[Reason077]

All that is is a cable that plugs into a USB-C power block. How many third party versions do you need?

As many as possible - preferably at prices less than $49 / £49 !

 

[Saladin12]

Really good stuff, but the prices are a way too high. $80 for the 2-in-1 is crazy. The 8-in-1 charging station looks cool, but $120 is crazy for what looks like a glorified power strip. These all need to be at least half the cost.

I'm not sure of other 2-in-1 costs/in-the-box items but considering this includes the 20w charging brick, I thought it was a good deal. It's £59.99 here in the U.K. which seems reasonable as the 20w charging brick is around £19 by itself!

 

[chewbaka]

As many as possible - preferably at prices less than $49 / £49 !

I really doubt MacBook Pro charging cables would be a lucrative enough market for third-party sellers to shell them out for $20.

Individuals own many phone charging cables, stash them in various rooms around their homes, their cars, workplaces, etc. I don’t see many people buying extra magsafe cables, and the very few who do, 1 or 2 max.

Most will only replace if/when the original breaks. Doesn’t seem like a worthwhile market for third parties.

 

[Nonobiness]

What bugs me about Anker and most of these 3rd party accessory companies is that they launch a product, all the websites get their promotional materials but their own website aren't updated to show the new products. I can't find anything about these new products on Anker's website, am I just dumb?

Edit: I found them on Anker's site by going to all devices but they are not listed under wireless chargers section, weird!

 

[bodonnell202]

Hey MacRumors, please stop describing these things as MagSafe-compatible. THEY ARE NOT. You'll notice that nowhere on Anker's web site do they ever use the word MagSafe, and there's a good reason for that. This is just the same crummy Qi charging you can find anywhere, only with magnets. It charges half as fast as the real MagSafe. It is in no way equivalent to actual MagSafe.

You never mention these drawbacks to your readers. This is very misleading, even to the point of being deceptive, IMO. You are damaging the trust that your readers place in you when you do this. I can't imagine the affiliate fees you're collecting are worth this loss of trust. But I guess it's your business.

Calm down - it's mentions that every one charges at 7.5W maximum in the description. Anyone who takes the time to read is not being mislead.

 

[chucker23n1]

Hey MacRumors, please stop describing these things as MagSafe-compatible. THEY ARE NOT. You'll notice that nowhere on Anker's web site do they ever use the word MagSafe, and there's a good reason for that. This is just the same crummy Qi charging you can find anywhere, only with magnets. It charges half as fast as the real MagSafe. It is in no way equivalent to actual MagSafe.

You never mention these drawbacks to your readers. This is very misleading, even to the point of being deceptive, IMO. You are damaging the trust that your readers place in you when you do this. I can't imagine the affiliate fees you're collecting are worth this loss of trust. But I guess it's your business.

It uses Qi, and it attaches to the magnet on the iPhone 12/13. It doesn’t support the full speed, but yeah, I think it’s safe to call it “MagSafe”.

 

[haruhiko]

Something that has always bugged me.

I guess I am rare in thinking that if something is called MagSafe it is magnetic as well as at least 12w. Not this Qi charging with a magnet.

That’s why they avoided the MagSafe name.

 

[simply258]

For these prices they should be “Made for MagSafe” certified which will allow full speed charging, like Belkin Boost Charge Pro.

 

[WildCowboy]

Hey MacRumors, please stop describing these things as MagSafe-compatible. THEY ARE NOT. You'll notice that nowhere on Anker's web site do they ever use the word MagSafe, and there's a good reason for that. This is just the same crummy Qi charging you can find anywhere, only with magnets. It charges half as fast as the real MagSafe. It is in no way equivalent to actual MagSafe.

You never mention these drawbacks to your readers. This is very misleading, even to the point of being deceptive, IMO. You are damaging the trust that your readers place in you when you do this. I can't imagine the affiliate fees you're collecting are worth this loss of trust. But I guess it's your business.

That's why we (and pretty much every other publication I've noticed) use the term "MagSafe-compatible" as distinct from true MagSafe. I tried to be very clear in the article that these charge at 7.5W.

I don't know what the holdup is with getting third-party accessories with full MagSafe support, but it's par for the course for Apple. Belkin was in on the ground floor, and then crickets.

Link to 613 goes to the wrong product.

Thanks, fixed.

Any word on if the 622 battery charger itself can be charged wirelessly? (Like on a MagSafe charger) plugging in the charger via usb-c is annoying, would be nice if everything about it was cordless

Unfortunately, it can not.

 

[nutmac]

Unfortunately still 7.5W.

If you want to prolong the battery health, 7.5W can be a good thing as it generates less heat. It's ideal for overnight charging. I wish iPhone's charging algorithm takes this into account and can adjust the charging speed accordingly.

 

[steevn]

Now that a MagSafe AirPods case exists, I’m hoping there will be a MagSafe AND Apple Watch charging station.

Something like the Anker 623 they show, but with Apple Watch charging instead of AirPods.

 

[Chefclean]

Hey MacRumors, please stop describing these things as MagSafe-compatible. THEY ARE NOT. You'll notice that nowhere on Anker's web site do they ever use the word MagSafe, and there's a good reason for that. This is just the same crummy Qi charging you can find anywhere, only with magnets. It charges half as fast as the real MagSafe. It is in no way equivalent to actual MagSafe.

You never mention these drawbacks to your readers. This is very misleading, even to the point of being deceptive, IMO. You are damaging the trust that your readers place in you when you do this. I can't imagine the affiliate fees you're collecting are worth this loss of trust. But I guess it's your business.

An actual quote from the website descriptions "Made for iPhone 12: Works flawlessly with iPhone 12, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max, and MagSafe cases for iPhone 12."

 

[Chefclean]

I really like the look of these MagSafe compatible items. A bit too pricey for my wallet, though.

 

[ikjadoon]

Hey MacRumors, please stop describing these things as MagSafe-compatible. THEY ARE NOT. You'll notice that nowhere on Anker's web site do they ever use the word MagSafe, and there's a good reason for that. This is just the same crummy Qi charging you can find anywhere, only with magnets. It charges half as fast as the real MagSafe. It is in no way equivalent to actual MagSafe.

You never mention these drawbacks to your readers. This is very misleading, even to the point of being deceptive, IMO. You are damaging the trust that your readers place in you when you do this. I can't imagine the affiliate fees you're collecting are worth this loss of trust. But I guess it's your business.

Agreed. MagSafe "compatible" is already confusing, even if some manufacturers are using it (not Anker). It's either MagSafe 15W or it's a Qi+Magnetic ring that works with the iPhone 13 / 12.

The underlying problem is the silicon shortage: I think the accessory manufacturers truly want to build MagSafe 15W chargers, but only Foxconn makes the MagSafe charger ICs and nobody else has been able to get enough quantities to actually sell something.

From Moment's Alex Stankie:

 

[ignatius345]

I agree. But it's still a £49 (!!) cable. If 3rd-parties were allowed to make compatible ones, then they would be a lot cheaper and easier to find.

Fair point. That seems a bit steep.

Something that's quite useful if you travel a lot and are prone to occasionally losing/forgetting cables!

Right, but there's a way to charge it with a UCB-C cable in that case. In fact, if I was buying this machine I'd probably make USB-C my "on the go" cable and leave the Magsafe one at home.

Also this is the first MacBook I've ever seen that offers two types of charge ports, which is pretty cool.

 

[giggles]

Since it must be pricey or hard to get the (actual) MagSafe modules from Apple (only Belkin has got them so far right?), more companies should go with the bring-your-own-Magsafe-puck approach, leaving a hole/frame where to insert the original Apple Magsafe.

And I agree that news sites calling 7.5W+magnets “MagSafe compatible” are doing a DISSERVICE to consumers by making a confusing situation even more confusing. 7.5W = watch paint dry. Not sure if that makes a good first impression for “Magsafe”.

 

[Mr.sassaman]

Hey MacRumors, please stop describing these things as MagSafe-compatible. THEY ARE NOT. You'll notice that nowhere on Anker's web site do they ever use the word MagSafe, and there's a good reason for that. This is just the same crummy Qi charging you can find anywhere, only with magnets. It charges half as fast as the real MagSafe. It is in no way equivalent to actual MagSafe.

You never mention these drawbacks to your readers. This is very misleading, even to the point of being deceptive, IMO. You are damaging the trust that your readers place in you when you do this. I can't imagine the affiliate fees you're collecting are worth this loss of trust. But I guess it's your business.

So how does the MagSafe wallet charge your iPhone? MagSafe doesn’t mean charging, you can complain to apple about that. MagSafe for iPhone just means anything that magnetically attaches to the back of your iPhone; just like the Belkin Magsafe car mount.

Also, who cares how slowly your iPhone charges during wireless charging if it’s still slower than usb-c to lightning?

 

[giggles]

So how does the MagSafe wallet charge your iPhone? MagSafe doesn’t mean charging, you can complain to apple about that. MagSafe for iPhone just means anything that magnetically attaches to the back of your iPhone; just like the Belkin Magsafe car mount.

Also, who cares how slowly your iPhone charges during wireless charging if it’s still slower than usb-c to lightning?

When specifically talking about chargers, MagSafe should mean an upgrade over Qi charging speeds. That’s the whole reason to align the coils magnetically.

 

[Smog]

Now that a MagSafe AirPods case exists, I’m hoping there will be a MagSafe AND Apple Watch charging station.

Something like the Anker 623 they show, but with Apple Watch charging instead of AirPods.

You do realise this already exists? https://www.apple.com/uk/shop/product/MHXF3ZM/A/magsafe-duo-charger

 

[steevn]

You do realise this already exists? https://www.apple.com/uk/shop/product/MHXF3ZM/A/magsafe-duo-charger

Yea lol, but that is hideous to me. I meant MagSafe stand and not charging station. Something that keeps my phone upright and also charges my watch.

 

[Smog]

Yea lol, but that is hideous to me. I meant MagSafe stand and not charging station. Something that keeps my phone upright and also charges my watch.

There’s a few out there like that too!

Couple here:
Belkin BOOST↑CHARGE PRO 3-in-1 Wireless Charger with MagSafe - Black

Belkin BOOST↑CHARGE PRO 3 in 1 Wireless Charger with MagSafe Black - Apple (UK)

Apple Store Search Results

store.apple.com

mophie 3-in-1 Stand for MagSafe Charger

mophie 3 in 1 Stand for MagSafe Charger - Apple (UK)

Apple Store Search Results

store.apple.com

 

[Reason077]

I really doubt MacBook Pro charging cables would be a lucrative enough market for third-party sellers to shell them out for $20.

Exactly, and there lies a big problem with Apple's proprietary connectors. Perhaps MagSafe should have been called ProfitSafe!

Most will only replace if/when the original breaks. Doesn’t seem like a worthwhile market for third parties.

We do see plenty of third-parties making high power 100W USB-C charging cables (which are not needed for phone charging, just laptops).