What are your impressions regarding heat? I haven’t jumped into this because I’ve heard this form of charging produces more heat...thus is more harmful for the battery versus wired charging. Thoughts?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Belkin vs Mophie wireless charger for iP8/8+/X ?
- Thread starter larzy
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
One thing that can be contributing to my issue is I have a thin case with a magnet on. Not an issue with my work dock as there is no play to be had and it sits in the perfect position and I am hoping the Samsung dock is good to me also.
Just woke up with this question in mind. My Apple watch was warm on my wrist after taking it off the charger. I picked the 8+ off of the Mophie and it had no warmth at all.
Chiba
I have the Mophie charger and an 8 Plus in a Speck Presidio Grip case. Works fine, and charging seems acceptably fast enough. The phone starts charging consistently so long as it is relatively centered on the puck - if it's too far towards the top or bottom of the phone, it doesn't work. The light is discrete and useful. As for heat, I had it charging for about an hours, and both the phone and puck were warm (but not hot), when I took the phone off. But once fully charged, neither the phone nor the puck warm up. Charging wirelessly or with a case may not be the best thing for the battery because of the heat, but the convenience is awesome. Much more so than I was expecting, so I may get another one for home!
I went with the Mophie after looking at it and the Belkin on video and in the Apple store. It's true the Belkin is "Apple Styled", but unfortunately it's the 2008 white plastic style. Smaller pad on the Mophie and more subdued lighting is a plus. Seems to charge ever so slightly faster than the included brick, as this guy says in the video:
I think there's no way around that. When the charging current is induced in the phone's coil via magnetic induction from the pad, that coil is going to heat up, like any thin wire carrying a fair amount of current. The higher the current (think "fast charging"), the warmer it gets.
The hope is that the iPhones have some kind of thermal/magnetic insulation between the coil and the logic board and battery.
It's a trade-off. Wireless charging will heat up your phone, and there is wasted power in the energy transfer, but the convenience is nice.
I was going to keep the Mophie but this morning at 3:30 AM the charging pad made the sound it makes when you put the phone on the base. It repeatedly did it, about once every couple of minutes, until I took the phone off the base.
This is the same problem I had with the Mophie Charge Force case/base combo last year and it was the reason why I returned it.
I think this is happening when the iPhone hits 100% charge. I'm guessing the base stops charging, but then when the phone then dips (slightly) below 100%, it acts as though the phone was re-placed on the base, which causes the phone to make the charging sound. Rinse and repeat...
I'll be returning the Mophie base, as I don't want to be awakened by the charger base every minute in the middle of the night like I was this morning. I am going to continue experimenting with the Belkin and as long as it doesn't behave like the Mophie, I'll probably keep it.
As an aside, I continue to be unimpressed with Mophie products. This is the third or fourth time I've tried their batteries and chargers, and each time I've felt they have behaved in ways that were contrary to "normal" (for me and the iPhone). I think I've learned my lesson and will be avoiding their products, from now on.
This is the same problem I had with the Mophie Charge Force case/base combo last year and it was the reason why I returned it.
I think this is happening when the iPhone hits 100% charge. I'm guessing the base stops charging, but then when the phone then dips (slightly) below 100%, it acts as though the phone was re-placed on the base, which causes the phone to make the charging sound. Rinse and repeat...
I'll be returning the Mophie base, as I don't want to be awakened by the charger base every minute in the middle of the night like I was this morning. I am going to continue experimenting with the Belkin and as long as it doesn't behave like the Mophie, I'll probably keep it.
As an aside, I continue to be unimpressed with Mophie products. This is the third or fourth time I've tried their batteries and chargers, and each time I've felt they have behaved in ways that were contrary to "normal" (for me and the iPhone). I think I've learned my lesson and will be avoiding their products, from now on.
Last edited:
I'm pretty sure that the Mophie base (which I have) makes no noise at all; it's the phone that makes the little "beep" (or whatever you've set) sound when charging starts. I normally have my phone on mute, and it sat on the Mophie charger all afternoon yesterday at 100%, and I didn't hear a thing (including when I put it on the base). I'll leave it on without the mute this afternoon, to see if that changes. It would be good to know if the Belkin one is silent for you.
As for speed, my 8 Plus is in a Speck Presidio Grip case, and it went from 47% to 78% in an hour, and the phone/case was warm (not hot) when I checked it at that point. After that, charging speed slowed down, and the phone/case stayed cool during that time.
I didn't think wireless charging would be that nice/useful, but I really like it after a couple of days. I'm going to return the 29 watt Apple USB-C charger and USB-C to Lightening cable I've purchased (but haven't opened), as the convenience of wireless really outweighs the benefit of additional speed you get from that combo. Especially once they increase the Qi power from 5 to 7.5 watts.
I've had several Mophie battery cases. I thought that they were fine, but the sled design never stayed "tight" over time, which made pressing the power button (when they were on the top) difficult eventually. The Apple Battery Cases for the 6 and 7 were much better, even if the finish wore off quite quickly.
Yes, you are correct and I apologize for misspeaking. It's not the Mophie base that makes the noise. What I was trying to say is that the iPhone keeps "dinging" as a result of some type of apparent connection/disconnection rhythm with the Mophie, which I find to be a design glitch. I'm sure the iPhone's silencer button will eliminate the sound, but it's the fact that this behavior is happening at all that concerns me. It doesn't seem right.
I've had several Mophie battery cases. I thought that they were fine, but the sled design never stayed "tight" over time, which made pressing the power button (when they were on the top) difficult eventually. The Apple Battery Cases for the 6 and 7 were much better, even if the finish wore off quite quickly.[/QUOTE]
I might just have bad luck, but I had one of their external batteries that made my iPhone 5 do very strange things every time it was connected; I had an external battery for the 6+ that ran out of juice when it should have had 2/3 of its power left; I tried the Charge Force case/base combo with the 6+ (problem mentioned earlier); and now, the wireless base's weird interaction with my 8 Plus. Either bad luck, or maybe I was not meant to have Mophie products!
I'd be really interested in knowing if the Belkin charging pad causes the phone to act differently. I had always understood that the iPhone (or at least recent ones) when plugged in and fully charged will allow a slight bit of discharge (e.g, to 99 or 98%) before starting to recharge again, to avoid unnecessary wear/stress on something (battery, circuits, who knows-I was a history major). If that were true, then it wouldn't really matter what charging pad was being used if the charge/discharge (and therefore the beeps) was being controlled by the phone.
Economics major here, so I'm no more in the know about this than you are.
However, I'm going to pick up the Belkin tomorrow and if no one else on here chimes in, I'll post my thoughts once I've used it.
I have the iPhone 8+ with the Mophie charger and I do not hear the charged sound at all except the first time when placing the phone on the charger. I’m sitting right next to it and for the last hour after hitting 100% no sounds at all.
I also have the Mophie charger and used it all night on my night stand. It only dings once I place my phone on it. It never made another noise all night. I picked it up this morning and it was 100%. The light stays on all the time to indicate it’s in the correct location. It’s very, very dim and does not effect me at all.
Turned my Morphie around where the light is not showing, which is not bad anyway to me. I haven’t the opportunity to test out the charge time on mine because I charge mine at night when I’m sleeping and I still have battery left.
The light is very subtle and is on the bottom of the front side of the base. I haven't noticed it at all because is ends up being under the iPhone when placed on the base.
As far as the Mophie base and iPhone combo causing the iPhone to make multiple charging sounds, I do believe it's possible it's not going to happen to everyone. All I will say is that it happened to me on two instances over the first 3 days I used the base, which is enough for me not to trust it any more. Whatever is causing it is definitely not normal, and it's annoying to be awakened by it in the middle of the night. The same thing happened with the Charge Force case/base combo I tried last year.
As far as the Mophie base and iPhone combo causing the iPhone to make multiple charging sounds, I do believe it's possible it's not going to happen to everyone. All I will say is that it happened to me on two instances over the first 3 days I used the base, which is enough for me not to trust it any more. Whatever is causing it is definitely not normal, and it's annoying to be awakened by it in the middle of the night. The same thing happened with the Charge Force case/base combo I tried last year.
Now that I think about it, I just may have slept through any sounds of it re-charging. I did research this and found it’s common throughout the Samsung community for a phone to start charging after a certain percentage loss. Nature of the beast in wireless charging.
Regarding recharging sounds, I noticed this on the Belkin so much so that I returned it for the Mophie.
The Mophie did it once but three days later it’s not done it again.
I think it’s an iPhone software issue personally. I mean, Qi support seems to have been rushed from a software standpoint since 7.5W isn’t available yet!
The Mophie did it once but three days later it’s not done it again.
I think it’s an iPhone software issue personally. I mean, Qi support seems to have been rushed from a software standpoint since 7.5W isn’t available yet!
How is this any different than what happens with an older iPhone (or the 8/8+) that is plugged into the charger block via the lightning cable? The chime is the same, the process is the same, all that is different is the way the phone connects to the power source... why have we never read about issues with those phones chiming in the middle of the night when they are doing their charge/stop/charge cycle?
Mine was doing this last night too..
Its almost like it decharges a small amount and then reconnects as if it needs to charge again and then the connection sound chines in when it does.
Using the Samsung Wireless Charger Convertible stand..
Its almost like it decharges a small amount and then reconnects as if it needs to charge again and then the connection sound chines in when it does.
Using the Samsung Wireless Charger Convertible stand..
Good question I can’t answer. I did move my iP8 with the Mophie wireless charger closer to my head on my night stand last night to see if I could hear it re-charging. I never heard a sound.
Just my .02 ....
I’ve had an iPhone since the 5 was released.
The only time it’s ever happened to me was with one of mophie’s battery cases - got rid of it. Didn’t like that the phone was either chiming/buzzing all of the time.
I use 95% Apple branded charging stuff - and the remainder is all Anker. Whether on a dock, plugged in to a cable from the wall or car charger, even on the wireless pad so far, etc - the device charged to 100% and stays at 100% until I take it off. I have never experienced a “drop and recharge to 100”.
I wonder if some of you have electrical issues in your homes keeping steady current coming out of whatever circuit you’re on or something like that.
I have had the same problem of the iPhone 8 making the tone sound on the charging road (Mophie). Every now and then, it will sound the iPhone tone that you hear when you plug it in - like it has temporarily lost power. I have had this happen in two different locations, and I have no reason to believe there is a power issue. It is VERY intermittent, for example last night and all day today there was no tone, and just now twice when I sat a 100% charged phone on it, it sounded about a minute later. Maybe it's not quite seated properly on the pad?