MagSafe Charger Only Charges at Full 15W Speeds With Apple's 20W Power Adapter [Updated]

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No test with Ankers new 20watt charger??

I’d be interested to see this. I’d buy Anker over Apple any day.

 

[I7guy]

* With carrier discount. Apple is charging $30 more.

 

[MacManTexas56]

This is getting... a bit ridiculous. Hopefully, this is just an oversight and will be remedied shortly, but still, get it together Apple! All that said, if you buy a phone or charging pad, they should give a charger for free if you request it. Otherwise the whole, "We're doing this for the environment!" rings hollow when you have to pay more for a charger that will charge your device at the speed it's capable of instead of being able to use what you already have.

not an oversight. look at how many fan boys are defending apple. I think it's a ridiculous thing and will not buy a new phone until I actually do really need one. not the every other update i was doing before. my macbook air, ipad pro both use usb c. then apple keeps lightning port on the iphone and gives you a lightning to usb c cable? what a joke.

 

[MacManTexas56]

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[I7guy]

Right, so it's not incorrect to say the 2019/2020 line-ups start at the same price. It's in the middle where things vary.

 

[AirunJae]

not an oversight. look at how many fan boys are defending apple. I think it's a ridiculous thing and will not buy a new phone until I actually do really need one. not the every other update i was doing before. my macbook air, ipad pro both use usb c. then apple keeps lightning port on the iphone and gives you a lightning to usb c cable? what a joke.

I agree that Apple should have already changed over to USB-C on the iPhone. I know Apple would probably take a lot of flack from the average consumer at first, just like they did with Lightning, but it's long overdue considering it's on the Macbooks, iPad Pro, and iPad Air.

 

[MacManTexas56]

Right, so it's not incorrect to say the 2019/2020 line-ups start at the same price. It's in the middle where things vary.

sure, but that's used car bs sales tactics. then don't include a charger on top of it. they want to advertise the 12 and 12 mini as cheaper devices, but they sneak in a hidden price increase. it's ridiculous.

 

[MacManTexas56]

I agree that Apple should have already changed over to USB-C on the iPhone. I know Apple would probably take a lot of flack from the average consumer at first, just like they did with Lightning, but it's long overdue considering it's on the Macbooks, iPad Pro, and iPad Air.

exactly. so now if i bought a new phone i keep my old stuff or sell it with my current phone or i have to buy another usb c adapter, bc my other ones are behind the nightstand. i'm sure i'm "charging" it wrong if i don't use what i already have

 

[terraphantm]

I read it. I understand it, kind of. And then I ask myself: Why? What crazy mind created a design like this? The sensible way would be that the charger declares which of the three voltages it can supply, at what maximum current. And then the device declares which voltage it wants, an how much current. And then the charger supplies what the device asks for, with current limited to what the charger can supply, and what the device allows.

That is how it's supposed to work. USB-PD compliant devices do work that way.

 

[Digital Dude]

Not really. The first GEN iPod touch came out in September 2007 for $299. In January 2008, they released a software update that cost $19.99. In July 2008, they released another software update that cost $9.95. In June 2009, they released another $9.95 update. So even though the iPod was initially only $299, it costed an extra $39 to keep the thing up-to-date.

Okay, dock me a days pay for napping on the job. I broke my own rule today, as I try to never counter-response to my initial postings'. By this point, the rest of the forum members have no idea what the hell we're talking about and probably don't give a rats-ass.

 

[PC_tech]

Steve Jobs never cared about the shareholders. He was passionate about getting people the best possible product at any given time no matter what. Tim Cook’s Apple uses every tactic possible to milk money from customers. Getting rid of the power adapter the same year they come out with a new charging system. Read between the lines ladies and gentlemen. They succeeded in tricking you into buying two extra items this year with your iPhone purchase.

Really wish people would stop saying he didn't care about marketshare, shareholders, he did and to think differently is asinine...

 

[I7guy]

sure, but that's used car bs sales tactics. then don't include a charger on top of it. they want to advertise the 12 and 12 mini as cheaper devices, but they sneak in a hidden price increase. it's ridiculous.

No, the mini has technology that the iphone 11 doesn't, so it's not like one is getting something for nothing. As for "a hidden price increase" that's ridiculous. If anything eliminating the charger helped keep the prices consistent with the prior year.

 

[DotCom2]

No test with Ankers new 20watt charger??

I ordered that charger from amazon along with the Anker USB-C cable and boy, did that thing get hotter than molten lava! And so did my phone! Scared the pants off me! ( Good thing I was home alone <s>). I really had to check the wall outlet for possible damage. I returned it and ordered the new Apple 20 watt charger and plugged it into the same wall outlet and used the same Anker cable, same iPhone XS Max and it was only slightly warm. They both charged my iPhone super fast though. Maybe I got a bad one but not willing to take a chance. The Anker charger was only a few bucks less.

 

[BigMcGuire]

I ordered that charger from amazon along with the Anker USB-C cable and boy, did that thing get hotter than molten lava! And so did my phone! Scared the pants off me! ( Good thing I was home alone <s>). I really had to check the wall outlet for possible damage. I returned it and ordered the new Apple 20 watt charger and plugged it into the same wall outlet and used the same Anker cable, same iPhone XS Max and it was only slightly warm. They both charged my iPhone super fast though. Maybe I got a bad one but not willing to take a chance. The Anker charger was only a few bucks less.

See I've experienced stuff like this before as well. I've seen articles on Apple's charger circuitry - I've also seen the heat difference between the two.

I also have the super tiny PD Anker USB-C brick and that thing can get REALLY hot. But it dissipates heat pretty well but ... it gets hot.

My Apple 18w bricks are amazingly cool even when used with devices that want more.

I'm very interested in how much heat the Apple 20w and MagSafe will output.

 

[vintimus]

Apple's messaging with the charger has been a mess this generation.

 

[MacManTexas56]

No, the mini has technology that the iphone 11 doesn't, so it's not like one is getting something for nothing. As for "a hidden price increase" that's ridiculous. If anything eliminating the charger helped keep the prices consistent with the prior year.

yeah hidden $30 increase is no biggie!

 

[jz0309]

That is pure speculation and totally not an apples-to-apples (pun intended) comparison. However you bring up a good point, in that maybe wireless charging should be outlawed by law since it is inefficient. And while we're on this type of conversation, bring back the gas guzzler tax, 5 cent bottle rebate since there is this great concern about how inefficient magsafe is and how that reflects on the environment. /s

fact is that wireless chargers have ~ 75-80% efficiency, Magsafe might be a couple % better due to design ...
outlawing, didn't know but it took 100+ years to ban traditional lightbulbs where a traditional 100W is replaced with a 13W (?) LED one ... clearly that did not happen without government involvement ...

 

[I7guy]

yeah hidden $30 increase is no biggie!

Why, because there are those who feel entitled to get a charger and earpods (and headphone jack)? It was balanced out by a phone with more tech at the same price as the lowest rung from last year. And next year will be other manufacturers following Apples' lead.

fact is that wireless chargers have ~ 75-80% efficiency, Magsafe might be a couple % better due to design ...
outlawing, didn't know but it took 100+ years to ban traditional lightbulbs where a traditional 100W is replaced with a 13W (?) LED one ... clearly that did not happen without government involvement ...

Well true. I honestly won't care if wireless charging is banned. Maybe a huge uproar though. (However leds are very harsh even though more energy efficient, to my eyes)

 

[canyonblue737]

Alongside the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro models, Apple introduced a new MagSafe charger that attaches to the magnetic ring in the back of the devices, providing up to 15W of charging power, which is double the speed of the 7.5W Qi-based wireless charging maximum.

Apple does not provide a power adapter with the $39 MagSafe charger, requiring users to supply their own USB-C compatible option. Apple does sell a new 20W power adapter alongside the MagSafe Charger, and as it turns out, that seems to be one of the the only charging options able to provide a full 15W of power to the new MagSafe charger at this time.

YouTuber Aaron Zollo of Zollotech tested several first and third-party power adapter options with the iPhone 12 Pro and a MagSafe charger using a meter to measure actual power output. Paired with the 20W power adapter that Apple offers, the MagSafe Charger successfully hit 15W, but no other chargers that he tested provided the same speeds.

The older 18W power adapter from Apple that was replaced by the 20W version was able to charge the iPhone 12 Pro using the MagSafe Charger at up to 13W, but the 96W Power Adapter and third-party power adapters that provide more than 20W were not able to exceed 10W when used with the MagSafe Charger. Below are the results from Zollo's tests:

• Apple's 20W Power Adapter - 15W
  
• Apple's 18W Power Adapter - 13W
  
• Apple's 96W MacBook Pro Power Adapter - 10W
  
• Anker 30W PowerPort Atom PD 1 = 7.5W to 10W
  
• Aukey 65W Power Adapter - 8W to 9W
  
• Pixel 4/5 Charger - 7.5W to 9W
  
• Note 20 Ultra Charger - 6W to 7W

For maximum charging speeds with the MagSafe Charger and an iPhone 12 or 12 Pro, Apple's 20W power adapter is required, and older power adapter options won't work as well. Third-party companies will need to come out with new chargers that use the particular power profile that Apple is using to provide the optimum amount of power before a third-party charger will be able to provide the full 15W with the MagSafe Charger.

Zollo's testing also revealed that Apple is using aggressive temperature control, so when the iPhone gets warm, the charging power tends to stay below 10W. The best speeds come from charging using the 20W power adapter without a case on the iPhone to better let heat dissipate.

Older iPhones, such as the 11 Pro Max and 8 Plus, charged at around 5W with the MagSafe Charger and Apple's 20W power adapter, which is in line with the testing results we saw last week. It's not worth buying a MagSafe Charger to use with a non iPhone 12.

The same goes for Android phones. The MagSafe Charger technically supports Qi-based charging and can work with Android devices, but when paired with an Android smartphone, the MagSafe charger was outputting at 1.5W, which is slow enough that it's nearly useless.

Article Link: MagSafe Charger Only Charges at Full 15W Speeds With Apple's 20W Power Adapter

I’ve been defending MagSafe and it’s issues under a banner of “it’s version 1.0” but I have no defense for this. Apple promises 15W charging for MagSafe, doesn’t include a charger in the box, and then it’s discovered ONLY the 20W charger from Apple (which mind you was only recently released, last year it was 18W) makes MagSafe work properly? Criminal. So much for the environment... I have many USB-C chargers that supply well over 20W but now in theory I have to buy Apple’s anyway? Jeez.

 

[Braderunner]

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You are ignoring the fine print. Intentionally? Probably. The price for the Mini is $729 (available for $699 with carrier discount). Same applies to the 12.
Apple is advertising the "after carrier discount" price. You pay the full price, then receive a credit from the carrier after a certain period of time. Also, the carrier most likely charges an activation fee. Sooooo....

 

[DeepIn2U]

Edit: I realize that France forces hands free for a specific reason but the idea is pretty much the same.

No it's not the same hence forth/why France states headset vs charger being required by law for handset manufacturers must include for sale in France.

Your pillow case and your bed sheet are made of the same materials and may have the same thread count - but you cannot use your pillow case to cover your body while you sleep (unless your a 3FT little-person). You're trying to say a head phone and a charger are the same thing used for the same purpose and a Law that dictates 1 for a specific reason to be included is the same as another. It's not the same.

 

[Richie2000]

No test with Ankers new 20watt charger??

So I did a test today with the new Anker 20w charger using MagSafe on my iPhone 12 Pro. 5 hours to go from 0 (shutdown) to 100%!

 

[canyonblue737]

I won’t be using MagSafe to charge my iPhone 12 Pro Max when I get it anyway.I rarely need fast charging as I always charge overnight whilst I sleep.So I shall carry on charging my normal way with a standard Qi wireless charger at 7.5w.

me too but the concern is there because all the rumors point to Apple designing MagSafe to be a replacement for the lightning port in the next few years, perhaps as soon as next year. soon MagSafe will be our ONLY option...

 

[Ingster]

A faster charger IMO isn't going to rock the world, i've an anker 10 port USB charger on my nightstand, i've got my watch puck in a spigen dock connected to it an anker Qi desktop charger stand and USB a to USB c cable for my ipad, i've several other devices still use USB A to micro USB cables so i'm in no rush to get a USB-C charging block. All i need to know is that overnight all my devices charge which this 10 port does magnificently. I won't think about getting a magsafe puck until all my devices are USB C and then i'll need a multiport USB C dock (4 or more USB-C) to charge everything.

 

[Deinocheirus]

Off-topic posts like this are what gives MacRumors a bad name. Maybe post something relevant to the topic. (and you know what "they" say about opinions...) But I do thank you, as I forgot the "/s".

Pretty sure that Macrumors biggest problem is the volume of people posting things here who have no idea what they're talking about. Someone babbling about banning wireless charging and the environment certainly qualifies.