MagSafe Charging Port for iPhone Appears in Apple Patent

[jefhai]

USB-C people will go nuts, but I'm intrigued. If one doesn't need a direct data port and this can do comparable charging it could be really nice. I have migrated to qi charging my phone most of the time, but there are occasions where I need/want to use conductive charging.

1. no lint/easy lint removal
2. easier contact maintenence
3. no clips/springs to wear out, causing a poor/loose connection
4. easy plugging, comparable to Qi
5. breakaway safely, I imagine this would more help with preventing extreme cable strain than effective disconnecting when you accidentally trip over your phone

It could still support data... Just cause it’s easier to remove doesn’t mean it’s not a good choice for a digital data stream which already disconnects properly with physically inserting connectors... The OS will just interrupt and say storage removed.. up to good developers to handle it correctly of course..

Im digging this idea for USB-MagSafe concept... Imagine if device makers just switched to that

 

[jefhai]

It’s a damned if you do, damned if you don’t situation. When they introduce USB-C to a new device people complain about having to buy new chargers. When they keep the old one, people complain about needing to use different types of chargers and not having one unified standard. I hope that whatever future wireless standard ends this sh**show will be more universal and end this debate

it’s going to be a huge environmental issue if Apple drops the lightning connector... Apple should really announce a phase out plan for accessory manufacturers to discontinue production..

All those lightning cables for over a billion devices will be trashed over the next 5-6 years after Apple goes completely to something else...
Unless adapters become a thing..

 

[gregmancuso]

Apple’s insistence on keeping the iPhone to a proprietary port is incredibly frustrating.

Almost all my tech around the house uses USB-C, including my MBP and iPad Pro! I’m constantly using other devices’ USB-C chargers/cables to top-up other devices, e.g., my PS5 controller cable to charge my iPad. But nope, can’t do that with my iPhone.

While I agree adopting USB-C for the iPhone to be consistent with MacBook and iPad Pro would be nice, I can understand the reluctance to do so for the iPhone. Thinks back to the PR hell they went through when they switched from the 30-pin port to Lightning. There are a lot of mobile docks, clock radios, speaker in the wild. iPhones are used for all of these. Wireless charging and bluetooth may be easing the need, but a phone is more mobile and those clock radios are in EVERY hotel room in the world (OK, may not every, but damn close).

Think what you will about the decision on Lightning over USC-C when the retired the 30-pin port, but the fact is, I cannot see Apple moving to another port format for the iPhone. It will be Lightning until the eventually retire ports altogether.

 

[kaycrystal626]

If it can charge faster, I am up for it!

 

[gregmancuso]

Sounds nice, name/brand please?

What is the difference between versions using 20/24 pins?

I have these:

Magnetic USB C Adapter Type C Connector 20pins PD 100W Quick USB C Charger 10Gbp/s Data Transfer MacBook Adapter 4K 60Hz Video Output HDMI Adapter Compatible MacBook Pro/Air/More Type C Devices Grey (Amazon title)​

There are several options. Some even claim TB support, but I have not tried them. Prices have gone up a bit in the last year, but still reasonable.

The 24-pin ones are the adapter that claim to support Thunderbolt. They are a little more expensive and my monitor is USB-C not TB so I did not bother going for the "high end" to test it out.

 

[jumpcutking]

This seems like a odd step backward, but I'm still all for it. I loved MagSafe chargers for the MacBook and I may enjoy it for the iPhone... but I love the inductive charging component more.

I wonder if this patent is a way to solve some of the poor magnetic strength of the puck - also... will the charger return to the box?

 

[BuffaloTF]

So just because of rumor mongers pushing the ‘portless’ and ‘magsafe’ stories you have decided they're true?

???????

It seems a simple question on if this would include data transfer rather than just pushing electricity. It’d be a rather important thing to know, and even more important for them to be considering to include.

 

[BGPL]

Keep Macs on USB-C. Put phones on USB-C. Stop crushing your customers on the charger market. Geez... standardize with the rest of the world.

 

[Cwoods]

Does anyone else think that maybe in 2016 when everyone was complaining about USB-C on the MacBook Apple listened?

 

[Falhófnir]

Feels like Apple is back on track lately, this looks like a nice next step for iPhone connectivity.

 

[mkldev]

Would've been useful like 5 years ago, at this point it's just not needed when the move should be to USB-C.

Wouldn't even have been useful five years ago. It's hard enough to use a laptop with breakaway USB-C connectors. Can you imagine trying to use your phone while plugged in using a connector like this?

Number of times in 4 years that I've tripped over my USB-C laptop power cord and nearly brought it to the floor: 5.
Number of times in 14 years that I've tripped over my iPhone power cord: 0.

This is optimizing for an unrealistic use case, and in so doing, risks causing serious problems for a common use case. That's exactly the opposite of the way good hardware engineering is supposed to work, so I very much hope that this never makes it to production.

Anybody who wants their phone to not be tied to the charge cable already has a number of wireless charging pad options. For those of us who want the phone to be harder to disconnect (which, I believe, is most people), this would eliminate that option. This really makes no sense.

 

[swm]

i love it. we just need a lightning to new-magsafe / usb-c to new MagSafe adapter.
ditching MagSafe was the worst thing apple have done.

 

[SactoGuy18]

I think the new charging connector on the bottom will not only include I/O capabilities, but also allow for charging as high as 30 watts. This means far faster charging on the larger iPhone models.

 

[pacalis]

The article is not correct. This is "Granted by the..." NOT "Submitted to the United States Patent and Trademark Office on Tuesday (via Patently Apple),"

 

[mkldev]

It’s a damned if you do, damned if you don’t situation. When they introduce USB-C to a new device people complain about having to buy new chargers. When they keep the old one, people complain about needing to use different types of chargers and not having one unified standard. I hope that whatever future wireless standard ends this sh**show will be more universal and end this debate

People don't have to buy new chargers. Nothing prevents the iPhone from taking raw 5V power over a USB-C port at any amperage. I charge my Pixel 3 from work with a bog-standard two-port USB charger. It's just a cable issue when you're charging phones. When you're charging something bigger that uses a higher charge voltage (e.g. a laptop), that's a different story.

 

[macsareveryinteresting]

Inside MagSafe Chargers, it just looks like they through a bunch of crap in it and called it a day.

 

[ajfahey]

Now this design idea has the potential for actually being an innovative way to sidestep the transition from the archaic lightning to the contemporary type c interconnect interface. What will matter though is whether the connection afforded by the magnet is strong and, therefor, reliable enough to be an acceptable use case. I am on the fence on this one.

 

[jefhai]

Keep Macs on USB-C. Put phones on USB-C. Stop crushing your customers on the charger market. Geez... standardize with the rest of the world.

It’s more like the cable market... the chargers are reusable for the most part.. if the blocks expect USB C and the phones except this new MagSafe you don’t have to throw your charging blocks away.. just a new cable that comes with the new device

 

[Doomtomb]

This is what I'd expect to see. A proprietary port from Apple. It does look nice though.

 

[rp100]

iPhone MagSafe: paving the way for a phone that is equally as water-resistant as an Apple Watch?

 

[Bobby Smallwood]

I think that's silly - just use a standard USB port to charge and have a magnetic breakaway section in the cable. There is literally no downside to this approach that I can see and several upsides:
- Standard port, so you can use other cables if you like, and you can charge with any of the devices ports
- Standard cable can be used to charge any USB-C device
- Still has the safety benefit of the magnetic detachability
I'm open to hearing why making it its own port connection is better.

All of those would be applicable if they introduce MagSafe on a Mac unless they remove all the usb C ports

 

[Lestdog]

So just because of rumor mongers pushing the ‘portless’ and ‘magsafe’ stories you have decided they're true?

Uh. No. Where did I conclude it to be true? However we do have actual evidence that Apple is considering a portless iPhone. We have patents, reliable sources etc. if this is the case, what happens to CarPlay?

 

[Bobby Smallwood]

I purchased some of these and found them to be very unreliable. There are lots of different manufacturers - so YMMV. In principle a good idea. In practice, depending on implementation quality, not so good. I guess that could be said of most things, though.

I was going to buy some too but after reading the reviews u decided not to

 

[lederermc]

They sell USB to lightning cables with a magnetic coupler on Amazon. I thought it was silly at first but I can’t imagine not having one now and I use them on all of my headphones now

My wife's MacBook Air 2018 uses one of those (not that one but similar). Works great.

 

[LeadingHeat]

THIS I could get behind! Waterproof design, upgraded magnets could handle data transfer, potentially faster charging/data speeds, etc etc. plus you won’t send your iPhone hurtling to the floor if someone trips over your power cord.