MagSafe iPhone Car Mounts?

[x-evil-x]

I did use the lock nut, just not pictured. Once tighten, it’s sturdy and I position the Mount more towards the driver side.

The MagSafe Mount is aluminum. Decent quality but it’s pretty light. Only part that is plastic is the ball connector.

I’m sure you can use it without a MagSafe case if your case is thin enough. TBH, I am really not sure if the magnets would be strong enough to hold through a non-MagSafe case. Someone else hopefully can attest to that.

The front around the MagSafe ring is all aluminum also? It’s not soft?

 

[Gjwilly]

Found a CD-Slot mount for the official MagSafe charger.

TOLUOHU Magsafe Charger Car Mount for iPhone 13/13 Pro/13 Mini/13 Pro Max - 360 Rotation Stand for Easy Access

TOLUOHU Magsafe Charger Car Mount for iPhone 13/13 Pro/13 Mini/13 Pro Max - 360 Rotation Stand for Easy Access

smile.amazon.com

 

[chrisdazzo]

My take on the mount I purchased on eBay here, of which there are many copycat listings of the exact same product.




I took this apart so I could remove the electronics and ball mount screw. It's relatively easy to get apart once the ball mount is off, and the back screw is removed. Had to twist the unit a bit to expose one of the gaps between the front metal and plastic charging/magnet pad, then used a plastic spudger around the edges to undo the clips. I also cut the wires to the Qi coil, but before that I plugged it in and it did not show the MagSafe charging animation. This will be used in an environment in which I need to use wired CarPlay anyway. The case clipped back together well enough with no hassle or too much concern about fragility.

I found it odd that the photo on the box did not match the product, and that there were multiple unused adhesive pads inside the unit with one side left unstuck.

Pros

• Holds very well, despite the alignment magnet being MIA and using an Apple Leather case
• USB-C connectivity
• The chamfered edges may not actually be aluminum, but they look premium
• The vent clamp included seems very tight and sturdy, but I did not test it

Cons

• Press on the magnet ring too hard and it will give/crack (e.g., when applying a 3M adhesive pad)
• I don't expect this to actually charge at 15W, but no way to test now
• Took a full two weeks to ship

Overall, this is a good interim solution until Moment, Scosche, etc. release their MagSafe products. I expect it to hold well.

 

[Gjwilly]

Car Mount Wireless Charger with MagSafe for iPhone 12/12 Pro/12 mini/12 Pro Max | eBay

Car Vent Mount PRO with MagSafe Wireless charging support. A high-quality ball joint makes it easy to flip from portrait to orientation with one hand. Magnetic Car Vent Mount is designed to provide a seamless set-and-drive experience while keeping your device safely mounted and conveniently...

www.ebay.com

I just drove home with my one from eBay and I don't know what the true charging rate is but it sure isn’t 15W.
I used GPS and I was streaming an audiobook and my battery went from 73% to 50% in an hour.
And this is the charger that does have the correct MagSafe animation so Apple’s animation has nothing to do with actual charging.

Does anybody with the Zeera have any real numbers as far as charging?
I’d bet their animation is meaningless also.

 

[acousticbiker]

Car Mount Wireless Charger with MagSafe for iPhone 12/12 Pro/12 mini/12 Pro Max | eBay

Car Vent Mount PRO with MagSafe Wireless charging support. A high-quality ball joint makes it easy to flip from portrait to orientation with one hand. Magnetic Car Vent Mount is designed to provide a seamless set-and-drive experience while keeping your device safely mounted and conveniently...

www.ebay.com

I just drove home with my one from eBay and I don't know what the true charging rate is but it sure isn’t 15W.
I used GPS and I was streaming an audiobook and my battery went from 73% to 50% in an hour.
And this is the charger that does have the correct MagSafe animation so Apple’s animation has nothing to do with actual charging.

Does anybody with the Zeera have any real numbers as far as charging?
I’d bet their animation is meaningless also.

I’ve got Zeera 1.0 (Tozo from Amazon), don’t get the animation (but connected from USB C to A to charger), and seem to gain 1% charge couple minutes or so (very unscientific/rough estimates) with GPS and streaming on

 

[earthdog]

After the positive review of the Zeera I was all excited. Well mine just arrived, after removing the plastic I attached it to my iPhone 12 ProMax with the Apple MagSafe Leather case. What a disappointment, the phone is EASILY removed. There is no way win my case this will work. I am going to spend more time working with it tomorrow and see if I am just missing something considering the reviews. I will post more details with pictures tomorrow.

 

[Gjwilly]

After the positive review of the Zeera I was all excited. Well mine just arrived, after removing the plastic I attached it to my iPhone 12 ProMax with the Apple MagSafe Leather case. What a disappointment, the phone is EASILY removed. There is no way win my case this will work. I am going to spend more time working with it tomorrow and see if I am just missing something considering the reviews. I will post more details with pictures tomorrow.

You’re not missing anything. They even say on their site that it won’t work with the Apple leather case.

 

[Luxceleritas]

I have the Zeera and despite all the youtube videos and reviews. It's no where as good as they make it sound. Not sure how much was paid for some of those reviews but with regular case on it's worthless. It does hold with bare phone but not as well or not like they make it seem.

 

[yanki01]

After the positive review of the Zeera I was all excited. Well mine just arrived, after removing the plastic I attached it to my iPhone 12 ProMax with the Apple MagSafe Leather case. What a disappointment, the phone is EASILY removed. There is no way win my case this will work. I am going to spend more time working with it tomorrow and see if I am just missing something considering the reviews. I will post more details with pictures tomorrow.

welp, that stinks.

It seems the Belkin type from ali/ebay have a better magnet but I don't care to snap it to my.a/c vent.

 

[earthdog]

You’re not missing anything. They even say on their site that it won’t work with the Apple leather case.

Well I missed scrolling through all the FAQ's. Frankly who would have thought the Apple Leather case does not work as well considering the Apple Clear is so slick to begin with... What a pisser... all that anticipation and boom.

 

[lordhamster]

My take on the mount I purchased on eBay here, of which there are many copycat listings of the exact same product.

View attachment 1694960 View attachment 1694961 View attachment 1694962 View attachment 1694963 View attachment 1694966
View attachment 1694967 View attachment 1694968 View attachment 1694969 View attachment 1694970

I took this apart so I could remove the electronics and ball mount screw. It's relatively easy to get apart once the ball mount is off, and the back screw is removed. Had to twist the unit a bit to expose one of the gaps between the front metal and plastic charging/magnet pad, then used a plastic spudger around the edges to undo the clips. I also cut the wires to the Qi coil, but before that I plugged it in and it did not show the MagSafe charging animation. This will be used in an environment in which I need to use wired CarPlay anyway. The case clipped back together well enough with no hassle or too much concern about fragility.

I found it odd that the photo on the box did not match the product, and that there were multiple unused adhesive pads inside the unit with one side left unstuck.

Pros

• Holds very well, despite the alignment magnet being MIA and using an Apple Leather case
• USB-C connectivity
• The chamfered edges may not actually be aluminum, but they look premium
• The vent clamp included seems very tight and sturdy, but I did not test it

Cons

• Press on the magnet ring too hard and it will give/crack (e.g., when applying a 3M adhesive pad)
• I don't expect this to actually charge at 15W, but no way to test now
• Took a full two weeks to ship

Overall, this is a good interim solution until Moment, Scosche, etc. release their MagSafe products. I expect it to hold well.

Thanks for posting the innards of your charger, very interesting! I have to ask though... why go through all the trouble of removing the electronics? Wouldn't it have been easier to just...not plug it in?

 

[jimmysalg]

Well I missed scrolling through all the FAQ's. Frankly who would have thought the Apple Leather case does not work as well considering the Apple Clear is so slick to begin with... What a pisser... all that anticipation and boom.

I have both the $50 apple clear MagSafe case and the $20 one zeera sells on their website along with the mount. I would NOT spend the $50 on apple. I like the Zeera much better. and I have a very good hold.

 

[Gjwilly]

I have both the $50 apple clear MagSafe case and the $20 one zeera sells on their website along with the mount. I would NOT spend the $50 on apple. I like the Zeera much better. and I have a very good hold.

How well does it charge?

 

[chrisdazzo]

Thanks for posting the innards of your charger, very interesting! I have to ask though... why go through all the trouble of removing the electronics? Wouldn't it have been easier to just...not plug it in?

Curiosity and boredom, I guess. Pandemic times have me itching to work more often with my hands. For example, I'm installing that SSD in my sig today, and only partially because it's 3x faster than a Fusion drive.

 

[Gjwilly]

Curiosity and boredom, I guess. Pandemic times have me itching to work more often with my hands. For example, I'm installing that SSD in my sig today, and only partially because it's 3x faster than a Fusion drive.

Now that you've got it open you could buy one of those magnet arrays, install it on top of the magnets already there, and make a SUPER strong magnet.

 

[bubulol]

Does anyone have tried with slim case if it works?
Also wondering if these kind of magsafe clear case would work as strong as Apple officials?!

US $4.91 37% OFF|Transparent Hard PC Magnetic Case For iPhone 12 Mini Pro Max Magsafing Wireless Charger Magnetic Phone Case For iPhone 12|Phone Case & Covers| - AliExpress

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

 

[bubulol]

This guys using non magsafe clear case, and it hold ok but he is driving slow lol
I would love to see if it holds while hard breaking you know lol

 

[Gjwilly]

I tested the Zdago MagSafe knockoff today.
Driving one hour with GPS and streaming my phone went from 82% to 83%. Not great but at least it didnt go down like with the eBay charger.
Driving without GPS but still streaming it went from 75% to 90% in 30-minutes.

 

[Luxceleritas]

Now that you've got it open you could buy one of those magnet arrays, install it on top of the magnets already there, and make a SUPER strong magnet.

This is exactly what I plan on doing. Just walking on the magnetic ring to show up.

 

[Bomb617]

I bought this on eBay (US California seller), will see how it hold my 12Pro when arrive.

For Mag Safe Magnetic 15W Wireless Car Fast Charger Holder For iPhone 13 Pro Max | eBay

15W fast charging. The output power is up to 15W and it has strong electromagnetic effect of high power conversion rate. Power: 15W. Quantity: 1pc. Color: black. Material: ABS.

www.ebay.com

It came today after only 3 days. Hold my bare iPhone 12 Pro very strong (with me shaking it back and forth, never drop) and even hold it ok with cheap $2 regular clear plastic case (but it will fall off easily). Charging is not fast but I just care about the mount. Well worth the $20.

I will buy a super slim case and I think it will hold strong.

 

[Vittortech]

MagSafe official accessories have to have an NFC chip that Apple certifies so iPhone recognizes the accessory and will use it at high speed with MagSafe - it’s shown and described in the keynote and the iPhone web page. If the iPhone doesn’t recognize the MagSafe charger capable of up to 15W, it will only draw power as Qi instead at maximum 7.5W for safety reasons (15W wireless charging was basically unheard of until recently because high wireless wattage emits lots of heat, so the efficient alignment is a must to concentrate the power transfer). The NFC chip is what makes iPhone go from sticking to any old magnet and Qi charger made by any company, to instead showing the animated MagSafe charging screen and pulling 15W. Same NFC chip is in the cases too - it’s how iPhone knows it has a brown case attaching and can show the matching color when you put it on the phone.

iPhone will not pull high wattage from just “MagSafe compatible” wireless chargers with magnets - it must recognize the MagSafe chip. iPhone will only pull its maximum Qi power draw of 7.5W if it is just sticking to a charger without true MagSafe.

So yes, these unofficial chargers that are just Qi with a magnet will be slower than using actual MagSafe if that interests you.

Also not that Qi 7.5W does not actually charge at 50% faster than a 5W charger. Wireless charging is inefficient and gets worse with a case on. MagSafe has this issue too, but far less so at double the peak transfer. It may matter to anyone who is obviously here looking for MagSafe stuff.

View attachment 1667040

Just an update that I received the Mag-Save.com car mount and it does in fact have the MagSafe animation when it charges. It only shows up when the car mount is plugged in though. Not when you just set your phone on it.

 

[acousticbiker]

MagSafe official accessories have to have an NFC chip that Apple certifies so iPhone recognizes the accessory and will use it at high speed with MagSafe - it’s shown and described in the keynote and the iPhone web page. If the iPhone doesn’t recognize the MagSafe charger capable of up to 15W, it will only draw power as Qi instead at maximum 7.5W for safety reasons (15W wireless charging was basically unheard of until recently because high wireless wattage emits lots of heat, so the efficient alignment is a must to concentrate the power transfer). The NFC chip is what makes iPhone go from sticking to any old magnet and Qi charger made by any company, to instead showing the animated MagSafe charging screen and pulling 15W. Same NFC chip is in the cases too - it’s how iPhone knows it has a brown case attaching and can show the matching color when you put it on the phone.

iPhone will not pull high wattage from just “MagSafe compatible” wireless chargers with magnets - it must recognize the MagSafe chip. iPhone will only pull its maximum Qi power draw of 7.5W if it is just sticking to a charger without true MagSafe.

So yes, these unofficial chargers that are just Qi with a magnet will be slower than using actual MagSafe if that interests you.

Also not that Qi 7.5W does not actually charge at 50% faster than a 5W charger. Wireless charging is inefficient and gets worse with a case on. MagSafe has this issue too, but far less so at double the peak transfer. It may matter to anyone who is obviously here looking for MagSafe stuff.

View attachment 1667040

Now that we see some chargers that don't seem to have the official "Made for MagSafe" designation still produce the MagSafe animation (unclear and hard to know whether they are charging at 15W), what do you make of all this?

- Can accessories be officially (or unofficially but really) compatible with MagSafe without the "Made for MagSafe" badge (and presumably without approval from Apple)?
- Did these companies hack/clone the NFC chip allowing them to generate the animation?

 

[Gjwilly]

Now that we see some chargers that don't seem to have the official "Made for MagSafe" designation still produce the MagSafe animation (unclear and hard to know whether they are charging at 15W), what do you make of all this?

- Can accessories be officially (or unofficially but really) compatible with MagSafe without the "Made for MagSafe" badge (and presumably without approval from Apple)?
- Did these companies hack/clone the NFC chip allowing them to generate the animation?

A hacked NFC chip seems the likeliest explanation for the animation.
Hopefully that’s not all it takes to make the phone try to charge at 15W because that could be dangerous.
After seeing the guts of some of the unofficial chargers and seeing how well they actually charge I’d bet they’re not even Qi certified.

 

[acousticbiker]

A hacked NFC chip seems the likeliest explanation for the animation.
Hopefully that’s not all it takes to make the phone try to charge at 15W because that could be dangerous.
After seeing the guts of some of the unofficial chargers and seeing how well they actually charge I’d bet they’re not even Qi certified.

I’m guessing it might be easier to enable the animation vs turning the switch on for 15W charging. Either way, not being Qi certified sounds potentially even more concerning - can anyone explain the risks of using a charger that is not Qi certified?

 

[earthdog]

So I initially gave the Zeera poor marks. However, I have changed my mind. I have found its odd (using Apple Leather MagSafe case) it feels as though its not a strong connection but it works flawlessly. I am using iPhone 12 Pro Max, Apple Leather Case and a almost vertical solution. I put the Zeera directly onto my Scos he mount. It feels like a slight magnetic hold but its great. Took it out in my Ford F-150 and hit the bumps and it really does hold well.

I also did some testing with the QI Charging. Tomorrow I need to test it with less of a charge to see if it really hits 15watts. Today testing it with 65% state of charge it was only pulling a little over 9Watts but was providing the animation.