When Apple unveiled its new MagSafe battery pack for the iPhone Air, it raised two questions. First, does this mean the iPhone Air has terrible battery life? And, second, would it work with other iPhones, too? Here are the answers.
Apple iPhone Air with MagSafe battery
Apple
First, the iPhone Air, according to numerous early reviews, has decent battery life. It won’t match the iPhone 17 Pro Max, but it’ll get you through the day without battery anxiety leaving you feeling unsettled.
Second, how about compatibility with other iPhones? I’ve been doing some testing.
The MagSafe battery pack is a perfect fit for the back of the iPhone Air, as you’d expect. It snaps instantly into place, leaps into action and is straightforward to understand: the battery level for the phone and the MagSafe pack onscreen.
In which case, will it work with the other new iPhones?
Apple iPhone 17 Pro with iPhone Air MagSafe battery precariously in place
David Phelan
I got it to work with all of them, but before you rush out to buy it for your iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max, think again.
Though the $99 battery pack could prove useful if one of those phones is in dire need of a boost, it’s anything but a good choice.
A wireless battery works only if there’s a good connection, of course, as many iPhone X and iPhone Xs users discovered when they awoke to find they’d misplaced their handset on the charging pad the night before and the phone was flat. This was before MagSafe arrived in the iPhone 12.
So, getting the magnets in the phone and charging pad to align is crucial, and impossible in almost every position with the other iPhones.
It wasn’t impossible, but almost.
For all models, the camera panels, even on the iPhone 17, prevented the battery pack from sitting vertically as it’s meant to on the Air. On the iPhone 17 Pro Max, the deeper camera panel meant that there was no way it could fit, except horizontally and even then, the pack wouldn’t lie flat.
There was air between the pack and the phone. The phone was being charged, but not only would it have been a slower, weaker charge, the position was wholly impractical.
In short, though Apple would confirm the wireless charging could be used in a brief, clumsy pinch, its assertion that this battery is only usefully for the iPhone Air is correct.