Tag: magsafe

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Mobile Syrup

Apple’s 2024 iPad Pro could feature significant redesign

At least regarding design, Apple’s iPad Pro line has looked pretty much the same for the last few years.

That could soon change if a new rumour reported by Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman is true. In his most recent Power On newsletter, Gurman says that this is a “light year” for the iPad line, including the iPad Pro, iPad Air, iPad mini and entry-level iPad. However, he expects that to change in 2024 when the iPad Pro receives a significant redesign and a new OLED display.

It’s unclear what could change in this redesign, but 9to5Mac speculates the 2024 iPad Air could feature a glass back instead of an aluminum unibody and a MagSafe charger. Given how useful MagSafe is and that it’s likely coming to most Qi-compatible Android devices, it makes sense Apple would bring it to its high-end iPad. I’m also on board with switching the rear to glass like the iPhone has featured for the last few years — as long as it’s just as durable.

In other Apple-related rumours, Gurman says that Apple’s M3 chip could release later this year in the MacBook Air and iMac.

Source: Bloomberg Via: 9to5Mac

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Mobile Syrup

Qi2 wireless charging standard brings MagSafe to Android smartphones

In an uncharacteristic move, Apple is working with the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC) on a next-generation charging standard called “Qi2” that’s based on MagSafe.

At CES 2023, the WPC confirmed the news, stating that the new standard aims to improve the efficiency and interoperability of the technology through a MagSafe-based “Magnetic Power Profile” that aligns the Qi2-compatible accessory with a compatible wireless charger.

If this sounds a lot like Apple’s current magnetic MagSafe technology, you aren’t wrong.

Apple’s current version of MagSafe is proprietary and requires accessory makers to pay a fee to use the standard. This is why so many iPhone accessories and smartphone cases are compatible with MagSafe but are not officially MagSafe-certified.

“Consumers and retailers have been telling us they’re confused concerning what devices are Qi Certified and those that claim to work with Qi but are not Qi Certified. This confusion can lead to a poor user experience and even safety issues,” said Paul Struhsaker, executive director of the Wireless Power Consortium, in a press release.

Beyond opening up MagSafe tech to other manufacturers, including Android device makers, it’s unclear what advantages Qi2 will offer over Qi and MagSafe. Hopefully, the plans include stronger magnets because many MagSafe accessories don’t attach to the back of the iPhone firmly, along with faster charging speeds. For example, MagSafe and Qi only support up to 15W wireless charging.

It’s also important to note that Apple isn’t forging this partnership solely to share its technology with Android manufacturers and level the playing field. With the EU’s smartphone USB-C mandate looming, the tech giant is likely looking to avoid similar controversy with its wireless charging standard.

The WPC says its upcoming Qi2 standard will replace its current Qi technology. Devices featuring Qi2 are expected to release by the end of the year.

Source: BusinessWire

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Mobile Syrup

Image of unreleased MagSafe ‘Apple Magic Charger’ appear online

Photos of an unreleased Apple MagSafe accessory have appeared online.

Images of the ‘Apple Magic Charger’ shared by Apple collector @TheBlueMister show off a device featuring an aluminum base and a MagSafe-like magnetic adapter that can pivot forward and backward. According to TheBlueMister, the leaked accessory works, and when you plug it into a MacBook, it shows up as the “Apple Magic Charger” under USB devices.

Other notable features include a ‘Space Gray’ finish, a white rubberized base and a braided USB-C cable. Twitter user @DuanRui1205 shared additional images of the charger (seen below) shortly after @TheBlueMister.

Interestingly, @TheBlueMister says that the charger can only charge the iPhone from a horizontal position and that this could be the key reason it hasn’t yet seen the light of day.

Overall, the charger shares a lot of design language and features with Apple’s MagSafe Duo Charger. It’s unclear if Apple has cancelled the accessory outright or if the tech giant has plans to release it eventually.

It’s worth noting that the @TheBlueMister Twitter account has was suspended following posting the initial photos.

Image credit: @TheBlueMister

Source: @TheBlueMister, @duanrui1205 Via: MacRumors

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Mobile Syrup

Leak details iPhone 14 line colour options, MagSafe improvements

With the release of Apple’s new iPhones on the horizon, the rumour mill is churning out all kinds of information. The latest: the iPhone 14 line will sport a new purple colour, an “exclusive” MagSafe battery accessory, and more.

The information comes from a post on Naver, a South Korean online platform with search and blog capabilities, among other things (it’s kind of like Google). The Naver post cites a “developer source,” (via 9to5Mac) as the backing for various claims about the upcoming iPhone 14 and 14 Pro.

First up, the new colours. The developer source claims the iPhone 14 and 14 Max (the rumoured bigger iPhone that will replace the mini) will ship in green, purple, blue, black, white, and red colours. It’s worth noting that these likely don’t reflect the actual names of the colours since Apple likes to be a little fancy in the department. For example, the iPhone 13 came in ‘Midnight’ (black) and ‘Starlight’ (white), although the rest of the colour options just were the names of colours: Green, Pink, Blue, and (Product) Red.

As for the iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max, we can reportedly expect the same graphite, silver, and gold colours as the iPhone 13 Pro line. There might be green and purple options too.

No durability improvements, but MagSafe will get better

Next up, the developer source claimed the iPhone 14 won’t feature any “notable” durability improvements. Apple reportedly tested a version of the iPhone 14 made with titanium, but ultimately dropped it due to “cost and manufacturing process issues.”

Moreover, the iPhone 14 display will use the same Gorilla Glass coating as the iPhone 13, so don’t expect many improvements to display durability or scratch resistance.

As for MagSafe, the source claimed Apple would increase the strength of the magnets in the phone to improve the experience with accessories like the MagSafe Wallet and Battery Pack. Speaking of the Battery Pack, the source said Apple planned a new MagSafe battery accessory that would be “exclusive” to the iPhone 14 and 14 Pro. However, it’s not clear what this accessory is.

The source also noted that wired charging speeds would increase to 30W — matching other recent reports — while wireless charging would remain the same (a.k.a. slow).

Moreover, the new iPhones will reportedly sport the same storage configurations as before, starting at 128GB. Finally, the source said Apple’s new A16 chip, which will only be available in the 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max, only offers a “few percent” performance boost over the A15 chip featured in the iPhone 13 line. However, Apple reportedly has worked to improve thermal management to squeeze more performance out of the A16. The iPhone 14 and 14 Max are expected to run the older A15 chip.

Although the information above seems credible and lines up with other leaks, it’s worth keeping a healthy level of skepticism when it comes to leaks. Frankly, we won’t know any of these details for certain until Apple’s September 7th event.

Source: Naver Via: 9to5Mac

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Mobile Syrup

Razer’s $80 MagSafe fan will keep your iPhone cool while gaming

If you regularly game so hard on your smartphone that it gets uncomfortably hot, Razer’s new fan is for you.

Clocking in at $79.99 in Canada, the Razer Phone Cooler Chroma attaches to the back of your smartphone to help keep it cool during extended gaming sessions. And, naturally, the fan is decked out with RGB lighting — all gamers know RGB means it works better.

Razer’s Phone Cooler Chroma comes in two flavours: MagSafe compatible and ‘Universal Clamp.’ The first one doesn’t require much explanation — if you have a new iPhone with MagSafe, then you can attach the Phone Cooler to your iPhone with magnets. The Universal Clamp option should work for Android devices and iPhones without MagSafe. It uses a clamp mechanism to hold onto users’ phones.

The Phone Cooler works by drawing heat away from the smartphone using an electronic Peltier cooling tile. At a very base level, that means the Phone Cooler relies on the Peltier effect to draw heat from one side of the device (the phone) and transfer it to the other side (the fan). Then, the small seven-bladed fan in the Phone Cooler can dissipate the heat.

While that certainly sounds neat, there are a few drawbacks. For one, you’ll need to stay near a power outlet — the Phone Cooler needs power to work. To me, that seems like it defeats the purpose of gaming on a mobile device, but I suppose if you have a capable power brick you could maybe untether yourself from the nearest power outlet.

I’m also not sure how well the Phone Cooler Chroma would actually work. It’s fairly common for gaming phones to have advanced cooling systems and even fan attachments, but those typically work best when they make contact with the components that create the heat. As an example, when building a desktop computer, it’s important to properly connect your CPU fan to the CPU and use things like thermal paste to help transfer heat from the CPU into the heatsink so that the fan can help dissipate it. Tacking a fan onto the back of your phone might have some benefit, but I’m not sure how effective it’d be without more direct contact with the CPU and other heat-generating components.

Besides, using a fan on your smartphone to get a performance bump in mobile titles seems a bit overkill to me, but maybe that’s just because I’m an old grouch who doesn’t like mobile gaming 🤷🏻‍♂️.

You can learn more about the Razer Phone Cooler Chrome here.

Image credits: Razer

Source: Razer Via: Engadget

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Mobile Syrup

You can use MagSafe on a Pixel 6 with the right case

Accessory maker Moment has launched a new slate of cases for the Pixel 6 series of phones that allows them to work with Apple MagSafe accessories.

The company is labelling the cases with (M)Force branding, and not only do they allow for basic accessories like the MagSafe Wallet to be attached to the back of the phone, but they even work with the MagSafe Wireless charger. You can see this below, as demonstrated by David Imel from the MKBHD Studio on Twitter.

So far, the company is only selling one magnetic accessory compatible case for each of the new Pixel phones in black. However, Moment does sell its iPhone 13 cases in more colours, so perhaps the company may add some colours to these if they’re popular enough. I also used a Moment case on my iPhone 12 and liked how the rubbery plastic felt to touch.

Overall, it’s a really smart move for case makers and even other phone manufacturers to usurp the MagSafe accessories. When Apple announced them, it seemed like another way to lock people into the iPhone ecosystem. Now that the Pixel can use the same accessories with a case, it breaks down that barrier and, potentially, means that all phones could use MagSafe with the right case.

This is excellent news for me since I’m obsessed with my PopWallet+ with MagSafe. The Moment cases cost $49.99 USD (roughly $61 CAD).

Source: @DurvidImel

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Mobile Syrup

Apple shakes up second-gen AirPods with lower price, AirPods Pro with MagSafe

According to some changes on Apple’s website, the second-gen AirPods are now cheaper, while the AirPods Pro now ship with a MagSafe charging case — both interesting changes if you’re not sold on the company’s fancy new AirPods.

Starting with the second-gen AirPods, the price has dropped from $219 to $179, making it cheaper than ever to get into AirPods. Unfortunately, the new, lower price doesn’t include the wireless charging case for the AirPods 2.

It’s still available separately (for a hefty $99) if you want, but at $278 total before tax, you might as well just get the new third-gen AirPods for $239.

Speaking of charging cases, the comparison page for Apple’s AirPods lists the AirPods Pro as having a ‘MagSafe Charging Case.’ The same is listed under the ‘What’s in the Box’ section on the AirPods Pro store page. It’s not clear if this means the AirPods Pro now ship with a MagSafe-compatible charging case, since technically the AirPods Pro case worked with MagSafe before.

MagSafe charging pads offer backwards compatibly with the Qi standard, which means that AirPods Pro and other Apple devices that support Qi wireless charging, but not MagSafe, can still charge with them.

It’s possible Apple’s just branding this behaviour as ‘MagSafe,’ but considering the third-gen AirPods charging case actually supports MagSafe, I don’t think it’s a stretch that Apple stealth-updated the AirPods Pro case too.

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Mobile Syrup

iPhone 13 mini charges slowest in lineup over MagSafe

Apple’s iPhone 13 mini charges at 12-watts with MagSafe-certified wireless chargers instead of 15-watts like the rest of the iPhone 13 lineup, according to a new Apple Support document.

While many users were hoping the 5.4-inch tiny smartphone would get a charging speed upgrade this year, the lower charging speeds come as no surprise since the iPhone 12 mini suffered the same fate.

The iPhone 13 mini, of course, has the smallest battery out of the entire iPhone 13 lineup, so it likely won’t take a long time to charge anyways. It’s also worth noting that since the mini is a smaller device, it also likely heats up faster, which could be what Apple is hoping to offset by the slower charging speed.

If you are looking to fast charge your iPhone 13 mini, you can get maximum charging speeds of up to 22-watts by using a charging brick with at least 20-watts of output.

Source: Apple Support Via: MacRumors