MagSafe is Apple’s latest way to wireless charge your phone. The iPhone has had wireless charging capabilities since the iPhone 10 or X but the new MagSafe opens doors for Apple to do other things.
For one MagSafe has opened the door for an entirely new accessory line for Apple and third parties which I am looking forward to seeing what comes out in the coming months. My wife is already thinking magnetic Pop Sockets will be a hot gift this Christmas for people, but we will have to wait and see. I could see MagSafe opening up a new industry in the navigation space with a magnetic holder for iPhone for use with the Maps feature.
The one complaint I have heard already is MagSafe charging or wireless charging is slow, which is nothing out of the ordinary wireless charging has always been slow. I think the feeling was going to be that MagSafe charged would charge faster while Apple never said that people sometimes can get their hopes up.
But this new MagSafe feature has done something new for Apple. To start with Apple did not ship a charger with the new iPhone 12 so you can use a charger you already have or you can buy a new charger. How many people do you think bought the MagSafe charger probably a lot despite having a charger already?
The next thing Apple did was start the process of removing the charging port. This MagSafe charger is the first step in Apple seeing how well MagSafe works and seeing when, how or if they can get rid of the charging port.
Apple hates the charging port because it’s another thing to break, it’s another thing they need to make waterproof and it’s a place to plug headphones into for use. Apple wants to see Bluetooth earbuds like AirPods. Removing the charging port would help move this along much faster. They are already not shipping earbuds in the case as part of the transition.
While I don’t disagree with Apple on this process it’s the start of the next era in the iPhone evolution and can really help Apple accessory and wearables business.