Mac owners enjoyed the safety of Apple’s aptly named (ahem) MagSafe charger for years – and though the concept initially was canned in favour of USB Type-C charging, the Cupertino company reinvigorated the marque aboard the iPhone, where a range of accessories – including chargers – can now connect via a magnetic ‘puck’.
Now, a new FCC listing detailing a ‘Magnetic Charger’ details a new MagSafe charging puck that will be compatible with a number of new devices – namely, four new iPhones as well as models marked as ‘legacy’, which would likely refer to the iPhone 12 range.
Interestingly, the filing shows the charging puck being used to charge a set of AirPods – and although this is something that the existing model is capable of, the filing seems to indicate that the unit would attach magnetically as on the iPhone.
Should that notion prove true, the advent might suggest that in the future, MagSafe could live on where AirPower – Apple’s attempt at a multi-device wireless charging mat – failed.
One of the main complexities of developing AirPower was the fact that the Apple Watch and the iPhone use two different wireless charging standards – meaning that the mat would have to theoretically be able to identify and deliver power to two different units in multiple positions with different coils.
Using MagSafe connections, Apple could feasibly develop products that ‘snap’ into place, use a standardised coil, and charge at higher wattages in the future.
Until Apple’s next event, the future of MagSafe remains to be seen. What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.
