With the iPhone 12, Apple introduced the small but fine innovation “MagSafe”. Behind it is a circle of magnets in the back of the iPhone. With the exception of the Apple MagSafe charger (available here from Amazon), useful accessories have so far been limited. The manufacturer Anker, which already offers a successful iPhone power supply with the Anker Nano (31023373), has found a practical application for the magnet back: a magnetic holder with an integrated charging station for the iPhone for retrofitting in any car, the Anker 613 Magnetic Wireless Charger (MagGo). Does the MagSafe-like car mount convince in the practical test by COMPUTER BILD?
Since many dashboards are not flat and smooth, a mounting plate for sticking is included.
This is what the finished installation looks like. Alternatively, attachment to the windscreen would also be conceivable, but this interferes with the clear view.
How does the magnetic car mount work?
The functionality of the Anker 613 Magnetic Wireless Charger is similar to that of conventional car cell phone holders. With two special features: On the one hand, the smartphone does not have to be laboriously clamped into any clamp mounts. It holds by magnetic force alone. On the other hand, the iPhone is charged inductively via the Magnetic Wireless Charger. Important detail: Anker has not licensed the accessory to Apple as MagSafe-compatible. Strictly speaking, this is not a MagSafe car holder for the iPhone, but a magnetic holder using the MagSafe technology in iPhone 12 and 13. Therefore, the maximum possible charging capacity of 15 watts with MagSafe cannot be achieved. Anker specifies the maximum charging power as 7.5 watts. The Qi standard used supports 5 watts as standard.
Anker 613 Magnetic Wireless Charger on Amazon
Anker 613 MagGo: Fastening in practice
An adhesive pad is included so that the mount can be held better on the dashboard. There is also a 1.50 meter long cable for the USB-C socket (with a USB-A plug on the other side), which runs along the fittings to the USB socket (e.g. a power supply unit in the cigarette lighter) can be relocated. The installation went smoothly in practice. In the test, the currently heaviest iPhone model, the iPhone 13 Pro Max, stayed firmly in the holder over hundreds of kilometers and on bad roads. Important: The 613 Magnetic Wireless Charger only works with models from the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 series. Thick phone cases reduce the strength of the magnetic holder, so original cases with built-in MagSafe magnets should be used. Only the cable is a bit annoying: It sometimes slides out of the holders under high tensile loads. A shorter USB-C cable can be used here on cars with USB sockets in the dashboard.
iPhone 13 Pro Max with magnetic holder.
An advantage of the magnetic holder: the mobile phone can be rotated freely.
What are the benefits of MagSafe?
MagSafe has several advantages: On the one hand, wireless charging cradle can be perfectly aligned with the charging coils hidden in the back. This makes charging smoother and more effective, and reduces the risk of the battery overheating during wireless charging. On the other hand, MagSafe enables new accessories that attach to the back of the iPhone without screws or extra cables. Compared to wired power supplies, however, inductive charging with MagSafe is less effective and slower. You can find details on this in the test of iPhone power adapters.
Apple
MagSafe Charger 15W
Charging time on iPhone 12: 2:20 h:min
Battery level after 15 minutes: 30%
anchor tech
PowerPort III Nano
(Test grade with iPhone 12)
Charging time on Galaxy S21: 1:47 h:min
Fast charging only up to a maximum of 20 watts
Conclusion: Anker 613 Wireless Charger
The biggest advantage of the magnetic car mount from Anker is its ease of use: when you get in, the iPhone can simply be placed on the mobile phone mount and is stable there. It can be operated both horizontally and vertically. The built-in charging option is practical for longer car journeys, but here Anker should have officially licensed MagSafe from Apple for the full charging capacity. Practice test verdict: “good”.
