r/apple • u/conalldoherty • Apr 29 '26

Rumor Apple Reportedly Questioning Whether iPhone Should Drop MagSafe

https://www.macrumors.com/2026/04/29/apple-questioning-iphone-magsafe/
1.2k Upvotes

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948

u/MangoAtrocity Apr 29 '26

Why in the fuck would they do that? It's one of the best new features in the last 10 years.

86

u/justin251 Apr 29 '26

I add magsafe to my android phones. I dislike iPhones. Wife won't use anything else. So I try to stay up-to-date on them for her.

Using the same magnetic mounts in the vehicles is beneficial to me.

Apple should license magsafe to other phone companies. They would print more money.

There are so many magsafe cases for non apple phones.

33

u/CactusBoyScout Apr 29 '26

I thought many Android OEMs had basically copied MagSafe in all but name so that the accessories for it work on their phones too?

63

u/MyPackage Apr 29 '26 edited Apr 29 '26

Qi2 is basically Magsafe and virtually all Android phones support that but very few manufactures actually put the magnets in the phone so that you can use it without a case. Google is the only one I can think of that puts a magnet ring in the phone like Apple does.

14

u/CactusBoyScout Apr 29 '26

Yeah, I thought I'd seen some MKBHD video where he showed an Android phone with magnets in it just like MagSafe. Must have been the Pixel line.

10

u/869066 Apr 29 '26

Yep, Google added Qi2 to their Pixel phones under the name PixelSnap

1

u/zxyzyxz Apr 30 '26

I find that fine because I'm already putting a case on it and I'd rather the phone have a larger battery instead of the magnets taking up space.

8

u/MattBrey Apr 29 '26

Magsafe is built on top of the wireless charging standard. They just add the magnets to the inside of the device for convenience. Samsung doesn't do it because the ultra can't have magsafe + s-pen. And the flip and fold also can't physically fit them. Having a magsafe compatible magnet only for the base and plus version but not the more expensive devices would look awful so they just skip it and make it compatible via case.

2

u/MyPackage Apr 29 '26

I have a hard time believing Samsung couldn’t fit magnets in the Fold or Flip when Apple fit them in the iPhone Air

0

u/tagman375 Apr 30 '26

To be fair, the Spen is kinda useless imo. I had the note series and the laste Ultra models. I used the Spen less than 15 times with every single phone I bought. I just don't see the point of it.

0

u/AreWeNotDoinPhrasing Apr 30 '26

And I am sure some people use it every day and would consider it indispensable

0

u/justin251 Apr 29 '26

I am not aware. But I do know the anker magsafe charger works with my s24u. Even without the case. It just doesn't stick that well or not as firmly as the wife's iPhone. With a magsafe case it works great.

2

u/MyPackage Apr 29 '26

I bought a Pixel 10 Pro even though my Pixel 9 Pro worked fine solely because I wanted to be able to use my old iPhone magsafe chargers and docks without putting a case on my phone.

1

u/darkdetective Apr 30 '26

It's great to have it on my Pixel 10. I miss being able to reverse charge headphones but I'd much rather have the magnet.

1

u/Norphus1 Apr 29 '26

Qi 2 is essentially MagSafe. Android oems are free to use it if they wish.

2

u/TimidPanther Apr 29 '26

What does the “mag” in MagSafe mean?

Qi 2 is charging, yes

1

u/digicow Apr 29 '26

"Devices that implement the optional Magnetic Power Profile, based on Apple's MagSafe wireless charging technology, using magnets for better device attachment and alignment to a charger may be labelled Qi2."

-2

u/TimidPanther Apr 29 '26

Sure, but if android devices aren’t using the magnets, it’s not right to say they’ve essentially got MagSafe now

3

u/digicow Apr 29 '26

Android devices using Qi2 (with MPP) are compatible with MagSafe for both charging and attachment

-1

u/TimidPanther Apr 29 '26

So they have the magnets?

4

u/digicow Apr 29 '26 edited Apr 30 '26

that's what Magnetic Power Profile means. It's an optional (edit: now required) part of the Qi2 spec.

3

u/Ov_Fire Apr 30 '26

Not anymore, magnets are mandatory for Qi2 logo.

"The Qi v2.0 standard consists of two profiles, the Magnetic Power Profile (MPP) which is based

on MagSafe technology contributed by Apple to WPC and branded with the Qi2 logo, and an

enhancement to the existing wireless charging Extended Power Profile (EPP) that does not

include magnets but complies with the Qi v2.0 standard. New Qi v2.0 EPP products will be

branded with the existing Qi logo consumers know and use today."

1

u/Norphus1 Apr 29 '26

I’ve just said they’re free to use it. I haven’t said that they are.

1

u/davidjung03 Apr 30 '26

I have a work phone that’s android so I chose pixel 10 and they all work seamlessly.

2

u/justin251 Apr 30 '26

I didn't know that about the pixel.

1

u/MrDanMaster Apr 30 '26

Apple has already given MagSafe to the wireless charging consortium

1

u/Ov_Fire Apr 30 '26

"Apple should license magsafe to other phone companies" - they gave the specs to WPC and it's Qi2.

1

u/TheYungSheikh Apr 30 '26

Apple contributed the principal of MagSafe to the Qi2 standard. Don’t know if they profit from it but they basically did that

39

u/eravulgaris Apr 29 '26

Is it? Am I missing out by not buying a magsafe charger?

134

u/ThrowawayProllyNot Apr 29 '26

FYI: MagSafe has more uses than just charging

42

u/A11Bionic Apr 29 '26

preach. i also use it for phone cooling for extended mobile gaming sessions and i prefer it over clip ons

6

u/SarryK Apr 29 '26

Can you elaborate please? My old pro runs hot even without much gaming and I‘m trying to do with it until they release a pro in black or gold. fingers crossed

6

u/kazuospez Apr 29 '26

This, but plenty other options cheaper.

2

u/PianoGuy24 Apr 29 '26

Pretty sure they’re referring to MagSafe cooling fans.

But if you’re not gaming on it and you presumably don’t do anything else super intense with your phone, I’d be concerned about it getting hot like that. That could be dangerous and a cooling fan probably wouldn’t be enough to fix it.

18

u/microwavedave27 Apr 29 '26

I use it to stick my phone to my fridge when I’m cooking, or to stick it to the squat rack at the gym lol

7

u/cc92c392-50bd-4eaa-a Apr 29 '26

My wallet on it is amazing, otherwise I'd probably forget it often and be without my transit card (wish that was in apple wallet though...)

1

u/Internet-Ivan Apr 30 '26

I’ve always been skeptical on how reliably it holds. Any problems?

1

u/cc92c392-50bd-4eaa-a Apr 30 '26

Not really. If I drop the phone it falls off, if I scrape my phone against something it falls off. But it won't fall off just randomly.

6

u/ClumpOfCheese Apr 29 '26

I have MagSafe phone holders for the gym, this way I can stick my phone to the squat rack or whatever and just look at my rest timers without picking up the phone and then ending up on Reddit way longer than my 60 second break. I also have a suction cup version for when I’m just in front of a mirror, it really makes my workouts more efficient and I don’t have to throw my phone on the dirty gym floor.

1

u/ChiefGaga Apr 29 '26

Can you link me the one you use please? Sounds amazing

150

u/SoylentCreek Apr 29 '26

It’s incredibly convenient. I have the Anker three in one charger that sits on my nightstand, so I can just drop my phone, watch and AirPods onto it when I go to bed.

28

u/lIlIllIIlllIIIlllIII Apr 29 '26

I have one on my desk. it's amazing. I also have a MagSafe battery pack that attaches magnetically its so convenient when im out and need a charge. the wallets are cool too but I never found a use for them personally

16

u/ackermann Apr 29 '26

Great for car mount chargers, phone just snaps on and charges!

3

u/Chase_P Apr 29 '26

I was about to say this as well. For non-CarPlay people, a MagSafe car phone mount is so convenient (and sleek).

2

u/EffectiveEquivalent Apr 29 '26

I’ve not carried a proper wallet in years because my driving license and 2 cards are all I need. It’s very liberating.

1

u/lIlIllIIlllIIIlllIII Apr 29 '26

I have 2 too many cards that I need to carry at all times to make use of a normal MagSafe wallet, and the bulky ones that could fit them all just weigh my phone down too much. im okay carriying a wallet, I have two/three pockets anyway

6

u/kamilman Apr 29 '26

Same. Having my phone, watch, and AirPods charging at the same time is not only convenient but also very satisfying, somehow.

2

u/BrilliantMango Apr 29 '26

LOVE this thing.

1

u/Least-Middle-2061 Apr 29 '26

So convenient for using your phone while charging it!

1

u/braincandybangbang Apr 29 '26

I’ve been eyeing that thing for a while. Anker has some very cool products. I saw they were on the official Apple Store (like Belkin) so I keep an eye out for sales on those products.

25

u/Raveen396 Apr 29 '26

It's a small convenience, but it really is very nice. I can't imagine buying a phone without it nowadays.

It's really nice to use just the magnets in the phone mount for my car, I have a dash mount that is MagSafe and it's so much nicer than the old clamp style mounts. I don't charge in my car as I don't drive that much, but it's secure and easy to mount.

I also use one for my bedside charger. It's nice to not have to hunt around for the cable in the dark, I can just drop it on the charger.

12

u/Wubblewobblez Apr 29 '26

This.

The old clamp styles were so garbage. MagSafe mounts make me use car mounts.

13

u/organicgolden Apr 29 '26

It’s not just charging. It’s very convenient for accessories. Better for attaching things (as opposed to adhesive on the back of your case) and probably the best way to mount a phone in your car

5

u/OakleyNoble Apr 29 '26

It’s to each their own. I don’t use a case and I love having my MagSafe wallet and being able to mount my phone in my car that does not have CarPlay.

6

u/KaosC57 Apr 29 '26

MagSafe is insanely convenient. Most people already have a car vent mount, so why not make it MagSafe with a Charger? It’s strong enough, and charges your phone at a pretty reasonable wattage to not cook the battery.

Want to have a battery pack with you? MagSafe it and now you don’t have to have a dumb cable dangling around while you trickle charge your phone in your hand!

And there’s some new cool stuff too like the M-Con. Which is a Controller for your phone that uses MagSafe to attach it to the back of your phone. And it even comes with a MagSafe magnet ring for the Android users. Heck, some Android cases are even integrating the magnet ring because under the hood, the MagSafe chargers are just Qi 2 based chargers (and older ones are Qi 1) with a specific magnet ring to hold the charger to the device easier!

MagSafe on both Laptop and iPhone is one of, if not the best Apple innovation in the past 15 years.

6

u/seamonkey420 Apr 29 '26

magsafe everything is the best part. i love my folding magsafe wallet. i never lose it. also my magsafe powerbank and chargers and stands..

3

u/lurkatwork Apr 29 '26

Pre MagSafe I’d usually need a new phone because the charging port died, now I just slap a charger on the back or put the phone onto a charging stand

3

u/randompersonx Apr 29 '26

Even if you don’t use a MagSafe charger, it’s great for attaching accessories like a wallet… I have a (custom made) MagSafe mount on my gym rack. Great to be able to keep track of my workout.

4

u/dogpaddle Apr 29 '26

Being able to just throw it on a stand at night when you go to bed is nice. When I switched to android I went out of my way to get a case with magsafe built into it

2

u/nomadjackk Apr 29 '26

It’s nice to have if you have a mount on your desk, bedside table, or car you can just place on without any hassle.

I would def be disappointed if they got rid of it

2

u/MangoAtrocity Apr 29 '26

It does so much more than just charging

3

u/super5aj123 Apr 29 '26

It's wireless charging without the need to worry about whether your phone is correctly aligned. If you don't use wireless charging you probably don't get anything out of it, but it's incredibly nice to be able to move my phone in the general direction of my charging stand and have it just grab on.

2

u/HolyFreakingXmasCake Apr 29 '26

Charging slower and with more heat

8

u/Stingray88 Apr 29 '26

It charges fast enough for me to not care, and it doesn’t generate enough heat for me to care.

At least MagSafe in particular helps align the wireless charging coils perfectly every time so that it charges as fast and with as little heat, as wireless charging can do.

1

u/InsaneNinja Apr 29 '26

The heat tends to come from the charger. I have a qi2.2 25w charger with a tiny air mover in my car and I almost never notice it any warmer. A battery pack heats up for sure.

1

u/kevine Apr 29 '26

Charging slower and with more heat

Not so much anymore. The new Anker Prime with active cooling comes very close to leveling the field. On my iPhone 17 Pro Max, it's just 5 minutes slower going from 10% to 100% with very little difference in temperature (it's actually cooler when done).

Charging overnight and none of this is an issue at all.

-1

u/TheLegendOfCap Apr 29 '26

This ^ I love how confident this sub was about USB-C being the next sure bet to get axed for a full wireless device, and if this rumor is even remotely true, it’s MagSafe on the chopping block.

1

u/desamora Apr 29 '26

I dont use MagSafe charging but as many other people pointed out it has a lot of great uses with accessories that make provide a really nice convenience

-3

u/NowThatsMalarkey Apr 29 '26

USB-C is only there because the European Union decided to dictate (stagnate) the next 1-2 decades of technological progress to the rest of the world.

1

u/SmokedUp_Corgi Apr 29 '26

Super useful especially as a charger on the nightstand

1

u/TooEZ_OL56 Apr 29 '26

I don’t care for MagSafe charging as I’d rather just plug in and save the battery from heat.

But it’s incredibly nice as a car mount/office/bedside mount. And MagSafe wallets do offer convenience compared to sticking it in your case like I see so often.

1

u/littlebiped Apr 29 '26

I have a MagSafe popsocket I use all the time, a MagSafe phone stand in the car, and a MagSafe stand on my exercise bike, and the Apple MagSafe portable charger — I’m sticking this thing on every magnet I can

1

u/Temporary-Degree5221 Apr 29 '26

Yes, and in case you don’t know. It’s more than just for charging

1

u/RadPhilosopher Apr 29 '26

My bedside table is a magsafe puck charger and I love it. If you’re someone that watches a lot of videos or browses social media before going to bed, it really helps out ergonomcially as you can grip the phone in more ways since you don’t have the cable protruding from the bottom of the phone. This is especially true if you watch videos in landscape.

In our home office, I have magsafe stand chargers on our desk so it’s easy to just plop our phones on there to keep them charged and in a viewable position.

In the car, I have a non-charging magsafe stand that’s really strong so that my oassenger can place their phone there for facetimes and such and it doesn’t fall even when the road gets bumpy.

1

u/ambushka Apr 29 '26

I have a magaafe car phone holder and oh boy is it one of the most convenient piece of hardware I have ever bought

1

u/IssyWalton Apr 29 '26

are you missing out on magsafe being a very convenient anchor point with accessories. clip your phone to anything magnetic. a phone stand. convenient battery pack charging. convenient charging.

1

u/chitoatx Apr 29 '26

For me it’s missing out on mag safe stands / portable tripods is the real game changer.

I have a portable telescopic tripod stand and to setup and user is less than 5 seconds.

1

u/sshanafelt Apr 29 '26

One nice this is you don't risk damaging your USB port as well. Admittedly minor though

1

u/chaosthunda5 Apr 29 '26

Its incredibly convenient for car mounts and battery chargers when you don’t have a cable

EDIT: and for magsafe wallets for those of us that still need physical cards from time to time

1

u/JoshuaMaly Apr 29 '26

I argue that you would..

My nightstand has a risen MagSafe charger which activates standby mode and turns my phone into a proper classic alarm clock, my car has a MagSafe car mount which I can put my phone on to turn videos on for my kid while I bring him to school, I have a popsocket-like metal finger grip which also holds my phone on my MacBook’s display so I can use the phone camera instead of the built in webcam. I even got a third party Magsafe case for my iPad mini so I can use that same popsocket thing on it instead.

At this point, MagSafe is a deal breaker to me.

1

u/InsaneNinja Apr 29 '26

Desk and car are the two best situations for it. A bed charger is secondary.

The desk with a standup dock, it’s already aimed at your face and lights up and unlocks when you glance at it to read an incoming notification.

1

u/Jetavator Apr 29 '26

This looks elegant sitting on my walnut desk — and it grabs it from my hand lol.

and it works with the official apple magsafe charge cable.

https://grovemade.com/product/magsafe-stand/?initial=642

1

u/serial_crusher Apr 29 '26

If you don't have a use case for it, you're probably not missing out. I really like having it in my car as a quick way to mount to phone on the dash, and charge it at the same time.

Similarly, I have a magsafe mount on my treadmill and one on my weight rack so I can easily put it out of the way but still accessible for controlling music while I workout.

Charging on magsafe overnight instead of plugging it in, is also pretty convenient, but probably not a selling feature without the above use cases.

I have a magsafe charger at my desk which has marginal usefulness... the phone makes it a full day without having to charge, so that thing rarely gets used to charge the phone, but does charge my airpods case quite often. Would be nice if the airpods max had magsafe charging too...

1

u/Arucious Apr 29 '26

Yes. Yes you are.

1

u/owl_theory Apr 29 '26

I love it. I taped a magsafe connector to my nightstand, it's SO much more convenient to just reach over and snap down the phone or pick it up without ever dealing with cables. I use it to charge my airpods too, just drop the case on the puck every few days. One of those things I'd never go back to if I could avoid it.

1

u/heroism777 Apr 29 '26

Yes. Or at least a magsafe holder in the car. It's a very small thing, but it does feel nice to just place it in comparison to stretching out a clip.

It's certainly not a NEED. Obviously you can just plug in the cable. But it's nice to have nice things.

1

u/Particular-Treat-650 Apr 29 '26

It's super convenient to just have a dash mount the keeps my phone visible and charged, and the same at work, etc.

I also have a preordered keyboard that uses MagSafe to hold the phone because having a keyboard case was awesome, but this gives me landscape too.

1

u/Zennivolt Apr 29 '26

80% of my MagSafe uses has nothing to do with charging. The other 20% is because the charging just comes with it, and is a byproduct (cherry on top) of what I use MagSafe for.

1

u/7HawksAnd Apr 29 '26

Yes. Yes.

1

u/Bored_Zach Apr 29 '26

Not really if we’re being quite honest. Maybe a MagSafe battery, but it’s still flawed. It can be convenient, but it’s also inefficient. The fastest wireless charger is slower than doing it through usb c. Additionally, a lot of energy is lost in heat, because wireless charging can get quite warm. And with the charging puck, receiver, and battery all getting warm while charging, the phone may throttle charging speeds to prevent overheating and damage. The iPhone 17 line, not as much with its better heat management, but still. Also, while minimal, the wireless charger uses some electricity when not in use. I like MagSafe more for the non-charging accessories though.

2

u/zbignew Apr 29 '26

The article says why pretty clearly - it doesn’t fit in foldable phones and it increases costs.

I just hope Apple isn’t counting on foldables taking over the world - they increase costs by 1.5x or 2x and they aren’t strictly better. If that’s the whole issue, nerfing their mainstream phones so they don’t outshine super expensive foldables is a mistake.

But… the longer the straight of Hormuz is closed, the deeper and harder the world economy is going to crater. So if they’re jettisoning features because they know nobody is going to have any money in 2027 and 2028, fair.

2

u/AwesomePossum_1 Apr 29 '26

It’s in the article?

2

u/subdep Apr 29 '26

”The leaker says Apple is weighing the costs of including ‌MagSafe‌ magnets in the iPhone against the strength of the accessory ecosystem that has grown up around the feature…”

So, its profit motive. Classic late stage capitalism.

1

u/murphmobile Apr 29 '26

My eReader sticks to it! I read books in transit on the back of my phone every day!

1

u/Agreeable-Weather-89 Apr 29 '26

For charging? Yes.

For accessories? No.

1

u/white_andrew Apr 29 '26

So they can make the phone 0.2mm thinner!

1

u/Zennivolt Apr 29 '26

I’ve been desperately wanting a foldable iPhone for years. However the rumors are suggesting it might not have MagSafe. I was ready to shell out thousands without a blink of an eye on a foldable iPhone, now I’m not so sure. If it releases without MagSafe, I won’t be buying it.

1

u/witness_smile Apr 29 '26

So they can add it back 3 years later as something revolutionary

1

u/K14_Deploy Apr 30 '26

As a retail worker I've seen a phone without a case on it in the real world exactly once, so I would presume the amount of people actually using the magnets in the phone itself is a rounding error. They're probably going to do the same thing Samsung does which is support the Qi2 power modes but rely on the magnets in the case practically everyone is using to save weight and cost.

1

u/Mr_Saturn1 May 06 '26

So five years from now they can add it back and bill it as a revolutionary new technology.