Qi —The accessory was announced back in October alongside the iPhone 12
The MagSafe Duo charger. It folds up like this. Here it is with two devices on it.
Today, Apple finally began selling and shipping the MagSafe Duo charger, an accessory that was announced alongside the new iPhone 12 lineup on October 13.
The MagSafe Duo is a charging pad that uses Qi wireless charging tech to charge two devices at once. Apple says it supports any Qi-enabled device but, of course, it specifically notes that the Duo can charge any two-device combination of an iPhone, an Apple Watch, or AirPods cases.
The MagSafe Duo charger is just one of a number of MagSafe accessories Apple announced in October. New iPhones have a magnet built into the back that is designed to allow chargers and cases to latch on, and MagSafe iPhones also have built-in sensors to detect what kind of accessory is being connected and communicate with it via NFC.
Apple also announced at that same iPhone event that new iPhones wouldn’t come with charging bricks in their boxes, and that also applies to this charger. Apple is assuming here that most anyone who buys this already has a charging brick on hand, but if you don’t, Apple’s store page says the following about what you should make sure to get to use the MagSafe Duo:
– 20W USB-C Power Adapter (sold separately) for faster wireless charging up to 11W
– 27W or higher USB-C Power Adapter (sold separately) for faster wireless charging up to 14W
Obviously, wired charging is going to be much faster. But if you like the convenience of wireless charging, this is Apple’s intended multidevice solution for you—though it doesn’t support three devices at once like the long-ago announced-then-seemingly-canceled AirPower mat.
The MagSafe Duo is priced at $129 and ships right away, with the first deliveries expected to arrive at buyers’ doorsteps later this week.
Listing image by Apple
Samuel Axon